DISCUSSION for Hilton Honors Hotels in Texas, USA {US-TX}
 

I have to book one night at a place in Laredo. A Hampton or other non Hilton properties also in the HHonors program will do. Any tips/suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks.

(bringing this thread forward)

All Hilton Brand Search:

http://www.hilton.com/en/hi/hotels/s...=-1&bhmpex=6,4 ,7,1112&bhflex=5,0,42,0&bhdirex=8,0,0,196&bhcont=l an

DISCUSSION for Hilton HHonors Hotels in Texas, USA {US-TX}
 

My family is planning a vacation this year to South Padre Island, TX. In doing some research, I can't find any HHilton property nearby. Not even a Hampton. Am I missing something? Do they have an arrangement with a different hotel on the island?

This is really surprising given the number of tourist to that area. I would really like to use points for the hotel stay!

HELP!

I've always wondered the same thing as well. It's a great destination and the Hilton family has such great coverage through TX, it would only make sense.

The nearest property is an Embassy Suite in McAllen I believe. About an hour drive to the island. It's fairly nice as any Embassy Suites always is.

In my trips to the island, I have always stayed at the Radisson. It's a nice property with a pretty good staff.

A lot of condos and not so many regular hotel-type properties, at least the last time I visited South Padre. That may account for the absence of HH.

There's a Camino Real in El Paso - I think about a 20 min drive.

Edited for stupidity: I got my Texan cities confused. Sorry- I was thinking of Brownsville, and I stayed in a Holiday Inn Express there...you're right, I don't think there's a Hilton in the area.

[This message has been edited by scook013 (edited 03-31-2002).]

El Paso to South Padre is a 20-minute drive? I wish I had your car! http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif 20 hours is more like it.

Embassy or Hilton-El Paso?
 

I did a search and found nothing. Any suggestions or comments regarding these two properties? I'll be going next month and will stay at one of the two.
Thank you.

I stayed at the Embassy about a month ago and was underwhelmed. One of the oldest ES's I've stayed at and it looks it. Vintage 70's paint/wallpaper, tile in bathroom cracking, old cheap furniture. Bed was soft and staff was indifferent.

Haven't tried the Hilton, but it's got to be better than this. I'll probably go for the Hampton next time through.

Stay at the Hilton. The Embassy is one TIRED looking hotel. Tons of kids and old 70's looking rooms. Im really starting to avoid Embassy suites everywhere. Is it just me or are they all old and tired looking?? These 1970 TV's in the living room have to go http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif

The ES is an old Granda Royale property. Many parties are held there and it has not been maintained. It is also located right off I-10 so it can be noisy and not a very nice view.

The Hilton is located at the airport. Not much going on there either.

If you need a Hilton property you may be out of luck in the El Paso area. However, there are a couple of old hotels downtown with some character - I don't know there names but you may want to inquire.

If you get a chance, you may want to go Las Cruces, New Mexico. There is also a Hilton there. Good luck!

Hilton last year had executive lounge open (I called in advance to insure it was available) for Friday evening ck in, however, when peeking in, all the fruits looked like they had been sitting there since Wednesday. No attendant, so I guess it really wasn't open . . .and somebody up front had bad information. Another family member, not even hhonors members, cked in Sat. Their room equiv to ours, even tho we were "upgraded". Family name not same nor had they asked for any type of upgrade.

Hilton is about your only choice! No Starwoods, No Hyatts! There's always the Holiday Inn Babyyyy!

There is a Marriott. The airport may not be an especially interesting area to stay in, but the hotel was just fine when I stayed there last, about two years ago.

The ES is really old, but unfortunately so is the Airport Hilton. They have a Hampton Inn that just opened last than a year ago, and there is also a Marriott and a brand new Courtyard.

You have a couple of options, they just sold the downtown Hilton to the Camino Real chain, very nice.

I would stay at either the Courtyard or Marriott, and after the HH devaluation, I wont be staying at Hilton anytime soon http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/frown.gif

I just stayed at the El Paso Airport Hilton and I thought it was very nice. As gold I was upgraded to a suite & given executive floor access. The room was immaculate and well furnished. Food sucked though - runny eggs and some kind of kool-aid for evening beverage.

I stayed there last month. The only food I had was the executive level breakfast, and it was OK. No complaints.

No, I did not check out the water slide.

