Hilton HHonors Diamond Program

TWO hours, TWO phone calls, SIX Hilton HHonors representatives, ZERO solution… All I wanted to do was complete and pre-​pay for a reservation that I’d placed months ago. I thought that [this] would be easy – not an arduous task. Upon dialing the Hilton HHonors customer service line, I managed to be connected to ONE English speaking representative out of SIX. The others were clearly outsourced – they could not understand me, and I could not understand them. Thus, ZERO help! I wasted TWO hours, and A LOT of energy. I, finally, gave up… I contacted the hotel, directly, and accomplished what I needed in about FIVE minutes. Hilton HHonors, your outsourcing tactics are a pain! It is a HUGE inconvenience!!! I have a very close friend who owns a media company that outsources for various corporations. I’m not opposed to that business practice. However, maybe, try a different company. Your current group does not understand what the customer is stating nor requesting. [IT] gets even worse when they can not think without deviating from the script… I felt like a dog chasing my tail…
I am anxious to FINISH using my Hilton Honors points so that I do not have to deal with this dreadful and deplorable program ever again. YES, I am determined to use ALL my points so that my hard earn dollars do NOT go to waste.

I am very confused on their program. My husband and I both travel a fair amount for work, but on our points app, the # of trips to retain Diamond status had said 19, then a few weeks later said I needed 25 more stays. Why would it go up? Are the points falling off the back end? I really don’t understand it. They are not helpful when you call.

Unfortunately, there is not a ZERO option. When I called Hilton Hhonors and inquired if I could use my points for air travel, I was told, «Yes. Just call the airlines, make the reservation, then call us back and let us know which airline you’re using. Then we’ll transfer your points over to the airline of your choice.» I did all that and THEN Hilton Hhonors told me that it would take 30 days to transfer the points — not just 30 days, but 30 business days. It’s been longer than that, still hasn’t happened. I just bought my ticket for cash. I’m completely finished with this phoney rewards program — finished with Hilton Hhonors Program.

I have 40,000 from staying several weeks in Hilton Hotels over the last couple years. At one point it used to work out that if i stayed 2 work weeks in a Hilton and I could stay a night for free. They crippled the reward program, now I’ve stayed 4 weeks and I can’t stay anywhere yet. BUT to stay in a $ 300 a night room I could buy $ 600 worth of points additional to get me there… WHAT!!! they’ve devalued their reward currency so much it’s not worth using. I will be using a different hotel chain going forward, one that values points and rewards loyalty.

All those other 1-​star reviews posted here? They should serve as a strong hint; even bad hotels and restaurants I’ve patronized usually manage mixed reviews. Individual Hilton properties may have their good points (including some very helpful staff members I’ve met), but on the corporate side they richly deserve a class-​action thumbs-​down. Hilton management has severely corroded a once-​respected brand.
I’m a Hilton Honors member via their Hilton Grand Vacations program, and the same goes for that one. By all means, stay away. They could easily have earned my loyalty rather than enmity. But they don’t care to; they already have my money.

Hilton Honors please UNSUBSCRIBE me! It’s been months since I first unsubscribed to your emails. I do not want to be a part of a program that can not perform a simple task. Stop sending me emails!

We will NEVER BOOK with Hilton Hhonors again. We had to cancel our reservation 1 week ahead of time and using Hilton we called and they said we could credit towards re-​book after nearly 2 months of back and forth with this service we have had no credit and no re-​book and only the run-​around from this company. I have always used my American Express Points and never had an issue we started using Hhonors after staying at a Hilton this was the worst decision we ever made. Nearly a $ 900 loss after we stayed at several of there hotels on many business trips. We will make EVERY ATTEMPT to use any hotel except Hilton after this. It has been frustrating to be promised something only and not be given the professional courtesy and business type relationship they promote. Use another point system if you need to travel and make changes you will be better served. Dr’s Stephanie King & Allen Allen S Miller

So I called the Hilton Rewards program today to make a reservation. The operator then asks me «would you ilke to do a brief survey and earn 5,000 points?» I agreed. Oh my goodness — worst mistake EVER. Jessica ID 29 562 is yelling the whole time in to the phone. To top that she is aggressive, disrespectful, and arrogant while trying desperately to sell you time at a Hilton resort. Whaaat?! Is this really a Hilton program, Hilton that stands for class? NOT! Do not waste your time with this brief survey, it is a SCAM. Shame on you Hilton Hotels!!!

