anabolism

Our Tienda Leone car had not the slightest hesitation about dropping us off at the main entrance, helping with out bags, etc. Same for the return trip, which we ended up booking with Tienda Leone as well, but via the web, which gave us a nice discount (ended up under 800) and let us pay by credit card on line. Car pulled up front and waited for us.

The Tienda Leone price each way specifically said it included tolls and driver tip, which is perhaps why the drivers didn't try to avoid the tolls. (We would have contacted the company to insist on a refund.)

I stayed in March of this year, and also a couple of years ago. Both stays were very similar. No fruit in room, and I did not even open the mini-bar so I can't say what was or wasn't in there. I never use glasses or mugs in the rooms at any hotel anywhere unless I see carts full of freshly washed ones rolling through the halls, since if they aren't washed en masse in the kitchen, they are washed by hand by housekeeping in the rooms, and I don't trust that. Neither my room from a couple years ago, nor either of my rooms from March were what I would call shabby. They weren't ultra-modern, but they were clean and functional and pleasant enough. The bathroom was in decent shape, sink, shower and toilet worked fine. Bath amenities were nicer than standard Hilton-issue ones. The executive lounge was decent but got very crowded at times (obviously depends on hotel occupancy) so best to get there just before service starts.

I've had breakfast in both the lounge and the restaurant. The restaurant has much more variety, including smoked salmon (a breakfast favorite of mine), custom egg station, etc.

I disagree that the property is comparable to a "run of the mill Hiltons you find in odd corners of the US" because in my experience, US Hilton properties tend to be what I would call shabby -- worn out room furnishings, a depressing and overcrowded executive lounge with a pitiful breakfast, and no restaurant breakfast offered to Diamonds. Don't get me wrong, this property is nowhere near the level of luxury or service you'd find at, say, the Hilton Tokyo or the Conrad Hong Kong, but it's comparable to Hilton properties all over the world. Plenty of European Hiltons have far smaller rooms, for example. The Hilton Sydney has rooms the size of postage stamps (they do have a nice restaurant breakfast, although not nearly as nice as it was just a few years ago). I'd say this property falls somewhere in the mid-range of non-US properties.

I'm certain this is highly dependent on hotel occupancy and time of day. In my experience, I never had a wait for a table downstairs, but after I was done I often saw a long line waiting to be seated; when the hotel is busy earlier is usually better than later.