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Tag: Hilton Honors

  • REVIEW: Hilton Melbourne Little Queen Street, Guest Twin Room

    REVIEW: Hilton Melbourne Little Queen Street, Guest Twin Room

    Comfy rooms, fantastic location, excellent service; this brand new Hilton in Melbourne may just change your mind about the brand.

    Hilton properties are incredibly ubiquitous; you will find it in virtually every city in the world. However, the brand was conspicuously missing from Australia’s most fashionable city: Melbourne, or at least until earlier this year.

    Hilton existed in Melbourne for more than four decades since the 1970s, until it decided to pull out of the city in 2014, leaving the city only with a DoubleTree property. That unfortunately has the effect of a mistaken identity, where DoubleTree Melbourne on Flinders St is being dubbed as the “Hilton”, leaving many locals confused when a new, bone fide Hilton popped up earlier this year in the heart of the city.

    In this post:
    • About the hotel
    • Location
    • Parking
    • Checking in
    • The room – Twin Guest Room
    • Evening cocktails
    • Breakfast – Luci
    • The facilities
    • Final thoughts

    The Hotel

    The 244-room property opened its doors in March 2021, after a bit of a delay no thanks to Covid-19.

    Hilton Melbourne Little Queen Street

    The hotel stands at the former Equity Trustees building (which, by the way, still exists today but in a different location). Designed by tenant architects Oakley and Parkes and built by 1931, Equity Chambers is a late addition to the exotic commercial styles prevalent in the late 1920’s and said at the time to be Romanesque but displaying Byzantine characterisation.

    While the frontage retains its façade from its former glory, the back has been extended with a six-level wing as well as a new 16-story tower, designed by architecture and design studio Bates Smart.  

    Hilton Melbourne comprises 239 guest rooms and only five suites across nine room types:

    • King/Twin Guest Room (27 sqm)
    • King Superior Room (27 sqm)
    • King Deluxe Room with City View (27 sqm)
    • King Premier Room with City View (27 sqm)
    • King Premier Corner Room (33 sqm)
    • King Junior Suite (43 sqm)
    • King Premium Suite (55 sqm)
    • King Master Suite (55 sqm)

    As you can see above, if you need a twin room, you only have a single option. For those who are staying alone or don’t mind sharing a bed with your travel companion, you have more options to choose from, with upgrades sometimes available for Hilton Honors elite members.

    The first four room types are essentially the same room, difference being the view and the type of windows in your room. Unfortunately, the twin rooms, along with the entry-level King Guest Room, are located on the poorer side of the hotel, with practically no view.

    Those facing Bourke Street Mall will be in for a treat, with full-length windows overlooking the city. The larger rooms come with a separate seating/lounging area, which may be ideal for couples with a child or two in tow.

    At the top end there’s the King Master Suite. While it’s the same size as the Premium Suite, the premium is in the finishing: think oak-cladded walls, high ceilings, rustic feels. The room boasts of restored heritage features, preserving the charm of the original architecture, while mixing in modern comfort. The suites come with a separate living area with enough sofa space for a party.

    Hilton Melbourne – Master Suite (photo: Hilton)

    Note that bathtubs are only available for the King Premier Corner Room and above; all lower category rooms come only with a standing shower. 

    Location 

    Hilton Melbourne Little Queen Street is located in the heart of Melbourne CBD, just a 5-minute downhill walk away from the Bourke Street Mall.

    Hilton Melbourne location (not to scale)

    If you are walking from the hotel to the Mall, you will also pass by Hardware Lane, a quaint little street lined with restaurants and pubs famous for alfresco dining.

    Everywhere within Melbourne CBD is walkable from the hotel, but if you are feeling lazy there’s always the tram, which you can take for free within the CBD.

    If you are arriving at the hotel by Uber or driving yourself, be sure to turn into Little Queen Street to access the hotel lobby on the inclined slope. Once at the entrance, A colourful large-scale mural by local graffiti artist Kitt Bennett, part of the Juddy Roller collective, along with an array of angled bronze panels will greet you at the hobby’s entrance.

    Driveway

    You could also pull your luggage through the entrance along Bourke Street, but that means that you will have to traverse through the restaurant and take the lift up to the Mezzanine level where the lobby is, which is probably not the best idea.

