Stay Report: Hilton Brisbane (Australia - January 2012)

Stay Report: Hilton Brisbane - Elizabeth Street

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photo courtesy of TripAdvisor.com

I had an overnight in Brisbane so I was looking for a hotel that was central to the sights and attractions I was interestas central to the sights and attractions I was interested in visiting.  Overall, the Hilton Brisbane on Elizabeth Street provided a nice, comfortable room in the middle of downtown that was easily walkable and accessible to the various sights and attractions.

To get from the airport to downtown Brisbane, there is either a train or taxi.  The train takes approximately 30-45 minutes while the taxi depends on traffic.  The taxi will drop you off directly at the hotel, while the train station is about a 10-15 minute walk from the hotel – which is fine without luggage but can be a struggle with luggage.  The hotel itself is located right on Elizabeth Street, and this seems to be one of the major, pedestrian thoroughfares in downtown Brisbane.  You can access the hotel directly from the street – sometimes with the use of a keycard and sometimes without.  The elevators from the street level take you to the lobby level.

photo courtesy of TripAdvisor.com

The lobby is quite large and open, which is nice.  As you exit the elevators from the ground lever, you exit next to the hotel restaurant.  The hotel is laid out in a square design, which you encounter as you walk further away from the restaurant.  In front are the elevators to the guest rooms while down the hallway, past the elevators and to the left, are the check-in desks.  In the middle of the square is an open-atrium which creates a sense of openness and largeness to the hotel.  While the elevators were convenient to access the outside once you have checked-in, they were a bit oddly placed for check-in and check-out.   Check-in was efficient and I received the room to my key.  I walked back down the hallway to the elevators and went up to my room.  The rooms surrounded the atrium, with the entrances to the rooms from the hallways next to the atrium.

photo courtesy of Hilton.com

First impressions of the room were that is was big, modern, and had great views from the large window.  As you entered the room, on the left hand side was the bathroom while on the right was the closet and storage area.  The bathroom was spacious and modern and contained the standard facilities of a bathtub, sink, and toilet; there were also nice toiletries provided as well.  Further inside, against the left wall, was the king-size bed which was big, plush, and comfortable.  On either side of the bed was a nightstand with plenty of outlets to charge all the electronic devices.  Across from the bed was a TV with storage underneath and next to that was the desk.  Next to the desk were windows that stretched along the wall, and these provided a great view of the city and let in a lot of light during the day (thick curtains blocked out all noise at night). 

The hotel offers an outdoor pool and tennis court, a fitness center, a business center, meeting rooms, as well as wifi.  As I was here only for one night, I was only able to experience the complimentary wifi which was decent for email and internet searches.  The best aspect of the hotel is the location, as it is centrally located and within walking distance to many of the sights and attractions of Brisbane.   As soon as you go down to Elizabeth Street, you are in the heart of downtown with multiple restaurants and shops and attractions around you.  While the hotel is a bit expensive, and far away from the airport, it provides a great location with nice and comfortable rooms.