telabadmanwot

Nice. is that for the Hilton glasgow only? Tired of forking out in Belfast.

chrism20

It's the Hilton Garden Inn (HGI).

The Hilton proper will charge you for parking as does the DT.

adobbing

From memory;

Hilton Glasgow = Ł15
Glasgow Grosvenor = Ł10
DT Glasgow = Ł8.50
HGI Glasgow =Ł6.50 - comped for Gold and Diamond Honors members

chrism20

That sounds there or there about.

Hampton has a deal with Q-park opposite that is reduced to Ł17 per 24hrs which is pretty severe even for the city centre although if you scan your ticket in the Q-park app you get free parking or a substantial discount every fifth time you scan.

courspanis

How is the location for a visitor compared to places closer to the river? I won't have a car to worry about parking, and I'll have about a week. TIA.

chrism20

Probably better than the others tbh. The hotel is less than two minutes from Sauchiehall Street, five minutes to Buchanan Galleries or the bus station and ten minutes to Central or Queen street stations although on the way to the hotel from the station it's all uphill so if you have luggage I'd recommend a taxi which you would probably cost less than Ł5.

Underground station is also five minutes walk from the hotel and from there you can get to the west end etc.

If I wasn't driving to Glasgow and using public transport this would definitely be my first choice.

adobbing

Had forgotten about the Hampton!
One other option to consider for that, would be to use the car park at the DT and walk down to the Hampton. They have payment machines near the lift, just not sure whether it's still Ł8.50 for non residents overnight.


Can vouch for the Q Park app, you just have to remember to scan the ticket before you leave and preferably where you have a wifi or mobile data connection (not deep inside a multi storey!).
Some of their sites, such as the Edinburgh Omni Centre operate with a plastic coin shaped token, so you have to scan a qr code near the payment stations.
Obviously you shouldn't take a photo of this and then scan the photo again the following day ;-)

adobbing

+1

It's handy for buses, the subway, long distance and local trains!

hugolover

I tend not to post too much on property threads except to answer questions but I will have to on this one.

Thinking back, I can't think of a property that has changed so much since opening. So the good:

-Very good Diamond treatment ITO upgrades
-Rooms and suites in good nick
-Great location
-F&B staff friendly
-Good corporate rates
-Lounge is 24 hours

Bad:

The biggest gripe is with F&B itself. In the months from opening the lounge used to have canapés like scallops, foie gras and venison, it was that high quality. Now they have basically given up. Not only is the food regularly not coming out on-time at 6PM, I personally witnessed 6:30 last week and another FTer told me of 7PM more recently (and still taking it away at 8PM) but its probably one of the poorest offerings in the UK right now.

On my previous three stays there has been dry salad leaves (sometimes with dressing-sometimes not) of the catering bag style they put on the sandwiches in the Cask bar as a garnish. Some sort of curry served in a bamboo boat and a watered down soup, sometimes with "industro bread" rolls that would not look out of place in a BA lounge. That's it.

UK Hilton connoisseur wizla will be most disappointed there is not and nor has there ever been any cheeseboard.

Apparently the hotel has given up on the lounge because they have realised the brand standard doesn't call for one. Its so stupid could it actually be true?

Turning to the restaurant. I have back meals which have arrived cold or just not as described. 8 GBP room service sandwiches are made with plastic meat. Breakfast is a shambles if you are keen on ordering from the menu. I have not had one single trouble free breakfast. This month they stopped the a la carte breakfast menu for all guests and I saw on TripAdvisor a few comments about eggs benedict and kippers meaning it was a popular option that set the hotel apart from the competition. These are now with a supplement of up to 11 GBP which is a huge amount in addition to the standard price. It does appear to be free for Diamonds but still, its not the point. From what I can see, standard order egg dishes like omelettes are chargeable to non-Elite guests (7.50) which is quite rare considering many hotels have a live station, free of charge to all and is a big separation to the the two Hiltons and HGI which of course has cooked-to-order breakfasts for all guests.

For a long time the eggs and soldiers were served in a sauce dish they use for ketchup, tartare etc- which means they arrived on their side until an FTer complained so much they managed to get the purchase authorised for egg cups. This option *was* on the menu but for months and months they couldn't even serve them properly. And I think he nor I can can truly count how many times we have sent back poached eggs which arrive like rocks. There is only one way of serving a poached egg by default, if you want a hard poached egg that should be specifically requested-this comment I make because the restaurant supervisor wanted to clarify I wanted them soft and not hard…

There may be comments on TA from guests (mysteriously upgraded to the Exec Floor with no mention of Elite status) that the lounge is great, but there's plenty of people who think Galleries Club is just marvellous because there's booze on tap and a curry in the slop pot. I believe the majority here have more discerning tastes.

Conclusion: I'm not suggesting that we should all scuttle back to the Hilton but its really not what it was. I'm curious to see if the Hilton now has a better lounge compared to this one because its been a long time since I stayed there.

chrism20

Ouch, doesn't sound good at all.

I haven't been there recently as I've been avoiding Glasgow and the west of Scotland where possible due to the M8 roadworks.

It's pretty sad if it's went downhill so quickly though as it was very good when it rebranded.

On the last visit I did think that the lounge offering was not as good as it had been and there was a member of staff practically guarding the spirits even though none of the four people who were there at the time were drinking them.

I'm not surprised that the supplements have been added for the breakfast items though as there were quite a lot of people ordering menu items and piling plates at the buffet, however up to Ł11 per item seems extreme. The omelette is outrageous considering in the evenings the HGI charges Ł8 for an omelette with two fillings that comes with chips and a side salad.

I wonder if anything similar is going on at the Carlton here in Edinburgh as they are both the same owners albeit different brands.

adobbing

Also noticed the shine coming off a little bit;

Stopped stocking brewdog beer in the exec lounge, I was told that the tennents that replaced it was cheaper and that they were still ticking the box for a local beer!

Had to queue for 5-10 minutes to get into breakfast downstairs the last time I was in.

Also told that I would have to pay for a double espresso in the restaurant at breakfast time, when asked whether I wanted tea or coffee by waitress. Told her not to bother I would get a coffee from the machine upstairs.

Parking shot up from Ł7 to Ł8.50, a staged increase would have been more appropriate.

chrism20

Tennents is on a par with drinking dirty dishwater but there is no denying its local I suppose as you can walk to Wellpark Brewery in about fifteen minutes from the hotel.

I think I'll stick to the HGI when in Glasgow. I don't know why but I have a soft spot for the place plus it's probably the most consistent HH property in Glasgow by the look of it. They also now have a bean to cup machine at breakfast now.

Such a shame as it had serious potential and was also an opportunity for the Hilton proper to smarten itself up.

adobbing

Agreed on the tennents, it should be left to people in shop doorways who can't afford buckfast.

Do they still do the drinks vouchers at the HGI, they used to give me two and they had brewdog in bottles?

Now the weather is getting better I may switch some stays to the HGI, nice to have a drink on the riverside.

As an aside, I noticed that Quidco have dropped the higher rate of cash back for the Holiday Inn / HIX theatreland and HIX riverside. Not sure whether they've seen business return.

chrism20

I've stayed at the HGI five times this year and there has been drinks vouchers and fruit in the room everytime. Parking is also free

wizla

What no cheeseboard!!!.......disgraceful!