    Parking

    There are two parking options available: valet-parking with your vehicle stored on-site at AUD 65 per day, or self-parking at a car park along Hardware Lane for AUD 25 a day.

    If you wish to park at the off-site car park, the entrance is via Bourke St. The carpark entrance is indeed by Hardware Lane, so it may seem like you are driving onto the pavement, but keep cool and follow the signs to turn into the car park.

    Just following the signs and yes, drive on the pavement!

    For those who choose the self-parking option, be sure to validate your parking ticket at the front desk before collecting the car. There is no limit to the number of times you can enter and exit the car park each day, but you will need to validate your coupon each time you want to drive out, otherwise you are subject to the prevailing parking rates which are sky-high even by Australian standards.

    Checking in

    The lobby is perched on the slope of Little Queen Street, which will greet you once you enter the understated door.

    The lobby is located on a mezzanine level, halfway between the restaurant floor and the first floor where the meeting rooms are located. On the same floor you will find the concierge desk, as well as some sofa seating in case you have to wait around for a bit.

    Hilton Melbourne lobby

    Australian hotels tend to have a later check-in time and earlier check-out time than hotels in Asia, so you might want to factor that as part of your planning. As a norm, most Australian hotels require either an 11am or 12pm check-out, with check-in time at 3pm or later.

    We checked in at about 12pm, and the hotel had no issues giving us access to the room earlier than the stipulated check-in time.

    While elite members should get a (non-guaranteed) late check-out, this is largely dependent on the hotel’s discretion. On the last day, we requested for a 12pm check-out, which was promptly granted for us. If you need the room till much later in the day, you are unlikely to get a much extended late check out, but instead will be encourage to dump your bags at the concierge so you can head out to town.

    The Room

    For this stay, we booked ourselves into a Deluxe Twin Room. Note that this is the only room type with twin beds available, so if you are looking for a larger room, you are out of luck. What this also means is that Hilton elite members will certainly not be upgraded, given that there are no higher room categories that has two beds.

    Hilton Melbourne – Twin Guest Room

    The room is what I call functional chic: the décor is rather simple with elegant modern touches that make it work. The twin beds, each larger than a standard single-sized bed, is backed by a fabric headboard that brackets them nicely, complete with a small table in between.

    Each bed has a reading lamp above it, and both beds share a set of power sockets located just above the bedside table.

    Hilton Melbourne – Twin Guest Room
    Bedside power sockets

    What I love is also the alarm clock: it comes with both a wireless charging pod and built-in cables for charging, which is a nice thought if you forgot your cables, or are simply lazy to unpack it.

    Alarm clock with charging cables and wireless charging pod

    Near the window is an armchair which we ended up using as a storage area.

    On the other side of the room, there was a little ledge that runs from the window to underneath the television, providing extra holding space when you need to unpack your suitcase while not taking up precious floor space. The television is wall-mounted and flushed into the wall, which saves considerable space given that modern hotel rooms are compact.

    In the corner of the room, there’s also a day bed of sorts flanking the window, with a round small dining table next to it. There is also a small armchair, so the entire setup is sufficient for in-room dining for two also.

    Daybed

    Near the door was the wardrobe, where you will be able to find in-room amenities including bathrobes, iron, ironing board and laundry bags. There is also an open rack next to the wardrobe where you can hang more clothes (or anything for that matter). Underneath it is where you will find a drawer containing the in-room safe.

    Wardrobe – Bathrobes, ironing kit and more

    For in-room refreshments, the hotel has emptied out the minibar, but there’s a menu that you can order from.

    The room also comes with a kettle and some teabags and filtered coffee bags that you can enjoy. The one-cup drip coffee bags are from Dukes Coffee, which also supplies the hotel restaurant’s coffee.

    Complimentary coffee and tea

    The bathroom is fairly spacious. The vanity counter top is a simple marble-like surface affixed on a black metal frame, with a large rounded rectangular mirror that runs the entire length of the vanity.

    Twin Guest Room – Bathroom

    Bathtub lovers should note that most rooms come only with a standing shower, with bathtubs being found only in the higher room categories.

