To the Hilt(on)
We are the kind of folks who were raised to stay in the $12.00 kitchenette on our rare but occasional trips down to the Gulf. In fact, I still remember the first time, as a preteen, that we not only stayed at a Holiday Inn, but actually ate lunch in the hotel restaurant (I had a five dollar hamburger, and yes, it was better than a dollar burger from a fast food joint, but I was more amazed at the linen tablecloth, the fancy menu and the five dollar price).
The working class, “load’em-in-the-unairconditioned-station-wagon- and-let’s-stay-at-the-motorcourt” mentality also led to our choices of luxury hotels tending more toward the eccentric, including the Bourbon Orleans (New Orleans), Colony and Cabana (Delray Beach) the lost and much lamented shabby old lady called the Gulfstream (Lake Worth), some funky grand hotel, whose name eludes me, but it is located on Miami’s North Beach with a Greek spa, and gift shops in the basement, a fabulous view of the ocean and fading autographed caricatures of Jackie Gleason and Frank Sinatra from the times they stayed there in the fifties, and even the Wyndam OceanWalk, here in Daytona.
But never a Hilton. Not only were we put off by the behavior of Paris Hilton, but having spent most of our lives in the shadow of Palm Beach, we neither expected to be able to afford it nor were we prepared to enjoy the kind of people we tend to associate with the high end life style, having seen better manners from homeless folks under a bridge than some of the Palm Beach crowd. But, by accident, we ended up at the Hilton Oceanwalk on Daytona Beach.
The accident occurred due to my wife’s mistake. She was supposed to book a suite in the Wyndham Oceanwalk. She is the master of discount travel booking, though I have to add, many hotels, from your generic Days Inn, to your exotic Bourbon Orleans, as well as the midrange Double Trees, Extended Stays and so on, don’t get the “Online Discount Booking Concept.” Too often we find we get the room that has an almost non functional A/C, or a room that shares a common, poorly sound proofed wall with the ice maker room, or even a room in the Wyndham, that opened into the hallway, which seems odd, but I guess is okay, except, our window opened onto the elevator landing, so we had the joy of trying to put a toddler down for the night while drunks were staggering and yelling and laughing as they came off and got on the lift. “Point Being,” as my beloved late father-in-law was fond of saying, these hotels are glad to book the extra rooms, but instead of trying to persuade you that they are such fine institutions that you might want to return and pay Rack Rate, They give you the mini, second hand version, usually assuring that you book elsewhere the next time.
We have spent the last year, like many Americans, taking turns getting laid off, and thankfully, getting re-employed, and at better wages than those we lost. Even with the good fortune, we have had some stressful times, and have had to forgo our serious “chill and recharge” kind of getaway. We finally managed to finagle a three day weekend adventure. Even with the odd window overlooking the elevator, we had enjoyed our stay at Daytona Beach so much (no we are not bikers, nor race fans), the Wyndham had a great water park, including water slides and a lazy river inner tube float, and two indoor pools. Daytona also has two of the best bookstores in Florida, Mandalas and Abraxas, and both are located a block apart and the foot of the bridge. We are, afterall, “book people.”
My wife was careful to book a suite with oceanview, so we didn’t get a view of the hallway. When she told me we were staying at the Hilton Oceanwalk, I corrected her, “No honey, it’s the Wyndham Oceanwalk.” She replied that Hilton must have bought it, because now it was a Hilton. End of discussion. She is, afterall, queen of the online discount travel booking.
The night before we left, I decided to “google map it,” to see how long the trip would to take. When I put in “Daytona oceanwalk,” up came the Wyndham. I became both suspicious and concerned. Sure enough the good folks at Wyndham were alive and well, and dear wife had booked us at 100 N Atlantic, not 300 N Atlantic, we were just south of the Oceanwalk Mall, not just north. I checked, the Hilton had two pools, no water slide, no lazy river. Of course our online booking was non refundable. We tried to explain to our almost five year old son that it was a mistake that we couldn’t do anything about, that there would still be swimming pools, there would still be the same beach, and we would have a great suite and he would love it. He wasn’t buying, so I promised to ask if we could pay to use the lazy river for a day when we got here, if he wasn’t happy at the Hilton. But it was with heavy hearts that we headed north to Daytona. My wife was horrified, and I kept telling her it didn’t matter, that we needed a good vacation and this was going to be one and the Hilton would be fine. We both hoped I was right.
