Pjh104

Another excellent stay at the Bankside last night. I booked in using the App and was initially little miffed to see the original room number crossed out and then a sequence of others similarly crossed out. In the end though the final number was for a corner suite, so miffedness was short lived.

Same comments as last time. All staff we encountered were welcoming and as friendly as they can be in their jobs. Liked the Executive lounge in the evening, and it was good to be trusted enough to pour our own spirits. We had breakfast in the restaurant, which I still rate, even with the rather haphazard service.

Noticing that the kitchens should actually back onto the Executive Lounge we wandered in there to have a look at the offerings there to see if they were any different to the scrambled eggs / steamed bacon of other lounges and have to say they weren't. We were also disappointed in our fellow man / woman / child to see at least one table abandoned with piles of untouched food.

In the evening we wandered out to the Mercato Metropolitano on Newington Causeway to sample its funky food court atmosphere and excellent value pizza, passed by the Gladstone but opted for a final drink at The Rake. This morning we found the building next door is the Kirkaldy Testing Museum which I'd read about a few times and, as it was the first Sunday of the month, open to visitors. As the name suggests it's dedicated to the subject of engineering testing and the role of David Kirkaldy in establishing standards. Not for all I suspect, but it brought back some memories of physics, and I did get to go on a strain testing machine to test the strength of the white banding they put around boxes of printer paper - it's pretty strong....

brewdog11

Anyone know if HHonors Gold members are given access to the executive lounge? Will probably book elsewhere if this is not the case.

grayh

Been there once and got Executive Lounge access.

ocprodigy

Only if upgraded to an executive room

brewdog11

Good to know, thank you.

diamond club freeloader

If it is of any help, I was told that their policy is to upgrade 1 room category only
(as HH-D I have never had an exec room upgrade in several stays... in spite of almost getting one once... but was offered cash option to upgrade to a suite)

So, I suspect if a Gold wants lounge access their best shot is to book a deluxe room and aim for that 1-cat upgrade.

cjd

Spent 2 nights here last weekend. Can't really say much more than what's been said already about this hotel. It's a real gem and we both loved it. We were uprgaded to an Executive room and did OLCI. Got a slightly larger room. Strange that the desk is actually behind the bed in the room. Air conditioning was very quiet and effective. Complimentary soft drinks and sweets available in the room fridge. Executive lounge was excellent and staff very friendly and helpful. They continually came round to see if any more drinks required, but you could also self serve. Nice to see Prosecco and choice of spirits available. Full buffet Breakfast for Diamonds could be taken in the restaurant which we did each morning. Service was good and no waiting for tables even though hotel was very busy. Met the manager, Raoul De Souza, several times during our stay and he was so pleasant and helpful. He was very proactive in the hotel. Will definitely return again.

diamond club freeloader

We must have been there at the same time!

Once again, my upgrade was just 1-category, from standard to deluxe room. Strangely, this time there was no snack component in the minibar fridge (peanuts & gummi-bears, usually) - and none was put in across my 3-night stay. In any event, I didn't request (or need) these because of the lounge alternatives.

If this hotel can be picked up for a decent rate, it is a great deal! ^

cjd

I often wonder if there are any other FT'ers in the lounges! We booked the room on a good deal in one of the sales a few months ago. However, room rates do seem quite high now. When I checked a couple of days before our stay, the rate was about double my pre-paid sale rate.

mmogdan

I'm currently staying here (partly due to excellent reviews here) and am not sure what all the fuss is about. Got a less than warm welcome when I arrived an hour before 3pm, when eventually got to the room it was lacking basic amenities (water, mini bar was almost empty). The curtain doesn't fully close meaning light shines through and compared to other properties I think the offer in the lounge is poor (almost nothing for a vegetarian to eat).

While the hard product is, with out a doubt, stunning, I would say the soft product is lacking in some areas.

Simon Schus

How does the Hilton London Bankside compare to the Hilton Tower Bridge. I've got a new years eve stay coming up, and wasn't sure which would be nicer

wizla

I would say bankside has the edge in many many areas over TB , however in your case it would be great to watch the fireworks from the TB lounge terrace at midnight with a glass of fizzy!......just a thought.

Simon Schus

Alas, the Executive Lounge terrace closes at 10pm at the Hilton TB! I'm keeping an eye on award availability at the Hilton Bankside (waiting to see if a 60,000 points rate pops up), having already gotten the points booking at the Hilton TB.

Haven't been too sure how much of an edge that the hotel has over the Hilton TB (or the Doubletree TB).

SponsorSFC

Here for the next 2 nights as a Diamond.

Booked a deluxe room on flash sale rate. App showed upgrade to Executive Room. I enquired about a suite upgrade and was offered one bedroom suite for and additional fee of £95 which I declined.

Was able to check-in early this morning at about 8am after arriving on EY11 so happy enough with that but seems a bit poor telling a Diamond a suite is available right now for cash but this seems consistent with other reports.

Welcome amenity was placed in the room after we went out. 4 small mandarins with a letter saying they were from the chef. Not sure why they bothered.

Rooms and hotel itself are very nice. Overall very happy for what I paid.

diamond club freeloader

I received 3 apples - also 'from the chef'

Didn't look like the work of a chef though