    Hunter Lab amenities

    Hilton Melbourne uses Hunter Labs amenities, in the form of pump bottles affixed to the walls. Hunter Labs is a fairly new Australian home-grown skincare brand founded initially for men but later on garnered enough appeal to become unisex. The scent is decidedly a little more botanical with a hint of citrus, which has a generally wide appeal.

    Disposable amenities

    Notwithstanding Covid-19 which saw hotels returning to using one-off disposable amenities, pump bottles are increasingly common as hotels move towards sustainability options, including common-use pump bottles in the bathrooms, so as to reduce single-use plastic bottles.

    Wifi

    Australian hotels typically charge for Wifi even though mobile data is pretty ubiquitous today; Hilton Melbourne is no different. Wifi access costs A$19.95 per day, but this is complimentary for Hilton Honors Gold & Diamond members.

    Evening cocktails

    Despite being a Hilton property, Hilton Melbourne does not have a club lounge, and also does not offer club-level rooms for booking. 

    What this means for Diamond members – where lounge access is complimentary – is an in-room evening cocktail experience.

    The hotel serves up two bottles of wines (a red and a white), as well as two bottles of beers, along with some canepes to the room each evening between 5pm and 7pm, prepared by the hotel restaurant Luci. While no non-alcoholic options were provided at the time of service, there’s no harm in checking with the front desk if you prefer to have non-alcoholic drinks.

    In-room evening cocktails for Diamond members

    While this is a daily allotment, note that the provision of your beverages is on a replenishment basis – if you have an unopened bottle in the room, they will not provide a new bottle the next day unless you specifically ask for it. 

    The canepes do rotate daily, but they are nary a meal in itself, so don’t expect it to be a dinner replacement. 

    Breakfast – Luci

    Breakfast is served at the hotel’s sole restaurant Luci, located on the ground floor of the hotel. Available between 6.30am and 10am on weekdays and 7am to 10am on weekends, breakfast is served as a buffet.

    Luci

    As a Hilton Honors Gold or Diamond member, breakfast is included in your room rate.

    During our stay, the hotel offered an a la carte continental breakfast menu, right up to the last morning when they changed it to a buffet breakfast instead.

    A la carte breakfast

    For our breakfast, we were allowed to order up to three items and two sides. The menu was fairly simple, but the servings were reasonable and ample. Strangely enough, coffee was not included as part of breakfast (what nonsense, isn’t it?), while tea and juices are.

    Unfortunately,  the a la carte breakfast service is a temporary fixture. A check with the hotel also confirmed that it has permanently switched to a buffet breakfast service, which we didn’t try on the last morning as we were headed elsewhere for breakfast instead. Based on the little visual survey we took on the last day, it seems like the spread includes items already on the menu: toast, pastries, cereal, yoghurt, fruit, a made-to-order egg station, as well as some other hot entrees such as chipolata sausages and bacon.

    Hilton Melbourne buffet breakfast spread, available daily

    If you didn’t have breakfast as part of your room rate, Luci offers an a la carte menu for breakfast as well, which I presume will be similar to what I was given during my stay. Regular breakfast fare such as eggs, toast, yoghurt, bircher muesli are all available, with prices ranging between AUD6 for a slice of toast with condiments to AUD24 for eggs benedict. While the quality is good, you might find better value elsewhere outside of the hotel.

    Outside of breakfast service, Luci also opens for dinner on Wednesdays to Saturdays, serving up contemporary Italian-inspired fare for dinners.

    The facilities

    Despite its size, Hilton Melbourne does not boast of a wide array of facilities. Apart from the food and beverage offerings by Luci and Douglas Club, the hotel pales in comparison in terms of recreational facilities, with only a fitness centre nested on the first floor and no spa nor swimming pool.

    Fitness centre

    The fitness centre is located on the first floor of the hotel, and is accessible 24/7 with your room key.

    Taking up about the size slightly larger than a guestroom, the gym is compact yet sufficient for a quick workout without leaving the hotel. There’s a good rack of dumbbells available with two adjustable benches, as well as a cable machine tucked at the corner.

    For your cardio options, there are three treadmills available for use, as well as an elliptical, a rowing machine and a stationary bike as alternatives.

    For a serious workout, there are plenty of commercial gyms and workout studios within CBD that you can check out as well, particularly if you have access to Classpass.

