Hilton Honors has finally announced its Covid-19 provisions for its loyalty members, with what is possibly one of the most generous extensions across any hotel chains.
Extensions for members with status in 2019
Hilton will be giving a one-year extension for members who had status through the whole of 2019 and were scheduled to be downgraded this month. They will instead hold on to their 2019 status for another year, up to March 2021.
This refers to the group of members who earned their status through stays in 2018, and enjoyed them in 2019. If this group of members didn’t requalify for their status in 2019, they would have been downgraded this month (i.e. March 2020).
Extensions for members with status in 2020
For members who have qualified for an elite status for the entire year of 2020 through stays in 2019, their status will be extended through March 2022, a year longer than it usually is.
Similar to Qantas’ policy, the extension of the status doesn’t mean that you get two years now to qualify for status in 2022 – your nights and stays you earn in 2020 will still be reset by 31 Dec 2020 and you start climbing the ladder again in 2021.
Points won’t expire before December 2020
On top of the status extensions, Hilton Honors will also pause all points expiration.
Hilton points usually expire 12 months after your last stay, so if you have had a chance to clock a stay during the 12-month window, your points will still stay active up to 31 Dec 2020.
Note that this means if you have not make any activity in 2020 by 1 Jan 2021, your points will expire then.
Final thoughts
This is probably one of the most generous extension policies laid out by any hotel loyalty programme, given that Hilton has not only extended current members with elite status, but also those who were scheduled to be downgraded this year (boo, Marriott Bonvoy).
This is an incredibly good gesture on Hilton’s part, on top of its very flexible booking policy during this global pandemic. I’m sure this will earn a lot more goodwill down the road for the chain, and I’m for one to keep supporting them.
Hilton fans in Singapore will definitely be familiar with Hilton Kuala Lumpur. Located adjacent to KL’s main transport node KL Sentral, the hotel is a well-appointed property suited for both business and leisure needs.
Located conveniently at KL Sentral, Hilton Kuala Lumpur is literally next door to the train station and offers more than 500 rooms in its giant 35-storey building. The hotel also has 14 meeting rooms capable of holding business events for up to 1,500 people.
Hilton Kuala Lumpur lobby
While the hotel opened its doors back in 2004, it was last refurbished in 2013. At first glance, the hotel still looks pretty swanky to the extent of being a little glitzy; a big welcoming lobby, tall ceilings and a modern-looking cafe and bar at the lobby adds to the glamour of the property.
The hotel is part of a joint development with Le Meridien hotel located next door, which has been owned by Japanese billionaire Katsumi Tada since it opened its doors in 2004. Just a couple of years back in 2017, Tada has sold the hotel to the owners of Le Meridien next door, Daito Trust Construction Co, another Japanese entity.
Check-in
I tried checking in early at about 11.30am. Hilton KL is pretty good with its upgrades for elite members. As a Hilton Honors Diamond member, I originally booked myself into a Deluxe room, but I saw in my Hilton app that I was given an Executive Plus room.
As I checked in way too early, the front desk offered me a choice of either an Executive standard room if I wanted the room now, or a Executive Plus room if I could come back later in the afternoon. I chose the latter as I wanted to head out for lunch.
One thing to note if you are a diamond member, the priority check-in desk for Hilton Honors members is not located at the same place as the check-in desks. There is a small little signage just before you hit the desks that will point you to the right direction. If you need help, just ask the concierge and they will be happy to point you in the right direction.
Priority check in area for Diamond, Gold members
The room
I originally booked myself into the cheapest room type, but as a Diamond member I was upgraded to an Executive Plus room, which was one of the corner rooms on each floor.
Executive Plus room
While the room was not a junior suite, it boasted of a very generously sized bedroom, as well as an equally generous bathroom. The room comfortably fitted a King sized bed, as well as a couch right by the window which served us well as a daybed.
Work desk (right) and TV
There was also a full sized work desk if working in the room is what you need.
The bathroom had a generous bath tub, big enough for two people. As with all other Hilton properties, there are separate shower and toilet stalls, each with their own door. There was only a single vanity however, but this is often not an issue for me.
Bathroom vanity and bathtub
The amenities Hilton Kuala Lumpur uses is Crabtree and Evelyn, consistent with the other Hilton brands in this part of the world.
Crabtree & Evelyn amenities
One interesting offering by Hilton KL is a bath preparation service, with a complete menu of different scented baths that staff can prepare for you for RM58 nett. There are four options to choose from, including a jetsetter’s Boost Bath, which is a “refreshing blend of tangerine and lemongrass to sooth, relieve and revitalise the body.”
