Originally Posted by
Weatherboy
I just wrapped up a 4 day stay here in the midst of the strike.
Staying on a low kama'aina rate <$200 and asked about upgrades at checkin. Was given a great upgrade to an oceanfront suite in the corner of the Ali'i Tower but was warned I'd be able to hear strikers from it.
And yes, the strikers were loud and obnoxious and were around my room from about 830am to 10pm every day.
My suite was clean when I arrived. There was a station on the 10th floor to pick up more towels, water, paper products, coffee packets, etc. And I only dropped by there to pick up extra towels and water.
No housekeeping through the stay. And no services; food and bars for the most part were closed, although they did have some managers making drinks at the tapa bar in afternoons. Room charges also don't work from the other restaurants in the Village that are open; made using the daily food/beverage credit impossible.
I needed a cheap place to sleep while in Honolulu and this hotel did that albeit with reduced service. If I was a tourist and this was my dream vacation or honeymoon, I would be devastated...especially if I paid rack rates.
Some other guests were very upset and they created their own protest and chants in the lobby, screaming they wanted refunds in unison at front desk workers. The guest protest even attracted the attention of local TV news crews.
But going 2 weeks strong and no talks scheduled, I don't think this strike is going to end anytime soon.
Wife I had scheduled our 50th wedding anniversary trip here, with pre-paid funds, booked into the Alii tower. Had paid up, unrefundable, since May of this year. Was for 4 days. We had stayed here often (probably 30 times over past 15 yers) and were Hilton Honors Gold (have always been). We did not get a Kamaaina rate.
We suggested a refund that would allow us to devote our funds elsewhere, but no dice. We eventually abandoned the place and took residence elsewhere. We are leaving tomorrow. We at least salvaged a decent time, but were out a lot of money. Wife was intensely bitter about the whole thing, but I have shrugged and am glad we got to enjoy our 50th.
I do think Hilton could have handled it differently and wish they, and the union, hadn't put us customers in the middle. Irony is we have close to a million Honors points and wife refuses to let me book Hilton, at least for now. We'll just have to let the bitterness play itself out. We did walk by the place from our replacement hotel, and it looked half dead. We talked to some guests staying who said they were petitioning to get their resort fees back (a little painful to get charged these things when you have to clean your own toilet).
Glad that some were able to salvage an OK time, but we were not among that group. Could have used an apology form Hilton, but such was not forthcoming. I don't think I will ever book a non-refundable stay again from Hilton---or form any hotel chain for that matter. Even though we were ripped off, we managed to savor our 50th anniversary and are moving on with our lives. Worse things can happen in the world.