    Final thoughts

    The stay was a surprisingly comfortable one, even though the size of the hotel doesn’t exactly scream “Hilton”. For those familiar with the brand, Hilton is not particularly an exciting property to be staying in. In many cities, Hilton evokes the image of a large, business travel-centric decades-old hotel, with dated rooms complete with fittings that are long due to be replaced. Business travellers continue to stick with the brand mainly because of familiarity and location, and many of these mature properties are also full service ones, with plenty of restaurants, bars, large gyms and even spas available for guests to use without having to step out of the hotel.

    This quaint brand-new property in Melbourne changed all of that image, and proved that Hilton has not lost its touch; it is still capable of modernising itself in terms of how it presents its rooms, joining the league of chic hotels.

    The hotel has also possibly cut away some frills such as a spa and swimming pool, thereby allowing itself with work with smaller footprints and focusing on core offerings without compromising on standards. In markets such as Australia, on-site swimming pools are sometimes quite useless as they would usually be tiny and have to be closed half the year due to weather.

    What needs to be polished is in the area of service. 

    During my stay, never once did we see the Concierge desk being manned, leaving me to wonder if the hotel even offers a concierge service which is rather precious for time-strapped business travellers.

    The servicing of the rooms were also a little inconsistent, such as having housekeeping leaving a bottle of cleaning agent (by accident I hope) in our bathroom one day. Our request for additional items at night also took an incredibly long time to come, leaving us to wonder if the hotel had overnight staff.

    Having said that, the front office manager, Resh, was incredible. There had been some hiccups during our stay due to a reservation oversight, but she was fast to identify and rectify the problem and did an amazing job in service recovery.

    This will not be the only Hilton property you will find; Hilton is expected to open another Hilton-branded property in Melbourne Square come 2024.

  • Hotel loyalty programmes updates 2021: How many nights do you need to clock to earn or keep your status?

    Hotel loyalty programmes updates 2021: How many nights do you need to clock to earn or keep your status?

    Hilton Honors, Marriott Bonvoy, World of Hyatt, Accor ALL: See which programmes have reduced their normal requirements and which have yet to announce anything

    Hilton Honors

    50% reduction in requirements, lower milestone bonuses

    Hilton Honors members will be pleased to know that they will only need to achieve 50% of the usual qualification requirements in 2021 to earn or keep their status.

    The requirements for 2021 are:

    • Silver: 5 nights / 2 stays / 12,500 base points
    • Gold: 20 nights / 10 stays / 37,000 base points
    • Diamond: 30 nights / 15 stays / 60,000 base points

    This means that you will earn Silver status for as little as two stays in 2021, although that is hardly worth anything, given that the real perks kick in only when you reach Gold when you hit 10 stays or 20 nights.

    If you recall, Hilton will also be rolling over all the nights earned in 2020 to 2021, counting towards the reduced number of nights required to earn status. Note that only nights will roll over, and not stays or points value.

    On top of the reduced status qualification requirements, Hilton Honors will also be reducing the milestone bonus requirements, and the number of nights you need to hit before gifting a status to someone else.

    World of Hyatt

    Hyatt has similarly reduced earning requirements by 50% for 2021:

    • Discoverist: 5 tier-qualifying nights / 12,500 base points
    • Explorist: 15 tier-qualifying nights / 25,000 base points
    • Globalist: 30 tier-qualifying nights / 50,000 base points

    Note that any status earned or retained in 2021 will be valid until 28 Feb 2023. 

    If you usually earn your status through organising meetings, note that the requirements for the status have also halved, although I don’t see meetings resuming in a big way similar to pre-pandemic levels.

    On top of this, World of Hyatt has also extended its Award Rebate programme to 28 Feb 2021 (registration required), giving World of Hyatt a 15% rebate on the points used for an award stay.

    World of Hyatt is also running a Bonus Journeys promotion (registration required) where members earn 3x points on every qualifying stay. Elite nights will also count twice: once when they’re earned, and another time in 2021 towards status and Milestone Rewards.

    Accor ALL

    Accor has announced some really interesting changes to its 2021 programme requirements.

    Firstly, the all status points and status nights earned between 1 Jul 2020 and 31 Dec 2020 will be credited to your 2021 count by end of January 2021.

