Continuing on my adventures in Sydney, my next stop takes me to Hilton Sydney! As a Hilton loyalist, I am naturally excited to check out the flagship property of Hilton in Sydney and Australia. This can be said of the best in the area too. Sydney could certainly do with a couple more properties and some on the higher end as well. I would love to see a Conrad and a Waldorf Astoria here soon. Besides this, there is another Curio in town. The Hilton enjoyed a central location right in the heart of the city. This works the best for tourists and business travellers. It comes with good public transport links too. I also managed to stack on the AMEX promotion that was running at that time and got some credits off to lighten the blow.
Booking Process & Pre Arrival
I booked directly with Hilton for the stay and made full use of an Amex promotion that was running at the point of my stay. I got the base-level room. With the credits that Amex was giving up, I paid 521 SGD for my 2 nights stay. That is quite a deal. A couple of days out from my stay, I can see from the app that I have been upgraded to a Junior Suite. Later on, I got an automated email from Hilton saying that my room had been upgraded. I thought of it to be the same but I ended up getting further upgraded to an Executive Suite. This goes for around 800 AUD a night. That is excellent elite recognition and they are very generous with upgrades. Times like this make me feel worthwhile to go out of my way constantly to clock my Diamond Status. Do take note that this property does not have a parking facility but there are a couple of public ones nearby. Hilton Sydney comes with 587 guest rooms and suites spread across 10 categories. You can check out the breakdown below.
| Rooms | Executive Lounge Access | Bathtub | Room Size |
|---|---|---|---|
| Guest | No | No | 28 Sqm |
| Corner | No | No | 28 Sqm |
| Deluxe | No | Yes | 30 Sqm |
| Deluxe Corner | No | Yes | 30 Sqm |
| Executive | Yes | Yes | 30 Sqm |
| Junior Suite | Yes | Yes | 48 Sqm |
| Executive Suite | Yes | Yes | 52 Sqm |
| City Suite | Yes | Yes | 53 Sqm |
| Ambassador Suite | Yes | Yes | 86 Sqm |
| Master Suite | Yes | Yes | 90 Sqm |
Checking In
I arrive at around 4.30pm after taking advantage of the late check-out at Four Seasons. I wanted to take an Uber but we ended up taking the tram down since it is just a couple of stops away and so convenient. The tram stops right outside the Hilton. It is very easy enough to locate and right next to QVB. It is very convenient with multiple entrances. The main one is on George St. Upon arrival, the staff helped me with my bags before sending them up to the room.
It was pretty busy when I arrived. They do have priority lines at the reception but it is not enforceable at all by the staff. I was helped after a slight wait by a friendly lady who provided me with all the information for the stay. I was also informed of the upcharge of 10 AUD per person per day for the full breakfast. It took quite some time since I had two separate transactions. Late check-out is later extended till 1pm by the executive lounge staff.
Executive Suite
I was assigned a suite located on the 33rd floor. The Executive Suite measures 52 Sqm and this is one of the mid-tier suites over here at Hilton Sydney. Super generous of the hotel to give this upgrade to Hilton members. Immediately upon entering, you have the powder room or a half bath. This will come in handy if you are having guests over or having a cosy gathering.
The regular configuration of the layout makes the whole suite even bigger and more spacious than it is. On the other side of the entrance, you have a small wardrobe. It comes with all sorts of amenities that you might require for your stay. I do find it funny that bath slippers are not automatically provided but only upon request. Next to it is a luggage storage area that can fit a cabin-size bag. Additional portable stands are available on request from the staff.
Check out how lovely the living room is. I was pleasantly surprised by the look of the place. This is cosy and sweet. It is one of the more modern Hilton look out there. The living room comes with a generous L-shaped sofa that could fit properly 5 to 6 pax. It can be a bed for the third pax too. This surrounds a coffee table in the middle.
The huge high-quality smart screen television is mounted on the wall. It comes with a good number of both local and cable international cable TV channels. It is huge and a good size for the living room. You can also cast content from your phone and HDMI cables are available upon request from the hotel staff. This makes for a very cosy residential feel. This kind of reminds me of the layout at Conrad Manila with sliding doors on either side leading you to the bedroom area. I always appreciate having an enclosed separate bed area. This allows you to work or watch the television without disturbing your other half or family.
Under the television is a spacious working desk, it comes equipped with an armchair. This will be great for a short period of working. It provides decent back support. The premium Wi-Fi is extremely good. The connection is strong and the speed is fast. I could even stream live sports. Power outlets are within reach and I am glad to see that they preemptively provide international power adapters. This is something that every major hotel should provide. With us being so high up, the suite comes with an amazing view over the surrounding area of the city and you have little views of the CBD and even the harbour bridge. The view is kind of limited by the building layout and they only have little windows here and there. I love the touch with the setup and they had little window bay sofas for guests to sit on and enjoy the view. blinds and sheers are also electronically controlled.
