Hilton Galveston Island Resort — Hotel in Galveston

As Hilton Diamond members, we obviously prefer the Hilton brand when traveling. I think this is the first time in over 20 years as a Diamond member that I’ve felt obligated to leave a really poor review, but it was THAT bad. Our initial room was requested on ground floor due to a family member who is handicapped. We stayed in that room one night before being forced to request another room due to centipede infestation. We didn’t notice them before going to bed the first night, but the next morning we discovered and disposed of 28 centipedes within the room between waking at 730am and leaving the room for breakfast at about 840am. In the tub, crawling up the walls, across the carpeting and on the tile floors. We reported the issue to the front desk and were immediately offered a room change. That handled, we went to the dining area for breakfast. This was served buffet style, self serve. Scrambled eggs were dried out and crusty on top, bacon was burnt so badly it was all stuck together and fell apart when touched with tongs. Potato pan was empty and not refilled during the time we were there. Biscuits were so hard they couldn’t be cut with plastic flatware provided. We were the. Handed a bill for $22.00 each per adult and $10.00 per child. I showed the server the inedible food remaining on the plates and they did dismiss the charges for the meals. (However, no one got to eat breakfast!) We had an appt to go to, but we’re told they’d call us when our new room was ready to move into. Never got a call. We returned that afternoon and switched to a 2nd floor room. This room was missing the desk chair and desk lamp as well as the clock. (Housekeeping did bring a chair and clock when we requested those. No lamp, tho) The sheer curtains on the balcony windows were smeared with what I pray was melted chocolate in several places. The A/C did not keep the room cool. One of the beds reeked of urine, although I was not able to see visible urine on any of the bedding. The bathroom sink was cracked, the bathroom floor had very visible dust and dirt buildup behind the door where it was obvious no one has thoroughly mopped or cleaned for ages, the carpet was stained, the edges of the room along wall bases were all less than clean. Pretty sure the room was one that had been taken out of service for maintenance and then given to us because they had nowhere else to put us. The carpet in both rooms badly needed deep cleaning and or replacement. The beds were not comfortable at all. The pool area seemed not to be getting the attention it should from cleaning crews by evening, although it did seem fine earlier in the day. There were a LOT of poorly supervised children in the pool of an evening and they’d crowd into the hot tob despite the posted rules. There was no one there enforcing the parent must be present if you’re under 13 and the parents who were there seemed to be spending their time at the bar end of the pool where no one under 21 is allowed. This meant their kids had free reign with no one supervising. We were greatly disappointed with our stay and that’s a pretty rare thing for us to say about a Hilton property. I truly question how this property is able to maintain their standing as a Hilton brand and will most definitely be asking corporate how this is so. On the plus side, the staff we encountered from parking attendant to bellman to housekeeping and front desk associates were all wonderfully nice and doing their best to provide great service. Unfortunately, even staff with the best of intentions cannot make a silk purse from a pigs ear. This property needs a major overhaul and serious issues need to be addressed by management as the issues we encountered were not staff issues, but upper level management issues. At no time did anyone from management make any attempt to speak with us. We will be visiting this area at least monthly for the next few years for business, so we’re quite disappointed to have to locate another place to stay. Thankful that we did a trial run and know where NOT to...

We chose this property because 1) Hilton - lifetime diamond member using points for vacation, 2) location - closest beach to Kansas City for a roadtrip vacation, 3) good reviews for property.