El Paso Hilton Family Hotel Review
 

I have now stayed at all the 3 Hilton family hotels in El Paso (there also is a Garden Inn in Juarez across the border, but I have not stayed there). They are all by the airport - Hilton, Embassy Suites, and Hampton Inn and Suites. Without a doubt, and surprisingly, the Hampton is the absolute best. The Hilton is very convenient to the airport and can be walked to from the airport- only 100 meters or so away. The top floor of the main building is their executive level, and it is very disappointing. The food in the mornings and evenings is not high quality and is not maintained for freshness or anything else. They do have a decent pool. You can also hear the planes taking off depending upon your room`s location.
The ES is on I-10 and the rooms facing the freeway are noisy. Some rooms have been remodeled and they are fine, but the unrenovated rooms have corrosion in the bathroom. If you get a renovated room on the side, it is more than adequate. The morning and evening food/drink are standard ES.
But the Hampton is super; in fact, it`s the best Hampton I`ve stayed in (the Portland Airport Hampton has now dropped to #2). For breakfast, they have lots of fruit, several different types of cereal and milk, many different types of breads and rolls, hard boiled eggs, etc. While they have biscuits and gravy too, the ES has more hot breakfast items if that is important to you - it is not to me). The Hampton has a evening reception Monday - Thursday, that is as good as many Homewood Suites receptions. Also if you can get an upgrade to a suite, it is a very nice and roomy accommodation. Even the regular rooms are nice, but small. The outside of the hotel is an ugly yellow, but apart from that, I recommend it. Actually, though, there is an even better hotel in El Paso - it is the Marriott at the airport. If you get access to their concierge level, it is extraordinarily nice. It beats its main rival, Hilton, hands down. It is nicer than the Hampton but more expensive and you get less if you are not on its concierge level.

[This message has been edited by m (edited 03-09-2003).]

Hi,

On MLK day weekend in 2002 I stayed at the Hilton El Camino Real in Downtown El Paso using HHonors points. It is a historic hotel in an excellent location. The room was very nice, the hotel staff was nice , quick and efficient and I reccomend it unreservedly. Good resturant and a very fancy restored Bar.

Steve

I stayed at the ES in El PAso a couple of weeks ago. Was very disappointed in the room. It had no alarm clock, TV reception was bad and one phone would not work. It ranks in the 5 worst ES properties i have stayed in. That being said, I was at the ES in San Rafael CA Mariun County north of San Fracisco. They are now my favortite ES property. The grounds are nice, the rooms clean and fresh. But the people working at the property were OUTSTANDING. The whole experience was refreshing. I would recommend the property. It is about 15/20 minutes north of the Golden Gate Bridge and a less expensive alternative to the bay area.

A wonderful Property. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif

u600213

I stayed at the El Camino Real a year ago, and I agree with you. I did not include it in my review because it is my understanding that it, along with the entire Mexico chain it is part of, is no longer affiliated with HHonors. They were only part of HHonors for a very short period, like about a year or so, I think.

DISCUSSION for Hilton HHonors Hotels in Texas, USA {US-TX}
 

We want to take a weekend trip in Texas(we live in Houston) and also doing a mileage run to keep the gold status. Where would be the nicest Hilton family hotel in Texas. I've stayed at Hilton Americas and the one in Austin.
How is the EB in Corpus Christi? Just looking for a weekend to kick back and relax..

Any ideas???

EB is Embassy Suites ? (sorry I'm still learning the shorthand)

Stayed in Corpus Christi Embassy Suites last year, not bad place. It's a smaller property, smaller atrium, the manager's reception in the evening was ok, breakfast was good. Standard Embassy Room. During the week I got a rate of around $100, weekends could be higher. Nice thing it's only 15 minutes to the beach. :) have fun

My daughter loved the Hilton SA by the river walk. Maybe it's cause daddy did it with points for her, but she loved it anyway.

Austin or San Antonio
 

We stayed at a Hilton property in Austin which was great. It was about 2 blocks from the Capital. It has been a couple of years but I believe it was a Hilton. We received an upgrade to a 2 room suite with a great view of the state capital.

If you are going far west Texas, El Paso Hilton ain't that bad, it has a 200ft long water slide

Doubt you will drive this far though ;)

You're probably thinking of the Doubletree Guest Suites. It's two blocks west of the capitol and is a nice property, in the middle of the state office complex, half-way between the University of Texas and downtown. There isn't another Hilton that close to the capitol.

The new Hilton downtown is also very nice. I stayed there last week and got upgraded to the executive floor, with a breakfast buffet and an evening happy hour reception. The staff was outstanding and the location (downtown, next to the convention center) puts you right in the middle of the Austin nightlife and just a few blocks from Town Lake, the hike and bike trail, and the famous Congress Avenue Bat Bridge. I'd stay at the downtown location again in a heartbeat.

El Paso is a looooooooong from Houston!!! I also stayed in the Hilton San Anotnio by the riverwalk. That's where I proposed to my wife after we got upgraded!

The Hilton Austin is a great hotel if you want to do any sightseeing - the capital is walking distance and the presidential library is in Austin as well.

I've stayed at the DT Guest Suites in Austin quite a bit. It's fantastic and, even for a Silver like me, they're fantastic about upgrades. Last year, at Christmas, we got bumped up to a massive corner suite.

