flyupfrnt

HI @ BLI ( Bellingham,WA ) has indoor room access and quite frankly, is the nicest "motel" in Bellingham.

Its a VERY nice place

craz

Most HIs have interior corridors today. But the places are Bland, simply put an expensive Motel. Way better then Mom & Pops, BWs but a Motel just the same.

julyrose9

I prefer the HGI as well. Breakfasts are better there for sure!

KathyWdrf

To answer the question actually posed by the OP:

HGI does NOT include breakfast in the room rate, except for HHonors Gold and Diamond members (and in some special room rates, such as Bounceback etc.).

Hampton Inn DOES include breakfast for ALL guests and ALL rates.

That's an important distinction between the two chains (at least for non-elite HHonors members), which, oddly enough, no one in this thread has thus far bothered to mention!

Also, the statement (in post #2) that the Hampton only serves "Standard Cereal / toast / yogurt" is false. For quite some time now, the breakfast has been upgraded to include a hot item, which changes from day to day.

GeorgeJ

Are you including in the "hot item" the yummy chemical pattie that is supposed to be eggs? Yuck.

The sausage patties are usually OK. But the French Toast sticks are usually hard & dried out.

The typical HI has some work to do on the breakfast hot item...

arctictraveler

I stay at a lot of Hamptons and like them, but have to agree on the "hot items" at breakfast. About the only thing really edible is the sausage patties. That said, their cold items are good and there's usually a good selection to chose from.

As for very nice Hamptons, add the Broadway at the Beach location in Myrtle Beach. It's a beautiful 8 story property. If they had a full service restaurant there, they could put a Hilton flag on it.

The decor and design at HGI's are a notch above the average Hampton. As diamonds we've always been given carte blanche at the very good breakfast restaurant section. It's usually not very crowded, as the other guests seem to avoid the relatively expensive price.

ElmhurstNick

Most Hampton Inns are motels. Some are very nice motels, especially the newer properties. Some are not very nice, especially some of the original exterior corridor places in the South.

Most HGIs are small hotels, not motels. You can get a beer, and you can get some dinner. They are to this generation what many Holiday Inn Selects were in the 60s/70s. They are geared towards non-convention businessmen who don't need the convention amenities of a typical Hilton.

The blurring comes at some of the mega-Hamptons, such as the suburban ones with a six- or eight-story floor plan and an attached full service chain restaurant. Skokie IL and Natick MA come to mind. The Skokie property has a set of two-room corner suites that puts a HGI to shame, but their regular rooms are still traditional HI motel rooms.

craz

KW thanks for posting this, as a Diamond for XX yrs I forgot that HGIs breakfast is not free , but that as a Diamond it is free. Good pt to someone who would have to pay the $$ for breakfast and would rather not, then HI would be a better deal, unless they want that fridge/micro in the room

dmunz

Do HGIs have the early morning breakfast to go bags? When I stay at HI I'm usually do long drives in the middle of nowhere and the bag to go is great for an early start. I don't think I've ever even asked at a HGI.

FWIW

DLM

goingsomewhere

Hampton Inn - Breakfast; Breakfast on the Go; supposedly no spouse stays free

Garden Inn - 24 hour Pantry

telisto

I've had good luck at Hamptons. A few nice ones:

Burlington, VT
Morehead City, NC
Chincoteague Island, VA - http://www.hamptoninnsuiteschincoteague.com/

The last of those is probably the nicest hotel on the island -- every room has a balcony overlooking the water. It also won some 2005 best Hampton Inn award.

I agree the mystery hot breakfast item is to be avoided, but I also rarely find the HGI breakfast worth the money. I either want free continental, or I'll go to Bob Evans or Perkins or something.

I really like the look and branding of the new or remodelled Hamptons. It's never occurred to me to place them in the category of a motel.

Meanwhile, I'm still trying to find the elusive nice DoubleTree...

flyupfrnt

I mentioned the ONLY Breakfast items that are fit for Human Consumption. I am quite aware that they serve a "Hot Item" but it is not by any means a tasty breakfast like the ones served at HGI's.

Additionally, i do respect you pointing out that the "Free" breakfast at HGI's are only "FREE" for HHonors Gold and Diamond members, i had forgotten that as a Gold member.

Junkie-

boeingATL

my observations. . . the rooms are pretty much the same. Bad furniture, no wallpaper, hard carpeted floors and no trim moulding. HGI almost always have a small frig and micro (from what I've seen) I've been HHonors for a while and only recently stayed in HGI's. Given the option I would avoid both HI and HGI in favor of Courtyards or Summerfield. But to answer you question, I believe HGI's all have full service restaurants while HI's have the breakfaast room.

BearX220

HGIs have a business center, most HIs don't.
HGIs have meeting rooms and limited catering for same, most HIs don't.
HGIs have two tiers of breakfast buffet -- continental and cooked -- and they both cost money. HIs have one tier of breakfast buffet, low-quality cold items with one hot item, and it's free.
HGIs either serve dinner or run a cooperative room-service arrangement with nearby restaurants; HIs do nothing for dinner.
HGIs have fitness centers and pools; HIs may or may not.
HGIs have lobby lounges with fireplaces, HIs don't.
HGIs have liquor licenses and little corner-pocket bars where you can get a drink in the evening; HIs don't.
HGIs are virtually all custom-built and newer (CLE/Jacobs Field is one exception), and have similar layout/footprints; HI properties vary wildly and are often converted from some other name.
I perceive HGIs as pared-down Hiltons and HIs as motels that are trying hard.

Abidjan

I wouldn't put Courtyards above HGIs. One thing I appreciate is a more developed gym when compared to Hamptons. After long spells on the road, this is a big deal to me. The pantry items are nice too, especially when they're free. :-: