These are your gold benefits at a Hilton:

What I see here is:

1) A scam being perpertuated by the queue warden and some drivers.
2) A lot of Ft'ers that have NO IDEA WHATSOEVER what they are talking about (not the OP)

Facts: The whole "well they wait for hours and do not want to take a short fare" IS A TOTALLY SPURIOUS ASSERTATION WITHOUT MERIT, spoken by those that have no clue what they are talking about.

The way it goes, and has gone for at least 15 years is the following:

If a taxi driver get a fare anywhere between Heathrow and a place roughly WEST of the Hogarth roundabout, he has one hour to return to the airport (ANY TERMINAL) and gets to go STRAIGHT BACK INTO THE QUEUE FOR THAT TERMINAL without going through the central staging area (the place where they wait for many hours) and without paying the 6 quid or so that they normally do everytime they queue up (again). So in fact the generally honest ones LOVE to get such fares, and in fact if you are going a bit further East of Hogarth (up until Hammersmith in the current climate due to the flyover being impaired) but tell the warden Bradford or some such other place, most cabbies will give you 5-10 GBP off the fare without argument.

The fares fare system is essentially for places in other directions as the BAA note stated, the drivers have an hour and a half to return, go to the head of the queue and pay One Pound for the privelege. For such fares distances, the MAXIMUM is in fact 35 quid, and you can negotiate anything less, you should not have been charged/asked for more than 10 quid in reality. If the warden information that you gave was correct then I strongly suspect that the warden in question will NOT have a job quite soon.

You are right (if what has been posted on here is correct). Can anyone else comment? If (a) the taxi has to accept the fare, and (b) in the absence of agreement the fare is that on the meter, then surely you can say I don't agree the fare, I'll pay what is on the meter>

If they refuse to even transport you in the taxi unless you agree to skip the meter, then you have to fish for another taxi if wanting a metered fare. I have had this problem many a time, which is why I changed my practice and try to avoid the taxi stands in some situations. Not sure why this would happen. Some drivers are more than fine with short trips while others were not.

Thank you. I still need to know if I can pay for a third person to have breakfast in the executive lounge and if the greasy spoon nearby is any good.

I've posted this thread on a UK taxi drivers forum I'm hoping a driver who operates from Heathrow may comment. The following applies though, if a licenced black cab (or any hackney carriage) accepts a fare from a rank within his licenced area, and the journey ends within his licenced area, he must always turn his meter on. If a fare of £30 was agreed with the driver, and the meter showed less, then he has to charge the lower meter rate. If the job was travelling outside his licenced area he can negotiate the price, and doesn't have to turn his meter on.
If I get any response I'll let you know.

I have never seen a Hilton where you couldn't pay for an extra person. That being said, I suspect that you will probably get away with your daughter for free especially if you get upgraded to an Executive room. Don't ask, just assume. If they say something, smile, play dumb, and ask if you can pay. [Let the flames begin.]

I have no idea about the greasy spoon.

This. The £35 minimum fare is an underhanded nonsense.

Black cabs confuse "the knowledge" with "knowledge". The clever ones used to take the fare and drive to the petrol station just opposite the T1 car park and offload you into a black cab that was often filling up there, or flag one down before they got into the feeder, and then jump to to the head of the queue, I had that happen to me a few times. As I don't use them anymore I don't know or even care if this goes on.

Don't forget to ask them if they have an opinion on being allowed to use the Olympic Games lanes.

Can anyone comment on how good the lounge offerings are for breakfast and hors d'oeuvres ?

I stayed there just about a couple of weeks ago. I had bought the package which included breakfast. It was very good and they were kind enough to put up with my American habit of putting fresh strawberries in with my breakfast cereal.

There is an Asian cook who cooks your omelets for you while you wait, or you can get your scrambled eggs from the cooker. I stayed away from the sausage. The fresh fruits were much better than expected: fresh melon, pineapple, blueberries and strawberries.

I can't speak for the lounge area and hors d'oeuvers though: Sorry.

FYI: Rather than use up precious local currency for the Hoppa bus, you can purchase your bus pass charged to your room.

Mrs LoM stayed here last weekend and thought it was a great property and possibly the best Hilton branded property in the UK. The location is slightly odd but we were driving and staying in the area rather than going to and from T5.

We reserved an Exec Room as a redemption given that this was cheaper than a regular room but then had no diamond upgrade beyond e room we had booked. The room itself was fine however. The lounge was great albeit with a lightly odd food selection. We didn't get up in time for brekky so have no idea of the options available or whether it could be had in the main restaurant.

We had the tasting menu at Mr Todiwala's kitchen which was great but not for those who aren't extremely hungry.

The only downside of the whole property was a persistent smell of food in our room pulled through the AC.

Google LHR Express/QDell

A people carrier (which you will neec to ask for specifically) shouldnt cost you more than £10 in total compared to £20+ for the bus.

Hilton London Heathrow Airport Terminal 5 Review with pictures
 

Can't seem to find a trip report and review thread for the T5 hotel...so have posted here...please point me to the appropriate thread if there is one and I will correct this. Thanks. ^

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T5 H view to courtyard restaurant by BA_pics, on Flickr

Stayed here last night and thought I would post some pictures and a review of the place for those interested.

