Hilton San Jose Guaranteed late arrival is no guarantee

My husband and I were scheduled to stay here from 22 June 2005 to 26 June 2005 for eBay Live 2005. We were walked the first night as our room was sold out from under us. We had been scheduled for a late arrival since March (confirmed with a credit card) when the convention bookings first opened and I reconfirmed our late arrival at 6 pm that day as we were driving up from Los Angeles and would not arrive until after 11pm or 12 am. The Front Desk acknowledged the late arrival. This, by the way, was one of the reasons I had booked at the Hilton. It is right next to the convention center and would have afforded the most sleep time before an early registration the next morning. When we arrived we were told that there were no rooms available and that a room had been booked at alternate hotel, the De Anza, which was located about 4 blocks from the convention center and only has street parking ('til 9am) and valet parking. We stayed for one night and returned to the Hilton for the next 3 days and were offered a number of comps due to the initial mishap by the Front Desk Manager.

The hotel itself is quite nice and very convenient to the convention center. The City Bar and Grill is fine for basic fare, but pricey due to its proximity to the convention center. For great Italian food nearby, I recommend Il Fornaio at the Sainte Claire Hotel, which is on a diagonal from the Hilton.

While there, the General Manager contacted us via a gift basket apologizing for the booking mishap. The reason given was that they found themselves "...in a situation where some guests did not depart as expected." I have yet to find any Hilton published policy, which allows for this and was very disappointed that my reservation was handled so cavalierly. I point this out as a warning to anyone who books at the Hilton on a busy day with a guaranteed late arrival as the guarantee is obviously rather limited.

Great staff, good hotel

I ended up staying here a couple of nights on business. The rooms are clean, beds are mostly comfortable. I don't like the layout of the room (the armoire doors don't slide all the way and jut into the room) and the desk is right next to the TV.

However, there is wireless (it's a bit dicy) and a good setup for your laptop with easy access electric plugs and an Ethernet cable. A speakerphone and the new Hilton alarm clocks make it a really good bet for business travellers.

Very nice business hotel

This was a very nice business hotel. It is quite new so everything is modern, clean and works. Staff was low key but helpful. This hotel is one of the two (Marriott is the other) that is attached to the convention center.

I have a premium status here so I was entitled to access the top floor that had a free breakfast every morining and an honors bar with appetizers in the evening. The breakfast buffet was quite nice and quite a bit above average. The offered bagel, fruit, scramble eggs, muffins toast and some other items. There is a dedicated person located there so the room was constantly being tended to as was the food. Another guest told be that you could pay a premium and access this room and that it was well worth it.

I am a heavy business traveler and I consider this to be a great choice as a business hotel.

Awesome service

An unplanned check-in to the Hilton in San Jose turned into a stellar experience. We were a group of 4, in town to celebrate a friends birthday. Unfortunately, the Fairmont royally messed up our reservations & did nothing to rectify the situation, so we walked to the Hilton.

We were greeted with friendly service to say the least. While the type of room we required was not available, the front desk agent arranged for us to stay on the Executive level without the additional charge to meet our needs.

All interactions with Hilton staff were beyond expectations. What began as a crappy trip turned into an excellent experience. This experience, in contrast to that at the Fairmont, encourages me to seek out Hilton properties in my future travels. Thank you!

Great hotel!

We stayed in a Tower room 9-17 september, and we had a wonderful time! The staff was friendly, the service very good and the room was very nice. The pool was a little bit on the small side, but it wasn't really a problem, because most of the time we were the only people there. Our kids (6 and 8) loved the hotel.

Great room, nice hotel, good location

I was very satisfied with the hotel. Had no problems checking in, no surprises on the bill, staff was very helpful, and the room had all the standard amenities plus a fridge. I had a corporate rate of $99 which included high-speed internet access. The location made it easy to take advantage of the downtown dining establishments and it's close to the airport and other major highways.

There were a few issues:

- the room was dusty

- I had to call the high-speed hotline twice to get the internet service working (once it was working it was blazing fast)

- no wireless access in the hotel

- no continental breakfast

- parking was an extra $10 every day (added to your bill)

- really small pool, but it had a hot tub

Only a few problems

This hotel adjoins the Convention center which is quite convenient especially if it's raining. This isn't the Fairmont, a much more elegant hotel, but it's handy if you're attending a convention in wet weather. The restaurant can be slow, but it's OK. Only a small shop on the first floor, again unlike the Fairmont which has multiple shops and restaurants. The rooms are good and the staff is generally helpful.

Concierge floor has free breakfast& snacks, an inducement.

Friendly staff, great service

Was at this hotel for a convention at the attached center. Very friendly staff. Can-do attitude. I felt like I was in a more expensive hotel that it was.

Convenient location

I stayed for two nights in 8/2003. It is a convenient location. I was on the 18th floor, the top floor. The room is on the small side but clean. It is NOT a four star hotel. The outside looks kind of drabby, inside is fine. I am giving above average rating, because the room is clean and staff is friendly. There is complementary breakfast on the executive levels. The BAD thing is be very careful when you drive on and off highways around the hotel. The on ramps are very confusing, you could get lost easily ( I got lost 3 times), otherwise, It's fine place. They frequently run specials and you can stay here for a real good rate. I paid only $90. Parking in the garage in $10 per night.

very reasonable for the area.

Hilton San Jose/Towers

A large Hilton in the downtown San Jose area. Very convenient location if you have business in the downtown area. Only drawpack is parking...either valet it, or pay the $10 or so a day to use self-park with in/out privileges. Using self-park means you'll have a LOOOOOONG walk back to your room.