Hotel Don Fernando de Taos, Tapestry Collection by Hilton — Attraction in Taos

For a Tapestry Collection by Hilton, I'm disappointed. Hilton is my primary chain hotel that I stay with, so I've come to expect certain things, so that could be a reason for the harsh review to follow as I expect better. Let me start with the positives. The in room coffee is good. The bed and pillows are comfortable. The King Suite we are in is spacious and clean. The bathroom has a large counter with plenty of room to lay out our bathroom items. The hot water in the shower never ran out. Overall, the room was nice. As far as the disappointments go, when we arrived at 3pm we were told our room wasn't ready and that we needed to return at 4. We arrived right at 4 and the gentleman working the desk (who was very unhelpful each time we visited with him) said the room still wasn't ready, but he could move us to a different room. My first thought was that he could have offered to check for a clean room when we were there at 3. He never gave us any hotel information or even told us how to find our room. I had to ask. When we arrived at the room, we scanned the key card, and the door opened, but it was blocked by the security latch as someone was already in the room. Back to the front desk, we went again. He was so confused by why someone else was in the room and then became very unhelpful why he attempted to figure out who was in that room. The lady who was at the front desk promoted us to move over to her and that she would help. She was VERY helpful each time we spoke with her during our stay. (I wish I would have gotten their names). Finally we had a new room. This time with a map and information about the hotel and area. As far as our room, the AC in the front room, when it would kick on, omitted a horrible smell. I assume it needs a new or cleaned filter? It was also angled such that sitting on the couch was uncomfortable as when it would kick on. Not only would we have to endure the smell, but it would also blow the cold air directly on us. We loved the large flat screen TVs, but we have come to enjoy having a smart TV in the Hiltons. This one only offered live TV with no option to have steaming services. The shower is nice, but you have no way to turn on the water without being in it and getting splashed with the cold, or hot, water as you adjust the temperature. The lamps in the bedroom had plug-ins, but the lamp bulged out so none of our cell phone chargers were able to be plugged into it. Their was also no alarm clock. Their are also no laundry services available. The gym only had 1 treadmill, which we could have taken turns using, but it didn't even work and had an error message on the screen. The gym didn't have AC on, so it was very hot. On our last day, the water was out, so we couldn't make coffee, take a shower, or even flush the toilet. We attempted to message some questions via the Hilton App and never received a reply, so we didn't attempt to use it again. The onsite restaurant was not only overpriced, the food wasn't good. I wrote a separate review for it. The second day, we decided to use our credit for the small shop, which is incredibly overpriced. Some of the veggies in the box I bought had mold on them. Hilton...

Beyond the restaurant for breakfast, there are few positive comments to make concerning this facility. Our reservations were made about two months before our actual visit to Taos. Upon arrival for check in, we were first told there was no reservation for us. Then we were told there were no rooms. Then a room was found on the second level, but our reservation included a request for a first level room. The room we were initially given looked like a room that was not ready to occupied. It was dirty, carpet had not been cleaned in weeks, inadequate towels and wash clothes, and the bathroom exhaust fan did not have a cover and was extremely noisy. This room had two queen size beads which we had requested and our reservation request quoted a rate of $159 per night.

The next morning which was Sunday, we brought our concerns to the attention of the desk clerk on duty and requested another room. We were assigned to a room near the back part of the hotel on the first floor. This room had a king sized bed for which we paid $169 per night. We were over charged for this room. At check out, we expressed our concerns to the desk clerk, she told us this was the correct charge. The second room was much better than the first room, but it still had some deficiencies such as a missing "day shade" and the both room fan was so loud at times we thought we were living by an airport runway.

We stayed in this facility for one week. House keeping services were requested for Tuesday and Thursday during our one week stay. The staff did not seem to do much in our room. We had to ask several times for adequate towels and the supply of toilet paper and tissues seemed to difficult to come by. It seemed that the housekeep staff was not adequately trained. We also were under the impression that the hotel did not have a permanent manager which might account for some of our problems. This may also explain the rudeness of some of the desk clerks.

The last observation is related to some of the guests. For example, there one individual who appeared to be living in truck which was parked in the hotel parking lot near the building were staying in. The truck was moved every couple of days, but movement amounted to parking the truck in another space nearby.

The bright spot for this facility was the hotel restaurant for breakfast. The menu was limited in selection, but they were excellent choices. The breakfast choices were well done daily and the restaurant staff was excellent. The hotel bar was also excellent with a great staff.

In closing, we understand that COVID has caused a lot of issues in the hospitality industry and many establishments have difficulties finding adequate staff. But this facility simply seemed to lack any supervision and oversight. We have stayed in many Hilton chain facilities, but this place is by far the worst we have ever stayed in. Our next visit to Taos NM will not include a stay at the Don Fernando de Taos, Tapestry...

You need to stay away from this hotel. It is supposed to be a Hilton but they have the worst service. When we arrived on a Saturday, they never told us we have to request a cleaning service 24 hours in advance, which this is the regular service you get in every single hotel which is included in the price. Then on Sunday I called the front desk and asked them about my cleaning service and they said they are not doing that service because of COVID; that they are bringing only clean towels and take the trash out. So by Monday I had to call guest services and asked for soap ... So on day 1st there was was only one small soap bar when we arrived and asked for shampoo and they said they were out of shampoo!! Can you imagine?? They brought us clean towels, and a trash bag for me to put the trash in there and to leave it out if my room! Then on Tuesday morning, I called again front service to ask for toilet paper and they told me they didn’t have anyone to bring it to my room and that I need to wait after 8:30am! So by 9:30am I saw a cleaning lady doing a full clean service right in front of my bedroom, and I asked her why I was not having the same service? and very nicely told me to speak with the front desk. I called them and they told me they didn’t have any request for that room to be cleaned and that I have to wait for the next day, because it was not 24 hours in advance! So they are going to clean my bedroom one day before I leave the hotel??l! My reservation was from Saturday through Thursday....Isn’t it unacceptable?? And this person to whom I spoke was kind of rude not trying to solve anything.... So I went down to find the manager and this lady was sitting down in her office holding tow different phones telling me she was busy in a very nasty attitude. I was very upset because I paid 150.00 dlls per night ; because it is spring break, so my whole stay cost me 800.00dlls to deal with this unprofessional people and have to called them every single day to ask for shampoo, soap or toilet paper?? That is their job and the service they should give to their guests! They really don’t know what good service is ....Would never recommend this place. Also you need to know that their breakfast service was very slow, and we waited 10 min to received a cup of coffee; and of course their prices were high and their quality was poor. If you are thinking that this hotel has a good restaurant and a full bar... the bar closes early and there is nobody at front desk. Very disappointed because I know this industry very well and this people don’t know what...