The minibar counter is in the corner of the living room right next to the soda. It is equipped with both a kettle and a nespresso coffee machine. All sorts of glassware are provided. There is also a mini fridge that is left empty for your use. Complimentary bottles of water are provided and there are also coffee capsules and tea. These are replenished during daily housekeeping and turndown service. I do feel that this area is a little dark and can do with more lighting.
The bedroom is equally as nice as the living room and almost a replica in terms of space. Similarly mounted on the wall, you can find another high-quality smart screen television. The one in the bedroom is slightly smaller than the living room but still has a good size and is great to watch from the bed.
The bedroom comes with equally lovely views of the surrounding area as well from those similar windows. By having a squarish configuration, in the corner, you get a 90° view of the area. In the corner of the bedroom, you can find another lazing day bed. This will be good for relaxing over a cup of coffee while soaking in the views.
The centrepiece of the bedroom is the plush king-size bed. The bedding and mattress are top-notch and have a nice balance. Beddings are high quality and the same goes for the pillows. Nights stand to flank both sides of the bed with power outlets and controls for the lighting. The controls for the blinds and sheers are located here too.
The main bathroom is spacious and comes with both a separate standing shower as well as a bathtub. It comes with double sinks and all sorts of amenities are provided and they are generous with it. You can find dental kits to shower caps. There is also a hairdryer provided. Amenities are from Crabtree and Evelyn in large pump-size bottles as per the usual in Hilton properties.
The standing shower room is extremely spacious. They have both a handheld shower head and a rainforest one. Temperature control is excellent but I did wish that the water pressure was slightly better. Turn-down service is automatically offered in the evening. This is something that I appreciate.
Fitness Centre
The hotel doesn’t run its fitness facility but hotel guests get access to the Fitness First Pitt Street Platinum facility in the basement. It is directly linked to the hotel and you can simply access it with your guest card. This is as good as it gets. After all, it is a professional working gym. It comes in being better equipped than any hotel gym with tons of professional and high-tech equipment.
Pool
Similarly, the hotel doesn’t operate its pool either. There is one which is in the Fitness First facility. From what I understand, the pool is reserved exclusively for hotel guest’s usage and only open during manned hours. It stayed rather quiet when I visited. The heated indoor is conducive to be used at any time of the year. It is not a pool for relaxing but one to exercise and work out.
Executive Lounge
The executive lounge is one of the highlights of the property. The lounge is open daily from 8am to 8pm. Breakfast is offered in the morning at the same timings and evening cocktails are from 5pm to 7pm. At other times, all-day refreshments are provided. I appreciated that they offered artisan mineral water in the lounge. Surprisingly the hotel is very generous with access here. Each registered guest can bring in an additional guest. Check out some pictures of the lounge here. It is quite spacious.
I arrive just in time for evening cocktails on the first evening. All drinks are offered from the makeshift bar that they set up in front of the fridges. Here you can find all sorts of alcoholic drinks. It is pretty extensive with a nice selection of sparkling wine, white wine, red wine, spirits and craft beers. The bartender can also do up some simple mixers and cocktails.
The food refreshments are pretty extensive and could be a light meal. It is heavy on cold items and light on hot snacks. Here are some of the selections. I am glad to see that there are some slight changes from day to day. Everything is high quality and delicious.
You should get breakfast in the restaurant instead as the selection there is far more extensive. I will just share the selection here in the lounge for information. It is mainly continental options and you can get some scrambled eggs and sausages. The pastries are pretty good. You benefit from a much more private environment.
Breakfast at Glass Brasserie
Breakfast is served at Glass Brasserie. Breakfast is buffet style from 6.30am to 10.30am on weekdays and till 11am on weekends. I appreciated the extended hours on weekends and holidays which will come in handy when people want to rest and sleep in. Breakfast costs 45 AUD if not included in your rate or membership. Gold and Diamond members get a complimentary continental breakfast. As per the norm in this part of the world, there is additional charge of 10 AUD for the full breakfast. Furthermore, barista coffee is not included and that will cost you 5 AUD per brew. I do find that kind of stingy. The breakfast restaurant is very gorgeous. You can find some pictures here. I particularly love the seats facing George St and it comes with a spectacular view of the Queen Victoria building.
Here are some selections for breakfast. There is a nice spread of both Asian and international options. I love the fresh juice on offer.
Conclusion
Awesome elite treatment here at Hilton Sydney! I got an awesome upgrade. This is the hotel to stay in for Hilton loyalists if you are in Sydney. The brand is slightly underrepresented in the city. It could be used with some more luxury property in town. The location is impeccable. You can walk to most sights and it is also well connected with public transport. The hotel is modern and recently renovated. Do try to get one of the higher floor rooms for an awesome view of the city. This is a close-to-perfect stay. I love their generous executive lounge access rules. I will have no qualms about coming back to this hotel for another stay.
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