We enjoyed ourselves for the most part on this vacation, but there are some important things to know about this hotel. Although it has the word 'Resort' in the name, I would call it a nice seaside hotel with a pool, resort in name only. We have stayed at other resort hotels where we could relax and unwind and find peaceful spaces within the property. The only peaceful spot on the hotel grounds was our room. This is largely due to the fact that this hotel primarily caters to cruise passengers who are staying for a night pre or post cruise. The front desk area is almost continuously filled with cruisers checking in or out, the breakfast area is overwhelmed and so is the small bar area. The gems of the property are some of the staff; I wish I could say that all of the staff were fabulous, but the ones who really stood out made our stay most enjoyable. At check in, Carla was sweet and helpful. She acknowledged my lifetime diamond status and that we were celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary. She gave us several options for an upgraded room - we chose a partial oceanview with a balcony over the full view w/o balcony so we could step out and feel the ocean breezes and hear the waves. She also sweetly comped 2 breakfasts during our 5 night stay. JeMarcus served us morning coffee and breakfast with a huge smile. He was very charming and informative; we asked for restaurant recommendations "where the locals eat" and he directed us to Huli Huli Hut which was economical with huge portions of delicious seafood served in a delightful Tiki bar environment. Miss Erica also was another delightful server who beamed her beautiful smile at us when she saw that our coupon said we were celebrating 25 year anniversary. She is in love with Love and was so sweet! We utilized the bar to use up some of our dining credits on our visit. The atmosphere was generally crowded and oppressive, made worse by the too loud Christmas music that was blaring to the point of being unable to converse normally in this area. We complained about this along with many other guests and even the bar service staff, but the management would not budge to accomodate us. They lied and said the volume was all tied together throughout the lobby, even though we noticed during our stay that sometimes the music was off in the bar area even when it was on elsewhere. It is one of the few times where I felt like a customer and not a Guest at a Hilton hotel. The sweet service from Jennifer, Tiffany and Naomi in the bar area though was very welcome. We were introduced to some very tasty Tequilas (looking at you Dulce Vida Pineapple Jalapeno) and fine cocktails. We felt fortunate that we went into the pool our first night. It was lit up and the water was clear and warm. Unfortunately, after several large families were using it wearing street clothes - literally jeans, tops and skirts were being worn by bathers - the water turned murky and never recovered until just before our departure. I guess the sign saying "proper swim attire required" did not work and staff could not be bothered to enforce the rules. The hot tub was also DOA during our whole visit. TL;DR - if you are looking to stay a day before or after a cruise, fine. If you are looking to spend a week at a "Resort",...

When attempting to contact the hotel via phone from an hour after our departure to over two weeks later, I would rate their customer service as extremely poor, if such a rating was available.

Regrettably, we inadvertently left our three Columbia raincoats hanging in the closet. This oversight, while unintentional, has caused us significant inconvenience. We urge future guests to exercise caution when opening their room doors, as there is a concealed closet behind it.

It was too late to turn around, as I was trying to get out of the Houston area before a massive storm hit the downtown area of Houston on May 16th. We called the hotel within an hour after leaving and kept getting disconnected, transferred, and hung up. I got through to someone after calling back numerous times and finally talked to someone who was going to pass on my information to lost and found.

I called the next day with the same results of getting disconnected, transferred, and hung up on, and finally talked to someone that took my information again. She said she would get back to me but never asked for my phone number; she laughed and said, "That would help." This is when I started to wonder if the lost and found department ever existed, which would be why I kept getting disconnected.

I called back a few days later and asked to speak to a manager on duty. Josephine got on the line, once again took my information, and said they would get back to me. It was the same story to me, just a different day.

A week has passed, and no call has come. I called today and asked to speak with a manager yet again; she said they were all in a meeting and to call back after five. I called back and kept getting disconnected again. When I did get through, I was told they were not in. Of course! I have been diligently following up on this matter but to no avail.

This is a higher-end Hilton resort. I am deeply disappointed that their phone lines have been disconnecting calls for over two weeks. It is disheartening that nobody calls back after talking with someone who is a manager and leaving messages. Do these managers not follow up on phone calls with their employees? Apparently, this resort does not care about you once you check out of the room. Check for your belongings; this Hilton Resort will not return them!

Edit: I reached out once again three weeks after my stay and finally got in touch with someone, Peggy. She told me she had received my information in the past and given it to housekeeping. I asked why I had yet to receive a callback. She did not have an answer for me. She took my information again and said she would look into it and call me back.

I was shocked when she did call an hour later. She told me my three Columbia Jackets were never reported in the lost and found logbook. The message she gave me did not come as a surprise to me. To me, this was the reason nobody wanted to call me back.

I liked this resort. It is situated in a great place in Galveston, and I was looking forward to returning. You can sit on the balcony and watch the sunrise; it is a great view from the room.

Regrettably, due to the significant communication issues I experienced with the management and staff, I have made the difficult decision to not consider staying at this resort...