Review: Hilton Hanoi Opera Hotel

I stayed at the JW Marriott in Hanoi (randomly, President Obama was staying on the property during his visit to Vietnam, so security was insane while we were there). I have to say, it's one of the nicest Marriott properties I've ever stayed at. Based on this review and pictures, I would definitely choose it over this Hilton.

@ Aaron -- Oh, definitely looks nicer! But a 20+ minute drive to the stuff we wanted to do, at a room rate of nearly triple the price, just didn't make sense for a 30-hour trip.

Sometimes getting the basics right is much more important than extra bling here and there.
Thanks for a great review!

The corridor situation is very intriguing!

I stayed at both the Hilton and the Hilton Garden Inn. The latter was so much nicer.

@ Tiffany - You are on the right track of the renovated hallway. I'd bet that they are gearing up for a renovation and this is the concept they are going for. And the rooms in that area are also renovated. I once worked at a hotel that had 3 different designs of hallways on 3 different floors while the owners/designers decided on what to go with.
And my current hotel is in the middle of the design/concept stage so we have a section of hallway in the new design with 3 guest rooms.
You work out the bugs and potential construction issues this way.

For $83, it looks very good. I wouldn’t have spent $350+ for a one night place to sleep.

I think we literally stayed in the same 7th floor room as your friends with the same view last summer. We didn't get an upgrade as a Diamond, but it was only 2 nights so no big deal. They had made to order pho (waiter asked if we wanted it) and vietnamese coffees in the lounge. We ate in the restaurant for breakfast the second morning and it was better with made to order eggs and a larger variety. Can't beat the location or price (well you can beat the price but then you're at the mercy of an Airbnb/local hotel.)

Enjoying your trip report. Looks like you had a nice time.

Do they no longer offer free juice/coffee for elites in the lobby in the afternoon? They did when I was there in May 2017. A fresh glass of passion fruit juice was amazing after an afternoon in 100-degree heat.

@ David H -- Very interesting! Thanks for the insights 🙂

@ tda -- If they did, it wasn't broadcast, but we weren't in the hotel all that much and (sing along if you know the words), it was Tet, so everywhere was rather short-staffed.

While the Metropole is certainly out of reach for many people, it’s a terrific place to sit outside, have a bite and/or a drink and watch the world go by.

Best thing about this hotel is the location. It's in a really nice part of Hanoi.

@Cliff: Good to know. I'm staying at the Hilton Garden Inn later this fall. At 10,000 points per night, it seems like a good deal.

I stayed partially here and partially at the HGI.

I thought the staff excecuted quite well here and was friendly and thoughtful, especially in the club lounge.

The HGI was much more modern and had nicer rooms, breakfast was good there as well.

I was there during the rainy season and at the Hilton I had to run a dehumidifier in the room constantly while the newer HGi had much more modern HVAC. This was nice because the dehumidifier was loud

Off-topic: Why does every single link posted by Tiffany redirect through Androezrs.net?!

That said, Tiffany is giving us a real immersive experience into Vietnam that Lucky simply cannot. Every word is to be relished. (Only James could have pulled this off. It’s a crying shame he left OMAAT.)

That looks like one heckuva hotel you don't wanna leave when you get there. Makes you wanna spend all your $ gUaP $ in 1 day. I'm sure the Hilton rooms there are close to 00 a night.

Really enjoying these reviews! More please!!!!

was this the moms/daughters trip?

did you get the room type you requested?

(I have a theory)

Thank you Tiffany for the good trip report. I enjoyed reading it because I live in Hanoi and have taken my family there for 1 or 2 night get-aways to enjoy the old quarter & just have some quality time together. I am glad to hear that they are upgrading the lighting in the hallways and hopefully some of the rooms. You’re absolutely right, they are functional rooms but I dislike the drab color and older style furniture. I was also a diamond for a couple of years so we were always upgraded to a suite and were able to kick back in the executive lounge, which was very nice when paying sub-$100 rates. Based on some of the other comments, I would also recommend the HGI smaller hotel nearby. It’s literally three or four large blocks away. It is more modern in the sense of design, but of course far less in the way of resort-like amenities, ie. no swimming pool, no grand lobby area. But for a really short trip to Hanoi the HGI would be my preferred stop, Also really reasonable at 10,000 points at the HGI compared to many more points at the Hilton.

Stayed at the Hanoi Opera Hilton a few years back for about a week. Loved every minute of the stay. Was supposed to spend a night or two at the Garden in but was "walked" (even as a Diamond) unwillingly for two nights to the Hilton. The Garden Inn had some tour group and wanted our suite so they walked us instead of the tour. Not at all impressed.

Would stay at the Hilton as opposed to the Garden Inn any day but probably because of the Executive Floor.

I understand that this is blog is about points and miles and is focused on the big global hotel chains, so I'm not criticizing you for being something you're not.

