bludevil

I was there in March and had access to the full breakfast as well and it was quite good. I wonder when and why they made the change.

nk15

I was there in the summer and they only offered continental to Golds, but you could upgrade to full breakfast for 10 euro/person.

The location is unbeatable, right on the block between Las Ramblas and Passeig de Grŕcia, two of the most famous streets in Barca, and 2-3 blocks away from two "must-see" Gaudi properties, Casa Batllo and La Pedrera. The hotel is very good, on the smaller size, but good quality, and quiet.

One complaint about this property is that at check-out they offered me to pay in USD instead of Euro ("Is it ok to pay in USD?"), with a 2% currency conversion mark-up, which I didn't quite understand at the time (and I was also in a hurry to catch my flight). I asked, "is it more expensive to pay in USD"? No response from the receptionist, which in retrospect I thought it was evasive, but in my anxiety to get going I made the rookie mistake and paid in USD (and overpaid). (The 2% mark up info was actually on the screen but I missed it, and the receptionist did not answer my question or explained it).

But I guess this is a pretty standard practice internationally, everyone is trying to make an extra buck from the conversion rates, so you should always insist on paying your bill in local currency (but also make sure you understand what you pay in USD; just use a currency conversion app on your phone right on the spot).

OhDoctor

This was the first place I stayed as HHonors Gold, and what a disappointment.

I was not upgraded at check-in, which is fine, that happens sometimes. The room I was given, however, was tiny (the bed occupied ~75% of the room) and dark, overlooking a back alley with no overhead lighting, so that the entire room was illuminated by the small desk lamps provided. The desk and wall-mounted television were on top of each other and it was impossible to get any real work done.

The free breakfast is served in the back section of the dining room with meager offerings and is segregated from the other guests - they are, quite literally, treating HHonors elite members as second-class citizens. On the plus side, you get a great view of the wonderful breakfast spread available to the non-elite guests (but not for you.)

The simple task of getting toothpaste from the staff was an ordeal. It took an hour and half, along with two trips in person to the front desk. I was finally able to brush my teeth and go to sleep after midnight.

I will say that the location is good, just offset from the Rambla de Catalunya. However, the last time I stayed in the Eixample neighborhood, I was at the Granados 83 down the block, which was wonderful (and less expensive.) I stayed here to earn some extra HHonors points, but what a mistake that was. If this is similar to the service provided at other Hilton properties, I'll be switching my business to Starwood.

nk15

That's true, the front desk and the lobby staff were not very responsive, it took a while to check you in (even with almost no other guests around), and they don't talk much or smile to the guests. In contrast, I was at the Hotel Arts Barcelona (Ritz) before checking into this property, and the lobby staff there were amazing, following you around with food and drinks all the time, lol, talking and smiling, opening doors, etc. The contrast (and let down) with the Hilton was stark...

OhDoctor

at least a dozen recent complaints from Diamond and Gold members about the treatment of elites in this hotel and the breakfast issue in particular..

scroll through TA reviews here: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Rev...Catalonia.html

i swear, there's even someone else who made the "second-class citizen" remark from my post here and it wasn't me!

i wonder if Erin the HHonors rep is looking into this.

Hilton Honors Ambassador

Hi kdoughboy and fozziedoggie,

Just a quick update - we are still investigating both properties.

Alexandra Barcelona now has Standard Room Reward availability for summer 2015 on all rooms, except for King bedrooms. We are currently working on this lack of availability.

We are in touch with the Hilton Sydney now, and I will circle back with any updates!

Thanks,
Erin

Hilton Honors Ambassador

Hi OhDoctor,

Apologies for my delay in response!

I will be sharing this feedback with my team during our regularly scheduled call next week. Please feel free to send me a PM with more details!

Thanks,
Erin

skunker

The recent posts are in contrast to my stay earlier this year (post #15). I booked the cheapest room they had and was upgraded to a corner king. Didn't have time for breakfast so can't comment on whether it was full or contential. Staff was very friendly to me.

What happened between March and September?

TTL

Does not start well. I had a twin superior room booked for at least 2 months. Today traveling towards Barcelona and I observe from the Hhonors web that I will be receiving a twin guest room - an involuntary downgrade. I phoned the front desk, no help, switched to "reservations" where they had no clue, what has been done. I informed them, that they could downgrade other customers than diamond members having a confirmed reservation at rack rate. It will be very interesting to see what the front desk has to offer later tonite...

travelgirl88

Currently at this hotel, so far so good. Have rooms on level 1 and 2 but booked king and twin superior, our rooms now on the HHonors floor, does this mean we've been upgraded?

I tried to join HHonors and got a log in etc but got stuck adding my booking to the site as I booked all through British Airways. Any tips?

TTL

A short report after my stay last week. Room 410 without balcony was very tiny. Charge was made based on "superior" room, but the room itself must have been a regular double. Hardly any space to open the suitcases, and a congested bathroom. No two free water bottles even... **

Reception was friendly as were rest of the staff. *****

Breakfast would have been continental only but managed to negotiate the full buffet without additional cost. I did not notice any back room for lesser mortals eating only the continental breakfast, instead there was a wide open sliding door that did not segregate anyone. A very mediocre Hilton/DoubleTree breakfast buffet. ***

Location is ok by nice shopping streets and plenty of places to sit around and sip cava. A convenience store to buy water, wine, spirits, etc. right across the street. ****

All in all a 3˝ star experience and next time I will choose Hilton Diagonal. Diamond status was recognized but not much respected, apart from the negotiated full breakfast buffet and free wifi. Remember to login using the pass code, not the name and room number. Obviously there are two wifis around, an ok one and a useless one.

TomMM

I was there in March and found the front desk staff responsive but the staff at the bar in lobby was in ignore mode when I tried to order a quick snack. I was also confused by the offer to pay in USD instead of Euros. That was the first time I had encountered that and the guy checking me out was a fast talker.

MSPeconomist

Dynamic currency conversion? It would still be subject to foreign transaction fees on your credit card.

MSPeconomist

Could it be that the basic (standard) room category is called "superior" here? Some hotels do this and others call their basic rooms "deluxe" or even fancier terms.

TomMM

I had the same thing happen with a purchase at HKG and elected to pay in US$ instead HK$ and there were no transaction fees on my CC but the merchant added 2% to their "exchange rate".