Hilton Garden Inn Sunderland {GBR}
Hilton Garden Inn Sunderland {GBR}
Dec 5, 2015, 11:20 am
#2
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Somewhere in Europe
Posts: 3,362
141 rooms next door to the Stadium of Light.
Artists impressions of the building can be viewed on the link below.
A decent addition to the area as the Marriott isn't the best and the other options are mainly Premier Inn or Travelodge.
http://m.sunderlandecho.com/news/local/all-news/contractors-appointed-to-build-new-hilton-hotel-at-sunderland-s-stadium-of-light-1-7328621
Artists impressions of the building can be viewed on the link below.
A decent addition to the area as the Marriott isn't the best and the other options are mainly Premier Inn or Travelodge.
http://m.sunderlandecho.com/news/local/all-news/contractors-appointed-to-build-new-hilton-hotel-at-sunderland-s-stadium-of-light-1-7328621
May 8, 2016, 3:35 pm
#5
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Somewhere in Europe
Posts: 3,362
Looks like the opening date was brought forward to last week as this hotel is now open.
One thing that jumps out when having a quick look through the app this evening is the message about car parking when there is a match/event on at the stadium next door.
It would appear that there is no alternative parking been negotiated by the hotel and you are left to your own devices.
Not what I would expect from a brand new property tbh. I would have thought that some alternative arrangements would have been sorted out prior to opening.
One thing that jumps out when having a quick look through the app this evening is the message about car parking when there is a match/event on at the stadium next door.
It would appear that there is no alternative parking been negotiated by the hotel and you are left to your own devices.
Not what I would expect from a brand new property tbh. I would have thought that some alternative arrangements would have been sorted out prior to opening.
May 20, 2016, 6:06 am
#6
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Somewhere in Europe
Posts: 3,362
I stayed at this hotel at the start of the week and thought a quick review might be of interest.
The hotel is situated next to the Stadium of Light and the hotel shares the stadium car park. Due to this on match days or special events at the stadium there is no parking and guests have to make alternative arrangements (See post above).
Online check-in was available the day before as normal, however there are no maps online yet so picking a room wasn't easy and I didn't bother doing online check-in.
There are two blocks of bedrooms. Rooms x01-x24 are in one block with the even numbers facing out onto the main road (Anyone familiar with the area - this is the side that faces Tesco) whilst the odd numbers are internal and have a view of the reception roof. The even numbered rooms on this side have bigger windows that go down to the floor.
In the other block the even numbered rooms x26 and above face the Stadium whilst the odd numbers have the same view as the other side. All windows in the second block have normal sized windows.
I've attached a few pictures, apologies they aren't the best of quality.
Check-in was completed quickly and my room was upgraded from a queen to a king on the third floor at the end of the corridor. The lifts are in a sort of link corridor between the two blocks so there is no noise from them although the first rooms you come to when leaving the lift are x12 & x14 so there may be a little more noise in these rooms due to everyone having to pass them when leaving the lifts.
The rooms are a decent size and there is plenty of space with shower only. The usual Peter Thomas Roth toiletries - large size ones! There was still a new smell to the room which was understandable considering the hotel is only a few weeks old and the bed was very comfortable,
However there were a couple of niggly things mainly lighting during the night. Firstly outside the room window on the roof there is a spotlight. When the curtains are drawn there is a gap at the floor as the light is quite bright a lot of light gets in whilst there is a panel underneath the air con controls which had a light on constantly which is quite bright and there is also a light on the back of the television. The television could be unplugged but the other two had to be covered up with a bag or piece of clothing. No big deal but it was quite irritating.
There is a separate restaurant and bar on the ground floor which are quite smart. The menus can be found here. The burger was very tasty and was decent quality. There was a room service menu as well which I've attached a picture off. The choice on that was quite limited although this is fairly standard for an HGI.
The pantry is situated next to reception with snacks, drinks and ready meals available along with a microwave. There was a decent choice but both Glasgow and Aberdeen HGIs have more ready meal options compared to here.
Breakfast in the morning was quite good. On the buffet there was bacon, sausage, hash brown bites, beans, scrambled eggs and fried eggs. Omelettes and poached eggs were available to order and there was a waffle maker. The quality was good and the food was fresh. There was also the usual cold cuts, cheese, yoghurt available. There was no additional charge for latte/cappuccino which was good.
On the whole the hotel is pretty solid and looks good. The staff are still learning the ropes so things such as check-in etc aren't completely seamless yet but this should improve. I had booked a P&C rate at Ł23 & 8,000 points which was decent value. Cash rates seem to be going between Ł80 and Ł120 a night at the moment which is broadly similar to the Marriott down the road whilst the Premier Inns are roughly Ł60-Ł80 a night.
The hotel is situated next to the Stadium of Light and the hotel shares the stadium car park. Due to this on match days or special events at the stadium there is no parking and guests have to make alternative arrangements (See post above).
Online check-in was available the day before as normal, however there are no maps online yet so picking a room wasn't easy and I didn't bother doing online check-in.
There are two blocks of bedrooms. Rooms x01-x24 are in one block with the even numbers facing out onto the main road (Anyone familiar with the area - this is the side that faces Tesco) whilst the odd numbers are internal and have a view of the reception roof. The even numbered rooms on this side have bigger windows that go down to the floor.
In the other block the even numbered rooms x26 and above face the Stadium whilst the odd numbers have the same view as the other side. All windows in the second block have normal sized windows.
