I stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn Stoke on Trent during my recent trip to Stoke-On-Trent. The hotel…read moreis fairly new, opening in 2020 and is one of two properties in the Hilton family of hotels in the city, alongside a Doubletree nearby.
The location is fairly good for the city centre, a short walk into the shops and bus station in Hanley. I would say the public transport in the city is atrocious, however, so I wouldn't rely on it if you are planning a trip here.
Room rates do seem a little high for the quality of the hotel and for Stoke-On-Trent which is far from the best place to visit, I was lucky to find a cheaper room rate at a third-party booking site, after contacting Hilton under their Price Match Guarantee, they reduced my rate to the lower price with a further 25% discount, so it worked out a much more reasonable £76.
Dining options within the hotel are poor - Breakfast stops serving at 10 am, even on a weekend which is far too early for my liking so I decided not to have Breakfast on this occasion. Room Service is also not offered 24-7, I was disappointed as I was unable to get any food in the evening, even though the room service menu does not mention a cut-off point at any time. Now the hotel wasn't overly busy, and I understand not having a full meal 24-7, but surely having some basic 24-7 options and notifying guests the hours of ordering food alongside the menu is a start?
My room was fine - It looked pretty ordinary and very similar to any other Hilton Garden Inn property I've stayed in or at least the newer properties in the HGI brand including Manchester Old Trafford and Doncaster Racecourse. The TV was mounted to the wall and due to the bracket used, it made it very difficult to attach my fire stick, I managed to get the USB part in but the HDMI was inaccessible and I ended up giving up.
The main issue for me was the lack of a desk or proper desk. The table on the far left side of the room, which included draws for the fridge and kettle could easily have been extended to give a proper desk. There was a mini sofa and coffee table, but it wouldn't have been suitable for working.
Cleanliness inside the room was fine, although the sofa looked a little worse for wear up close and empty cups and trays of food were left in the corridors all day which was unpleasant.
The thermostat in the room was vastly complicated, not only did it not pass 24 C, but it would be stuck on standby. I had to ask the front desk to fix this issue which they managed to do.
I didn't feel truly recognised as a Gold Hilton Honors Member here, and I hope this isn't the sign of what's to come after recently losing my Diamond status. I had to remind the staff members multiple times of my status after they tried to charge me for the bottles of water and a late checkout which should be tier benefits. I do find the 11 am checkout far too early regardless, but I was granted until 2 pm on request.
My room was very quiet, perhaps I got lucky as my room was situated on the top floor, at the end of the corridor. I did have some trouble sleeping though, the pillows were awful and had nothing to them and I ended up waking up with a sore neck.
The staff seemed friendly enough, perhaps the issue with recognising Hilton Honors benefits was a training issue. They were very short-staffed throughout my stay, I had to wait ten minutes to retrieve my bags from Reception which I had stored there after checking out, as there was only one staff member on the desk.
For a hotel that often charges between £120 and £140 per night, and no less than £80 per night, I'd expect a lot more, especially given the fact Stoke-On-Trent is far from an attractive place to visit. I think it is highly unlikely I would want to return to this hotel in the future. 2*
