There, I said it! Whew, it’s out in the open!
They say the first step is to admit you have a problem! ha ha
Years ago, it didn’t matter where I stayed, up to a point. Best Western was my hotel of choice at one point, it was reasonable, the rooms were clean, breakfast was free and I was only sleeping there, right? Right. Then I started traveling for work and I had to make a choice, well, didn’t have to, but you kind of need to stick with one to get the real benefits.
I have stayed at Marriotts, even have points there, SPG, Holiday Inn, you name it, I have points, but I decided that Hilton Hotels was the way to go for me. BG says he won’t stay at Hilton, he doesn’t want to give Paris Hilton any more money! Ha! He decided that Marriott is his hotel of choice and more power to him. I’ve stayed at a few Marriotts over the last few years and when I’ve stayed on the Concierge level, it’s very nice, but my last stay at a Marriott wasn’t the best, especailly since I’ve become spoiled by Hilton!
When I was on the road a few years ago, sometimes there weren’t any other options than Motel 6 or Days Inn or a few others and they were fine, a place to sleep, internet connection, but not my first choice.
There is something I really like about the level of service I get from Hilton properties. I am Gold Level, working towards Diamond this year and I know I’ll make it. I always have free wifi, free breakfast at most locations that don’t offer free breakfast, when I check in, two bottles of water, sometimes cookies or a snack waiting for me when I get to the room. There is a standard that they hold themselves to and strive to meet that level and standard at each hotel for each guest.
I’ve also had a time or two where something was wrong, and when hasn’t that happened and they corrected the issue immediately, that’s what matters to me. I was reading something that compared Hilton to Walt Disney World, that level of white glove service, well, they have me hooked.
When I need something, they do what they can to accomodate me, I always have a handwritten note in my room welcoming me to the hotel by a manager, little things that make me feel welcome. One time I stayed at a Doubletree hotel and as you may know, they are famous for their warm chocolate chip cookie at check-in [you can even buy a cannister], I asked when were they going to offer other cookies at check-in, they asked what my favorite cooke was, white-chocolate-macadamia-nut. I went to dinner that evening at CWB’s house, wonderful evening with her daughter, SB and husband, DB, and when I got back to my room, on the desk was a tray with two glasses of milk [with saran wrap on them] and a plate of 4 white-chocolate-chunk-macadamia-nut cookies [saran wrapped] and a hand written note with a flower on the front drawn with fruit/colored markers. How nice was that?
I know that Hilton properties are not inexpensive and definitely easier when traveling on business to have someone else pay, but I’ve earned points and sometimes I can find one for less than $80/nite and to me, it’s worth it. In addition, you can find a Hilton Hotel almost anywhere!
The beds are so incredibly comfortable and the pillows, you sink into them and if it wasn’t for the alarm, I’d sleep and sleep and sleep! And if you get to spend the night at a Homewood Suites, even better, they have full kitchens [full sized refridgerator, sink, dishwasher, oven, range, microwave] sometimes a separate bedroom with a cieling fan, living room, it’s your home away from home, even serving breakfast, happy hour and dinner, how can you beat that?
So, there you have it, I am a hotel snob and I’m ok with it! I am going say goodnight, get under the covers and snuggle into my very comfy bed and drift off to sleep! Sweet dreams!
Peaches Prattlings 