IsleOfMan

If the quality falls in line with Home2 but with standard size/layout rooms I'll be satisfied given the prices I'm seeing. No real desk will be my main misgiving but I'm willing to give their side-table deal a try before I complain too loudly.

Hotel Points Guy

Yes, but remember, you only get half the participation trophy points when staying at Home2 Suites and Tru by Hilton hotels.


From the Hilton website:


When you stay at a hotel or resort within the Hilton portfolio, you earn 10 Base Points for every US dollar spent on your room rate and other eligible room charges, including telephone calls and room service.


Some exceptions apply: At Hampton by Hilton™ or Homewood Suites by Hilton™ hotels, earn 10 Base Points for every US dollar spent on your room rate only. At Home2 Suites by Hilton™ and Tru by Hilton™ hotels, earn 5 Base Points for every US dollar spent on your room rate only.

As long as you can tolerate a "deskless" room and 5 base points per dollar, I say go for it!

travellingcari

Thanks for that reminder/heads up. Given the price differential and the plan to arrive, eat, sleep, leave I'll take the $ savings at the expense of the points.

divemistressofthedark

Stayed in one last night and hated it. The staff was very friendly and terrific but everything else about it was stressful and difficult. Decor: Spartan and institutional. Room size: Too small. Mattress: Too firm, really uncomfortable, tossed all night. Breakfast options suffer even compared to Hampton. And I loathe those individual bag carts that tip easily and which you can't see to steer if anything is hung on the hook in front.

I'll be really distressed if these things begin to cannibalize other parts of the brand. Found some uncomfortable similarities to Tru in a rehabbed HGI I stayed in next night as well... I'll be leaving Hilton if the move is toward less comfort, less space, less everything.

This particular one was in a rural area and may draw business due to a lack of competition... don't see how it's going to do well over the long term. People who aren't in huge cities are accustomed to more space and Tru is still more expensive than the usual rural-area chains.

Friendly Traveling Deathmerchant

I've been interested to see what the prices are going to be on the Las Vegas Airport area Tru. There's times I have to be in LV but don't want to pay high prices for just a bare bones bed.

But, weirdly, it's webpage has said forever that it's expected to open in December - but still doesn't show availability for any dates. December is only a few weeks away...

It's not even listed on the above Tru website (I thought millennials got all their info off the web? Someone isn't getting that site updated!

TDM

arlflyer

Given the impact of the recent events on tourism in Vegas*, it does not surprise me that there might not be a huge sense of urgency to complete a hotel build-out right on schedule.


*With this stupid new "upgrade" I no longer have a button to embed links, but here is a link: http://www.travelweekly.com/North-Am...-mass-shooting

Canarsie

I stayed in one last month.

I wish whoever was in charge of design would have taken functionality into account. The room had very little storage space — not that I needed it — and that includes the space under the bed specifically designed to store your bag. No closet or desk was in the room — and yes, it is smaller than an average room. The bed was reasonably comfortable, however; and the window was nice and big.

There are some interesting aspects to this brand: a water cooler next to the workout area dispenses filtered water for anyone who is thirsty — and that is something I would like to see added at other Hilton brands. Games are available for anyone who wants to play. Charging stations for portable electronic devices are located adjacent to the lobby and workout areas.

Breakfast options are scant — unless you enjoy a variety of bagels, doughnuts, cereal, oatmeal and hard boiled eggs with many assorted toppings. The yogurt was in a bowl and not in individual containers. The bagels were of a higher quality than what you would get at a Hampton Inn or even a Hilton Garden Inn — but not exactly like what you would find in New York.

I would not go so far as to say that I “hate” the concept; but I have no desire to stay at a Tru by Hilton hotel in the future...

timfountain

Sounds like another brand catering to millennials. As long as it has a charger in the room, some hip coffee brands for breakfast and some games to play. All's good....

storewanderer

I will eat some of my previous words. I stayed at a partially opened TRU. This one was at LAS Airport. Most of us who are familiar with LAS Airport know the location, down the block from the rental car return, in front of the Homewood Suites. Not a glamorous location, but central enough. No food within the next couple blocks. Depressing location really.

The property was priced a little higher than the two surrounding Hampton Inns but I decided to stay there anyway to claim the 1,000 point Tru bonus which made up for the slight price difference.

Check in was standard; the clerk was behind the desk in a t-shirt, but was professional in appearance and behavior.

I really did like the lobby area, except the pool table is silly and should not be there. I liked the variety of seating, space, color scheme, etc. in the lobby area. I did not like that the guest use computers were only "touch screen" and had no standard keyboards and it was a little difficult to use the thing to print a boarding pass out.

I also think the fitness area was pretty nice. The ice machine and water bottle filling station (many cups) next to, but not within the fitness center, were also a nice convenient touch.

