Koby

The Park Lane is not exactly in a "bar and action" area. I assume that the OP means that he wants to have the bars available the moment he steps out of the hotel. And I remember being bored at the Park Lane in the evening because I didn't feel like walking for 15 minutes (or taking transport) before getting to any interesting places.

The area behind the Hilton London Hyde Park was pretty lively when I stayed there (Queensway on one side - Nothing Hill Gate on the other). But I can't judge if that is a "to be" area in London (and to the OP's taste).

User Name

I'm a real ale guy, so I'd plump for the Doubletree West End, walking distance from both the Euston Tap and the Craft Beer Company. Both fairly recent and absolutely excellent additions to the London real ale/imported craft scene.

dcsnowwake

so I decided on Courthouse Doubletree.
Thank you all and I will report back with a trip report next week.....well from what I can remember.

squarevince

Dunno how easy it is to get upgrades with Gold, but I stayed at the Bentley as a Diamond and got upgraded to an Ashburn Suite, which was pretty over-the-top plush. And very nice service.

I don't think you can beat the Courthouse Doubletree location though... super central to everything. You won't see a lot of locals there, though, just a lot of tourists. There's loads of great places around though.

kmandrew

Staying only one night in London, I see the Waldorf and Trafalgar are both 25k + 54 pounds early July; other good choices are 50k or expensive. Arriving from Edinburgh by train and flying from LHR the next day on an evening flight. We don't care so much about the size of the room mostly looking for a fun experience in a classic hotel, some help please?

stifle

Either of those hotels qualify as Classic. Out of those two I would go for the Waldorf Hilton as it has an executive lounge which you will be able to use.

Monkey & Minkey

Thank you all again for the advice and comments.

I do intend to take legal action and this was given full consideration before it was mentioned so I do not feel as though I have "shot myself in the foot" just yet.

I use a lot of Solicitors from major law firms in my line of business and one or two have indicated a willingness to take on the matter. The advice is to take the matter to the small claims court once I know what my Direct and Consequential Losses have been after the 3/4th August 2012 and that any claim should include an element for injurious distress and inconvenience.

FromPVG

I asked in the other thread.

Has anyone stayed at Doubletree in Victoria? How far is the walk to the Victoria tube station? Can anyone comment on its location and Diamond treatment?

samonyc

I stayed at the Doubletree Courthouse for 30,000 points a night last November. The room was on a low floor, had no view, and was small, but I've come to expect that from staying in London on the cheap. The location in Soho, however, was perfect for nightlife and shopping. I'd stay there again just for the convenience. If you have points to spare, perhaps they have some larger rooms or suites? Doubt they can do much about the views.

divemistressofthedark

For the record, I've had similar experiences recently in which I, as a Diamond HHonors member, have received zero responses from the three or so Hilton corporate offices to which I've directed correspondence (mostly regarding the recent devaluation.)

Wouldn't you think they'd at least write one saying "drop dead", worded in the appropriately polite language? Sigh.

Braindrain

Not sure how it works in the UK, but in Canada, you're not allowed lawyers in small claims court.

Anyways, I feel for the OP. He was royally screwed. However, if the London Olympics are anything like previous Olympics, there will be a ton of inventory in the weeks just before the Olympics.

Need

Just about 2 weeks ago, I think they announced that the committee organising the games over estimated the number of the rooms they need and has given back more than 120,000 room nights at more than 200 hotels for summer. Have you checked in Feb to see if there are rooms available?

squeakr

[email protected]

stifle

Just in case there is any confusion, those are not the same hotel. The Victoria one became DoubleTree very recently so don't be surprised if you don't get a response.

pinniped

I'm always amazed at how unethically some hotels behave leading up to big events like the Olympics, Super Bowl, etc. It's not a Hilton thing or a Marriott thing or a Starwood thing...it seems that certain hotel managers will stop at nothing to absolutely maximize their total profits in this short period, even if it means behaving totally unethically if not outright illegally towards guests holding confirmed (and sometimes prepaid) reservations.

I totally respect a hotel's right to charge whatever they want during these periods. Ask for $2,000/nt. if you like: I'll decide whether to book. But once I book, I expect that to be honored - period - even if someone later comes along and offers $2,100/nt. for the room.

At the end of the day, I think the OP will be fine. In the days leading up to August 3rd...if not the morning of August 3rd...you will have your pick of central London hotels, probably even some at sweet discounts depending on how picky you are. And you'll have two BMG's in your pocket. But that still doesn't excuse the disgusting behavior of this hotel.