DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Jakarta - Diponegoro {IDN}
Apr 13, 2019, 4:17 am
Apr 25, 2019, 2:39 am
DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Jakarta-Diponegoro
Jl Pegangsaan Timur No.17 Cikini Jakarta, ID 10310
Very good property with top breakfast spread (7 Photos)
DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Jakarta-Diponegoro
This was the only Hilton family brand property in Jakarta.
Location
This property is located in the Cikini area of Jakarta. The neighbourhood looks to be a mix of houses and commercial with hospitals, university and local shops around the property. In front of the property is a road which on work days especially the evening rush hour becoming a grid lock road.
There is a Commuter train station [a sort of metro system] about 5 mins from the hotel which at least for me was very convenient at least from a touristic point as the train does go all the way to the [few] attractions in Jakarta. One of the main attraction is the old city [Kota Tua] where the line ends. Along the line, it does a few stops which brings you close to walking distance to the other attractions.
For the airport, on a good day, it will take about 45 mins to get to the airport via the toll roads but on a bad day, it will most probably be twice of that time. On my arrival during the peak hours, I took the train from JKT airport to BNI City station and from there taxied to the hotel. The taxi part from the BNI City station to the hotel took about 25 mins [on a OK day, it would be about 1 mins].
Check In
I was contacted by the hotel via email a few days earlier prior to my arrival and I did provide my expected arrival time. Arrived after 8pm at the hotel and I was helped immediately by the front desk associates. I had already noticed in my booking that I was upgraded to a room on the Executive floor. Upon noticing this, I was given an option to complete my check-in at the front desk or lounge - which I just opted to complete it at the front desk.
Contact with the associate was pleasant and I felt very welcomed. Within 1 mins of arriving, I was off to my room with the usual cookies in hand.
Room
The room was situated on the 2nd highest floor of the hotel [17th floor out of 18] and the same floor as the lounge. The view was towards the train tracks and further downtown of Jakarta.
Room size was ok - there was a long working desk and also a smaller sitting area. There was a nice welcome gift [two smaller water bottles and a box of pralines] including a note - this is always a nice touch. Too bad not too many properties will take the effort for such a small task but big positive impression.
There was the usual tea/coffee making facility and a fridge. Internet speed was good and stable - good coverage throughout the property. The airconditioning was good and effective without making too much noise. TV selection was very good with lots of different international and national selections, but what was best was the quality - in HD with no interference.
Sleeping quality was good with the bed not being too hard nor soft. As mentioned earlier, the room faces the train tracks and the busy road, however the sound isolation of the room was quite good. You will only hear the traffic/train when they horned [for the train this is every time before it leaves the station] however this was minimal disturbance. The only noise disturbance was the thin thin walls - it really seems that the walls were just a piece of paper as on one night, the occupance of the room next door came back after midnight and started to talk and laugh which sounded like they were in the same room. Luckily this lasted only about an hour and they went to bed. Therefore, I can imagine if occupants were of the noisy type, this would have been a nightmare.
The bathroom size was ok with a walk-in shower area. There were 2 bottle of waters found on the wash basin. Amenities is as usual from Crabtree&Evelyn.
Breakfast
Breakfast even for Executive Lounge floor guest is only available in the main restaurant located one floor below the front desk. One word to describe the breakfast quality and variety at this property - Wow!. I've visited lots of hotels in Asia and this has got to be one of the best breakfast spread I've experienced [even beating some top hotels in Asia]. They had different sections/stations with different offerings from different Asian cuisine and even for the western selections, there were tons available. They even had a small selection of ice cream to select from and you could order different type of juices/smooties.
I guess even if you had to stay for a month, you will not be bored with the choices as they also changed the selection every day.
The associates working in the breakfast room were friendly and nothing was every too much for them to accommodate. Seating is either inside or outside [facing the pool area]. A big kudos to the property on having such a great breakfast buffet. [Although sadly - noticed also a lot of guests wasting lots of good food]
Executive lounge
The lounge is located on the 17th floor and like many lounges in Asia, the reception desk here acts and works the same as the front desk. The associates working in the lounge were friendly and always ready to help. the lounge consisted of 2 large rooms - one acting more as a lounging area and the other more for food/bar function.
The lounge is open from morning till night. There is no breakfast served in the lounge, but from 2-4 pm, they do have some light afternoon tea type of food and from 5.30-7.30 pm, the usual evening happy hours.
For the evening service, the selection of food is good - with a mix of fingerfood and slightly larger hot dishes. Drink selection was good with 1 red and 1 white. The wines surprisingly were locally made - from a winery in Bali [grapes I was informed comes from Australia].
