Loved it.
Stay duration : 2 nights
Booking type: Hilton.com - non refundable rate
Room type booked : 1 King bed mini suite
Number of people staying : 2 adults and 1 kid
Status: Diamond
Upgrade: 1 Bedroom Corner Luxury Suite
Room: 13H
Finally, after reading all the reviews, I stayed at the hotel. I was very apprehensive on receiving a dumpy old room with no escape since i booked a non-refundable rate.
We arrived at the hotel with a doorman opening the cab door. Walked inside and the lobby was kickin' as it was Friday night around 7:30 PM. I was lucky not have to wait in line for longer than a couple minutes to check in. Nice lady greeted me and welcomed me back (last stay Oct. 2001). I had called the day before asking if they could upgrade me to a 1 bedroom suite from my king mini suite and they told me they were fully booked but would try their best. I asked if they couldn't upgrade me, please put me in 2722 or 2622 or 2522 (thanks to this thread). The lady told me they had me in 2722. I was happy to hear that but pressed for a larger room and she told me nothing was available that would top my room and that they sometimes put Towers guests on the 27th floor. She gave me 2 coupons for full American breakfast for two at Oscar's and 2 coupons for Starbucks drink and pastry for 2.
Had to use room key to access rooms after 6 PM. Arrived in room and yes, indeed, it was very nice with two rooms and two bathrooms, but it felt small. The room was very clean and lights were lit up making the room feel very welcoming, however, I could not get over how it felt small. I picked up the phone and called guest services and asked if there was anything else. After about 5 minutes of nothing else, all of a sudden, the lady asked if she could put me on hold while she talked to housekeeping. She came back on the line and said there was a large 1 bedroom luxury suite with boudoir, large sitting room and large bedroom. She said to meet her at 13R. We immediately went down there and she came down the hall with 2 new room keys and a smile. We walked in and I was stunned at the size. Large marble foyer, very large sitting room with a fireplace!!, spacious bedroom, large boudior with endless storage space, large bathroom with two separate sinks and lots of counter space, separate tub and shower and commode room and kitchen (dated from the 80s but had fridge, stove, sink, dishwasher, cutting board and lots of counter space). Room was so big that my young kid would not go walking around unless I was with or would follow me around if I went to a different area.
I could not believe this. I promptly called guest relations and thanked them.
We ordered room service the first night. Food came within 30 minutes. To be honest, it was too expensive for what you got. Portions were a very good size but food was tasteless. Service was excellent.
All the staff I encountered during the trip gave top notch service. We received a voicemail on each day of our stay wishing us a great stay and to call if we needed anything.
We were in town for a wedding and needed suggestions to kill time during the day for our kid. Concierge gave great recommendations.
Now, critiquing the room - furniture style was upper east side NYC. Sofa and matching chair in the room were very old. You could really see the age on those 2 pieces. Other chairs throughout looked more recent. Bed was comfortable. Lots of pillows. Flat screen tvs in bedroom and sitting room. While scrolling channels, I ran into 4 or 5 Arabic channels which I assume they had programmed in when the King of Saudi Arabia and his entourage were at the hotel in November.
Breakfast at Oscar's was top notch. Had everything you could imagine.
We ran into the housekeeper after breakfast and were able to hang out in the sitting room without feeling like we were in her way while she worked in the bathroom. She even vacuumed and I had not noticed anything highly visible so that was a big plus. The room, overall, felt very clean.
Overall, my expectations were exceeded. I didn't have much cash on me but did leave the lady who upgraded us a $50 tip. I found her at the check-in desk when I was leaving and was lucky enough to hand it to her personally. She seemed very appreciative.
So basically, I think the lesson to learn here is if you feel your room does not meet your needs, call guest relations and they will do their best to accommodate you if they can and they do so with a smile.