The Hilton Palacio del Rio in San Antonio is also really hard to beat. It's a great location, a nice hotel with terrific service, and just the perfect spot for a fun weekend -- particularly if you scout ahead a little and find a right price.

Short Review: Midland and El Paso
 

Here`s my recent experience with family hotels in these 2 cities:
1. MAF: The Hilton is the nicest hotel in town. It has 2 nice perks that very few other full service hotels have: free local phone calls and free computer use in their business center. Also, their executive lounge is now open on the weekends, which is a recent development. It is under a very long renovation, and the lounge is temporarily in the north tower rather than the south. It is a fine hotel. The Hampton is also nice, mainly because it has been built in the past couple years; it also has free computer use,
2. ELP: The Embassy Suites is lousy. The pool area was trashy, with cigarette butts all over the place. The evening reception and breakfast were disappointing. The only fruit at breakfast was canned fruit coktail, and the hot items were greasy. For the evening, only greasy popcorn was served, the booze was cheap and poor, and the red wine tasted like grape juice with alcohol added. I`d rather they served decent stuff and limited people to 2 drinks, rather than serve the lowest quality items imaginable. They charge about $12.50/hr for their computer, in sharp contrast to the free access at most Hamptons. I haven`t stayed at the Hilton in awhile, but I found it unimpressive. The Hampton Inn & Suites is the best local property; in fact, one of the best Hamptons I`ve stayed at. You can normally get an upgrade on weekends (they`re usually booked during the week), and on Monday-Thursday, they have a reception that is far superior to ES.

I'm glad to see upgrade report on MAF. I was there maybe 2 years ago on the concierge floor (on a fairly vacant night) and it was a dingy, shabby place. Cracked marble in the bathroom, rusted sink, and smoky hallways. I do remember their breakfast buffet was amazingly good after such a disappointing night.

I stayed at the ELP Airport Hilton once and was very queezy about it. Visited the Downtown Hilton during the same stay and wished I would have stayed there and even inquired at the desk what I would have received as a DIA and they let me tour a suite room, and I thought it was most impressive.

The downtown hotel is now a Camino Real, no longer a Hilton

I would avoid the Embassy Suites in ELP at all cost, it has become a dump.

The new Hampton Inn is much better ;)

ELP Airport Hilton
 

I don't know what made you queezy about this location, but I've stayed there 3 times recently. Last week was the most recent. The pool area is nice, and if you have the kids along (had my nephew, niece and brother-in-la along on this trip) the waterslide will keep them busy for hours. The rooms that I've had have been clean enough, and the noise from the airport isn't bad if you stay on the lower floors. I haven't been on the top floors or on the airport side of the hotel to know whether noise is an issue over there.

Proximity to the airport is great, and its only a 3-4 minute drive to the Interstate.

I had read online that they were going to build a new Hilton (Garden Inn?) near the airport on Airway.


Any one know when this is expected to be open?

ELP Hilton
 

I have stayed at that Hilton numerous times using points...it is a good stopping place between tucson and houston, and since the hampton inn is never available when i am passing through, and I just can't seem to make it all the way to Kerrville or SAT, it is where i stop...It is difficult to find the hotel at night the first couple of times. I have driven through the airport a couple of times, having missed the turn...It isn't much easier in the day time.....I have never felt "nervous" really, even checking in late at night, but it definitely has an "interesting" vibe...Staff have always been nice to me (one lady has worked there for as long as I have been going there and she remembers me every time). The oreos and bottle water next to the bed with a welcome note is a nice touch

Glad to hear the Midland Hilton is under renovation. I stayed there four years ago, and had an upgrade to a large suite. However, not only was much of the hotel looking dingy and worn out, but the suite I was in looked like it hadn't been touched since about 1975. The large, console TV in the living room did have a remote control, but if you wished to change channels directly on the TV, you would have to dial to the right number on a turn knob. There was also a rotary dial phone in the room. Fortunately the other phone, and the TV in the bedroom, were newer, dating from the late 1980s. Still not new, but at least not almost as old as I am.

This looks like the Hilton family hotel in town:

Hampton Inn Laredo (Reward Category 3: 25,000 pts. per night)
7903 San Dario, Laredo, Texas, United States 78045
Tel: +1-956-717-8888 Fax: +1-956-717-8391

If you're going across the Rio Grande, there is also this choice:

Hilton Garden Inn Nuevo Laredo (Reward Category 2: 20,000 pts. per night)
Av. Reforma 5102 Col. Lagos, Nuevo Laredo, Mexico 88290
Tel: +52-867-7114600 Fax: +52-867-7114601

Has anyone stayed at the Laredo, Texas (LRD) property? Any comments?