It is frustrated to call to find out about the balance and to get address to send the bill. When I called the number on statement it tests and questions and hang up. Also a lot of questions to go vacation and hang up. It waste times on phone and go no where. When I call again they disconnected and hang up. They are very impolite. I never seen any credits so rude like this one.

This is a terrible rewards program. Do yourself a favor stay at a Marriott. There are tons of little traps in their program that deters you from choosing how you choose to apply the points you earn with payment. Shame on you. To bad because the Homewood suites I am staying at is wonderful.

I don’t like to brag, but I’m a millionaire. Not just a millionaire, but a multi-millionaire…of Hilton Honors points that is. While not quite as prestigious as the real thing, it has sufficed. Or, at least at once it did as it allowed me to travel to places I otherwise might not have had the opportunity. But, alas, no more… My millions of points are now worth a pittance of what they once were. And I feel betrayed by what was once one of the best hotel programs in existence.
What happened Hilton? I’m going to assume that anyone taking the time to read this at least has a cursory awareness of hotel loyalty programs so I won’t go into specifics but Hilton is by far the worst program of any of the major hotel chains.
As a so called Diamond member I am supposed to receive a certain amount of benefits at every hotel I check into including 1) recognition of status 2) free wif-​fi 3) room upgrades when available 4) 50% base points earnings on top of my regularly earned points 5) free breakfast 6) a complimentary snack and or beverage upon arrival and 7) access to Hilton Hhonors Executive Lounges amongst others. Now, I could give a damn if the front staff recognizes my status and calls me by name, nor do I care if I get my two free bottles of water and a snack (which is a joke) or Hilton Hhonors Executive Lounge access. What I do enjoy is the occasional room upgrade to a suite (which is rare) and the even almost rarer «free breakfast.» It seems that a «free breakfast» is too much to offer Hilton loyalists that spend upwards of $ 25,000 a year on hotel stays so a new «Diamond Breakfast» is being offered, which is basically a continental breakfast in a basket. What a joke. The only consistent thing I really ever get as a «Diamond» is my 50 percent point bonus and free wifi. The 50 percent points bonus used to be really nice, except last year Hilton decided to gut the entirety of their program.
The new reality at Hilton is that Diamond status is really not that desirable anymore. It all seems a bit unseemly anyway and I was against rewards programs for the longest time until I realized that I was just missing out on travel subsidies so I reluctantly joined and have reaped many benefits in the past. Now, I just don’t see the benefits anymore. With a new 10 tiers of hotel redemption points ranging from 7,500 to 95,000 points a night (for a «standard room») with «premium room upgrades» going for 120,000 points and more, it is beyond laughable. It really is a slap in the face. Where once I enjoyed staying at some of the top tier hotels in NYC for roughly 50,000 points a night, the same room has now crept up to 120,000 points a night? Are they serious? I’ve seen roadside Hampton Inns wanting 40,000 for a single night and beach resorts asking for 185,000 for a single night (mind you, for a room that was roughly only $ 265) now. In an attempt to appease everyone Hilton has offered double and triple point bonuses throughout the majority of this year — however that always takes careful planning to actually get said bonuses as Hilton allows many of their properties to «opt out» of participating in these bonus programs. They always respond that their hotels are independently owned and operated and can choose to participate or not. Ok, that’s fine and good, but I can choose not to stay at these locations but oftentimes it seems that almost every hotel in a major metropolitan area has «opted out!»
As a more than 10 year Hilton Diamond Member now I have lost interest in the Hilton program. It is almost an insult and encourages more disloyalty than loyalty. The required 30 stays (or 60 nights) just to achieve Diamond Status isn’t worth attempting. For the casual traveler, don’t even bother. You will never get enough points or status without spending ridiculous amounts of money that is better spent elsewhere. For someone like me who puts in more than 60 or so nights a year in a hotel between business and pleasure, it was worth it but now there are far better options.
I can thank the Hilton Hhonors program for one thing now: forcing me to explore other opportunities and now align myself with the Starwoods Program. The SPG program is everything that Hilton once was but better! It affords better points earnings and redemption opportunities. There is never a question about benefits as all hotels that I encounter seem to know and value their top tier level guests. Best of all with the coming of more and more Aloft hotels (and the Starwoods guaranteed late check out of 4 p.m.) I now have the option of a non Hilton stay!
Hilton, if you are looking to do away with your loyalty program, alienate customers and have long time Diamond members who are also avid users of your Citi Reserve Hilton and Amex Surpass Cards cut them up in disgust and leap into the welcoming arms of another hotel chain, then bravo! You have succeeded in your mission

Wow!!! They are total idiots! (Hilton that is…).
I have tried to opt out of their e-​blasts numerous times and even talked to a CSR, gave them my account info, rants, etc., and I still get the bloody emails every other day!!!
— I stayed there like 1 time in the past year!
— I don’t want to ever hear from them again!!!
— But the emails keep coming!!!
— I will never stay there again!!!
— I have «0» points on my account, so why even send me an email!!!
Do yourself a favor and stay at a marriott.