During my stay, the lounge was never too crowded - and there was always ample seating on both sides of the lounge.
All in all, for a Doubletree, a very good lounge with friendly service.
Pool
The hotel has the pool in a sort of resort style. The area was very well assigned with lots of trees and different lounge benches including some smaller cabana type seating. There is a smaller kids pool.
Service was very good with always someone available when needed. The pool was well kept and water temperature was good - especially after a long hot day of exploring.
Service
The hotel service was very good - with very friendly staff all round. They were all ready to help and provide information whenever needed. Even the security associates were friendly.
Overall
All in all, a very solid property with top notch service. The hotel is well kept and very nicely designed with touches of local culture.
Only one major improvement I would recommend is to please reduce the level of the air freshner in the lift. This I found foul - it was so intense that basically it was more nausating than nice smelling every time I stepped into the lift. I was also not really in favour of the bubblegum fragrance that they selected - it would have been maybe more bearable if it was something more asian like - bamboo/lemongrass/sandalwood type of smell.
Jun 13, 2019, 3:53 pm
The first week was during a fairly slow part of Ramadan. The last week got pretty busy. We got our standard one bedroom suite upgrade, as a diamond, although it seems most diamonds do not.
Long flights take me days to recover, so it was awhile before I checked the lounge and restaurant out.
Open restaurant was superb as always. They reserved a table for us each morning. Special orders weren’t a problem, either. Only on the two busiest days of Lebaran was service anything other than great.
Room cleaning was quite good, usually with 2-3 staff knocking it out quickly. On Lebaran, it was usually just a single staff member.
The exec lounge was much the same, my first night had really great food options. A couple other nights they were mediocre, with burned bread on the cheese bread and almost inedible meatballs. I had some Tuna sushi that seemed liked it was going bad. All of the other sushi was good, but I think some is made in the morning and just refrigerated.
Kids running around, and noises from next door are common. Our last couple nights we had a baby next door, and sometimes got a slight whiff of cigarette smoke through the air vents. I’m very sensitive to smoke, but it wasn’t enough to really irritate me.
We found out the tollway to our next city was going to closed in our outbound direction on our departure date, so extended one day with 20k points. All other nights we booked with advance purchase nights, or blocks of 5 award nights.
We booked a second room for my FIL who is in a wheelchair, for a few nights, and was offered the handicapped room on the 5th floor, or a room on our floor. We chose a normal room so he’d be nearer to us.
Room service was fairly reasonable. I enjoyed the Aussie steak sandwich the most. Kids pasta and fish and chips were the best deals for the youngin’s.
Dec 25, 2019, 5:22 pm
Dec 25, 2019, 9:47 pm
Cikini station across the road (direct trains through to Bogor and to Kuta)
here are some markets up the road, plus banks, ATM's and a pharmacy within an easy walk (turn right at street level coming out of the hotel). For everything else Grab is easily available and inexpensive.
Hotel pool is nice but turns into kiddy soup at weekends.
You get lounge, which is fine. Very helpful staff, though not quite as plush as some Asian offers.
No breakfast in lounge, but you're welcome in the main breakfast restaurant: go early...or late.
It's a nice hotel, Jakarta's only Hilton, and a haven in terms of brands between HIX and the super-plush. But for a property only six years or so old, it's odd it is so under-equipped with guest elevators and has a (shabby) build quality that shows in low sound insulation between rooms.
Suites are a possible upgrade, but don't hold your breath - i think there are not so many of them, and free ones may well be be kept back for regulars.
Dec 26, 2019, 12:42 am
Cikini station across the road (direct trains through to Bogor and to Kuta)
here are some markets up the road, plus banks, ATM's and a pharmacy within an easy walk (turn right at street level coming out of the hotel). For everything else Grab is easily available and inexpensive.
Hotel pool is nice but turns into kiddy soup at weekends.
You get lounge, which is fine. Very helpful staff, though not quite as plush as some Asian offers.
No breakfast in lounge, but you're welcome in the main breakfast restaurant: go early...or late.
It's a nice hotel, Jakarta's only Hilton, and a haven in terms of brands between HIX and the super-plush. But for a property only six years or so old, it's odd it is so under-equipped with guest elevators and has a (shabby) build quality that shows in low sound insulation between rooms.
Suites are a possible upgrade, but don't hold your breath - i think there are not so many of them, and free ones may well be be kept back for regulars.
Excellent breakfast here in the Open restaurant. One of my favorites in all of Indonesia.
