"We have reserved one of our 5 suites for you": review Hilton Melbourne Little Queen Street
For our stay in Melbourne we aimed at two Hilton family properties, after the Next (which is a [...]
Australia
For our stay in Melbourne we have placed our bets on two facilities in the Hilton family, after the Next (which is a Curio) we set our sights on the Hilton Little Queen Street, because it is not far from the other hotel (we walked to it), because it is the only Hilton in the heart of CBD, i.e. Central Business District.
In this article:
Last but not least because. Children under 14 sleep (in the same bed as their parents) for free.
Reservation
As always, I booked through the app, the reason being that only so you get benefits and accumulate points. I also could have used Hilton Honors points, but . against 220€ per night as many as 70k points were required, a very inexpensive conversion.
Location
First, the hotel is within walking distance of the iconic Bourke Street Mall and from Hardware Lane, a famous and lively alley known for its many restaurants, cafes and bars.
From here one can walk leisurely to all major CBD-area tourist destinations such as Melbourne Central station, Queen Victoria Market or Marvel Stadium, and Melbourne Tullamarine Airport is less than a half-hour drive from the hotel.
A historic structure, recovered
The historic building dates back to 1930 as Equity Chambers of Melbourne, and is protected by local "fine arts."
The renovation respected the style and also maintained some small goodies such as the internal mail column, the hotel's transformation has skillfully combined old-world charm with contemporary design.
This ancient vs. modern contrast begins on Little Queen Street, where a colorful mural is reflected in the exterior bronze panels that are part of the hotel lobby.
While inside is all belle epoque marble, vintage elevators, and oak and bronze wood finishes. Everywhere are details of what in the 1930s was surely a cutting-edge gem for its time.
Check-in
As mentioned, we walked from the Next Hotel, which is about a 15-minute walk on the opposite side of Elizabeth Street. We walked through what we thought was the main entrance, but found out instead to be the secondary entrance.
The reception is definitely more accessible not from Bourke Street, but just from Little Queen street which is a small side street.
Handing over the passport triggered immediate status recognition, and seconds later we were announced that we had been upgraded from a basic room to a Suite. This surprised me because I did not receive any upgrade message, but only the email in which I was asked to pay to upgrade to a better room.
Suite
The attendant instead of pointing us to the elevators escorted us to our room., the reason being that the hotel's three best suites (out of 5) are located in the historic building, and not in the rest of the tower.
Our room was the King Premium Suite, one step below the best room in the hotel the King Master Suite..
They are not exactly two divided rooms, or rather there is no real wall but furniture elements that divide the room in two. Of course we're in a historic building, so I guess even in Australia, as in Italy, you can't do whatever you want.
Eventually we asked if it was possible, for a fee, to have an extra bed, and it was arranged for us in the lounge area of the suite.
King bed, really comfortable mattress and two bedside tables on either side of the bed.
Having sockets and switches near the bed is not a given; sometimes it happens that the home automation (or defectiveness) of architects unnecessarily complicates life for guests.
There was everything in the room: two mega-screens, bar area, but with a desultorily empty mini-bar, coffee maker, and kettle.
The bathroom was also really immaculate. Separate shower and tub, double sinks, and lots of personal products.
The hotel
The combination of historical and modern is very well done. Perhaps what this hotel lacks are larger social spaces.
Like the gym, which is really tiny, but maybe people who come to uqthis facility are not doing it to work out.
The lounge
In the mezzanine of the historic building is the hotel's executive lounge: the Queen Adelaide Room. Access is granted to all Diamond level holders in the Hilton Honors loyalty program or those who book an Executive room. Be careful because it is not certain that if you get an upgrade to an executive room you will also have access to the lounge.
Very nice environment, as is the whole historical part of the hotel.
As I often explain in my reviews hotel lounge means saving money. Generally there is afternoon snack, evening happy hour and drinks h24, or almost. And even here in Melbourne it did not disappoint us.
Breakfast
On balance the only charge we incurred for Bete was breakfast, on this they were fiscal, whereas in other hotels if the third bed is a child's they (almost) never charged me.
The cost was 21$ Australian, which is about 12 euros, while Marika and I did not pay because if you are Gold (or higher) you do not pay and also this means saving on the final cost of the stay.
Beautiful presentation, express cooking for eggs and varied offerings. It just lacks soul, it all seems very scholastic, there are no flavors from the world, but everything exclusively Western.
Nice to be able to see the chefs at work, too bad there was no specialty of the day.
In conclusion
I would go back, except that when I travel I always try to go to a new facility to bring it up here on TFC.
Pro
- Location
- Upgrade
- Staff
Against
- Breakfast