I was enrolled in Hilton Honors Program. February statement showed that I had over 18,000 points. At the end of Feb. it shows 0. When I called them they said the points expired, as I did not stay during the last year [I had stayed in Atlanta for one night — they can’t find receipt or info on their system!]. No alerts or email about the expiration. When asked if they sent any info indicating that points expire on a certain data, they cannot tell me when they sent any communication. It is poorly run and the agents who answer have no authority to initiate «Service Recovery» for their mistakes. Try not to stay in Hilton and its affiliated hotels or get the best rate and not worry about your points. It is a chain that does not believe in Service and have never heard of service management, even though they are in service business! Had I known I would not have continued with Hilton.
ven

New update:
Here is what hotel general manager said about Hilton Honors:
***********************************************************************************
Mr. XXXXXXX
I do not know how this became so difficult. I have communicated with XXXX XXXXX with whom you have last spoken and I have asked that the issue be expedited and resolve so that you receive your 79.000 points back.
I have done what I can, but please let me know if they don’t resolve this to your satisfaction and I will see what else can be done. We will make sure you are taken care of. Again, I apologize for this great inconvenience to you.
XXXXXX,
XXXX XXXXX
General Manager
Hilton Garden Inn
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Sadly, he is also a victim of Hilton Honors program. If you are thinking about owning a Hilton franchise «STAY AWAY», go Ritz, Marriot, and any other hotel franchise besides Hilton. What a scam.
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Below is what I received on 8÷24÷13 and still disputing today…
Today’s call was 20^th times and 10 agents since AUG 11^th… sad is understatement on how my situation with Hilton…
At first, Hilton Honors told me to contact the hotel directly to solve the issue. Then, hotel told me to contact HQ to solve the issue… back and forth for a several times and I got fed up and asked to do 3 way conference call. The problem was Hilton HQ never instructed the hotel on how to return points.
Then, the next issue was how much points to return, simple math but no one at HIlton seems to understand how to solve 5 year old math. I made at least 5 more calls plus 3~4 more emails to explain how math works. Then, I received a email from HIlton Honors as shown below… I thought finally someone fixed my problem…
Today, I found yet again my points are not returned and I felt hopeless…
I called Hilton Honors just now and rep told me I need to contact general manager at the hotel I stayed to get my points back… what? again? back to beginning?
As all reviewer said, DO NOT JOIN HILTON HONORS. Stay as far away as possible. They are crooks and the worst customer service experience I have ever seen… these people are worthless… period end of the story.
I dont know what to do with my anger…
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Dear Mr. XXXXXX,
It is my pleasure assisting you with this matter. This email will confirm the conversation we had today. For reservation number 3 525 260 676, originally from August 9^th to the 16^th, you paid 119,000 points for a standard room. As you are a Diamond member, the hotel gave you a complimentary upgrade; this did not change the point amount used. As a seven night stay, the per night cost was 17,000 points (7×17,000 = 119,000). When your stay was changed to a two-​night stay, the point discount was no longer valid and you were charged the normal amount of 20,000 points per night for a total of 40,000 points. So, the amount of points you should receive back into your account is 79,000 (119,000 — 40,000). Please allow thirty days from August 14^th for the points to be reflected in your account. If you have any remaining questions or concerns about this matter, please be sure to let me know. I will be more than happy to offer further assistance.
Kind regards,
XXXXXX
Guest Assistance Specialist
Hilton Worldwide
2050 Chenault Drive
Carrollton, TX 75 006
U.S.A
(888) 240‑6152
Fax: (901) 748‑6942
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Hilton is THE worst and they are the biggest morons. How stupid is a program that costs it’s most loyal and largest spenders more money with points then if you paid for the room as Joe Shmoe off the street. I wanted to stay at the Reach in Key West for 4 days Hilton Honors Program wanted 498,000 points plus 3900.00 in cash for a 4 night stay that I booked as Joe Shmoe for 1600.00!
I have called and complained a dozen times to no avail, I keep saying this makes no sense why would anybody want to be a member in Hilton Honors when it costs more for a room than being a non member???
The worst thing for me is I bought into the Hilton Grand Vacation Club in November of 2012 and then in March of 2013 they changes the whole point system. A total Bait & Switch. Ontop of the rules and restrictions that come in an Opus Magnus volume of books they expect people to read.
I agree it’s a Con Job, Scam and BS, shocking it would come from a company like Hilton!

