Spark by Hilton Orlando Universal Blvd — Hotel in Orlando

Making a brief appearance in Orlando at a speaking engagement I had to make a quick hotel reservation as the speaking venue hotel was booked out already. I very seldom stay on this side of Orlando but the branding sold me to book here, and that is what I get for not looking into the brand more closely. This property was relatively close to my engagement and easy to get to, important in the Orlando area where commutes turn minutes into hours. The location is ideal, and is the best part of the property, you can get here and there pretty easily avoiding I Drive, I-4, and other area bottlenecks if you know your way around or are at least able and willing to follow a map. ||The property is very obviously an older property which ran under a different banner, maybe a red roof, comforter, days inn or something like that in its prior life. Splash some paint on the walls and a few refresh touches and we are good to go, right? Not quite. The room pictures on the website are obviously generic and not truly indicative of at least my room. The property has those wall mounted air conditioners, mine noisily ran almost constantly because it was not working correctly and the room never got comfortable. It said 70 on the display but probably never got below 78. Normally the free WiFi at any Hilton is fine, and I can FaceTime with no trouble but the bandwidth here was so narrow I ended up making nighttime and morning FaceTimes on my phone using cellular 5G and it ran perfectly, go figure. I arrived at the property late, nearly 10pm so by the time I got all this figured out I really did not feel like talking to the front desk and moving around, so I just dealt with it. Besides, bad WiFi is not likely to change room to room, even if the air conditioning would. ||One of the allures of this hotel branding and those of like style is that complimentary breakfast. Now of course one cannot expect 1st class catering at economy pricing, but this has to have been the thinnest breakfasts I have come across short of snacking options in the customer lounge of a car dealership. What the hotel website says for North American options- well that is exactly what there is. Four cold cereal choices, boiled eggs, bagel (not sure of the spreads), orange and apple juice, some fruit choices. I had bananas and coffee. I like the coffee brand they claim to use but this colored water did not have much coffee flavor. If you are really trying to get by on the cheap, then feel free to load up, otherwise splurge for $10.00 you may spend on a breakfast elsewhere- your taste buds will thank you. At least Holiday Inn, for roughly the same price in competing markets you get the breathtaking cinnamon rolls.... (and maybe other issues but different story...)||So we have to be fair here- the contactless check in worked perfectly, the remote room key worked, there is hot water and pump soaps which are so fashionable, the bed was comfortable and the linens appeared clean. The elevators work and parking is free. The TV was on with the welcome message but I turned the TV off and never watched it for a minute, so I cannot tell you about the channel lineup. There is a refrigerator but I did not open it. By the way, my room had two beds but only two sets of towels, so if you intend to share with your friends ask for more when you check in or be prepared to share; I see this a lot- a room for more than two but only two sets of towels which leads me to this:||I did some looking around and discovered the Spark brand is franchised from Hilton and that explains the shortcuts like the towels and other concerns. Any time I find out a property is franchised and not corporate owned, I will avoid that brand. ||Location is great, property not so much. Orlando is hotel heavy and I'm sure you can hunt discount accommodations elsewhere and get something nicer at roughly the same price point. If you really don't care whatsoever and are looking for a place to lay your head then you'll probably be okay with it. Staff is friendly and sympathetic to my concern but it was a mere exchange of words on site that morning, online later, and even with Hilton "customer care" end of story. Hilton's website states for their Spark "Guarantee":||"We’re proud to offer delightfully practical stays where every guest can shine. So if any part of your stay didn’t give that Spark, we promise to make it right – it’s that simple."||Obviously not, making it right means we're sorry, but thanks for your...

Location is amazing the down side is the breakfast it’s horrible , not many options bagels muffins Apple/orange yogurt and cereal in little bowls cups for orange is little as well they have coffee but it’s not changed as it should. The worst part is being diamond member and they have the availability for upgrades but don’t offer it or give it to you , imagine being loyal to a company to get the perks and rewards and not being able to recieve because a hotel apart of the brand to chooses to opt out of it , the welcome gift is tacky as well no display of options for gold and diamond members just a a random bag of water and trail mix peanuts (people are allergic) that’s a horrible option to restrict loyal members to, no chips /cookies/granola bar substitute no soda or there’s one catch to that if you buy something from the over priced store , typically the 1.5x -2x the price for convenience is expected but 3-4x the prices is unbelievably insane and make you wonder who came up with the prices cause I’m sure Hilton didn’t I’ve stand at many and never seen such tacky prices the purpose is to sell ain’t it? Outside of location so many turn offs I do under the spark brand are renovated hotels so I expects some of the things not being up to par not the nicest pool Elevator maybe slow or older , maybe working to upgrade and incorporate something like digital key (they actually have digital check in and key don’t worry just my train of thought when booking a spark ) but what happened to the Hilton standards the property seem to fall short on such as knocking on doors at 9am and check out is at 12 … What I think should change , change the coffee and give hot water for crying out loud it’s 5 mins to change it maybe 2-4times a day Renovate the bathroom maybe a few walk in showers wouldn’t hurt HONOR HILTON HONOR Members and respect their loyalty with what they work so hard to achieve with more than a bag of peanut at check in or a few diamond spots by the door. To not honor, offer, or reward diamond members with free upgrades especially when the hotel isn’t booked out and it’s available just isn’t good for business. Most of the upgrades I’ve received had me come back to property and book it myself without asking for an upgrade with future stays, it’s an eye opener for your loyal customers and give them an opportunity to experience your property in a different light.

Great example I stayed at a homewood in they upgraded my 1 bedroom king to a 1 bedroom double queen which was more spacious and the kitchen area was almost like one the Hilton grand vacation resorts i ended up booking the same room type for me and my family in the summer for a week because I liked room so much and was able to use the kitchen area with my family during the stay…. Enough of my rambling...

I travel 30-40 weeks a year for business and another 4-6 for pleasure. I have stayed in every Hilton brand over the past 25 years & at present, I am sitting at the desk here at Spark by Hilton & trying to understand the “why” for one star and otherwise inaccurate reviews.

The first thing I noticed upon arrival is the cleanliness of the exterior and lobby. There were zero foul odours of any kind and not even a leaf out of place in the car park. The desk agent was very polite & even text me to ask if my room was to my satisfaction.

Whilst walking to my room, I was greeted a by friendly housekeeper & again noted how clean it was in the corridors which is where one would see the most wear and tear. There is none.

When I opened the door, I was treated to fresh air coming from the brand new air conditioner which I noted was SILENT (this is VERY rare and a VERY desirable feature). It has programmable features to ensure a good sleep.

The bedclothes are very soft and the bed appears to be comfortable as well.

There is amply storage space in the front of the room (where one would find the iron/ironing board) directly across from the bathroom which is also perfect. A more than ample amount of towels are present & I appreciate that they are also using the refillable soap/shampoo bottles on the wall to reduce plastic waste #ecofriendly .

Correct there is no coffee in the room, it is safe to say, the majority of people would not have an issue going downstairs to take a cup back up to their room.

While I have not seen the breakfast, I am sure it will follow the pattern I see here of providing value. A coffee and bagel is more than sufficient.

There is also a cold case with a broad assortment of food items for purchase.

The intent of this brand is to offer competitively priced accommodations in a clean & safe environment. It’s not operating under the guise of being a 5 star hotel; it is meant to be a budget hotel with very good amenities which it is.

Take the low results with a grain of salt as they’re likely from individuals who do not travel frequently & do not understand the various types of accommodations that fall under the Hilton umbrella.

With that said, I’m ready to relax on the bed and watch a movie on the 55 inch TV. & most likely book my next business trip here before it is sold out (as it...