That said, this place looks just so bland, generic, anonymous. Meanwhile Hanoi is full of very nice independent local hotels that are in the $30 - $50 per night range including taxes and breakfast. Example: Golden Sun Palace Hotel, right in the middle middle of the Old Quarter, 5 star average with 1400+ reviews on Trip Advisor, $31 tomorrow night including breakfast. I've stayed there and it's just delightful. There are lots of other similar places in Hanoi.

@Keith

Quite right. There is certainly a place for the points/miles experience, but the could be Hanoi, could be Peoria Hilton sameness means missing out on some wonderful local possibilities. We stayed in an upscale boutique hotel in Old Hanoi a few years ago with a very charming and luxurious room, all the mod cons, airport transfer, welcome drink, nightly fruit plate, and daily breakfast (can still almost taste the pho) and wouldn't trade that experience for a suite upgrade Executive floor maybe it was Cincinnati feel.

Great report. The inside looks exactly like my stays at the Hilton in Brisbane, especially the exec lounge. Love that 90s feel 🙂

We stayed there two years ago in December. We had the very same kind of room as you (I'm a Diamond as well). We actually really liked our stay there. Every morning we'd start our day walking to the lake and then go around once. Then we'd end the day doing the same. It was interesting to see all the goings ons early in the morning and in the evenings. The staff were extremely competent and warm. The breakfast was awesome! Did you not get the breakfast?

I stayed in the Hilton Hanoi Opera in 2004, I haven't been back just because I haven't been to Hanoi. It was fine at the time but it doesn't look to have changed at all.

I believe there was another ‘Hanoi Hilton’ during the Vietnam war, not as posh, mostly US servicemen as ‘guests’. . Glad that’s all over.

Have really enjoyed this series. Vietnam and Cambodia are on my bucket list. Friends who’ve been really enjoyed both countries.

Tiffany, I respectfully think this hotel is horrible. I am a HH Diamond member and booked a 4 night stay a little over a year ago. I was traveling on vacation with my wife and we arrived at the hotel late at night.
Of course we were upgraded but the Suite was so bad, ugly, smelly that we left the the next morning for another hotel. I spoke to the manager who was indeed very kind and he told me they were constantly having problems with customers and they had already informed Hilton they needed an urgent renovation.
Until they do a complete renovation I suggest everyone who wishes to have a nice stay in Hanoi to stay at another hotel, even if you are a HH diamond or gold. The benefits of membership are not useful at this old smelly hotel.

JW Marriott is the nicest JW i ever saw.
Obama stayed there.
Trump did too.

I had no status at marriott at the time, and was Dia with Hilton, but was so glad i went for the JW.
I can't get the compromises people make for some points and miles.
I

stayed on the executive floor as well last summer. I was going to swim in the morning (they have like an exec desk in front of the two elevators) and staffs offered me fresh squeezed juice or coffee in the morning. Little things but staffs were very attentive. Can't beat the price, location, and service in Hanoi for sure compared to Sofitel and Marriott.

To be honest, it looks fantastic to me! There’s something to be said (at least in my book) for a bubble of familiarity around you when travelling, especially to somewhere a bit more outside the comfort zone like Vietnam 🙂

I stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn (HGI), in a junior suite, and left after 4 days to stay one night at the Hilton Opera. While I loved the location of the Hilton Opera more, it felt dingy to me. As a diamond, I appreciated having access to the Executive Lounge, but it was not as nice as other Hilton hotels in Asia. I kept comparing it to the glamour of Bangkok and their food spread. I also missed the new and airy feeling of the HGI, even though it was slightly farther out. With Uber moto everywhere in Hanoi, it was easy and quick to travel around, so in some ways, I was as happy or happier with the HGI.

I stayed there on my positioning flight from BKK-HAN, in order to take part in the mistake fare from CX,, flying HAN-HKG-JFK-HKG back to back.

I only slept for a few hours, and had a quick sliders-meal in the lobby bar, that was served from the room service department.

I paid cash, as the redemption rate vs. cash rate was hilarious. Fantastic service, however the property is pretty worn out, but again well taken care of.

As I arrived from BKK pretty late, and had an early departure, I did not leave the hotel at all.

I completely get Heather's comments. I too have stayed at many hiltons and marriotts that look just like that room and had the god awful dark and dingy corridors. I remember in the early 90's Hilton took pains to get rid of the worst of them, but they've crept back in. The HGIs were a great choice for a while when they were all new but now... some of them are worse than the old hiltons. Thankfully I travel less on business now and have more fewer "opportunities" to travel to cities where a bog standard marriott or hilton is the best game in town. That said, last weekend was the Marquis in Times Square for a wedding (it's where the family was staying) and they apologized that my room had not been renovated yet. It was... much like the Hilton Hanoi Opera. sigh...

So I'm staying here as I write, and in exactly the same suite at the end of the hall, as a Hilton Diamond. The strange section of renovated corridor hasn't extended any further yet!