Review: DoubleTree by Hilton Krakow Hotel
Introduction
We decided to take a little family vacation with my mom included, and I ended up booking two Executive rooms in DoubleTree Hilton Krakow, Poland for 5 nights in June. None of us had been to Poland before and I had heard positive comments about Krakow. The DoubleTree Hilton is a new hotel and from the photos the pool area looked really nice and I thought it would be the most important factor for our daughter who's keen on swimming.
We arrived by taxi from the airport after about 2 hours' direct Finnair flight from Helsinki. The taxi took about 30mins and brought us to the front of the hotel. Curiously there is also a Hampton by Hilton Krakow, which is next to the DoubleTree.
Lobby and check-in
From the outside the hotel looks a bit...dull, I guess. But once you enter, the experience transforms. At least it happened to us. The lobby is very light, there is open space and although not luxurious, it's neat, nice and functional.
We were greeted by a friendly associate, who was training at the time being. It took around 10mins to sort it all out - we had two rooms but only one was ready at the time of check-in. We were also given cookies, a map and some instructions to get to the city etc.
Executive Room
We took the lift up to the 5th floor and made our way to the first room that was ready, piled our luggage there and checked how the room was. It was marvelous. We enjoyed the design, functionality, large TV and a good-sized bathroom. With multiple power outlets there shouldn't be a problem to have your electronic appliances charged.
All the Executive Rooms are located on the 5th floor.
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| Executive room |
Executive Lounge
After a bit of unpacking we went to have a coffee in the Executive Lounge.
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| Executive Lounge |
The lounge is just lovely. The colors, layout, furniture, staff. Super.
Upon entering there is desk, which seems to be occupied most of the time the lounge is open, so you'll be hard pressed not to get some assistance from the staff if you so require.
I think the size of the lounge is great, since it is small and intimate enough to properly enjoy it. To be honest, it wasn't very crowded at any time we were there and we found plenty of seating each and every time we were there, which was quite often ;)
All the time the staff seemed to be ready and eager to help, were polite and friendly and gave good suggestions as where to go and what to do.
We returned to the hotel later in the afternoon to enjoy the lounge offerings.
We were surprised to find such a variety of dishes and snacks to taste. Depending on the day there were starter kinds of things like little glasses of gazpacho, small breads with salmon or ham, fresh salad items and warm dishes like zurek (excellent local rye soup), chicken, rice, vegetables etc.
We were impressed! It all looked good and was tasty.
There was white and red wine, beer, still and sparkling water as well as some soft drinks and a coffee machine.
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| Executive Lounge |
Spa
In the evening we paid a visit to the Spa area downstairs. First we went to a counter to get a locker key and sign for the visit. On the left side of the counter there is a gym that looked pretty well equipped, and on the right there is the pool.
Then off to changing room for a shower which after to see the pool area. It was surprisingly nice looking and our daughter appreciated the water being of sufficient warmth in the bigger pool and nice and hot in the smaller one.
There is also a steam and a normal sauna in the spa area.
Overall, quite impressive!
Breakfast
Breakfast was available both in the main restaurant and in the Executive Lounge. We are twice in the restaurant and three times in the lounge. The selection was of course a bit better (with an omelet station) downstairs but otherwise we enjoyed having the breakfast in the lounge as it was much more peaceful and relaxing. The quality of food was good throughout our stay.
This time we didn't have dinner at the hotel so can't comment about that.
Bottomline
-WiFi worked well the whole time at the hotel and the speed was fast enough for our use.
-Staff and service - excellent! Very well done. Almost on par with
Hilton Tallinn Park.
-The location wasn't too bad. Although away from the center of Krakow, the connection was straightforward and inexpensive and the trams ran frequently.
We were more than happy to have stayed at this hotel. For the price we paid I think you couldn't get much better price/quality ratio.