    In addition, all status points and status nights earned in 2021 will be doubled. “Twice the points, twice the fun”, they said.

    With these two measures this means:

    1. If you have earned/requalified your Accor ALL status through stays between July and December 2020, all of the nights/points will automatically roll over to 2021, which means you have effectively qualified for the same status through end 2023.
    2. If you have not, you will effectively need only half the spending or nights in 2021 to qualify for your desired status, as follow:
    • Silver: Effectively 5 nights or 960 status points (€400 spend)
    • Gold: Effectively 15 nights or 3,500 status points (€1,400 spend)
    • Platinum: Effectively 30 nights or 7,000 status points (€2,800 spend)
    • Diamond: Effectively 13,125 status points (€5,200 spend)

    Note that the status points you earn depends on the brand you stay with, with budget brands such as ibis, ibis styles and some others earning much lower status points per dollar spent. To find out exactly how many status and reward points you will earn, you can use the calculator here.

    Previously, Accor has extended the duration of those who earned status in 2019 by one year, to expire in December 2021.

    IHG Rewards Club

    IHG Rewards Club has not announced any reductions in earning requirements in the 2021 programme year.

    Earlier in 2020, all members’ programme status has been automatically extended through January 2022, allowing members to enjoy all the benefits of the status they earned during 2019.

    IHG elite members’ points never expire so an extension wasn’t necessary, however, entry-level Club members will have their points extended till 30 Jun 2021.

    Marriott Bonvoy

    Marriott has not announced any form of status earning reductions for 2021 to-date.

    Earlier in 2020, Marriott has extended all elite members’ status to expire only in February 2022, so anyone who earned their status in 2019 will have them all the way through February 2022.

    In addition, Marriott also gave a one-time 50% Elite Nights Credit in June 2020 to all elite members according to their status. At the top, Ambassador Elite members get 50 elite nights, while the entry tier Silver members get 5 nights, all of which will also count towards lifetime statuses.

    Final thoughts

    It’s rather baffling that Marriott and IHG have yet to announce any changes to earning requirements for 2021, but this could be a case of “let’s wait and see” on the part of the programme managers.

    With the Covid-19 vaccine rolling out in countries around the world, it may still take a while before international travel gradually resume, and that means that tourism and related industries such as hotels will definitely take some time to recover. As such, my guess is that both loyalty programmes will definitely announce updated measures in due time.

  • Conrad Centennial to reopen from 16 Dec 2020, rooms on sale from S$239 nett

    Conrad Centennial to reopen from 16 Dec 2020, rooms on sale from S$239 nett

    Hilton has launched the “Hilton Dream” sale; Hilton Singapore rooms are also available from $201 nett

    Conrad Centennial has joined the long list of hotels approved to receive leisure guests. From 16 Dec 2020, the hotel in the Marina area will reopen its doors to leisure guests once again after being shut for nearly three quarters of the year.

    Changes to lounge operations

    While the hotel will welcome guests, Executive Room guests and Hilton Honors Diamond Elite members will have to contend with some changes to operations, according to the hotel.

    Conrad Centennial will only operate one lounge at Level 31 when it reopens on 16 Dec. The poolside lounge at level 4 will be closed until further notice.

    Conrad Centennial Singapore – Level 31 Executive Lounge

    The Level 31 lounge will be opened from 3pm to 10pm daily, serving both afternoon tea and evening cocktails at the following hours:

    • Afternoon tea: 3pm to 5pm
    • Evening cocktails: 6pm to 8pm

    According to the hotel, afternoon tea will be consist of sandwiches and cakes served to the table on a stand, with coffee, tea and other non-alcoholic beverages available. In the evening, complimentary evening drinks will be served with hors d’oeuvres.

    As with Hilton Singapore, prior reservation is required to visit the lounges during both sessions. You will be able to reserve a one-hour slot for each session.

    The lounge will not be serving breakfast, so guests will have to head to Oscars for breakfast from 7am to 10.30am (weekdays) or 11am (weekends).

