Hoteles Doubletree by Hilton en Varsovia

Over the years I stayed several times at this hotel, although its location is not very convenient for a tourist in Warsaw or for people having business downtown. Nonetheless, in the past I choose often to stay here because, in my opinion, this was the hotel of the Hilton group providing the greatest comfort, luxury and good treatment in all Poland. I come back after two years of absence due to the pandemic, and I discover that it is no longer so. Let me anyway say that the hotel remains pleasant and comfortable as before, but its top-quality performances are over. The first reason of my present discontent is in the food, once a strong point of this hotel. Breakfast now appears sloppily conceived and prepared: I stayed at the hotel 7 days, and for 7 days I had to eat my omelette without any accompanying side dish because the baked potatoes, the stewed beans and the bacon were definitely undercooked, and I was forced to leave them on the plate, untouched. Then I turned my attention to the sweets, which were nicely represented by the Belgian waffles and the pancakes, but I had to renounce to both of them because they were offered either without any topping at all (like the Belgian waffles) or with totally inappropriate ones (enough to say that the main toppings made available for the pancakes were ketchup and mayonnaise !). The rest of the breakfast was reasonable, but nothing special. Anyway, based on the experience made with breakfast, I avoided having any other meals at the hotel, even if this involved taking a bus and going downtown, several kilometres away. Another reason of my dissatisfaction was the evident change in the way of relating to customers. Formerly, relations were warm and welcoming, as it is appropriate in a classy hotel, but this time all contacts were cold, detached and strictly functional, as if taking care of the customer was considered an annoyance to be disposed of as quickly as possible. Certainly I was served correctly, but during my 7-days stay I never got a smile, nor was I ever greeted with a welcoming ”hello, how are you to day ?”. Upon departure, no one took care of asking me the classic question ”was everything OK with your stay ?”, and, having transmitted in writing some comments to the management (including the praise for one member of the staff who still maintains a high-profile style in its relations with the customers) I did not get any reply from them. Simple lapses in style, of course; but these lapses normally occur in hotels with few stars. To complete the picture, I shall also mention that at check-in I had enormous difficulties in obtaining such a modest advantage as a room with external view, although I am a Diamond member of the Hilton Honors program. Lastly, I was really disappointed with the elimination of the ”executive lounge”. This is a service provided by the best hotels to the high-end customers: its elimination marks in a definitive way the loss of prestige of the hotel. In conclusion, the h