I stayed five nights in Brussels, Belgium this past holiday season. The Hilton Brussels Grand Place was chosen after considering its location and positive reviews. As a general rule, I make an effort to book hotels with the Hilton portfolio since my status gives plenty of great perks (as discussed in earlier posts).
Location
The location of this hotel was perfect. We were walking distance to all the main tourist attractions; museums, cafes, restaurants, and the Grand Place. The Grand Place is the central square of Brussels. It is considered one of the most beautiful squares in Europe, and has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1998.
Booking
I booked two standard rooms directly through the Hilton Honors website eight months ahead of time. I figured that this hotel is in high demand due to the central location coupled with the fact that my trip was during peak holiday season. The total cost was €1,784 (euros) for both rooms, including all taxes and fees. This equated to just over $2,000 (USD) which I charged to my American Express Hilton Aspire card and earned 14X points for each dollar spent. $200 USD per night, per room, was a really good deal.
Check In
Source: Hilton
Source: Hilton
I checked in at 3:00 PM. There was a small queue, but the wait was not long. We were given an overview of hotel, but because the hotel was completely booked room upgrades were not available.
Rooms
Source: Hilton
We stayed in standard rooms, and they were just fine. Both rooms were clean, updated, and well appointed. Our view overlooked the courtyard in the back of the hotel–nothing breathtaking, but it wasn’t a brick wall either.
Food
Source: Hilton
Ordinarily, when I’m on vacation especially somewhere overseas, I make it a point to explore the local cuisine and not dine at the hotel. The exception is breakfast, because it is often included. The hotel did have a small bar for cocktails and a small restaurant. The dinner menu seemed overpriced.
The offerings at the breakfast buffet were extensive. This is typical of European Hiltons compared to their US counterparts. I’m an early riser compared to the rest of my family so I ate alone a couple mornings, but I was able to bring some food back to the rooms for everyone else before breakfast hours ended. The food itself was better than average, but not exceptional.
Amenities
Source: Hilton
The Executive Lounge was the only disappointment with this property. It was small and often crowded. The food available each evening during happy hour was subpar for a 4 star hotel. The tables often had dirty plates and glasses even during non-peak hours. I can’t say if this was because of the lounge being short staffed or if the staff weren’t proactive at their job.
The hotel also had a really small fitness center with only a few pieces of equipment. I exercise 5-6 days per week when I am home, but usually give myself a break when on vacation, so lack of equipment didn’t phase me. However, if you wanted to work off all of the chocolate and waffles that Brussels has to offer, you could find yourself disappointed with the fitness center.
This hotel does not have a dedicated parking facility, and the parking options are less than ideal. Unfortunately, I needed a rental for this trip. We used Brussels as our main stay, but took a couple of day trips to Bruges and Amsterdam. The hotel directs those with cars to use the public parking garage next to the hotel. The garage was packed, and the marked spaces were really, really small. Five days in that garage with no scratches. Very lucky.
Service
Housekeeping was good. The rooms were thoroughly cleaned each day and all toiletries restocked. The breakfast crew was attentive and hard at work each time I was there. In general, even though the hotel was busy the entire week, someone was always available to answer questions, provide advice, or assist with reservations for dinner at local restaurants.
Overall Impression
I had high expectations for this hotel, and the hotel met those expectations. I’ve stayed a several higher end Hiltons in Europe over the past few years and many of them were much more ostentatious. Although this hotel didn’t have much of the fanfare of these other hotels, my stay was perfectly fine. The best part was the location. It was in the heart of Brussels and I could’t ask for better.
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