Hilton Barcelona

All in all my impressions were good, although there are some points to be improved upon. The stay was extremely cheap (read less than 100 Euros a days including all taxes) which I’ve gotten on the pre-paid sale.

My room assignment was changed to King several weeks before arrival which is an upgrade, and as Gold member I was pleased that it was done proactively. I have arrived to the hotel around 10:30 AM after a transatlantic flight and did not expect to be able to check in so early, but received a room immediately. The check in clerk apologize that they could not upgrade me to the Executive Lounge as the hotel is full (which I believe as at least on one of my night the hotel was completely sold out when checking on the net).

Breakfast was plentiful and satisfying in the restaurant. There are no vouchers, but your name is on the list as a Gold member at the entrance and they just check you in. One of the best free breakfasts I had in a Hilton for quite a while.

The little annoyances:
1. You get an internet code for each day for two devices (one for computer and one for mobile device). For 5 days stays I have got 10 codes for internet use (free as Gold). Couple of days later I’ve discovered that some of the codes were wrong (i.e., for lobby use and not room use). There must be a better way to handle the internet service than provide a code for each device for each day.
2. Despite the renovations which are very nice indeed there are still some service problems. My sink will not drain (the plunger was stuck on close). My phone will not ring. All those problems were remedied quickly and efficiently, but a month after renovation I would not expect them.
3. My stay was comprised from two different reservations. I did not need to change the rooms, but despite the front desk assurances, on the change day, the key, of course, did not open the door. Little annoyance to get it reset.
4. On check out there was an item on the bill that was not mine. Took some time and paper work to get that removed from the bill.
5. My biggest gripe probably is the size of the room. Despite not feeling cramped, the room was small. Probably not as bad as NYC small, but very close too. It was very functional and the bathroom is nice and not cramped at all, but still, small.

The hotel is situated about two blocks from the L3 metro station which is very convenient. The shopping mall one block down does have a big supermarket in it.

All in all it was a pleasant experience and I would definitely consider coming back to the hotel if the prices will be in the same range.   

A Spanish Cruise

Living in the metro DC area gives a traveler the luxury of having a choice of airport. With three airports situated almost identical distance away it is a good choice to have. My preference is of course DCA. The fact it is metro bound and I can just take the metro the airport is a big plus in addition to its compact size and predictable security line.

Alas, this time I am going to Barcelona, and DCA is not an international airport (Canada excluded). BWI is not really a big international hub, so this leaves the least favorite airport of them all – IAD. Now getting to IAD is a mess. Driving is almost the only reasonable way to get there, but leaving the car for two weeks (and coming back into DCA) ruled that option out. Taxi is my usual route, after the 5A bus is just too complicated to get to and operate, but at 70-80 dollars I thought it would be a little excessive.

It seems Super Shuttle it must be. At a total cost of $36 dollars (including tip and after the discount code easily found online), it seems reasonable. The last time I have used Super Shuttle was about 7 years ago and the experience was not that good as they were VERY late for the pickup and I almost missed my flight.

Booking on the site had vastly improved, although it is still too complicated and requires many unnecessary steps. I chose to be picked up about 4 hours prior to my flight, as this would leave enough room for late pickup and any other misfortunate events that might happen.

Luckily I did book an early pick-up. I was the first person to be picked up and the shuttle arrived on time. However, some other people were not as considerate to other passengers and thought that showing up 15 minutes late for their shared pick-up is just fine. All in all it took about double the time to reach the airport than it would have otherwise. On a leisurely Saturday morning it was fine.

Check-in was quick an efficient albeit not very personal, as one could expect from Lufthansa. No surprises there, which now a days is a very good thing. Lufthansa Senator lounge did not disappoint as well. Thanks to A3 Start Gold status I have the ability to use it. It is miles away from the lousy offering of the United Club and much nicer than the Lufthansa business club as well.

The flight over was uneventful. Seamless connection in Frankfurt, despite the German insistence that the lounge opens at 5:30 am, no matter that the flight landed at 5:00 and the line to enter it is long. Boarding the connecting flight to Barcelona was the usual zoo, but as it was mostly empty in Business class it had little effect on me.

All in all pleasant trip.

Lounge Food

Seared Salmon, Wild Rice and Baby Carrot - Dinner on the flight