For couples on a getaway, there’s also a “Pure Romance Bath” for RM180 nett, which comes with two glasses of sparkling wine, not too bad a deal considering that a glass of wine costs at least RM50 in a hotel.
It might sound rather extravagant, but I can see how this is useful for couples on a romantic getaway, or even perhaps for parents who will want to delight their kids.
If you want something even more luxurious, there’s always an in-room massage service offered by the hotel’s spa, but I was shocked at the price tag which was something to the tune of over RM400 for an hour of bliss.
Bedside table – telephone, mini hotel guide
The room also comes with a Nespresso machine, as well as four bottles of complimentary bottled water. I am quite a water guzzler, so the first thing when I got to the room was to request for even more bottled water, which the hotel gladly acceded to.
Nespresso machine and bottled water
As with most hotels there’s also a fully stocked in-room mini bar right under the counter, which will be replenished daily and charged to your account if you consume any of it (you shouldn’t).
The only downside to the corner room is the fact that the room is not completely blacked out in the morning. The doors to the bathroom are a pair of translucent sliding doors facing the bed, and there are no curtains within the bathroom. Go figure.
Executive Lounge
Hilton Kuala Lumpur’s executive lounge is located on the 33rd floor. All guests staying in executive rooms and suites, as well as Hilton Honors Diamond members can access the lounge during their stay.
Hilton KL Executive Lounge
The lounge is open from 6am to 11pm daily, and serves up daily breakfast, as well as afternoon tea and evening cocktails.
The lounge runs on two sides of the corridor, a bigger lounge on the right side where the food and drinks are located, and a smaller lounge on the left side with the reception desk. Both rooms feature high ceilings and full length windows offering a view of the city.
View from the executive loungeThe other side of the excutive lounge
I managed to check out the afternoon tea (2.30pm to 4.30pm) shortly after returning to the hotel and getting my keys. Hilton KL’s afternoon tea serves an assortment of light savoury and sweet bites, along with coffee, tea and soft drinks. The bites of the day included tempeh sandwiches, chicken sandwiches, beef wraps and scones.
Sandwiches and scones served during afternoon tea
The sandwiches were delicious and right sized so despite being full from lunch, I went back for seconds. I was rather suspicious of the scones at first, but they turned out tasting better than they looked.
Evening cocktails ran from 6pm to 8pm. I tend to go up and find a choice spot just before evening cocktails begin, and even when I got there at 5.45pm, about half the lounge was already occupied. Right at 6pm, more people came in and practically every single table was taken up.
Evening cocktails refreshments, including salads, dips and hot food
Hilton Kuala Lumpur offers a good spread of hot and cold foods during the evening cocktail hours. There were some interesting bites, such as a savoury profiteroles with mackerel mousse, and also a rather amazing pasta seafood salad with generous servings of mussels. The sweets were slightly less appealing although there was still a rather good assortment.
Evening cocktail refreshments
A worthy mention here will be the level of service offered at the lounge, despite the crowd. Team members went table to table taking drink orders and served them rather promptly. The staff was also very proactive in going around the tables to top up wines during the two-hour window, and offering incredibly generous pours.
The very generous wine pours
What I didn’t like about the lounge was the fact that large families could bring young children into the lounge. A kid was screaming and running around the lounge for the good part of an hour, which I thought was a safety hazard. Personally I would very much prefer if Hilton could run their lounge like some other hotels where children were not allowed into the lounge during even cocktail hours.
Breakfastat Vasco’s
As a diamond member, I could choose to have my breakfast either at the main restaurant Vasco’s in the lobby, or at the executive lounge. Whenever I’m in Asia, I generally prefer to dine in the main restaurant as the spread tends to be a lot more generous and hearty than what you will get in the lounge.
Vasco’s – Hilton KL breakfast restaurant
The downside of having breakfast in the main restaurant is that it usually gets pretty crowded. On a Sunday morning at about 9am, there was a short queue into the restaurant, although I didn’t have to wait for long. With ample capacity to hold more than 100 guests, the restaurant was still packed and I didn’t get much choice as to where I wanted to sit.
Vasco’s – Hilton KL breakfast restaurant Seats by the window
Hilton Kuala Lumpur serves up a solid breakfast buffet. Apart from the usual American breakfast offerings, there was also a substantial Asian selection, including local breakfast choices of nasi lemak and roti canai, as well as Japanese and Indian fares. Each of these sections is a selection from one of the hotel’s wide range of restaurants, so I figure it’s also good marketing for each of these restaurants.