    Facilities

    The hotel is expected to reopen all facilities, including the fitness centre, swimming pool and on-property restaurants and bars, but do expect that capacity controls will be in place.

    https://shanescape.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/conrad-30.jpg?w=840
    Conrad Centennial Singapore swimming pool

    Hilton Big Dream, Big Savings sale

    At the same time, Hilton is running a global sale from now. The ‘Big Dream, Big Savings’ sale differs slightly from region to region, but for Asia Pacific (including Singapore) the sale runs from now until 7 Dec 2020, for stays between 26 Nov 2020 and 30 Jun 2021.

    For this sale, the rates will be up to 25% off the property’s Best Available Rate (BAR), with an additional 5% for Hilton Honors members. Unlike most of the booking terms for rooms this year, the sale will be non-refundable, but changeable up to three days before arrival.

    Conrad Centennial – From S$224++

    A quick search for stays in December see good availability at Conrad Centennial from S$224++ for weekday stays, and from S$273++ for stays on Fridays to Sundays.

    Prices in January 2021 goes down a little, starting at S$203++:

    Hilton Singapore – from $171++

    Hilton Singapore has been fairly active in its promotions since it reopened in September, especially with its Foodie Staycation deals that comes with a night’s stay and a gourmet meal for two at Opus Bar & Grill or Il Cielo.

    Under the Big Dream sale, rates begin at S$203++ for stays in December:

    If you can wait until January, the rates for Hilton Singapore goes down to S$171++ for a weekday stay, an unbeatable price:

    Final thoughts

    Hilton Honors members have long awaited for Conrad Centennial Singapore to reopen since the middle of this year. Arguably the best Hilton property in Singapore, the news of the hotel reopening in time for Christmas is greatly welcomed.

    So if you are planning to start clocking stays in 2021 to requalify for status in 2022, it might be a good time to start planning your stays with a couple of these deals now!

  • Hilton Honors slashes status earning requirements for 2021

    Hilton Honors slashes status earning requirements for 2021

    Hilton is also extending all current elite members’ status until March 2022

    Hilton earlier this week announced a further enhancement for its Hilton Honors loyalty members, extending all current elite members’ status until March 2022, and reducing the requirements to earn status next year.

    Second extension in the year

    Hilton Honors has earlier in March 2020 offered a one-year extension for all members with status. That means those who originally earned status in 2018 to enjoy up to March 2020 would have had their status extended through March 2021, while those who earned status in 2019 with expiry in March 2021 had them extended through March 2022.

    With the global pandemic not letting up anytime soon, Hilton Honors has made a further extension. Effectively, anyone with current status – Silver, Gold or Diamond – will only have them expire in March 2022.

    This means for those who earned status in 2018 and failed to requalify in 2019, Hilton has extended their status for a full two years right up to March 2022!

    Very generous of Hilton Honors, I must say.

    Points won’t expire before end of 2021

    This is a small but important point: all Hilton Honors points will be extended till at least 31 Dec 2021. Normally the points expire after 12 months of no activity, but Hilton is aware that spending on a hotel may not be possible for some members in the near term.

    50% reduction in requirements to earn Hilton Honors status in 2021

    Hilton Honors has also halved the usual requirement for 2021, making it a lot easier for members to earn or keep their status for the following year.

    At the top of the tier, Diamond members typically need to clock 30 stays, 60 nights or 120,000 points in a year. In 2021, a member only need to clock 30 nights, 15 stays or 60,000 points to achieve or keep their Diamond status.

    To achieve Gold and Silver status in 2021, you will need:

    • Gold – 20 nights, 10 stays or 37,500 points
    • Silver – 5 nights, 2 stays or 12,500 points

    This comes on top of Hilton Honor’s previously announced Elite Rollover Nights enhancement, where all nights earned this year will roll over to 2021 and count towards status qualification next year.

    So that means, if you have already completed 30 nights this year (in spite of Covid-19, lucky you), all 30 nights will roll over to 2021, and you will instantly qualify for Diamond status through March 2023.

    So for example:

    • Shane is a Gold member, so his status is extended till March 2022.
    • Shane has stayed at Hilton properties 30 nights this year (2020).
    • All 30 nights will roll over to 2021.
    • Since Shane needs 30 nights to qualify for Diamond in 2021, he will be upgraded to Diamond from 1 January 2021, since he already has the 30 nights required for Diamond. His new Diamond status will expire in March 2023.