I've attached a few pictures, apologies they aren't the best of quality.
Check-in was completed quickly and my room was upgraded from a queen to a king on the third floor at the end of the corridor. The lifts are in a sort of link corridor between the two blocks so there is no noise from them although the first rooms you come to when leaving the lift are x12 & x14 so there may be a little more noise in these rooms due to everyone having to pass them when leaving the lifts.
The rooms are a decent size and there is plenty of space with shower only. The usual Peter Thomas Roth toiletries - large size ones! There was still a new smell to the room which was understandable considering the hotel is only a few weeks old and the bed was very comfortable,
However there were a couple of niggly things mainly lighting during the night. Firstly outside the room window on the roof there is a spotlight. When the curtains are drawn there is a gap at the floor as the light is quite bright a lot of light gets in whilst there is a panel underneath the air con controls which had a light on constantly which is quite bright and there is also a light on the back of the television. The television could be unplugged but the other two had to be covered up with a bag or piece of clothing. No big deal but it was quite irritating.
There is a separate restaurant and bar on the ground floor which are quite smart. The menus can be found here. The burger was very tasty and was decent quality. There was a room service menu as well which I've attached a picture off. The choice on that was quite limited although this is fairly standard for an HGI.
The pantry is situated next to reception with snacks, drinks and ready meals available along with a microwave. There was a decent choice but both Glasgow and Aberdeen HGIs have more ready meal options compared to here.
Breakfast in the morning was quite good. On the buffet there was bacon, sausage, hash brown bites, beans, scrambled eggs and fried eggs. Omelettes and poached eggs were available to order and there was a waffle maker. The quality was good and the food was fresh. There was also the usual cold cuts, cheese, yoghurt available. There was no additional charge for latte/cappuccino which was good.
On the whole the hotel is pretty solid and looks good. The staff are still learning the ropes so things such as check-in etc aren't completely seamless yet but this should improve. I had booked a P&C rate at Ł23 & 8,000 points which was decent value. Cash rates seem to be going between Ł80 and Ł120 a night at the moment which is broadly similar to the Marriott down the road whilst the Premier Inns are roughly Ł60-Ł80 a night.
Last edited by chrism20; May 20, 2016 at 4:36 pm
May 20, 2016, 3:47 pm
#10
Join Date: Feb 2010
Posts: 284
May 20, 2016, 4:40 pm
#11
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Somewhere in Europe
Posts: 3,362
Thanks.
Thanks, yes there was a bit of a feel good atmosphere about the place thats for sure.
Yeah the hotel is owned by the football club and is managed by Hospitality Management International who manage the following Hilton properties:-
Hilton Heathrow T5
Hampton Waterloo
DT Excel - Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on this one in a few weeks time Wizla
Hilton Heathrow T5
Hampton Waterloo
DT Excel - Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on this one in a few weeks time Wizla
Apr 6, 2018, 6:35 am
#12
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: Newcastle, UK
Posts: 2,379
Had a one night stay en route to London last week. Did online check in to get a King room at the end of corridor on floor 3. Booked a King room and upon check in, told that they don't upgrade to suites as that's not part of the Honors scheme for HGI's. Fair enough. Chrism20's posts above sum up the hotel pretty well. Everything still feels new. Nice room, comfy bed and good shower. No complaints, especially as we got a rate of Ł51 in the recent sale. We enjoyed the dinner in the Karbon Grill restaurant. Plenty of car park space adjacent to the hotel, but not on match and event days. Don't know where you would park on those days! Also took breakfast in the restaurant instead of the points. Staff were pleasant and points and stay credits posted within a couple of days. Useful addition to the north east.
Toon!
Apr 6, 2018, 8:40 am
#14
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Somewhere in Europe
Posts: 3,362
That aside though its one of the best, if not the best hotel in Sunderland at the moment so it's odd the rates are so low. Things may well get a lot worse as I've heard that the Cairn Group intend to build a 120 room Holiday Inn in the centre of town. Cairn Group own and operate the DT at nearby Newcastle Airport which is viewed by a lot of people on here as being the best UK Doubletree. Their standards are high and the product is good across all their properties regardless of brand so we may see more pressure on those HGI rates yet.
Apr 6, 2018, 8:46 am
#15
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: Newcastle, UK
Posts: 2,379
Yes, it was planned and built whilst they were in the Premier League so a big revenue stream has probably disappeared. It's no surprise the GM bailed to the Holiday Inn Express in Grimsby not long after the start of their last season in the PL. She probably seen what was coming.
That aside though its one of the best, if not the best hotel in Sunderland at the moment so it's odd the rates are so low. Things may well get a lot worse as I've heard that the Cairn Group intend to build a 120 room Holiday Inn in the centre of town. Cairn Group own and operate the DT at nearby Newcastle Airport which is viewed by a lot of people on here as being the best UK Doubletree. Their standards are high and the product is good across all their properties regardless of brand so we may see more pressure on those HGI rates yet.
That aside though its one of the best, if not the best hotel in Sunderland at the moment so it's odd the rates are so low. Things may well get a lot worse as I've heard that the Cairn Group intend to build a 120 room Holiday Inn in the centre of town. Cairn Group own and operate the DT at nearby Newcastle Airport which is viewed by a lot of people on here as being the best UK Doubletree. Their standards are high and the product is good across all their properties regardless of brand so we may see more pressure on those HGI rates yet.