My wife called on the way up to see if we could get an early check in, and to ask for special consideration, as it was my 50th birthday, her 40th and our 11th wedding anniversary (Yes, all three of those events occur in an 11 day stretch in early August, that and three more birthdays in late August, makes it about like Christmas in summer around our house). The hotel couldn’t promise an early check-in, as they were fully booked both the previous night and the day of our arrival. I had a sinking feeling that we might be told they were overbooked and we would be stuck without a room. But that didn’t happen. Here is what did happen: The Good (a lot of that), The Bad (a little of that) and The Ugly (only one small incident)
At the Hilton:
The Hilton does almost EVERYTHING right, and almost ALL their staff really seem to care about your total enjoyment of the Hilton experience, but for some reason, at least in the summer, both towers check in at the south tower location, and all parking is Valet only! And the valet is $17.00 PER DAY. The main problem isn’t the money, it is the congestion at check in, on a busy weekend, it can take 15-20 minutes to get from the street to the lobby. They didn’t have our room ready, but the bellman took our stuff and tagged and stored it, they gave us pool passes and we were able to let our son swim while we waited. Within a few minutes, we were able to get into our room.
The suite, was wonderful! There are a couple of design points I would suggest, but later for that. First, it smelled nice and clean, which believe it or not, is not a given, even in luxury hotels, A large mirrored front closet faces a mini kitchen, two cabinets, a good size granite top, a deep sink, a mini fridge, and a “pod type” twin cup coffee maker. Not my taste in coffee, but I was able to make do with my fresh ground whole bean set up, but it was a lot like my wife’s K-cup setup at home. She loved it. Three things were missing, a toaster and a microwave, as well as eating utensils. I think Hilton is concerned with folks making meals in their room, because there are several fine restaurants in the complex.
The kitchen/entryway opened to a well appointed large hotel room with a sleeper sofa, and comfy upholstered armchairs. Through an attractive French door is the bedroom, a well appointed writing desk, and very comfortable king size bed, another armchair, and dresser with a TV atop. Down a short hall is another closet another granite top sink with a pretty wood framed oval mirror, and through a door another vanity, toilet and a cast iron tub.
The view from both rooms is, of course, astounding, nothing but ocean beyond the wide flat sandy beach, oh, and then there are the sunrises! But that isn’t all, out to the side of the bedroom, a heavy sliding door opens onto a private patio! The patio is exactly as big as the two rooms combined. It has a nice high, safe wall, (a little under four feet). In the afternoon about half of it is shaded, and in August, it is too hot to enjoy, even in the shade, but after dark, it is quite a treat to be able to go out and enjoy the sound of the surf, to watch the people strolling the beach, to have a nice rum drink and sit in the lounge chairs and watch a great big moon poke itself up of the ocean haze.
About 6 pm the first evening, there was a knock at the door. When we asked who was there, they replied “room service.” Now I have watched enough movies to know if you didn’t order room service and room service comes anyway, it is really a secret agent man with a silencer, but in this case, it really was room service, with a platter of chocolate dipped strawberries and a bottle of champagne chilling in a bucket of ice. Compliments of management! That was a nice touch. Everywhere we went anywhere in the hotel or left and returned, everyone seemed to genuinely care that we were happy. Once, our car had been parked in the north lot, though we were in the south tower, and the valet apologized about the wait, before he dashed away, and returned within about two minutes. We were never treated second class. Which may be an odd thing to say, but over the years, we have found the concept of pleasing the customer, seeing to it that the person spending the money is having a good time, seems to get rarer and rarer, whether one is buying a burger, a car, staying in the cheapest hotel and the grandest resorts. So we were thrilled when they worked hard to make sure we had everything we needed or wanted.