    A note about Rollover Nights: Note that only nights roll over to 2021. If you usually qualify by the number of stays (rather than nights), note that the number of stays don’t roll over to next year, so you might want to hold off your mattress runs until 2021.

    Nights rolled over from 2020 to 2021 also do not count towards Milestone Bonuses (more on this later).

    Milestone bonuses will start lower at 20 nights in 2021

    One distinct feature of Hilton Honors is the Milestone Bonuses feature, giving members additional loyalty bonuses for every 10 nights you’ve stayed in a calendar year, starting from the 40th night.

    For 2021, you’ll earn the first Milestone Bonus after just 20 nights, rather than after 40 nights. You will continue to earn 10,000 points for every 10 nights thereafter, and a whooping 40,000 points when you reach 60 nights in a year.

    Note that the rolled over nights earned in 2020 do not count towards Milestone Bonuses in 2021 – only those earned in 2021 count.

    Hilton Honors Diamond members can gift a status at 30 nights in 2021

    Another key feature for Hilton Honors is the ability for Diamond members to gift a Gold status to another member when they earn 60 nights in a year. If the member hit 100 nights, the gift will be a Diamond status instead of Gold.

    For 2021, Hilton Honors has lowered these requirements to 30 and 60 nights for a gift Gold and Diamond status respectively.

    Note that you don’t actually end up giving two gift statuses to two separate people – if you have nominated someone for the Gold status upon reaching the lower threshold, that person will automatically become Diamond when you achieve the higher requirement.

    Final thoughts

    Even during the earlier extension exercise earlier in 2020 when Covid-19 was unfolding, Hilton Honors has shown leadership in providing these concessions for their members. And now again, Hilton continues to lead the way in making it easier for members to not only retain their status, but to earn status next year.

    While the group may not have the best property portfolio, select properties are excellent and is well worth the effort to chase after status.

    So if you have never been Hilton Honors elite member – maybe it’s time to start considering.

  • Hilton Singapore approved for staycations

    Hilton Singapore approved for staycations

    The hotel joins a list of 200 over hotels that are allowed to accept leisure guests in Phase 2.

    Hilton Singapore has joined the list of hotels approved for staycation bookings in Singapore yesterday. The Orchard Road top-end hotel joins the green list of hotels allowed to take in leisure guests, which now covers more than half of all hotels in the city.

    Rates from $168++ available

    At the time of writing, the earliest bookable date for Hilton Singapore is 15 Sep, although all weekend dates in September are unavailable for some reason.

    If you look further into Oct 2020, you will be able to find rates starting from S$168++.

    Some services are unavailable

    For those who are interested in exploring a stay at this old-time favourite, note that some key services are modified.

    For those looking at a Club room, note that the Executive Lounge is closed until further notice.

    What this means for guests with Club benefits, including Hilton Diamond members, are that the following services are modified, according to our conversation with the hotel:

    • Afternoon tea will no longer be served
    • Evening cocktails will be served as takeaway bento sets to be retrieved at Opus Bar. Drinks wise, every guest will receive a bottle of wine every other night of your entire stay. All food and drinks are to be consumed within your room or suite.
    • Breakfast will be served to your room, according to the selection on the in-room dining menu offerings.
    Hilton Singapore Executive Lounge – probably no similar setups for a while
    No buffet breakfast for now as well

    Despite that, my understanding is that the hotel’s restaurants, including Opus Bar & Grill, il Cielo, and Verde Kitchen are operating as usual for lunch and dinner.

    The fitness centre and swimming pool are still open, but with limited capacity. For those who are looking for a massage, note that the hotel’s spa will remain closed for the time being.

    A quieter swimming pool experience

    Another point to note is that parking will be limited to self-parking only, as valet services is currently unavailable as well.

    Final thoughts

    The changes above are not deal-breakers, although it will certainly mark a very different staycation experience for those who frequent this hotel. For some of those who hate the breakfast crowd, this may be a better experience given that you can dine in peace in your own room.

    One upside of Hilton Singapore is the spacious fitness centre and swimming pool, so this will also mean that the hotel can surely accommodate more guests at any one point in time, so chances of snagging a slot is probably higher.

    Be sure to take advantage of the low prices for now, before they go up in the weeks ahead!