I just completed a two night stay here. In short: it's fine, but it depends what you want out of a hotel.

By way of background, I gave up on Hilton quite some time ago. In Utrecht, I've previously stayed at the Apollo, NH, Park Plaza, and maybe another I'm forgetting. I've mostly been staying at the NH.

The entrance is hard to find on 1F of the mall. I knew where it was since I'd walked past it before, but there is basically no signage until you get to it. (If you can find the food places like Leon, Salsa Shop, or Burger Federation, it's one floor up across the atrium.) There is actually nothing on 1F, you go up to 3F to check-in. (It looks like the Crowne Plaza will have it's entrance on 0F.)

The rooms at the Hampton are small, just larger than the bed (though with a reasonably full sized bathroom). I'd say they're less than half the size of the NH rooms (at least in the tower). There's a small fold-out table just under the TV that serves as a "desk" - it's just large enough for your laptop and a mouse, though the unit it's built in does offer some nearby flat surfaces for small items. I noticed a few people spread out in the lobby (on 3F) to work. There is an "open closet" with some hangars and a place to put your bag, but not much other storage.

The bathroom is adequate, with a walk in shower that provides ok water pressure but had trouble maintaining water temperature, even at "off peak" hours. The bathroom uses wall mounted dispensers. There is a hot water kettle, but not much else in the way of amenities.

Breakfast is about what you'd expect for a Hampton in Europe: Better than Hampton in the US, not as good as more premium brands in Europe. There was a decent variety, but I'd get bored with it after about 3 days. Later in the day, there is a bar and apparently you can order pizza.

There is a small gym on 3F with four machines (treadmills, bikes, etc), free weights (up to 12kg IIRC), and a multi-purpose cable weight machine. The staff were friendly and helpful. The lifts were occasionally a bottleneck (only 2 of 4 lifts serve the hotel, and even though there's theoretically a staircase, I have no idea where it goes).

The Hampton occupies 4F - 6F, and the hallway is very long. The lifts are near the middle (room x29), it takes a good minute to walk to either end. Even numbered rooms appear to mostly overlook the nearby (ugly) office buildings. I think the odd numbered rooms have better views, but I can't confirm. Presumably the Crowne Plaza will occupy 7F - 9F, and I would hope it will have larger rooms as a more "premium" brand.

The location for me is excellent. It is a very short walk to the train station. There are many food options immediately nearby in the mall, but also a short walk away in the town proper. And in my case, the office I usually visit is also in the mall, so I can avoid going outside in the rainy season

Would I stay again? Maybe... only for short stays (a night or two) where I did not plan to spend much time in the hotel. For my next trip (4 nights) I'll be trying a different new hotel near the train station.