Kensington Hilton - Big, but surprisingly friendly! (Hilton London Kensington)

Member Name: andymcf

Product:	Hilton London Kensington
Date:	18/11/02 (256 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Hilton brand, Friendly, Child-friendly

Disadvantages: Small rooms - but it's London, Location is a bit way-out

Travelling around London with a suitcase, wedding present and 10-month old baby Josh in a pushcair can, believe me, be a traumatic experience! I'd booked the Kensington Hilton for an overnight stay since Josh's Godparents were getting married at the Chelsea and Kensington registry office. Convenient, I thought. A bit further out of town than I'd planned, as it happens! That said, the location would certainly suit most people - it's by Holland Park and the local street is delightful, rather like a village within London, with charming shops and an attractive pub nearby; perfect for a stroll if you've got the time. When the underground system works, it's very good but - for the time being - forget it and use taxis. We did; it made much more sense. Less encumbered without an infant, you'd find this a most convenient base from which to explore London by tube. Just avoid the circle line!

We arrived, anyway, and enjoyed a totally hassle-free, early check-in. We had to be in Chelsea by noon and had thus arranged to check in ridiculously early at 11am. We'd been told that this shouldn't be a problem and that - if our room were not ready - our bags would be stored for us and taken up later. As it happens, the room was indeed ready and we were able to "take possession" almost instantly of our 6th floor executive room (a complimentary Hhonors upgrade for a Gold member). It was all a bit of a rush, but that was only of our making, and the hotel staff co-operated in a friendly and efficient manner.

Our nicely air-conditioned room felt a little small at first (but then our last hotel stay, the week before, had been at the Conrad Brussels in a huge duplex suite) - not uncommon in London, but it was very comfortably and smartly furnished. A personal welcome message was displayed on the screen of the television; a common Hilton touch, but a nice one. We later found the bed to be extremely comfortable and enjoyed a perf
ect night's sleep. The minibar was very well-stocked and, had the wedding not been such a good one, I am sure that we would have enjoyed exploring all it had to offer! A comfortable chair was next to the occasional table with complimentary fruit basket. We'd ordered a cot (or crib) for Josh and this was provided. He's too young to make comment but he slept like a log in it, much to our relief!

The bathroom was well-furnished and the toiletries were superb - Amanda loved the moisturiser! The famous Hilton fluffy bathrobes added that extra bit of luxury.

I enjoyed a late night drink in the comfortable and welcoming "am / pm bar". Very pleasant, but why DO hotels insist in charging so much for bar drinks? UKP 7.00 for a large whisky is not exactly unusual in an hotel - but it is still rather more than one would pay elsewhere! It's about the price of half-a-bottle!

Breakfast, included in the extraordinarily reasonable room rate, was superb. Josh was provided with a high chair and enjoyed chewing a croissant whilst I took a fairly minimalist cereal, tea, OJ and toast approach. Amanda enjoyed the full English cooked breakfast. And the waitresses obviously enjoyed Josh! He got lots of attention!

Checkout was efficient and effortless. This is the most efficient and friendly member of the Hilton family I've stayed in so far. Highly recommended. If only the transport system were more child-friendly. The hotel most certainly was!

PS....I like to give praise when it's due, so we filled in the customer-comment card positively and handed it in to reception at check out; we'd been very well looked after. A week later, I received a letter at home from the Operations Manager, Patricia Mahon, thanking us. THAT, in my book, is quite exceptional customer service, and certainly beyond the call of duty.

Andrew

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