scubaccr

Maybe less generous offering than before, but I will continue to rate lounges based on their relativity to other Hilton's rather than to any thing like spirits withdrawal that is occuring at many other Hilton brands too.

Yes there are some better lounges, but also worse too. Remember too that USA lounges mostly charge you for the alcohol.

kahuna1993

Stayed 3 nights for extended Aug. 15 weekend ( Aug. 14 in , out sunday Aug. 17) ; our first stay since the new GM is in place and there have been several positive changes in our eyes - in hotel but also staff and general -atitudes-:

+ great location centrally in "old Antwerp" with safe, paid parking- access is best if you type "eiermarkt" in your gps- and direct entry into lobby
+ very friendly check in by Mr. T.M. , efficient and very friendly duty manager with "can do" attitude who made sure we got one of our favourite rooms on exec. level so we got a very nice upgrade as HH diamond !
+ we got a follow up contact from duty manager to make sure all was well and if we were happy! We told him there was a problem with the coffee machine in the exec. lounge- really "horror" for us a we are used to a strong , fresh brew on frequent moments in the day- and he made sure it was repaired before breakfast next morning ...but still IMHO the F&B manager should have a chat with their coffee roaster or change brands of beans to get better brew especially as they have such an expensive WMF machine which needs TLC from the lounge staff !
This EL - btw the only remaining Hilton E.L. in Belgium - should certainly be able to deliver a good cup of belgian roast before sending guests off into the cold rainy streets enjoying the beautifull old quarter around the cathedral!
+ late check out for sunday was already approved at check in on thursday !
+ great breakfast , more tables and seats in the EL than on the previous visits.Some sofa's were removed to make place for breakfast tables making sure less guests have to leave exec.lounge as we saw on previous visits and need to get in line to get breakfast downstairs at very busy restaurant !
+ pre -arrival mail by guest service supervisor letting us know all stores in Antwerp would be closed on Aug 15 but there was a "Rubens" themed market in the old Antwerp that friday .It was a bit rained out but fun to visit .
+ Good advice - and table reservations in almost fully booked places- from staff on where to go for 2 great dinners in a row within walking distance.
+ House keeping was very good , lots better than on previous visits, and our room was very clean whenver we returned in the afternoon so big ++ there !!
Had turndown service on 2 nights but nothing on saturday... Free bottle of drinking water and refilled selection of tea plus coffee and water boiler were present every day with clean cups ...
+ Staff of EL was friendly and efficient , choices for food in evening were some fried chicken nuggets and potato croquettes, cheese , vegetables in a glass with dip but this is a hotle with lots of good choices around the area so no need to stay in for dinner in the EL .

Afternoon treats are nice and change daily .


= Very positive stay in a very clean room on exec. floor , positive attitude of staff and nice to spend a longer time than usual while getting to enjoy the hotel and surroundings so we certainly will be coming back on our next stay in Antwerp !

jreichel

Just returned from a one night stay Saturday till Sunday. I am Diamond and used online check-in for the first time. Had booked a Standard King. When online check-in became available the day before our arrival date only standard rooms were offered, so I skipped. On the morning of our arrival day, I tried again and could see that we had been upgraded to an Executive King, so I proceeded. Picked a room for its quiet location and that's what we got when we arrived (contrary to many reports that checking in online does not mean anything as the room gets changed, anyway).

The non-smoking room had a strong nicotine smell and it was freezing cold. Changing the air condition from cooling to heating did not change the temperature. We called guest services and they sent a maid who freshened up the room by spraying something. They also said they would remotely raise the temperature, but to no avail. It took a couple of hours, three phone calls, and finally another visit of a staff member to finally acknowledge that the air condition was broken. Then, they moved us to a different room on the some floor. No apologies given.

On Sunday morning, we decided to have the Diamond breakfast at the restaurant downstairs because we did not like the decor of the lounge which we found very old-fashioned, 80s-American style. That's certainly a matter of taste, though. The restaurant was a zoo: Long wait time at the entrance, big sign saying "please wait to be seated", people just walking by and seating themselves. Slow and inefficient service, rather skim selection of foods. And they seem to have a problem with their dishwasher. Plates and glasses were dirty, I mean real dirty. Some were still wet and warm because they had just arrived from the kitchen. No one bothered to wipe them dry. In that case they would have discovered how dirty they were, so maybe that was on purpose.

