fromYXU

Is the train to downtown still the best option?

BAGoldBoy

It's what we always do. Very quick and much cheaper than the taxi fare

lbbzman

Hi, BAGoldBoy. I'm planning a sightseeing trip to Barcelona for December. I haven't been able to find any information about this hotel (or the Hilton Barcelona) as it relates to public transport. I take it from your response that the Hilton Diagonal Mar Barcelona is close to a train stop? Do you have any more information (which stop is it... is this hotel or the Hilton Barcelona more appropriate for a sightseeing visit, etc.)?

Thanks in advance,
LBBZman

chuckroby

We stayed there in Sept '05 for sightseeing using points. At first I was upset by how far from the city it was, but it worked great. Views from the rooms are superb and we found the staff to be very helpful contrary to some posts here. The train/subway is the way to go. You walk about three blocks (would not be good in the rain) to the yellow line (L4) stop at El Maresme Forum and take it to the Jaume I stop (7 stops and 15 minutes or so) for the old part of town (La Cuitat Vella). Very convenient and the subway/trains are immaculate and timely, great system. It is also easy to get to Sagrada Familia and the Eixample district (Gaudi, shopping, etc.) Take the yellow line the other way to end at La Pau and change to the purple line (L2). The only issue we had was needing to go back to the hotel to change for dinner and then going back into town to eat, although it wasn't that big of a deal for us. I don't know where the Hilton Barcelona is, but I seem to remember it was
not centrally located either. To be really central might require a different hotel chain.

BAGoldBoy

Yes the Hilton Diagonal Mar Barcelona is not that close to the centre of Barcelona but you're close to the Ramblas and many of the attractions and the underground is very cheap and efficient. The Hilton Barcelona is in the middle of the CBD and is really not a good base for a holiday

DrDolphin

I have booked two rooms on rewards points before an upcoming cruise next summer out of Barcelona -- anyone have any experience with this hotel? Goods, bads??? Any advice?

JDiver

Welcome to FlyerTalk! You'll find a treasurehouse of information here, ready and waiting...

Two things I recommend to new members is to 1) read the sticky threads at the top of the main forum page (the moderators of the Hilton HHonors Forum have done an outstanding job, in my opinion, of making many things HHonors accessible here,) and 2) try using the Search facility, as on many occasions your questions have already been answered by other members. (One caveat: Search is getting some work at the moment, so one word searches, as distinct as possibe, work best, e.g. "Barcelona" or "Diagonal" might work, but "Hilton Barcelona" or "Diagonal del Mar" might time the system out.)

Using the Search facility rendered this thread:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showt...ight=Barcelona

Just this facility will open up a lot of collected wisdom here.

Cheers.

JDiver

It sounds like member izzik may have encountered more a culture clash than anything else - different tolerance for directness, so folks will say something that would be what they think the customer wants to hear, which then a customer might discern as a "lie." It often pays to learn a bit about how a culture communicates - the metacommunication, as well as the words we so frequently focus on - to have an easier way getting what one expects.

Cheers.

BNAChairman

I just completed a points stay there 11/13-11/17/06 for a vacation. The property has a wonderful view of the Mediterranean and a fantastic 15th floor executive lounge with an outdoor deck. There was a Microsoft conference in progress at a neighboring hotel during my stay. They unfortunately follow the new upgrade policy for hotels outside the US - no lounge access unless you're staying on the executive floor. They offered a compromise of upgrading me to a non-executive floor junior suite with lounge access for 70 Euros per night. I negotiated down to 50 Euros per night for three nights of my stay and then was moved to a regular executive room at no extra charge on the last night. They listed the charge on the bill as "upselling."

I'm really disappointed in the new VIP upgrade rules for Hiltons abroad. It now allows the hotels to selectively grant lounge access to non-executive room guests for whatever charge they feel is appropriate.

The property is a 5-10 minute walk from the nearest subway stop, Mariseme/Forum on the yellow line. It's about a 15 minute ride to the top sights in Barcelona from this stop.

Braindrain

Maybe because the hotel was quite full? I was there in Sept and got the executive room/lounge access without having to ask for it.

As for the hotel itself, it was great! ^ It's not on Ramblas but it's an excellent hotel.

berlinflyer

I currently have a very pleasent stay at one of the best Hiltons in Europe, the Barcelona Diagonal Mar.

One thing that makes this place so great are the people working here. The following happened today and I have to congratulate the Manager on Duty for his reaction:

Two families met in the Lounge and started drinking in the early afternoon. When I returned after 8pm, they were still there, drinking like mad and even giving their teenage kids beer and other stuff.

They were very loud, yelling, screaming and disturbing all the other guests in the lounge. Finally, the Manager on Duty showed up and asked them to calm down and be a little respectful towards the other guests.

After 30 more minutes of behaving totally embarassing, the lounge personel called him back to talk to the goup again. He got yelled at by the "head of the family", telling him he was "a very important Hilton guest". However, the Manager on Duty told him to leave right away, he already brought two security men with him. He finally managed to make these people leave, not without discusting comments from them.

I must admit that the Manager on Duty solved the situation very, very professional and gained my respect by staying calm, polite but yet not backing up.

^ for the staff at Hilton Diagonal Mar Barcelona and for the family who acted like they owned the property....oh, did I mention it happened on christmas??

Rambuster

Please enlighten us as to what nationaly these drunks were from ?

(I love a good stereotype)

Flying Lawyer

I would love to see that in other Hilton hotels, too but they normally do not have the guts to do it....

fastflyer

I'd add that it was correct to have the GM get involved (rather than the other lounge guests).

The only time I have felt physically endangered in a hotel lounge was by a completely drunk couple at one of the San Francisco Marriotts, when I and other guests asked them for peace and quiet.

X3Skier

I have stayed there a few times and the Executive Lounge Staff have always been exceptional. Kudos to them for handling an potentially dangerous situation.

Cheers