Hilton Malta

We understand the Hilton to be fully booked most of the time and they need to cater for a number of needs, everything from holidaymakers wishing for a dream holiday to business travelers whose preferences are quite different. Our working holiday had a slightly bumpy start but once we had the chance to meet Mr Mahmoud, the duty manager and a real star among the very pleasant Hilton Team, things started to get smooth. Mr Mahmoud is not only interested in solving a problem but he also wants to follow up so that things are running as planned in the following days as well. Highly impressed by such motivation and professionalism, indeed, given the fact that they are running a full house most of the time. To be fair and honest, all team members we've met have been friendly and always willing to help. Have had a quick morning dip into the pool before the rush to the sunbeds and breakfast, and have avoided contacts as much as possible - not frequenting the lounge nor the restaurants for any meals, for instance. In addition, we???re lucky to stay in a peaceful wing with inspirational views, this has been very important to stay productive. The Hilton has turned out to be a perfect choice for our working holiday and thanks to Mr Mahmoud and the entire team, we???ve felt very well taken care of during our 7-night stay. Thank you very much for your fantastic hospitality - will be back, for sure.

The hotel itself is beautiful but I???d agree with a previous review in that there???s a few issues that need addressing to call it a 5 star hotel. We do like to spend a bit more to get a nice hotel when we travel and although it was pleasant I wouldn???t say it???s the best we???ve stayed in and regret not booking the Phoenicia. We arrived and were greeted and checked in quickly. We too were surprised that the hotel charged 500 euros on arrival. We stayed 2 weeks so did go over this amount and they charged a further 500 euros and refunded the remainder on checkout. Whilst we understand why they do this some forewarning would have been nice. This is optional but we didn???t want the worry of having to take money to the pool with us for drinks etc. We also weren???t informed about the lifts and only found out later from a guest when we were having trouble working them. We booked a sea view room which was large, clean and modern with a large bathroom. The view was partly obstructed by another part of the hotel and our room was facing the adjacent Westin dragonara. Housekeeping did a good job of keeping the room clean but we found them a bit hit and miss. We aren???t early risers so they were kind enough to wait for us to leave. One day we had been out all day and came back around 5pm to find the room hadn???t been cleaned. The housekeeper did arrive soon after. We asked could he come back in 5 mins as I was getting changed but he said he didn???t have time which we were both shocked at. Also little things like tea and coffee not being replenished let it down. On arrival the mini bar was stocked with a note saying we could request it to be emptied for our personal use. We did this but it took 3 attempts on separate days to get it finally emptied then they added all the items which were took out to our bill so that had to be sorted. Not really the level of service we would expect. The hotel and grounds are beautiful. I???d agree the food is overpriced and lacks taste. We ate at the blue elephant one night and while wouldn???t say we had a bad meal it wasn???t anything amazing or different to what you could get in a good Thai restaurant at home although it is a pretty setting with a river running through it. We didn???t have breakfast as they wanted 18 euros per person if we payed upon arrival or 22 euros if you payed on the day and we didn???t feel the food we had compelled us enough to pay that much. The hotel has 4 outdoor pools all of which are lovely with a big BUT though. What massively let this place down is the scramble for sun beds. We visited the last week in September/first week of October. The first week was ok as all the pools were open but for some reason the hotel closed the 2 lower pools the second week we were there. This baffled us as the hotel was still busy. This obviously caused everyone to cram around the 2 top pools. One day we went down and there literally were no beds to be had. The staff did pull some out but we felt in the way. Staff weren???t keeping on top of people claiming sun beds either which just added to the problem. They also closed the beach bar at the same time they closed the 2 pools so there seemed less waiting staff around to order drinks/snacks from. The hotel is in a good location for st Julian???s and the bus stops only a few minutes walk away. It???s easy to get taxis through the e cabs app and we found them to be pretty cheap and efficient. The hotel and Malta in general made us feel very safe with regards to covid measures with masks mandatory indoors, hand sanitizer everywhere and temperature checks in place. So in summary a very smart but over priced hotel with some issues that need ironing out and its best not to visit towards the dnd of the season.

I???m really not sure who rates this as a 5 star hotel as it???s a long way from reaching those dizzy heights. Personally, I found most of the staff rather unhelpful and most looked like they didn???t want to be there. On arriving there was no one to help with our luggage or show us where the room was. Neither did they tell us about presenting the keycard in the lift to get us to our floor. But they made sure they took ??500 for incidentals, is that getting the priorities right? Room was OK but shower very poor and bathroom amenities poor quality. And to be picky the glasses were different styles as were the teaspoons which I would expect in a cheaper hotel but not in a five star one! Breakfast: make sure you get there early after 9.30 it???s manic and not enough tables for guests so there left queuing outside the breakfast area. Tables settings were hit and miss, sometimes you would get salt & pepper, sometimes you would get a spoon for cereal in the ready wrapped cutlery, most times you wouldn???t and would have to chase staff for them and as for teaspoons, well I don???t think they must have had enough as in the 14 days we were there we only got them twice,?again not 5 star treatment. The sun bed dash starts here early 7.30am , lots of guests putting towels on beds and then going back to their rooms or for breakfast, management did nothing. Lunch food and drink very expensive and average taste, pint of local beer 7 euros. There???s some great local supermarkets selling fresh made sandwiches for ???2.50 so give them a try. The hotel, is though in a good position for some great restaurants and a bus stop into Valletta. We also hired a car which was a great idea. We tried to get late checkout on our final day without any luck as the manageress told us they were fully booked. We had to get out of our room at 1pm for at 7pm flight. It was therefore strange that you could still book a room at this hotel through their website, so it seems the staff are less honest than you would think. Finally, it does have a great position for a stay but it???s a very long way off ever being a 5 star hotel