Don't get me wrong: I am perfectly aware that as a Diamond I am only entitled to a free continental breakfast, so technically, we received more than what was due. But for those guests who do pay for breakfast value for money is poor. And dishes should be clean, no matter whether the food served is free, cheap, or upscale.

Overall, definitely a sub-par experience.

DrLudwig

Not impressed either. Got a non smoking executive room which smelt of smoke. They offered to clean it (60mins) which I declined since it was late. They offered an alcove suite which was spacious but dated. Not tried lounge or breakfast. Staff was pleasant.

ITravelElite

To bad, lounge is simple, was much better last year.
Only simple wines at the lounge

fozziedoggie

Are you saying that the selection of great Belgium beers is now gone

ITravelElite

The special beers are gone in the lounge.
There is a guestbook in the lounge, I wrote my experiences here.
In Belgium & The Netherlands lounges are back to basic, read "Poor basic".

CIT85

The Belgian beers they used to have in the Lounge were rather basic. There are hundreds of great Belgian beers. I usually go to a store and buy Trapiste ales whenever I'm in Belgium.

Sisosig

Hilton Antwerp Old Town has been aquired by a local capital fund, Buysse & Partners. Plans are being drawn to renovate all guest rooms in 2016. The Victor Horta designed Art Nouveau building originaly opened as department store 'Grand Bazar du Bon Marché' in 1906. After it's closure and renovation, in 1993 it became the Antwerp Hilton. From 2007 the Hilton had been owned by Israeli investment firm Electra Real Estate. As of last month it's back in local ownership, which hopefuly will bring back real ale into the lounge.

Source:
Gazet van Antwerpen July 4.

Sisosig

There's a little I need to add. Haven't stayed here since last year, and just like two people with a more recent experience, my first impression was: non-smoking room badly smelled of cigarette smoke. I didn't complain because my time of arrival was rather late in the evening and I had been upgraded from a standard room to an executive suite with a cathedral view. But that just basicaly sums it up: haven't stayed there since.

Musta Pekka

Spent last Saturday one night at Hilton Atwerp. Had booked a Standard King and got upgraded to Executive King as I am HH Diamond. That of course was fine.

I was travelling with a friend at this stay. He checked in parallel to me. He had also booked a Standard King. To my big surprise he got upgraded to the Ambassadeur Suite as a HH Blue ! You really start to wonder what are the criterias to give upgrades and what is the value of HH Diamond ? Both of us paid the same rate as we got the Summer sale rate.

ITravelElite

Did you speak with the general manager. He's a nice guy and taking complains very good. You can also tweet them.

Musta Pekka

No, I did not do that. In hindsight I should have. Anyway I liked my friend getting this upgrade to a suite for the first time in his life

Zana711

April 2016 update:

I spent the weekend at Hilton Antwerp last week. As Diamond, booked standard King Room and got upgraded to junior suite plus lounge access and either free breakfast at the lounge or at the restaurant.

Echo previous comments:
1. Well overdue for a refurbishment in my opinion. The wooden desk in my room was so scratched it looked like it hasn't been replaced for the past 15 years. The "Junior Suite" was just a slightly bigger room. There wasn't even a coffee machine in the room.
2. Lounge food was dire compared to other Hiltons. Lounge open Mon - Fri from 6:00 - 23:00 and 6:00 - 21:00 on weekends. Lounge was reasonable in size but half the hotel must have been granted access to the lounge. It was really busy, so busy that the restaurant was more peaceful and quieter on the Sunday morning for breakfast. Lounge advertised a "light evening buffet" which was just pitiful looking sandwiches and some cheese and olives. No canapes. There were so many people in the lounge that the one staff on duty could not replenish the food quickly enough. I didn't see any Belgian beer, though there is house wine and Prosecco being served.
3. Lounge furniture has not been updated - still very 80s American style, as another Flyertalk member pointed out.

On the bright side, excellent choice in restaurant for breakfast and the hotel is very well located, in the heart of Old Town where there are plenty of restaurants within 5 mins walking distance from the hotel.

Pjh104

Currently in the exec lounge here drying out after a soaking when walking from the station. Strange looking yellow sandwiches, chicken nuggets and a decent cheese selection are the food offerings. Cava, one white (oaky Chardonnay), one red and De Koninck and Heineken for the beers.

Upgraded to two room suite, but the downside has been the blasted keys. Won't work the lifts, and the silver exec lounge one had to be reset.