Roti canai
My choice of breakfast in Malysian hotels is always nasi lemak, and Hilton’s rendition didn’t fail to deliver. The curry chicken complements the fragrant steamed coconut rice, with the sambal chilli hitting all the right spots as well.
Oh, and if you are into noodles, don’t forget to try the curry noodles from the noodle station!
If there’s one thing I’d complain about, it’s probably the coffee. Not worth wasting your caffeine consumption on it.
For those who don’t have breakfast included in your room rate or as part of your Hilton Honors perks, the walk-in rate for breakfast is RM88 nett per person, so it pays to book a room with breakfast if hotel breakfast is your thing.
Outside breakfast hours, Vasco’s serve as an international buffet restaurant for lunch and dinner, with themes from month to month. If you fancy something else, there are four other restaurants on-site for you to choose from: Chambers Grill for your grill favourites, GRAZE which serves modern European cuisine, Chynna dishing out Cantonese favourites and Iketeru, a Japanese restaurant.
Other facilities
Hilton Kuala Lumpur is a full service hotel, complete with an array of facilities for any visit.
On the recreational front, the hotel boasts of a massive gym with a good range of equipment. Apart from the usual cardio machines, the gym is well invested, with a squat rack and also a good range of free weights for serious trainers. Within a gym also lies a group exercise room, complete with scheduled gym classes every day of the week.
Note that the gym and spa serves both Hilton and the adjacent Le Meridien hotel, so it can get rather crowded. The gym also offers public memberships for non-hotel guests.
Apart from the gym there’s also a full spa service, including in-room massage services if you are too lazy to even walk down to the spa. The spa shares the same changing rooms with the gym, and is fully equipped with a sauna, hot tub and steam room for those who like a good soak after their workout.
Outside the gym, there’s also a picturesque swimming pool and a pool bar. The swimming pool is not ideal for serious swimmers, but good enough for a lap or two or if you want to get some sun.
For event organisers looking to hold events at Hilton KL, this is probably one of the best options you can find in town. There are 14 meeting rooms in varying configurations, capable of holding up to 1,500 people.
Final thoughts
Hilton Kuala Lumpur is undoubtedly one of my most favourite hotels in the city, for good reasons. An excellent five star hotel, armed with a wide range of excellent facilities, dining options and an incredibly convenient location, the property is usually my first choice in the city and it takes a lot of consideration for me to stay anywhere else.
While some may content that the service is not as personalised as what you’d get at higher end hotels such as St Regis, I contend that this is sufficient for me. I typically get a little suffocated with overly attentive service, so this works just fine for me.
If there’s anything I might pick on, it’s probably just that the hotel is starting to show signs of age. Fading furnishing, tired looking facilities, but these are really minor details. After all, a good hotel is a balance of service and hardware, and as far as Hilton Kuala Lumpur is concerned, it’s pretty much there.
Hilton is definitely increasing its footprint in Kuala Lumpur, with a leap in the number of properties in the last few years. Just in the last two years alone, Hilton chose KL as the city for its first three Hilton Garden Inn properties in Malaysia: two in Chow Kit and one in Puchong. Just a little further down south, Hilton’s DoubleTree will also open its doors in Putrajaya later this year.
In the pipeline is also Canopy and Conrad KL, which I’ll definitely be looking forward to check out when they open over the next few years.
As part of my mattress run in Shanghai, I took out one night at DoubleTree Shanghai Jing’an, a relatively new property in Shanghai.
Located on the west side of the Huangpu river, the hotel is centrally located near to some of the commercial districts, in the Jing’an district. At the time of my stay, the hotel is only about four months old, having opened only in July 2019.
The 307-room property is the second DoubleTree branded property in Shanghai, with the first one located in the Pudong new district.
Rooms at the hotel run in two towers, up to 28 floor each. At the time of my stay, it seems like all the guests were funneled to only one of the towers, with the other one cordoned off.
This property is located about 15 minutes north of Shanghai’s famed Xintiandi area. The actual distance is not that far, but the traffic in Puxi area leaves much to be desired pretty much throughout the day, no thanks to the many traffic lights.
There is a subway station (Line 8) about 10 minutes walk away, so that is always an option in the cooler months, and you may be surprised it might be faster than taking a car ride at certain times of the day.
As for the distance to the airport, the hotel is about a 30 minutes drive from Hongqiao airport, and 45 minutes away from Shanghai Pudong International Airport.