This property has been great the last few years, so I hope this doesn’t change.
Dec 26, 2019, 3:56 am
Am currently booked there on a fully flex Corp Rate (~1m IDR) in a base level King room in May 2020. Never stayed there so unsure if there are rooms (types, orientations) one should avoid? I'm okay to trade up room wise even up to Jr. Suite if there is really a big difference so the misses doesn't chew my ear later
.Not a big fan of noise and like to avoid it if possible. Will be Gold at the time just for info and won't use the Exec lounge I think as no way we will eat there with all the good food in Jakarta.
Dec 26, 2019, 9:31 am
Am currently booked there on a fully flex Corp Rate (~1m IDR) in a base level King room in May 2020. Never stayed there so unsure if there are rooms (types, orientations) one should avoid? I'm okay to trade up room wise even up to Jr. Suite if there is really a big difference so the misses doesn't chew my ear later
.Not a big fan of noise and like to avoid it if possible. Will be Gold at the time just for info and won't use the Exec lounge I think as no way we will eat there with all the good food in Jakarta.
Mostly it’s either king or twin base room, family room, a few varieties of one bedroom suites, and the one Presidential suite. I’ve seen the Presidential suite selling as low as $250 during an AP sale. I’ve stayed in all room types except for the family room.
For a more quiet room, I’d ask for a room facing away from the train station. There are some floors that they often have kids on, that are noisier. 9-10th floors for Hilton elites, maybe lower floors for general members.
There's not a huge difference between the one bedroom suites. You have the standard, the ones with an outside balcony that you need a key to open the door, and the ones with a bit of extra space (that stick out the side of the building). Their suites aren’t badly priced if you get them on sale.
The exec lounge is usually pretty decent, I’d check it out at least. The Open restaurant is great for breakfast, and I’ve had New Years and other dinners there.
Sea Grain is a nice midrange place for dinner. I think they have lunch specials during the week.
I’m not sure what upgrade you’d be offered as a first time guest, and only a gold member. We often stay here up to a month every year, and love the staff. We first started staying here shortly after they opened, and occupancy was low. The last few years they have gotten steadily busier, and during major holidays are often fully booked.
May 2020 will either be during Ramadan, or near the end of the month, Idul Fitri. At the beginning of Idul Fitri, usually a surge of local visitors, as their staff might have a week or two off to visit family outside of Jakarta. Some clubs and venues may be closed in the city, especially if they serve alcohol. At the start of the Ramadan fasting, I find the hotel to be a bit slow. My favorite time to visit.
I find booking in advance, you’ll almost always find 20k award nights available. 5 night blocks of award nights is the best deal, of course.
Dec 26, 2019, 9:48 pm
Me? I'm pretty much happy with street noise: i live in a city centre.
But noise from adjoining rooms, the room above, or from the corridor, can be troublesome. I recognise that I'm towards one extreme of intolerance on a scale that stretches up to encompass those oblivious to "social" noise. My biggest nightmares have been hotels in China where guests simply took over the corridors as common space
AT this DT they'll try to keep one executive floor free of family groups: but the low level sound insulation between rooms means you can get disturbed by raised voices, TVs or party groups. Not much you can do about this, except let the hotel know: they are aware of the potential problem and they'll try to sort it out by moving you, or intervening with disruptive guests.
Dec 26, 2019, 11:55 pm
The nearby Mosque can be really noisy in very early morning during Ramadan (23/4-23/5 in 2020), but I do not recall any problem from the station and train tracks. Anyway, the people working there is great, the lounge very nice for the cocktail hours, the breakfast in the restaurant is amazing and as Gold I've been always upgraded to a lounge access room.
I'm almost sorry to have just one stay there for 2020...
Dec 27, 2019, 12:27 am
As a Gold, I wouldn't expect more than maybe an upgrade from Base room to a Deluxe one, anything else would be bonus. Gold will give breakfast and that's all we need. Will be out a lot so just need a place to sleep basically that is somewhat well located.
We know Jakarta very well (food places, traffic and all), speak the language etc., no issues.
Used to stay at old Inter-Continental in Midplaza for years before reflag, Kempinski after that but they get sloppier in service and more money grabbing every time. Normally, we would stay at the Ascott on Thamrin, but seems sold out during Ramadan. Jakarta Selatan (Senayan area) is not good for where we need to be, but Cikini works so giving DoubleTree a try. Thanks.
Dec 27, 2019, 6:43 pm
Dec 28, 2019, 12:40 am
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Jan 2, 2020, 9:48 pm