Moving up to the room again I really liked the bright color schemes on the walls, carpet, and lighting of the hallway. Moving into the room I went in and first checked out the bathroom. Nice, good size, pretty cheap looking, but the shower head was pretty nice, shower a large walk-in, nice counter space around and above the sink (really liked this feature as it was higher than the main counter so you could put things there and not worry about them getting wet from the sink), and I liked that the faucet was at 3:00 instead of 12:00 position. As previously mentioned the soaps were all in large containers/liquid, but this did not bother me at all.

After the bathroom I went to check out the rest of the room. OUCH. This is where everything fell apart. Let's start with the positives about the room: many plugs and charging spots all over the place. Too many actually. Enough plugs and charging spots for at least 10 people, yet, no space to even put all the devices and things you may want to charge... Super ugly dark brown floor. The floor felt dirty and looked dirty. The tiny counter space (which could barely fit a sandwich roll without falling off it was so shallow) in the room is primarily dominated by a very large flat screen TV; probably this should be mounted up somewhere so you can reclaim more counter space. I found a little luggage rack next to the window and put my suitcase there and propped its opening up against the window. That went fine until it was fine to close the window shade and to do that I had to close up the suitcase. The room has one little chair and it is uncomfortable and has a little round plate shaped area to put something. Maybe you could fit a burger there; even a sandwich would be falling off the edges of it, it was so small.

Also there is little to no space beside the bed to put much other than a smartphone. Forget about putting a book or notepad beside the bed; no space for that here.

The bed was fine; comfort level was fine. Pillows were fine. The towels provided were of above average quality as well.

There was a sticker on the side/bottom corner of the bed that said "sleep on bed store suitcase under bed" or some such nonsense. My standard carry on size suitcase was too big to put under the bed in the space provided; putting it there would make sure many bump ins and a possible trip later on.

The breakfast in the morning was very spartan. They had a few bagels, some cheap prepack donuts (like what the grocery store bread aisle has in 8 packs for $3), one type of yogurt (space for two) in a large "scoop out of" container, and oatmeal also in a large "scoop out of" container. They had a good amount of toppings for the oatmeal. They also had various cold cereals, and a basket with a nice amount of whole, fresh, in good condition tangerines, bananas, and apples. There were also some boiled eggs as I recall.

I think this brand is appropriately priced in the range of a Comfort Inn or La Quinta type property. Frankly the offering is even less than either of those so I am not even sure it can command that price level. The value here is not even close to the offering of a Hampton. The size of the room would be a challenge for even two people, let alone a family. Only one place to sit, and an inadequate one at that, is just pathetic. No real space to put suitcases is also a problem.

Sort of felt like a hotel room in a big city, but where I was, near an airport, staring off at vacant land, ... this just does not fit.

I question what type of future this brand has and how it will establish much of a following. I could see it potentially working in large cities where some of these quirks, like very small hotel rooms, come with the territory. But in suburban locations, by an airport, I don't know... I would only return if the rate was very low. However, I do not think this property's rooms will age well based on the finishing/job. Felt worse than a Motel 6 if you are looking at the quality of the sitting/sleeping area of the room, but sure looked/felt similar with the tiny size and hard ugly dirty floor and lack of much else. Everything else (bathroom and common areas) was many steps above a Motel 6. The room really needs some work.

jacobguo

So Trus are even below Hamptons. Why would Hilton want that segment of the market though?

jacobguo

Canarsie

The answer would make sense if the room rates reflected the rooms and their perceived value, as some Hampton Inns can be expensive and Hilton arguably no longer has a lower-priced option...

...but room rates at Tru by Hilton can exceed those of neighboring Hampton Inns; so for me, the concept does not work.

Evo40

I don't understand why travelers would pay the same/more for a Tru over a Hampton or HGI when you get:

* no actual desk or desk chair
* only 50% points earnings
* really cheap-looking furnishings (versus Hampton or HGI)
* a breakfast that appears to be worse than Hampton (or, at least, not noticeably better)

Even if we assume Millennials are fine with/want all those things, why would they pay more to get less? They could either go to a Hampton/HGI or pick another chain with prices that are more commensurate with the amenities (not) offered.

The only thing Tru has going for it as that they're all pretty new. But given the quality of the furnishings, I can't imagine them holding up that well to wear and tear.

aztimm

There's one of these properties opening close to where I live:
Tru by Hilton Round Rock

Seems like an odd location for something like this, but there are some restaurants in that immediate area. Not sure I'd recommend it for my family; probably better to drive a few miles further for a Homewood or Hampton (or a little further for nearly any Hilton property).

eponymous_coward

For instance...



That Homewood Suites is literally next door to the Tru.

(There is a restaurant down on Warm Springs, on the other side of the rental car center, but it's a bit of a haul.)