The room
As a Hilton Honors gold member, I was once again upgraded, this time to an executive room. However, I didn’t have the chance to check out the executive lounge on this trip, as I was out of the hotel most of the time.
DoubleTree Shanghai Jing’an, King Room
The room itself was pretty much a standard King room, which was fairly small based on the past rooms in China I’ve stayed in before. The room was decked out in modern dark wood finishing, which thankfully was accompanied by pretty decent lighting.
The king bed was generous in space and fairly comfortable, unfortunately the choice of pillows left me with a neckache the morning after as all the pillows are too soft. If you a side sleeper, you may want to use the extra pillow in the closet, or request for even more pillows.
There was also a sizeable work desk, making this a decent hotel to use for business trips.
Working desk in room
The electrical fittings were also pretty well thought out, with an assortment of international sockets available at the work desk, as well as USB charging ports by the bedside. This to me is one of the small but meaningful details hotels can do to make big differences in the experience.
There was also a little armchair and coffee table by the window, which I thought was pretty unnecessary. The chair was stiff as hell so I don’t really lounge there.
Armchair and coffee table that I didn’t use
The bathroom was also pretty compact. There were separate toilet and shower cubicles, each with their own doors.
Bathroom with separate bath and toilet cubicles
I typically prefer this arrangement if I’m travelling with a companion, so that we could both use the bathroom at the same time if necessary. There was also a bathtub next to the shower, which was a rarity in newer DoubleTree properties.
You will be able to find the other standard amenities such as a bathrobe, bedroom slippers, ironing board and iron, hairdryer, all either in the bathroom or in the wardrobe.
Wardrobe situation
Unlike the DoubleTree by Hilton Pudong, the minibar is not filled up. Instead, there was an order chit from which you can order, and the items will be sent up to your room. I personally prefer this model, so I can use the minibar for my personal items.
The facilities
As I had a pretty short stay there, I didn’t have much time to fully check out the hotel.
There is an executive lounge on the 27th floor, which opens from 10.30am daily. Do note that if you have executive lounge benefits either as part of your room or your Diamond status, there is no breakfast served in the lounge so all guests will have to head to the level 2 restaurant for breakfast.
The lounge also serves up afternoon tea as well as evening cocktails daily, but do check with the reception on the exact hours.
All-day dining restaurant on 2nd floor
As for recreational facilities, DoubleTree by Hilton Shanghai Jing’an has a fitness centre in the basement. While I didn’t use it, I went to take a look and found it pretty well equipped.
Fitness centre in the basement
The strange thing about this hotel is: I’m not clear if there was a swimming pool. Based on earlier news reports about the property, there seems to be one. However, it was not mentioned on the hotel official website, neither was it mentioned in the information booklet or any of the signs when I was in the hotel.
Also, there are no spa services or facilities, so in this respect the hotel is pretty no-frills.
Lobby bar
There is a lobby bar on the ground floor for your evening tipple and a Starbucks within the same building accessible from the lobby, even though it is technically not part of the hotel.
Breakfast
Breakfast was served at the all-day dining restaurant located on level two of the hotel.
When I went down for breakfast, I was a little lost. My room number was taken by a staff at the door of the restaurant, but the staff signaled for me to head into the restaurant and look for a table by myself.
DoubleTree by Hilton Shanghai Jing’an breakfast restaurant
I don’t usually like to do that at a hotel breakfast restaurant, as many people are usually walking around taking food, and I certainly didn’t want to accidentally sit at a table that someone else had taken.
Also, at first glance, some of the tables had incomplete settings, so all the more I wasn’t sure if those tables were taken. Eventually, I found a huge booth (ample seats for six people) which wasn’t taken, and I awkwardly took up the table.
A little about the space within the restaurant. The restaurant was huge, but lacking in natural light. There were also not many tables, and while I liked space, I felt this restaurant had too much space.
Plenty of space in this restaurant, but a little too much space
Food selection was terrible. There was a lot of food, but nothing particularly stood out. Some of the food on offer included one entire section of steamed goods, but it turned out to be all root vegetables (potatoes, lotus roots, tapioca). There was also a tray of fried dough items that was present in a pretty haphazard and unappetising manner.
Tray of deep fried dough and spring rolls, anyone?
There was also the usual western breakfast offering, including an egg station, bacon, sausages and bakery items, but none of them looked appetising.
Bakery items
As such, I simply took a croissant and a fried egg to fill myself up a little, before skipping the restaurant and head out for a much better breakfast.