Wish there was a ZERO! It is official, the hhonors program is the worst in the industry! With the new changes to the points, I have cut up my 2 hilton credit cards and have told my booking agent to change all hilton stays to other hotels. What a shame! After being a Diamond member for years, it comes to this. You think that they may have tested the water before changing the program and having their loyal customers leave by the droves! Shame on hilton!

Amex Hilton Honors program used to be good few years ago when they were awarding most of the hampton or equivalent hotels for about 7k –10k points now it is very unusual to find a hotel for less than 25k but most of the time in the range of 40k –100k points that really devalues those points. I used to like this card slot now I hardly use that card and I will cancel it once I use my 400k points for may be 3 nights of hotel stay (:

What a BULLSHIT program. This is an email I sent them today after speaking to two imbeciles in their customer service department:
April 10, 2012
Dear Hilton Honors,
Earlier today I logged into my HHonors account only to find that my points had gone from 32,159 to 0. This came as a shock because I had never been notified that my account would eventually have gone into inactive standing and that my points would have been reduced to zero.
Upon this knowledge, I contacted one of your customer service representatives, who was incredibly unhelpful, and on top of which, cut me off twice in the middle of my sentences and laughed at me when I asked to speak to a supervisor. When I was finally connected to a supervisor, and told them about the previous rep’s rude behavior about laughing at me, the supervisor proceeded to tell me that the representative was probably nervous and she concluded by saying that she too tends to laugh when she is nervous. She said she didn’t know why she does this but she probably received that habit from her father (I certainly do hope you record conversations). Is this how Hilton Honors treats their customers? Is this the type of customer service I or anybody deserves to receive? To hear a supervisor condone such ludicrous behavior and make an excuse for it? I have NEVER in my life heard an excuse like this from a supervisor of a customer service team. These two agents reflect quite negatively of your business and brand name. Dealing with Hilton, I expected to deal with people who had even an ounce of tact and class, but I couldn’t be more wrong.
These two conversations with the two customer service reps mentioned above lead to implications that I was a liar and that I had, in fact, received emails detailing that my account was going to be inactive if I had not reserved a stay. I was then told by the supervisor that the first email was sent to me on October 27, 2011 re: my inactivity. I understand if this is a common pitch your representatives must resort to for all people whose accounts end up like mine, but having over 30,000 points I told them that I didn’t need to reserve another stay, that had I simply known I was about to lose all my points, then I simply would have cashed them out and USED them for a stay. It is apparent that your customer service team has taken no courses in customer service, nor do they have any knowledge of courtesy and loyalty to customers, let alone common logic. That alone might dictate a different scenario for me that since I paid a tremendous amount of money at some point for Hilton’s services, and received a generous amount of points as a result, that realistically speaking, I could have just used those points instead of letting them go to waste. But as proven, tact, class, loyalty, courtesy and simply-​put, ethical treatment towards your customers is not what your agents practice.
And for this poor excuse of your communication methods, a customer service agent that giggles openly at me, a supervisor that belittles me by acting as though giggling in the ear of a customer (because it’s just a trait) is allowable, and any other ignorant behavior that may arise from your sorry excuse of a customer service team, I vow to never conduct business with any Hilton hotel ever again.
To justify what I know to be the truth, as ridiculous as it is for me to have to do so, I have attached a «Print Screen» of my emails from Hilton detailing exactly which emails I actually have received. And as you can see, I’ve received NOTHING of the like except for your redundant promotional emails! I will gladly share this experience with the multi-​million dollar company that I work for so we never have to endure this type of negligence again. I will also gladly share this experience to as many places as I possibly can across the Web. Thank goodness for social media. I hope to help avert disaster for any one that is involved with HHonors. Good luck to you and your program.
Goodbye HHonors. Hello Starwood points! Ugh.

So. This review has been on the first page of google’s search results since mid-​2008. You might think that someone at Hilton might send me an email or something, right?
Nope.
The program continues to suck massively.