Hilton Adelaide, South Australia
We recently managed to escape from the kids and enjoy a weekend away at the Hilton Adelaide in South Australia for 2 nights. Check-in was quick and we had booked a standard room but as HHonors Diamond members were upgraded to a 17th-floor executive room (the top-level of this hotel is 18). Our room was a good comfortable size with a clean bathroom but a smallish shower (a nice large rain shower head though).
The Lobby Lounge area and The Brasserie restaurant at the Hilton Adelaide are currently closed for renovations and are due to re-open in September 2015. During this period of refurbishment, the buffet breakfast and dinner dining are available in the Victoria Room on the ground floor. We chose to dine there for the breakfast and found it adequate enough. While you do not have the omelet or cooked-to-order egg station, there were still plenty of hot options available like scrambled eggs, bacon, sausages, cooked tomatoes, and hash browns. There was also plenty of cereals, pastries, and cold-cut options. Especially loved that they provided a sparkling wine option if you wanted to kick-start the day off in style!
If you want to grab a drink or cocktail while staying at the Hilton Adelaide, the Collins Bar is also part of the hotel and worth a visit. Lunch dining is also available there from 12.00 pm – 2.00 pm from Mon-Fri.
We visited the Executive Lounge on the 16th floor for the evening drinks and canapés on both nights. It is on the smaller side but has a good selection of self pour beverages including beer, wine, and spirits along with a nice choice of two hot canapés and cold cuts. The lounge hours for the evening drinks are 6.00 pm-8.30 pm Mon-Fri and 6.00 pm-8.00 pm on Sat & Sun. The Friday night was pretty quiet and only had one staff member in there who was excellent. The Saturday night was definitely busier and had two staff members looking after guests. The only negative would be that the Wifi in the lounge can be slow, however. The lounge is also open for continental breakfast from 6.30 am-10.00 am Mon-Fri and from 7.30 am-11.00 am on weekends. Afternoon Tea is served from 3.00pm-6.00pm Mon-Fri.
The location is good, right opposite Victoria Square making it the easy walking distance for us to Rundle Mall, Hindley St, and Adelaide Casino. If you are attending an event at Adelaide Oval, it takes about 20 minutes to walk there. If walking is not your thing, there is a tram stop right outside the hotel so you could always grab a tram instead (free around the city center). You can also catch the Glenelg Beach tram from the tram stop outside the Hilton Adelaide. The Hilton Adelaide is also right next to the food markets and Chinatown if you are looking for cheap meals.
Other amenities that the Hilton Adelaide provides are an outdoor heated swimming pool with a spa, two indoor spas, a sauna, a tennis court, and an adequate gym.
One benefit we wanted to mention was that they provided Diamond members with complimentary water on both nights which we loved, as most Australian Hilton Hotels tend to stick to the one-night-only policy – it is a nice little touch that we appreciated.
We also loved that the Hilton Adelaide had plenty of staff at the front desk at check-out time, avoiding the long queues that can occur at some hotels.
Hilton Adelaide is not a super modern luxury hotel but we found it to be a nice hotel with friendly, efficient staff which helped to make a comfortable stay. We look forward to returning one day to see how it looks once the upgrade to the Lobby Lounge and The Brasserie is complete.