Final thoughts
As with all newly built hotels, the finishing for the hotel is gorgeous. I loved the spacious lobby,
Unfortunately, this strength of the hotel is also its weakness. In my opinion, there was a poor use of space. There was so much more potential in what the hotel could use the abundant space in lobby for, such as a cafe (or two) or perhaps even a bistro.
The rooms on the other hand, are fairly efficient in terms of space to a fault as well. I would have preferred slightly more space to move around within the rooms, particularly the bathroom.
In my previous trips to Shanghai I’ve always stayed at the now-gone Hilton Jing’an, which has always been excellent. Having not visited Shanghai in a while, I was horrified to find out that Hilton Jing’an, a well-known landmark having been around for over four decades, have been sold off and is now rebranded as Kunlun Jing’an Hotel. So now if you are looking for a Hilton-branded property in the Jing’an area, the DoubleTree by Hilton Shanghai Jing’an is your only option.
Hilton is running a flash winter sale for the rooms in Japan, Korea, Hong Kong and Guam for four days only, from 26 November 2019, 1pm (Singapore time) to 29 November 2019, 1pm (Singapore time).
While the marketing spiel reads 50% off, bear in mind that this discount is off the flexible rates and not the sale rates. Also, non Hilton Honors members will only enjoy 40% off. On top of that, you will be slapped with other terms, such as non-refundable terms.
While the sale period is tight, you have some flexibility in your travel dates. You can stay between 26 November 2019 and 30 June 2020, giving you quite a fair bit of dates to play with if you haven’t lined up any plans for the first half of next year. Obviously black-out dates do apply, and I will expect that the sakura season will be excluded given the traditional high footfall.
What’s good?
Tokyo traditionally has one of the most expensive hotel rates in Asia, so this is a good time to check out the properties if you have been hesitating. For instance:
If you are looking to book a ski holiday, Hilton Niseko goes from SGD125:
Conrad Tokyo is another exceptionally property that can command more than S$700, but for this sale you can grab rooms from S$356:
If you are looking at some other luxe properties in Japan, Conrad Osaka can be booked from SGD260, down from the usual SGD500+:
Elsewhere in Asia, Conrad Hong Kong is also on sale, from SGD180!
Are the rates really available?
I did a quick search for the rates for Conrad Tokyo (which I’m dying to check out), but it seems like the really low rates are quite hard to find.
For instance, during the Chinese New Year season in early February, you are quoted about JPY32,000 (JPY40,800 after taxes, or about SGD511) per night:
Conrad Tokyo availability during Chinese New Year 2020
As for March school holidays, the lowest pre-tax rate is JPY25,000, which works out to about JPY31,825 or SGD400 per room per night, which isn’t shabby at all.
Conrad Tokyo availability during March school holidays
I tried the same with some other properties around Japan (and even Conrad Hong Kong!), while you may not always get the lowest advertised rates, the discounts are still significant.
In any case, do try your luck and play around with the dates if you have some time. Remember, sale ends 29 November 2019 at 1pm (Singapore time), so you might want to just lock in your plans quickly. Book here.
Perth, as the only major city on the western shores of Australia, suffer more so given it’s relatively low population base.
Hotels in Perth are pretty sparse, with many of the bigger names, including Crowne Plaza and Hilton, built more than two decades ago and hardly refurbished. As such, it was pretty refreshing to see a new infusion of hotels into the city, including DoubleTree by Hilton and Westin as part of Tourism Western Australia’s push to revitalise the state as a preferred destination.
The hotel I stayed in this time round is the DoubleTree Northbridge in Perth. Those familiar with the DoubleTree brand will know it’s by Hilton and have been popping up rapidly around the world in the last half decade or so.
Hotel entrance
The hotel
DoubleTree Northbridge opened in September 2018. Decked out with 206 rooms over 15 floors, the hotel offers 4 room types: Regular guest rooms, regular guest rooms with panoramic view, executive rooms and deluxe executive rooms. Each of these room types come with either a King-sized bed or twin beds.
The layout on each floor is pretty simple, with a single, long corridor and rooms flanked on both sides.
Rooms on both sides of the corridor in the hotel
Check-in was a fairly efficient and straightforward affair. Upon checking in, the agent offered one of the signature DoubleTree chocolate cookie, which was a great treat given that I didn’t have time for lunch before checking in.
