The good, the bad, the ugly
Mar 14, 2020 skipper646
Ok, first of all my expectations for this property were SUPER high based upon reviews I read and the pricing of the rooms. With that being said, some of my comments may seem nit-picky but due to price of the room I expected SO much more.
The good:
The staff is awesome and really made this property for us. From the front desk, to restaurant and…
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Ok, first of all my expectations for this property were SUPER high based upon reviews I read and the pricing of the rooms. With that being said, some of my comments may seem nit-picky but due to price of the room I expected SO much more.
The good:
The staff is awesome and really made this property for us. From the front desk, to restaurant and cleaning staff = friendly, nice, professional! This is one thing that really impressed me with the property.
The restaurant area was super nice. There were 6-8 big screen TVs glaring all over the place which was a big distraction of the beauty of the restaurant area. They can turn those off during the day and maybe turn on at night. The very nice restaurant and lobby/sitting area didn't go with the rest of the outdated areas.
The food at the breakfast was awesome and fresh.
Driving up to the property the outside of the buildings does look really nice/clean, unfortunately this didn't extend to the inside.
Pool area was clean but the seating area seemed to be limited and again, didn't have a resort feel to the pool area.
The bad:
Where do I start. This property needs a serious update to the rooms and the hallways to the rooms. The old/brownish carpet, outdated lamps/lighting and dark painting in the hallways isn't friendly and actually quite dreary. It makes a really bad impression when you walk down the hallways. Chipped stain off many doors, older elevator look, etc. It felt early 2000's and needs to be updated. The shower area in the rooms were out of date and needs a total update based upon the nightly rate of the rooms.
There's a big disconnect in the lobby. The check-in desk seemed to be disjointed with the sitting area. They also have these benches in the lobby that have leather belts around them. My 12 year old daughter even mentioned that it looked "weird". The belts look like something purchased at Wal-mart as a decorative after thought to add to the benches.
The staff in the restaurant wore these plaid shirts/jeans which didn't make sense to me since that area wasn't a western theme or anything that matched what they were wearing. Again, a big disconnect with the property.
The property seems disjointed to get to the pool area and then to the gym. You have to zig-zag across the property without clear signage. This is marketed as a resort but didn't have a resort "feel' to me.
Behind the front desk there were shelves that were selling sun screen and other chotchkes. I can honestly say, I've never seen this type of set-up at any Hilton property I've stayed at and I've visited over 50 Hilton properties across the globe. To say it was tacky is an understatement.
I tried to visit the gift shop several times (at different times of day) and there was always a sign on the shop "be back in 30 minutes". Odd.
There were no carts to take luggage to the room that we could find. Sadly, we had to lug 6 pieces of large luggage up the room which took 2 trips to the car.
There was no uniformity with what the front desk staff wears. They all had on name tags but every other property I've stayed at have some sort of uniform: white shirt, etc. The only uniforms I saw were in the restaurant.
I didn't check the map to make sure this was close to downtown Sedona, it's not. It's about a 15 minute drive to Sedona proper. We continually going back/forth which added more time in the car.
The ugly:
The rooms were ok but permanent stains on the floor. The rooms were clean, per se, but needed a serious deep cleaning with steam vacs, etc. The little kitchen area in the rooms were really outdated with the microwave looked like a 20 year old model that no longer is sold in stores. The decor in the rooms were very outdated and should be removed, especially the piece hanging above the fireplace.
The gym area was ok but again, needs to be updated and didn't have super clean feel. It wasn't filthy but needs updated look/feel.
In the parking lot, there was major paint missing on the curb painting. Seems like an easy fix.
There's a rug mat at the front door that says Hilton Sedona. It's a faded mat and honestly should be thrown out immediately. It's a very bad first impression when you walk into the lobby.
Bottom line: Hilton needs to spend a few million to update and overhaul the inside of this property to take it from "meh" to GREAT! has so much potential but currently misses the mark due to the amount they charge.
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