Hilton Malta

I have stayed in a lot of hotels that are rated 5* and there is definitely a spectrum… but this hotel is in no way shape or form a 5* experience.

It’s nice enough. Rooms are spacious, beds are comfortable. But really, that’s where the praise ends.

The food is average. The breakfast selection is definitely better than dinner, but - having read very complimentary reviews about the standard of food - I was rather perplexed when I saw the selection and disappointed when I tasted it - all very mediocre. The queue for breakfast was unacceptably long - this is supposed to be 5* yet you wait 10 minutes to get a seat. Not at all the experience I have had in even the poorer 5*s I have stayed in.

Drinks choices at dinner - none of which are included with half board bookings - are limited and two out of three days, the soft drink tasted funky. Don’t walk out of the restaurant assuming the one soft drink you had at dinner might be charged to your room, like I did - I was summoned back to the desk to pay before I left. Dear me… I had given the room number.

The pool is adequate but there really aren’t enough loungers and most are ‘reserved’ with towels by 10am. There’s also no lifeguard around the pool, so for solo parents, don’t imagine you will be able to relax for even a minute in the knowledge someone is watching out for your child in the pool. My son is a decent swimmer, but I was unable to get a lounger anywhere near the pool so had to watch him like a hawk the whole time, because I was conscious there would be no assistance if he needed it and I couldn’t stay close. Again, I have never experienced this in a 5* hotel. Just really poor.

Aside from the pool, there really is minimal effort to cater for or entertain kids.

The cleaners in the hotel are lovely - a credit to the place. Polite, friendly and courteous. I’m afraid, in other areas, customer service is somewhat lacking.

Overall, a really basic hotel. A step up from a Travelodge… 4* at best.

We stayed for 5 nights, whist the hotel is lovely and we slept really well, the service requires improvement overall. Breakfast queues were far too long, the current system for seating people at breakfast is not working. Queues down the corridor / up the stairs are not acceptable, when there are so many free tables. This is a staffing issue. The staff here are doing a good job but there clearly are not enough of them. When at breakfast we left the table to get something extra and the staff cleared away our food on multiple occasions (whole pieces of fruit, coffee sachets I had brought with me unopened). We had drinks at the bar before dinner, we asked for the bill and were told to pay inside, we went to the bar to pay and were told to go to the reception area, we headed to the reception area and there was no one there. A better system is needed. We called reception and restaurant reservations many times and no one picked up, no one called us back. Staff need better training, more support, better systems in place. At breakfast there are no seeds (pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds) yet the staff have put out a huge bowl of wasabi peas? Pine nuts? The honeycomb for the first 3 days was completely dried up and crystallised. It shouldn’t have been served. Finally on day 4 a fresh edible honeycomb appeared. By the pool lunch plates were left beside loungers for the entire afternoon. We’ve stayed here many times over the years and overall this year the care for the details wasn’t there I’m afraid. On the plus side, the adults only beach club is lovely and super relaxing, and the food is very good. The food and service at the blue elephant restaurant was also excellent.

Amazing hotel. All staff helpful and friendly and could not do enough for you. The chefs especially were very helpful as my daughter had a nut allergy. Gabriel, Noel and all waiting staff were also very friendly. Food was exceptional