Now, on the second evening, we had one of the two ugly things, and the only one that anyone can be sure about, as you will see. We, again, went out to the valet, and this time, the man explained that our car had been parked at the north parking lot (note: the entrance for the north and south towers are about ¼ of a mile apart), he told us that we would have to walk up to the north tower entrance, which we did. We were a little surprised, but everything had been so nice, and everyone was so pleasant, we decided to let it slide. But when we asked the valet at the north entrance if we could have our car, he looked at our ticket, and told us our car was parked at the south lot. As my wife prepared to explode at the thought of walking back, he explained that, no, he would run get it. He also told us that this wasn’t the first time the guy had pulled this stunt.
While we waited, a pleasant gentleman, in a pink Hilton shirt, came by. I perceived him to be management and told him the story. He was horrified. I told him I didn’t like to get a working man in trouble, but I thought it was a bit much. He explained that under no circumstances was a guest to go to a car, the valet should have brought the car to us, no matter where it was parked. I have a feeling the lazy valet was attended to severely. The rest of the valet staff, apologized profusely, though I told them I could understand the mix up. They insisted, like the manager, there was no mix up, we should have never been sent after our car.
I cannot tell you the number of little things they did to make us feel welcome, it was like fit of a well made machine. The smoothness of our whims belied the skilled and practiced staff who made it all so easy. The basics from clean luxurious carpets, chairs, sheets and pillows, where so many places struggle were all in generous supply, but the staff made the difference.
The second ugly is the billing process. I have no way of knowing, but I have my suspicions. When we checked in, they asked for credit card, when my wife reminded them that we had completely paid in advance, she was told they still needed the card for “incidentals.” We never charged anything to our room, except our valet service. We awoke on the morning of our checkout. It clearly stated bill for our balance was for twice as many days of valet service as we had stayed. My wife called down and asked why we were being charged so much. The front desk said they had us down for two cars. When she replied that we only had one, they assured us they would take it off our bill. But just to be sure, she got in a long line to check out, and get a copy of the corrections. While she waited, a bellman came to our room, helped me load the bags and pushed them down. When we got to the lobby, we decided we would take our chances with the billing as she still seemed to have 30 minutes or more, at the rate the line was moving. The bellman overheard our discussion and offered to get us a print out of the corrected copy, and he did, within two minutes he was back, with a bill that was right.
After a pleasant drive back home, and folks, even the Hilton isn’t home!, we unloaded and began to look online at our banking, and lo and behold, there was a Hilton charge for $20.00, another for $40.00, and a 3rd for $24.00. My wife has placed a call to the bookkeeping department. We are hoping for an explanation and a quick reversal of the charges. $84.00 isn’t a lot of money, but it is a lot to be charged for services we did not request.
Under the heading of bad would be the following: our suite did not include a free breakfast of any sort. The internet cost $10.00 per day, which was just enough to give me an excuse to stay off line and focus on the family, and the third would be that valet parking was mandatory.
My suggestions to make the suite even better would be to add a real coffeemaker, a toaster and a mini microwave, and though it costs a bit more, layout the bathroom so it is a bit roomier and maybe stick a ½ bath somewhere so day visitors don’t have to go into the bedroom to go to the bathroom.
Will we ever consider Hilton again? Well, before we got home and checked our bank account, we had decided we would never travel anywhere without asking first if there was a Hilton. Now, with the surprises, I would add two caveats. First, if they don’t adjust it, I would never recommend anyone deal with them. And even if they do, you can bet we will be watching the statements carefully on future visits. If this turns out to be a common problem, we will have to leave the wonderful world of Hilton to those that consider eighty-four bucks incidental….. Verdict to be returned upon further evidence!
