Hilton Curacao - April 12-19, 2014
Apr 23, 2014, 5:16 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Chicago
Programs: Hilton, BA, AA, SPG
Posts: 49
Hilton Curacao - April 12-19, 2014
We stayed at the Hilton Curacao from April 12 to 19, 2014. We are Hilton Diamond members and used 238,000 Hilton Honors Points for the 7 night stay. We enjoyed the Executive Floor and Lounge the entire stay. In addition, we used 70,000 American Airlines each for my wife and I to fly round trip from Chicago for a total cost for the two of us of $128. We flew from Chicago to Miami to Curacao. We left Chicago at 5am and by 3pm we were at the Hilton.
The sea off the Hilton beach is tremendous - truly wonderful! We went snorkeling every day and went scuba diving one day. The temperature was in the high 80's everyday and the water temperature was very comfortable.
The executive lounge was small and the style, much like the rest of the hotel, was out of the 1960s. Breakfast consisted of fruit, coffee, juice, hard boiled eggs, bacon, rolls, bread, cheese, and ham. The coffee machine also makes cappuccino which was fantastic! During the day coffee and soft drinks were available. At night they had some hot hors d'oeuvres and alcohol at reduced prices - wine $3, beer $3.
A couple of days into our stay, we were told by another guest that gold and diamond members can also have breakfast at the Aqua restaurant at no cost for the continental breakfast and $6 for a hot breakfast.
I would recommend bringing your own mask and snorkel as the ones they have for sale or rent are fairly high priced as were most things at the Hilton. As this vacation was such a bargain for us we didn't mind too much. If you haven't scuba dived in the past year they make you take a refresher dive, that is what we did. It costs $90 and comes with a one hour shore dive that is not to be believed! We swam with a beautiful turtle, saw eels, and tons of fish of all varieties (yes, all:-) The water is incredibly clear and warm. Divemaster JJ was excellent and provided a very thorough course.
There is a free shuttle that the Hilton provides to go into Willemstad that seats around 9. It goes twice a day, once in the morning and once in the early afternoon, it picks you up about 4 hours later. There was never a problem getting on the shuttle while we were there however it is best to sign up at least one day prior. We only went into town once.
Kareen in the Executive lounge made our vacation wonderful - Thank you!
Everyone in the hotel is very nice although the bar and wait staff were definitely on tico time. Many times you would be standing at the bar and they just look past you and take their time.
The Marriott is located a short walk from the Hilton and is much more upscale. We ate there several times during our stay.
I inquired about staying at the Hilton Curacao over Christmas and was told that the Executive Lounge becomes crowded and to expect lines for coffee and for seats. We had no such problems in April and the views from the Executive lounge are amazing!
Did someone mention Sea Glass? One of the small beaches has an insane amount of beautiful sea glass. We came back with about 20 pounds of sea glass. Very fun!
The Hilton itself is old and dated. The beach is beautiful although it would be nice if the beach was combed for rocks and cleaned of cigarette butts. That said, relative to what we paid we were very pleased with the trip overall!
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The sea off the Hilton beach is tremendous - truly wonderful! We went snorkeling every day and went scuba diving one day. The temperature was in the high 80's everyday and the water temperature was very comfortable.
The executive lounge was small and the style, much like the rest of the hotel, was out of the 1960s. Breakfast consisted of fruit, coffee, juice, hard boiled eggs, bacon, rolls, bread, cheese, and ham. The coffee machine also makes cappuccino which was fantastic! During the day coffee and soft drinks were available. At night they had some hot hors d'oeuvres and alcohol at reduced prices - wine $3, beer $3.
A couple of days into our stay, we were told by another guest that gold and diamond members can also have breakfast at the Aqua restaurant at no cost for the continental breakfast and $6 for a hot breakfast.
I would recommend bringing your own mask and snorkel as the ones they have for sale or rent are fairly high priced as were most things at the Hilton. As this vacation was such a bargain for us we didn't mind too much. If you haven't scuba dived in the past year they make you take a refresher dive, that is what we did. It costs $90 and comes with a one hour shore dive that is not to be believed! We swam with a beautiful turtle, saw eels, and tons of fish of all varieties (yes, all:-) The water is incredibly clear and warm. Divemaster JJ was excellent and provided a very thorough course.
