Hilton Garden Inn Fairfield - Fairfield, California

Chris K.

TL;DR version:
The hotel staff themselves are top notch, and was the major saving grace of the hotel. Rooms felt dated with small bathrooms, fridge was sketchy at best, noise level was unacceptable, food was terrible. Read on for the full and detailed review.

Full review:
This is a mixed review, just like my hotel stay. I will lead by stating that all of the staff I interacted with were excellent and really went above and beyond. They were always professional and very courteous. Nothing was ever a bother to them and they made me feel welcome. The local management must also be pretty good because none of the staff seemed to be overly stressed, nor did they seem to 'just be there to collect a paycheck'. The staff seemed to actually care (not pretend to care), and in this line of work you only get that in a healthy working environment.

But the local staff was the ONLY saving grace for this review, or my stay for that matter. Just like with pretty much all things that carry the Hilton name - It looked great on paper and in photos, but when you experience it up close and personal you realize it's overpriced, past its prime, and disappointing. Again, I say that of the brand as a whole - NOT the local staff or managers. This is a sad theme that has carried over through multiple stays at various Hilton hotels within the United States.

The rooms looked 'clean enough' upon first inspection, but that's likely because the 'high use' designs and materials were designed with patterns to hide stains and grime, but were incredibly cheap in the qualities that mattered. In reality I couldn't help but feel that the room was years past its prime, and due for a touch up. Most of the wood finishes were damaged (including the table top next to my bed) which added to the 'this is past its prime and hiding a lot of wear and tear'.

For the room itself, it was adequately lit with curtains that were very effective at blocking the morning sun. While they worked well, they were a bit dingy and off white in some spots from heavy use. I felt that there was a lot of noise that I could still hear from the nearby highway as well as the hallway - far more than was acceptable. A few times I was able to clearly make out normal conversations as people walked down the hall. This is something that shouldn't happen in the price point that I paid.

The bed was acceptable, but felt like a cheap mattress that transferred too much movement between people in the same bed. The pillows (while clean), were not very good.

The food experience was a true disappointment. We ate dinner and breakfast at the hotel, and frankly was disappointment with the quality of the food that was used. Again, the local staff was doing their best, but they were given subpar ingredients (ordered in bulk that are dry/prepared/frozen) to begin with. There is only so far you can take bad ingredients. Again, that's an issue with the brand and NOT the local staff or even local management. The food we had was always served at the correct temperature and was served promptly, and the portions were a good size. The servers for both sittings were fantastic and very attentive with out being over bearing.

I will end the review on a positive note - one of the safety and security of the premise. There was a security guard patrolling at night, a well lit parking lot, and plenty of cameras watching the guest parking lot. Side and rear doors seemed to require a key card at all hours of the day (a nice thing to see). While I wasn't a fan of the building, I did feel perfectly safe staying there.

John S.

The purpose was an overnight stay after Thanksgiving. The room was large and clean. The night was quiet and the bed was comfortable. The hotel is basically a stop on the freeway but if you need a pit stop on the road it serves its purpose well. Nothing special but overall a good stay.

A K.

I was happy with this hotel because of the staff. The front desk was so helpful, friendly and patient, and so were all the other staff we interacted with. From housekeepers who greeted us with big smiles to the breakfast staff who were so accommodating to us with a little one. And the front desk who kindly provided us with breakfast vouchers when I didn't realize breakfast wasn't provided with my booking through Hilton points. The rooms were very comfortable and I really liked the Zero bath and body products too! They also provided light-blocking curtains in the rooms. Thank you!

Scott B.

Staff were really nice during the stay. Breakfast was good. The only complaint was our shower didn't drain fully during use. Everything else was great.

ASPEN J. S.

Nice hotel. Very well maintained and the lobby looks really good for the grade of the hotel. Other facilities are mediocre which is expected. Very quiet and nice location as well.

S P.

No Managment Follow up. I could not make my bathtub into a shower. No matter how hard I pulled p in the knob it would noy transition from bath to shower. I then told the front desk who said they made a note of it. I departed the next day and confirmed I had a not on file about this problem. Basically, I could not take a shower. I then sent an email to management. no reply. Here i am one weel afterwards with no communication from the management.||I wont return.

Marques M.

The staff is amazing. My family throws multiple events per year at this location. We're always well received and made to feel welcomed and at home! Keep up the great work!

James M.

Good location restaurants are walking distance. Freeway is next to the hotel but not too bad.