A footnote: the $84.00 has disappeared, and now there is a charge for $16.00.
My wife called and they claimed they just ‘test’ your card, but reverse the transactions, looks like that’s what’s going on.
A Final note: All mysterious charges disappeared and we were only billed for services rendered!
A Love Affair with Old Hotels
When I was about 12, we went to a pecan convention in Mobile, Alabama. We being my father, who had business there, and my brother and I who just got to terrorize the place, If I remember correctly, it had a back staircase and a grand front stair case with a huge landing where vendors had sat up booths outside the various ballrooms where the convention business happened. There was a really neat mail chute that allowed residents to post a letter on whatever floor their room was on and it all went into a glass an metal box in the lobby. Somewhere I had heard of a famous writer who lived in a hotel. I was mesmerized by the idea that I could live in a great room and have the staff clean my room, wash and press my clothes, polish my shoes and serve me delicious food on fine china everyday. I hadn't figured out yet how much one would have to have in the bank to live that way, but it sounded magic.
As I grew up to be a college student, a young father and into my 30s, I stayed at an assortment of chain hotels: from the old 8 Days Inn, and Motel 6s, back when the number meant the cost of the stay, and dozens of independent roadside inns, from cute and quaint to dirty and scary, and a few Holiday Inns and LaQuintas along the way. Usually I had reasonably good experiences with safe clean comfortable rooms for the night.
When my 2nd wife and I split up I stayed at the charming old Gulfstream Hotel in Lake Worth Florida for a few nights, it was a little rough and unrestored, but I loved the front porch the great lobby, and the old long check in counter, the lobby shops and a little bar tucked in between the porch and the lobby which still managed to look out over the street, and a fabulous restaurant across the lobby, and everything surrounded by old french doors each with a working transom! Sadly, the Gulfstream has been opened and closed several times in the past 20 years, the last incarnation was as a Holiday Inn, and while they didn't destroy it nor revive it to its grandeur, it was still a nice get away, but alas, again, it is closed. We hope the old lady is revived again in the near future, but I have not seen any plans for reopening.
After I started Scene and Abundance, I ended up working out a trade with the historic Seminole Inn in Indiantown, whose claim to fame is that one of the young girls who worked their along the way, was a relative of the family of lumber barons who built and owned the place. This young lady grew up to be the famous/infamous Wallis Simpson. The Seminole had its charm, but I sometimes felt like the Inn didn't give us quite the service they might if we weren't there on a trade-out. Still, if you are ever in Indiantown overnight,.. or even driving through on a Sunday morning, They have a great Sunday buffet, and the dining room is charming.
Well, time moved along and I met a new love and besides an occasional trip to the Seminole, we managed a beautiful week in the French Quarter, New Orleans in 1998, While it would take a small book to tell the tale, as to the hotel, We reserved a room online at the Bourbon Orleans, maybe the most beautiful hotel I have ever stayed in, but we certainly got the "low rent" treatment, and they as much as told us at the front desk that they didn't think we deserved good treatment as we had come at a discount! I hope they are more sophisticated now, internet bookings in 1998 was still a pretty new thing.
We also, a few years later stayed at a grand hotel on Miami Beach, not South Beach, but up about midway, that looked to have been in its heyday in the 1950s. I cant remember the name, it was covered we caricatures of the rat pack who had spent a good bit of time there, it had a greek spa, and a row of shops down in the basement, which was really pool/ocean level. The room was huge, beautiful and well appointed, the service was good, but somehow, while it wasnt quite as neutral as the Seminole, nor as shabby as the Bourbon Orleans, the service did not make me think they were terribly excited to see us. It seemed the staff was going about doing their job, but not exactly enthralled by the old hotel.
My other previous grand hotel experience was with an ex girlfriend for a niece's wedding on Block Island, at the National, Okay, maybe this hotel was grander than the Bourbon Orleans, and the stay was charming in everyway, but the hotel actually had closed for the season and only allowed its use for a wedding party because the bride and groom were staff themselves, so I have no idea if it would have been better if they hadnt been busy getting married, or worse because they had such special interest in taking care of friends and family, but either way, I can't image that one would stay anywhere else if they scheduled a visit to the little island way out in the Atlantic have way between Cape Cod and New York City...
