Hilton HHonors - Hilton Antwerp: early departure and breakfast fee

I'm a Hilton Diamond member. Booked a two night stay a couple of days ago at the Hilton Antwerp, Belgium.

I asked for a quiet room and got a room with communicating doors (that after giving a 50 euro fee when checking in without even getting a 'thank you'), I could follow the conversations next door. I moved to a junior suite for more than double the rate of my first room. I decided to leave after one night because the airconditioning couldn't give the room an acceptable temperature, it stayed cold the whole night and morning, after putting it on maximum.

When leaving the first thing they told me at reception is that they would charge me 50% of the second night as an 'early departure fee'. As I've almost spend 5000$ at the Hilton Antwerp this year only, no need to say I was furious, on the brink of really getting angry. They only dropped the fee after I made my point to a reception manager. Have any other Diamond members been confronted with early departure fees? If they would have charged the 50% it would have cost me more than 200 euro.

Another thing is the breakfast. In all other Hiltons (even at the Waldorf Astoria in NYC) when I have breakfast in my room they only charge the room service fee. In Antwerp, although the breakfast is included, they charge the full price + service fee when you have it in your room. When I read the benefit policy of HHonors Diamond members, it doesn't say you have to take the breakfast in the lounge for it to be free. Anyone else experiences with these charges?

I've send an e-mail to the manager, I'm curious what his reaction will be, because I was really pissed of after this hotel experience. :mad:

Diamond breakfast doesn't mean room service IME.

I'm a Hilton Diamond member. Booked a two night stay a couple of days ago at the Hilton Antwerp, Belgium.

I asked for a quiet room and got a room with communicating doors (that after giving a 50 euro fee when checking in without even getting a 'thank you'), I could follow the conversations next door. I moved to a junior suite for more than double the rate of my first room. I decided to leave after one night because the airconditioning couldn't give the room an acceptable temperature, it stayed cold the whole night and morning, after putting it on maximum.

When leaving the first thing they told me at reception is that they would charge me 50% of the second night as an 'early departure fee'. As I've almost spend 5000$ at the Hilton Antwerp this year only, no need to say I was furious, on the brink of really getting angry. They only dropped the fee after I made my point to a reception manager. Have any other Diamond members been confronted with early departure fees? If they would have charged the 50% it would have cost me more than 200 euro.

Another thing is the breakfast. In all other Hiltons (even at the Waldorf Astoria in NYC) when I have breakfast in my room they only charge the room service fee. In Antwerp, although the breakfast is included, they charge the full price + service fee when you have it in your room. When I read the benefit policy of HHonors Diamond members, it doesn't say you have to take the breakfast in the lounge for it to be free. Anyone else experiences with these charges?

I've send an e-mail to the manager, I'm curious what his reaction will be, because I was really pissed of after this hotel experience. :mad:


Well, this really suprises me, I to stay a lot at the Hilton Antwerp, but never had an experience like this. . . They always treat me very well, I do not even have to say my name when I check in, who did your checkin?

I don't know the name of the person that checked me in. It was a young girl that I hadn't seen there before. She took my credit card and HHonors Diamond card with the 50 euro fee in a very stoical way without even a very basic 'thank you'.

Although my major reason to get angry was the early departure fee of 50% of my rate (more than 200 euro) they wanted to charge, although the reason I was leaving was the temperature problem in the suite after I already switched from a noisy room with communicating doors.

And why would they not charge the in-room breakfast in places like the Waldorf Astoria, Conrad Brussels, ... but charge it in the Hilton Antwerp?

Probarbly one of their trainees did your check in... if she was speaking 'hollands' than I think I know who it was, I am contacting the hotel tomorrow regarding my new years eve reservations for the dinner, and I will mention this, and ask them if this is the normal policy.. I once used the room service but only got the 5 euro delivery charge, and after asking they did waive this to.. And the early departure fee is totally absurd, since they could not solve the heating problem nor did provide you an upgrade for free to another suite..

She was indeed speaking 'Hollands'. These are my dates in the Hilton Antwerp this year:

7-11 jan 2008

20-28 april 2008

7-8 december 2008

That's 13 nights for the Hilton Antwerp (with a total of +/- 5000$ as I constantly have dinner/room service in the hotel), not even mentioning stays at other Hilton/Conrad hotels in Belgium, the US, ...

So I think I can expect a better service, Hilton Antwerp really dissapointed me last weekend. I'm wondering what they are gonna answer if you mention the breakfast and early departure fee. Maybe they are more generous to you because they know your face as you stay there a lot for short stays. As you can see I only visit the hotel every few months for a longer stay.

To MrHilton:

In an extended but very cool reply Mr. Krygsman wrote:

*They would check the noise in the room with communicating doors.
*Early departure fees are the same at all Hiltons, they charge one night (although when checking out they tried to charge me 50% of the next night, sounds a bit like trying and see how the customer responds). I looked at the booking conditions, nowhere is it mentioned that there is a fixed fee for early departures, his comments are incorrect.
*Charging breakfast when you have it in your room depends on the Hilton you're staying.

He didn't answer to my comment about the temperature problem in the suite. Mr. Krygsman offered me a voucher for an upgrade to a suite and access to the lounge (very handy when you're already a diamond member). In a very short reply I refused the voucher. Next time I'm staying in Antwerp in the Radissos Sas Park Lane. If that's the way they treat customers in the Hilton Antwerp that spend such amounts on a private account, then it's obvious they are only interested in the 'business traveler'. I don't think I will ever stay at the Hilton Antwerp again.