Front desk
DoubleTree Northbridge also boasts an executive lounge, which I didn’t have access to for this trip as I wasn’t planning to spend a lot of time in the hotel. If you are staying in an executive room, or are a Hilton Honors diamond member, you will have access to the lounge.
Note that the hotel doesn’t offer any secured parking, so if you are driving, you are pretty much limited to streetside parking, which can be rather challenging to find in the evenings.
The room
For my stay today, I booked myself the cheapest room available, which was a twin guest room. For some reason, king rooms in Australia are consistently more expensive than twin rooms, and I’ve always find myself booking a twin room to save $10 or more per night.
Twin guest room
At 30 square metres, the room is pretty spacious, although not overly generous for an Australian room. Being a very new hotel, the fixtures are still in an excellent state.
The bathroom comes with only a shower stall (there’s a rain shower) for all room types, and bathtubs are only available in the executive deluxe king room. So if that’s a must for you, you will have to pay a premium for it.
Bathroom
There are still the usual bath amenities, including hotel-grade bath towels and a bathrobe that are available in the room. DoubleTree Northbridge uses Crabtree and Evelyn toiletries, consistent with many other Hilton properties around the world.
The wardrobe is designed rather interestingly, accessible from both the bedroom as well as the bathroom. Having said that, I had some trouble trying to shove my suitcase onto the luggage rack within the wardrobe, so that was one area of weakness if you ask me.
Tiny walk-in wardrobe with the luggage rack within
Twin beds in Australia are pretty much two singles, unlike some Asian hotels (such as in Bangkok) where the twin beds are larger in size, and four people could easily share the two beds. So if you are planning to hold more than two persons in the room, you might want to think again.
There is a small round table with two swivel chairs right in front of the wall-mounted television, which can serve as a makeshift desk if you need to get some work done in the room.
Multi-use table with chairs, and wall-mounted television
There is also a fully stocked minibar within the room, complete with complimentary coffee and tea making facilities. Unfortunately, there is no coffee machine within the room, you will have to settle for freeze-dried instant coffee, although I’d very much prefer to head down to the cafe in the lobby for a flat white.
There is complimentary wifi in the room for Hilton Honors members, which works pretty well for me when I was there. Note that the hotel claims that the wifi is for basic usage only, but I had no problems streaming shows from Netflix when I was there.
The facilities
Despite being a pretty compact property, DoubleTree Northbridge still packs a punch in terms of facilities. On the third floor of the hotel, there is an outdoor swimming pool with ample number of deck chairs, as well as a 24-hour fitness centre.
The fitness centre has two treadmills, as well as a cable machine and a generous rack of dumbbells, which was sufficient for a very decent workout. As I was staying there in August, it was too cold to use the pool given it was not heated.
24-hour fitness centre24-hour fitness centre
The hotel also has a full service bar and kitchen, James St Bar & Kitchen, which was also accessible by non-staying guests. On weeknights, the restaurant offers a daily special for A$25, with featured a different dish every day of the week, plus a glass of wine.
St James Kitchen & Bar
Having been out the entire day, I decided to stay in for dinner at the hotel. I went for the daily special, which featured a seafood squid ink paella for the day. When it came, I must say that it was beyond my expectation both in terms of serving size and taste.
Seafood paella
If you would like something more substantial, or for sharing amongst larger groups, they also offer a wide-ranging menu, with tapas and share plates starting from A$6. Pastas and main meals ranges between A$20 to A$60, so there are definitely options for everyone.
The restaurant space was also rather well appointed and spacious, although I do think it’s a little too well-lit for my liking, particularly for dinner.
One thing I love about Australian hotels is that the hotel bars are usually quite comfortable for an evening drink, whether you are alone or with friends. The bar area of the restaurant was no exception, and given that it opens out to the main road, it was perfect for people watching as you sip on your favourite glass of chardonnay or a schooner of local beer.
Final thoughts
Let’s be very honest here: Australia’s hotels are usually nothing to shout about. Many of the hotels, particularly in the smaller cities, are often misses, given that tourism infrastructure spending is not a priority.
Fortunately, Perth is on a resurgence in the last couple of years, and many new hotels have sprouted up as a result.
DoubleTree Northbridge is a solid offering in a good part of the city. If you haven’t been to Perth, most parts of the city centre is incredibly walkable, so this is also a good place to base yourself at, whether for business or pleasure. If the hotel restaurant gets a little too boring, there are plenty of restaurants on the same street and you
While not the top end of what the city’s lodgings can offer, the hotel itself is relatively self-sufficient and perfect for the business traveller who needs everything under one roof.
