Hilton Garden Inn Providence — Hotel in Providence

Positives: Clean room. Very comfortable bed. Hotel is in a nice location across from river. Nice lobby. Restaurant/Brewery right next door. Offers breakfast in the morning. ||Negatives: Our room happened to have a view of the dumpster and highway…wish we were on the other side of the hall. Although there was a Keurig in the room, there were only decaf pods left, and we assumed the regular coffee pods had not been replaced during previous room turnover. This was a bummer as I like a real coffee first thing in the morning. Could hear all the hallway activity as well as a dog barking in the next room. Luckily, it quieted down later in the evening, so it wasn’t really a big deal for us. None of these things were that bothersome. What was really annoying (and the main reason I am only giving three stars) was the fact that we booked this hotel the day before our arrival date for a Hilton Honors member rate of $345 ($393 with tax and fees which I felt was kind of high). The next morning (day of our arrival), the rate had dropped to $312. Since my credit card had not yet been charged, I called the main Hilton reservations line to ask if they would honor the new rate. The man said that he would like to do that for us, could I please hold as he needed to contact the hotel management directly to get their approval. After being placed on hold for several minutes, he came back and apologized that the manager declined to honor the new rate as it was past the modification time (which was about 8 hours earlier). While I understand that hotels have certain policies, it was obvious that this was a personal decision made by one manager as the Hilton reservation agent was willing to make that change on his end. Being a Hilton Honors member and being a first time guest at this particular hotel, I was disappointed that the manager refused to make an exception. It did not leave a good impression. Upon check in, I explained the situation to the manager who was checking us in (I assume it was the same person the reservation agent had spoken to earlier ) who while polite was rather cold. This hotel also offers breakfast packages, so at the very least I wondered if they might offer a breakfast voucher to show some effort on their part, but she said no to that too. Very rigid. Not sure if it’s the hotel or that one manager, but I have dealt with many hotels and there is always room for flexibility in order to make a good first impression. I do not typically try to “bargain;” however, the circumstances suggested that I should at least give it a shot as it really was not an unreasonable...

This hotel is by a bridge and a highway on one side, view of oil storage tanks and water on the other. If you are choosing between this property and the Warwick airport, I would personally go for the airport because the Hampton has HBO, breakfast and free parking. This property charges for parking and breakfast and no HBO. Hampton does not charge making breakfast fast and convenient. Rooms are pretty comparable, although I think the Garden Inn beds are more comfortable. Didn’t get a chance to use the workout facilities at Garden, so can’t say much about that (Hampton gym adequate; pool icky).

But, as one of the front desk hosts is really outstanding, I am primarily spending time reviewing because of her: Jaylee.

First time I stayed at Garden, Jaylee told me to make sure I knew to bring up the parking lot ticket for validation. She checked in on me by text saying to let her know if I needed anything. I didn’t have to ask for my Hilton Honors Gold bag of treats.

All that of course is kind of table stakes in hospitality. The quality that makes her outstanding is that she does not give up on a problem but keeps trying to sort it out. I have one of those metallic credit cards and the credit card machine was not taking it. We tried tapping, inserting and swiping, gingerly and not, to no avail. Then we tried the second station’s machine. Newp. Then Jaylee said “do you use Apple Pay?” And problem solved!

What I am trying to point out is that she has a step-by-step, patient, mental process. Doesn’t give up and doesn’t try to force a guest to use a different card (which Apple Pay solves as that’s my Apple Pay card). She is a hidden gem at this hotel and I see big things for her future because that is exactly what employers need: someone who persists and figures it out. I don’t know if she has a mentor there, but hope she does because she will soak up everything that mentor has to teach.

For now, though, I’ll just be happy seeing her next time I stay at this property, which I may do despite liking some of the perks of the airport Hampton property better. And if I don’t see her, I’ll hope her talent has been recognized and she is onto great things....

I have stayed at his hotel many times over the past couple of years, the food is good, especially the breakfast and the rooms are comfortable, but only when the fire alarm if not going off !! ....I've had 3 instances now when the fire alarm has gone off at various times, the first at 2:30 am, in Nov. 2023 when somebody apparently stole copper piping from one of the ice machines, which resulted in flooding on the 5th or 6th floor, which in turn shorted-out the alarm for several hours, meaning I got zero sleep.

it happened again on Wednesday 26th June, 2024, initially at 6:00 pm and then again at 9:00 pm etc. resulting in 2 chaotic, confusing, un-coordinated evacuations, with no direction / leadership from any of the staff, I went to the parking lot and watched the fire trucks arrive, but a lot of guests were just hanging out in the lobby or the bar, suffering the 110 decibel alarm !,

I can't risk staying here again, so, reluctantly I am looking for another hotel for my next visit to RI.

Please, please, please get your alarm system serviced by somebody who knows what they are doing !, as you can't subject your guests to this kind of disruption without any sort of apology the next day and expect people to come back !, standing on the parking lot wondering if it's a real fire or just another false alarm with 'zero' direction / communication from the staff is not good !!. Evacuation should be mandatory in the event of an alarm, not an individual choice made by each guest, somebody should be trained to take the lead and ensure guests are out of the building etc.. I shudder to think what would happen in the event of a real emergency and not just another, "oops, our alarm went off again", yes, it does that", scenario ....

in summary, sort this mess out before somebody gets hurt !!

Carl Ellis - Frustrated Hilton...