Last night, in celebration of both Suzanne's and my birthdays and our pending 10th anniversary, my wonderful son Dylan, offered to look after his little brother for the night and we checked into what is surely the most perfect hotel experience of my 49 years!
THE COLONY and CABANA, DELRAY
http://thecolonyhotel.com/florida/index.html
Located right in the middle of the charming Delray shopping district, which means you are literally within about 2 blocks of maybe 100 nice restaurants,bars, art and clothing shops and a drug store and your choice of an organic coffee shop/grocery/health advisory shop or a Starbucks, We did not go to the Starbucks!!!!!
The hotel is beautiful, slightly creaky wooden floors, and old fashioned elevator that requires a staff member to run it!, french doors, ball rooms, mantels, and like the old Gulfstream, there is a little bar tucked in between the beautiful front porch and the charming old lobby.
The room we stayed in was 135, which is actually on the 2nd floor, as the first floor is all public areas and office space (this seems to be a common arrangement in older hotels), it was spacious, with an extremely comfortable king size bed. I mention the exact room number because the manager explained that there were only four rooms like it in the hotel. The bathroom is huge, all white, which is my only minor complaint with the entire Colony experience,
The entire hotel is painted in mood setting tropical colors, mostly a funny orangish/reddish/pink, that is much prettier than that sounds, some lime green, ocean blue and white accents, great black and whites that look like and might be Clyde Butcher's work, of the Everglades and other places, and Guy Harvey Prints,and old photos of the hotel and of Delray and official plats from the city are framed and hung throughout.
Of course there was a TV in the room, but it was so romantic to sit and talk, to have a cocktail, to read, to just curl up in the very comfortable bed, we never turned it on. Also, I am sure the absence of this almost omnipresent laptop, didn't hurt:) But the overall experience, seemed like we had travel far away to some tropical island, but unlike so many horror stories you hear, ALL the natives were friendly at the Colony!, From the front desk to the nice young lady who bused our tables at the complimentary full buffet breakfast, eggs, bacon, sausage, and a real treat: Porridge! served with brown sugar on the side! and of course the assortment of toast and cereal and fresh juices and very good coffee, served in pretty china cup and saucer, but then the rest of the food came with the same pattern china bowls and plates, and of course real flatware, not exactly the styrofoam plates and bowls and plastic forks at most of the breakfast bars I have been to in chain hotels.
But as beautiful as it is, and it probably isnt quite as beautiful as the National or the Bourbon Orleans, it is in truly beautiful condition and the staff goes out of their way to help, from the manager who insisted ..ing me carry the two hot cups of coffee and toast and fruit up to our room so my sleepyhead could have breakfast in bed. I mean he INSISTED, I didn't ask, to the lady who cleans the rooms who saw me coming back from the ice machine and offed to hold the bucket while i got my room key out of my pocket.
I have never met the owners, a family that has owned the place since 1935. And they could all be a bunch of Leona Hemsleys, but I doubt it. The staff is so infused with a love of the place and of the guests, that one suspects it has to come from a family who truly loves to serve the public. In the very best tradition of innkeepers around the world, The Colony makes one want to check but really regret having to check out. We will be back often!, By the way, they gave us an unasked for upgrade, from queen to king, and also gave us a 10% discount, from the stated price, again, we did not ask for a discount or complain about any service, especially as there were service lapses to complain about!
I can't guarantee you the free upgrade nor the unexpected discount, but I can promise you, I am certain that you will fall in love with the Colony, if you ever have a chance to go. There is also a private beach club a couple of miles away that you have access to for the day, but we couldn't bring ourselves to leave the building:)
Impressum
Tag der Veröffentlichung: 21.11.2009
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