Hilton Garden Inn Louisville Downtown — Hotel in Louisville

We attended Thunder Over Louisville this weekend and the Garden Inn was an excellent location, being an easy 1+ mile walk to Waterfront Park. I was looking forward to our two night stay at this Hilton property having only ever been at a Hampton Inn, but apparently set my expectations too high. My sister stays at Hampton Inns, while Best Western is my thing. If this were in fact a Hampton Inn, I would have likely given 4 stars. I anticipated the Garden Inn to be a notch above Hampton Inn and Best Western, but was disappointed to find it no different than an ordinary motel. The big thing lacking off the bat is breakfast. Say what you will about the continental breakfasts at a motel, I appreciate being able to get coffee with real cream or milk whenever I like as well as at least a bagel, some yogurt and a piece of fruit to start my morning. There is a Keurig coffeemaker in the room, but we found just 3 coffee K-cups and 6 Coffee Mate (blech!) creamers. When leaving for the day, we asked at the front desk for 4 coffees and 8 Coffee Mates to be placed in our room for the next morning. We were assured it would be done, but such was not the case. Even when going back down to get some for the next morning we were given just 3 coffees, but plenty of the 'creamer.' This may sound minor, but I found it to be quite annoying as it was such a simple thing that could have/should have been avoided. The refrigerator was barely cool with no ability to turn it down as far as I could see. Next, I was not impressed with the lampshade in our room with at least two holes in it. Very tacky and unprofessional. The view from the rooms is virtually nonexistent, but I guess that comes with staying in a large city (something I personally avoid). The television's menu was not populated with any information as to what was on. Next to each channel listing for each time slot was something like "information not available." Heck, even Motel 6 gets that right, I imagine. Lastly, while checking out, a printout of the bill was requested. We waited and waited while the girls at the front desk chatted with each other, but finally left when my sister saw it had been emailed to her instead. Overall, the front desk was 1 for 3. Jonathan was very pleasant and excellent at checking us in as well as answering our questions later that first day. He was a delight. The rest of our experience with the front desk was meh. Valet experience was pleasant. I cringed at having to pay for parking, but that's just me. I've looked and looked at their website and don't find anything about parking. Maybe one is supposed to assume paying for parking is expected, but I think it should be mentioned ahead of time. I don't generally stay in motels in a big city, but realize it's a common thing. I read other reviews where there were complaints about the elevators being out of order. There was high praise for staff going above and beyond by taking folks over to the service elevator, which made me giggle a bit. That's the least they can do. We didn't have that issue the first day, but when returning after Thunder Over Louisville, lo and behold, one of the elevators was out of order and there was quite a line waiting. When some of those waiting were led over to wherever the service elevator was I was highly amused. I guess that's a common thing. Maybe the Garden Inn Downtown needs to set up a Go Fund Me account to address...

We recently stayed at this hotel with our family and, unfortunately, it was a very disappointing experience, especially after having a wonderful stay at another Hilton the night before. I'm writing this review to give a heads-up to other travelers about some key things to be aware of.

Front Desk & Check-In: The initial check-in process was confusing. While one staff member, Kevin, was kind, we weren't given any information about crucial details like parking, breakfast, or even that the elevators were key-card-activated. He said we needed our key cards to access our floors, but I didn't realize that meant to work the elevator. So my wife was stranded on the elevator until another guest got on and helped her. It felt like we were expected to already know the hotel's procedures, despite informing him that this was our first time in Louisville.

Parking: This was a major point of frustration. Parking is not affiliated with the hotel and is either valet ($40) or a third-party garage ($22/night). There is no direct access from the garage to the hotel lobby; you have to go down to the street level and re-enter. We were not informed of this, which led to unnecessary confusion and stress. After asking the valet if it would be best for my family to wait in the lobby, he said they could go on up and meet me on the 6th floor. This made me think I could get into the hotel from the garage. Which made sense considering Kevin at the front desk said I would need my key card to access our floor. That was all he said, “You will need your key card to access your floor.” Nothing about the elevator or anything like that.

Hotel Entrance: The hotel's website photos can be misleading. The main entrance is not on the corner of 4th and Chestnut, but down the block, which was inconvenient for dropping off my family and luggage. This, combined with an encounter with a homeless person near our car, created a lot of worry about my family's safety during the check-in process.

Breakfast: Be aware that breakfast is not included in the stay. We had to find out for ourselves, which was a letdown since a great complimentary breakfast was one of the reasons we chose a Hilton hotel on our trip.

On-Site Restaurant & Service: The restaurant on the 8th floor has hours listed on Google Maps until 11 PM, but the kitchen closes at 9 PM. We arrived at 8:30 PM and had a very slow, stressful dining experience. We had to wait a long time to be seated and served, and after our meal, we were left waiting for over half an hour for our check. We finally got checked out at 10:27 PM.

Room Issues: We were in a room on the 6th floor and were woken up in the middle of the night by a loud, deep rumbling noise that sounded like a pump or some kind of mechanical system. To make things worse, the maid was knocking on our door for service well before 9 AM on our check-out day, which was not until 11 AM.

Overall, this was an incredibly stressful and disappointing stay. For the price, we expected a much higher level of service and hospitality. I would recommend considering other options...

I am writing to formally file a complaint regarding the unacceptable treatment my party and I experienced at your rooftop restaurant and bar during our recent stay at Hilton. The service, behavior, and overall handling of the situation were deeply unprofessional, discriminatory, and humiliating.

We had a confirmed reservation, yet our assigned server, Shreyas, refused to serve us, stating he was “too busy.” It was clear he prioritized serving guests of his own ethnicity instead, which left us feeling racially profiled. This was the first red flag of what turned out to be an extremely unpleasant evening.

When we went to the bar, we waited over 10 minutes without any acknowledgment. Another guest sat down after us and was served immediately. This further reinforced the bias and lack of respect we were already feeling.

The payment process was equally troubling. My card was attempted to be charged twice. Then, the restaurant’s female manager—off duty, in street clothes, and accompanied by her dog—publicly accused us of not paying our bill in front of other guests. This was not only false, but deeply embarrassing. We had already paid in full. Her tone, manner, and baseless accusation were blatantly disrespectful and completely inappropriate.

Additionally, certain members of my party were denied access to the rooftop, despite all of us being paying hotel guests. This restriction felt arbitrary and discriminatory.

This entire experience was unacceptable for any hospitality setting, but especially for a Hilton property. The service we received not only failed to meet the basic standard of professionalism, but also reflected prejudice and a disregard for guest dignity. If this is how I was treated, I can only imagine how many other guests have been subjected to similar treatment without speaking up.

I expect Hilton to take this matter seriously and address the behavior of the staff involved. I also request a formal apology and confirmation of the steps that will be taken to ensure no other guests have to experience this level of disrespect and bias at your property.

I look forward to your...