To come out with it right away…The stay started off quite poorly after a very long day…so I had a bit of a strop and did a bit of a DYKWIA moment with the duty manager…not proud of it after a nights sleep but Sh_t happens.

Would I come back or recommend the place? Yes. No matter how much I want to dislike this hotel, it is new, has bigger and better quality rooms (even the standard room such as I was in) than the T4 Hilton hotel. If I did not have any status I would only stay here personally as the room is nicer than what you would get at T4 and the staff and food are brilliant, full stop.

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T5 H Entrance by BA_pics, on Flickr

However, if you have status, you may find you have to ask / demand you get the benefits you are entitled to here…otherwise they will simply put you in the first room and consider you sorted. Next!

Also, it is truly nowhere near T5. My Sat Nav put it at 6.4 miles from the long stay car park for T1 and T3…It is outside the M25 and belongs to Slough more than London or the airport. It is however, on the glide path for landing at LHR. If you have a car this is a decent place to stay as the price for the car park is only £ 12 which is £ 4 cheaper than the T4 Hilton per night and the car park is closer and at the same level as the hotel so there are no stairs to lug your baggage up or down. Finally, your car parking fee can be charged to your room so you get some points for it. ^

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T5 H Desk and TV by BA_pics, on Flickr

All of the staff at this hotel are brilliant (well, except for the reception staff I ran into but I'll hope that was a one off experience.)

The hotel indicates you should use a specific post code if you are driving there…ignore that and read the directions and use your sat nav to pinpoint where it is…the post code takes you to a housing estate. :(

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T5 H Bed by BA_pics, on Flickr

The car park is quite large and the hotel itself is a large brick building which surprised me if I am honest but once inside it is a different picture and very nicely done.

Reception is straight ahead when entering the main rotating door to the hotel.

The hotel is very new so all the furnishings and carpets were in great shape when I was here.

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T5 3rd floor hallway by BA_pics, on Flickr

The standard room I booked is what I received so I have no idea if the exec floor rooms are nicer or have a different interior (someone mentions a curved glass shower spray wall which was not in the standard room for example…) If you want an exec room here then I suggest you book it…as I do not believe they upgrade Diamonds if they can help it. There were rooms showing availability (King, Twin, Queen Exec) but I was told there are no exec floor rooms…even when I mentioned the website error then…so please take these off the site tonight in case someone tries to book them…I might as well have said that I fancied their mother…ANYWAY…enough of that).

The standard rooms are very nice and among the best 'standard' rooms I have been in…I would go so far as to say that they are a damn close match to the much more expensive Sofitel that is actually at T5. ^

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T5 H bathroom by BA_pics, on Flickr

After some discussion and calls I did manage to get some water and a bathrobe as well as slippers and the duty manager did provide me with a very nice bottle of wine and some chocolate as a diamond amenity….once I pursued this….shame they couldn't be more active as I would have been a happy bunny if they would have said we'll bring this up for you as we can only offer a standard room….oh, well.

I wanted to go see the exec lounge…but wasn't successful. My room key didn't work, so after repeated visits to the reception to get the key card sorted and still not working…I simply admitted defeat and went back to my room…I can tell you that it is open until 23:00 which is nice if you can get in.

The room itself is quiet and I had a room facing outside but could't hear any noise or planes…very well soundproofed indeed! ^

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T5 H Shower bathtub by BA_pics, on Flickr

The room is bigger than an exec room at the T4 Hilton so if space is important then this is your hotel.

The bathroom is also bigger and has some nice touches such as a dimming background ambience light as well as some halogen spots. The shower / tub combination are fine and my only beef is that the pressure wasn't as strong as I would like but it does the job.

(Once you get a bathrobe…they are the softest and warmest I have ever had in a hotel) ^

The mini bar is one of the newer electronic ones so be careful if you lift any can or bottle up…it will charge you for it.

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T5 H Wardrobe contents by BA_pics, on Flickr

Wireless networking did not require any password and worked very well, a real positive. ^

As mentioned, whenever I spoke to staff at the restaurant or the staff that did bring things to the room…they were the very picture of customer facing excellence. ^

I found the bed a bit too firm for my liking but I did get a good sleep.

Breakfast in the morning…I can't comment on the exec lounge but the main restaurant was fantastic. Very clean, very friendly staff and lots of them to deal with any request without waiting.

As a diamond you get breakfast for free in the main restaurant (at least the buffet which I took) and you can order a premium coffee as well for free. ^

The buffet was excellent. One of the best I have had in a long time at a hotel. ^

The fruit were all fresh and juicy, they had plenty of juices and smoothies, there was a cook there to take fresh orders for eggs and such with a smile and the rest of the hot items were all tasty and fresh.

Anyway, hope this (excluding my rants) helps others and provides some comparison pictures for the rooms here and at T4.

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T5 H under flight path but not at LHR by BA_pics, on Flickr

If you don't mind the slight hassle getting to the airport from here with a hoppa bus or your own transport and you don't have status then this hotel is great and excellent value for money. (about £ 40 cheaper for the room on average over the T4 Hilton I find).

If you have status…a bit harder to call…either would be okay likely, depends on your situation.

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Diamond Amenities after phone call by BA_pics, on Flickr

We had an Exec room and the only difference is the standard new Hlton difference of a seperate shower in the bathroom.