There is a free shuttle that the Hilton provides to go into Willemstad that seats around 9. It goes twice a day, once in the morning and once in the early afternoon, it picks you up about 4 hours later. There was never a problem getting on the shuttle while we were there however it is best to sign up at least one day prior. We only went into town once.
Kareen in the Executive lounge made our vacation wonderful - Thank you!
Everyone in the hotel is very nice although the bar and wait staff were definitely on tico time. Many times you would be standing at the bar and they just look past you and take their time.
The Marriott is located a short walk from the Hilton and is much more upscale. We ate there several times during our stay.
I inquired about staying at the Hilton Curacao over Christmas and was told that the Executive Lounge becomes crowded and to expect lines for coffee and for seats. We had no such problems in April and the views from the Executive lounge are amazing!
Did someone mention Sea Glass? One of the small beaches has an insane amount of beautiful sea glass. We came back with about 20 pounds of sea glass. Very fun!
The Hilton itself is old and dated. The beach is beautiful although it would be nice if the beach was combed for rocks and cleaned of cigarette butts. That said, relative to what we paid we were very pleased with the trip overall!
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Last edited by moobearus; Apr 23, 2014 at 7:00 pm
Jul 15, 2014, 8:20 pm
#2
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: right place, wrong time
Programs: UA Gold; HH Diamond; Hyatt Plat
Posts: 300
thank you for the nice report. just booked four nights here for next month. 33,800 points/night for oceanfront jr. suite.
any recommendations on transportation to/from the airport?
is the hot breakfast at Aqua worth the extra $6?
are the tennis courts free, or pay to play?
any recommendations on transportation to/from the airport?
is the hot breakfast at Aqua worth the extra $6?
are the tennis courts free, or pay to play?
Jul 23, 2014, 5:07 pm
#3
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Chicago
Programs: Hilton, BA, AA, SPG
Posts: 49
There are taxis lined up in front of the airport. We paid $25 for a fast one way ride to the Hilton - that included any tip. Perhaps we could of done it cheaper but it sounded acceptable so we took it.
We ate the fruit, yogurt, and breads for breakfast so for us the $6 hot breakfast isn't worth it. I highly recommend the executive lounge cappuccino from the coffee maker - fantastic! The bacon in the executive lounge is wonderful too!
The Tennis courts are not free. I do not remember how much I heard they were but I think it was about $10 an hour. They light them up at night. They have racquets that you can use - I think you can use them for free but am not certain. Obviously we didn't play tennis.
You will love it! Have a great trip!
We ate the fruit, yogurt, and breads for breakfast so for us the $6 hot breakfast isn't worth it. I highly recommend the executive lounge cappuccino from the coffee maker - fantastic! The bacon in the executive lounge is wonderful too!
The Tennis courts are not free. I do not remember how much I heard they were but I think it was about $10 an hour. They light them up at night. They have racquets that you can use - I think you can use them for free but am not certain. Obviously we didn't play tennis.
You will love it! Have a great trip!
Jul 24, 2014, 12:36 am
#4
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: LAX
Programs: UA MM | BA Silver
Posts: 7,192
I remember those views!
We stayed at the Hilton for a few days (2010) and I proposed on a private island about 2 hours off the coast. The hotel staff were so excited when they found out I would be proposing, so much so they almost gave the surprise away. The day I popped the question the manager gussied up our room on the executive floor. Overall the staff were very helpful, friendly and accommodating.
A new elevator was being installed at the time adding some noise during the day, but overall it was a great stay.
We stayed at the Hilton for a few days (2010) and I proposed on a private island about 2 hours off the coast. The hotel staff were so excited when they found out I would be proposing, so much so they almost gave the surprise away. The day I popped the question the manager gussied up our room on the executive floor. Overall the staff were very helpful, friendly and accommodating.
A new elevator was being installed at the time adding some noise during the day, but overall it was a great stay.