Hilton vs W

I stayed in the W again in Atlanta instead of the Hilton. I am starting to get used to the W. It is weird after being such a Hilton girl for so many years. I have talked to several people lately who have complained about the Hilton customer service line. It seems that in all cases, a diamond member (or in my case Gold who should be diamond) called in and tried to discuss an issue. Then, the customer service line basically refuses to try to help. I have previously had good customer service from them, but it seems to be declining.

Also, I guess Hilton changed the way they do awards, and they now require more points for a "free" night. I haven't heard a lot of rumbling about this, but I have heard some.

After one and a half months of traveling with W/Westin, this is my pro and con list for the hotels.

Hilton
Store open 24 hours
Free water if you are gold
Free breakfast if you are gold
Some have nice workout equipment
Ok decorations
Restaurant usually onsite

Westin
Interesting decorations
Upgrade to a suite if possible
Mini bar in the room
Mini bar has TINY drinks and only 2 of each (read only 2 SMALL diet cokes)
No coke machines
Restaurant and room service offers better variety
Workoud room ok in W's, better in Westin

Next week, there are 9 people staying at W instead of Hilton all because I told them the story of my experience with Hilton. Interesting....

Morgan's team got 2nd at the Fair for both teams. She hit the pyramid on the youth team, so that was good. They had one fall on the youth team, and then the junior team had a tumbling collision again (not Morgan this time thankfully). So, they did well but not their best. The girls did ride in a limo from the gym to the Fair, so that was a blast! Morgan was SO excited. Coach Tori arranged it for her youth team, and it was so special for the girls. Tori is the best!

I was so happy that I wasn't in the limo with them, and I am sure the driver was wishing that he had ear plugs with all the screaming going on. :) We were at the fair until 6:30, so I was happy when we got home. :) It was a LONG cold day. It warmed up some during the day, but it seems to always be windy and cold when they are there every year.

Happy Valentine's Day!!! Mike went over the top this year! Flowers, Best Buy gift card, AND iTunes card for running songs. PLUS, he got chocolate. It was fantastic! Happy V Day!

Movies With Friends

Tonight, Morgan wanted to go to a movie with her girlfriends without parents. I was a little nervous, but I decided that it would be ok as long as I was close by and Morgan had her phone. She was good to text me and let me know what was going on. Of course, the movie broke, so they had to wait for it to get fixed! Figures that would happen when no parent was there. Mike and I ate at Outback while they saw the movie. She had a blast, and I am relieved. I don't think I am ready for this independent stage yet.

I am anxiously awaiting my annual trip to HIMSS. Should be interesting to see what companies are doing around ARRA. At least CCHIT finally released their test scripts today so that there can be a lot of buzz. I especially can't wait to go to the HIStalk reception. It has been the highlight of the trip the last 2 years.

Flowers from Mike!

Today, I left to go to the doctor, and I get stopped by the neighbor when I am coming back home. He tells me to wait, and he brings out these beautiful flowers! Mike had sent the most beautiful flowers to me and the neighbor got them when I wasn't home. THANKS MIKE! I love you!

I am struggling with a new kidney stone, and it is high up at the kidney. Grrr... Today hasn't been too bad, so I am hoping it will settle down and leave me alone for 2 weeks so I can run my half marathon!

I took Michael to the dentist this morning to have some teeth pulled. He had gauze in his mouth that made him look like a vampire. He was really good, and I know he is happy to have them fixed!

Super Bowl Sunday

Today, we went running and swimming as a family. It was so fun to have everyone participate! Mike cooked a great dinner - pork, asparagus, brocolli, baked potato, salad. YUM. Then, we sat down to watch the game and the commercials. Morgan and Katie wanted to know if they could just skip the game. :) We filmed a commercial for Katie's class. It was pretty funny because she had to use British words in the skit (e.g. Bobby, Bees Knees, cheerio, blinding, beastly, bum, biscuits). I think they had 11 takes, and we certainly could have done more if we had time! All in all, it was a great, relaxing weekend!

I was torn about which team to cheer for in the game - I love Peyton, but it would be cool to see the Saints win.

Busy, Busy, Busy

We had a whirlwind of a January with a trip to Indianapolis, a lot of work travel, and a lot of running with my training for the Gasparilla Half Marathon. Last week, I went to the Chataeu Elan outside of Atlanta for a sales meeting. The resort was fantastic. I really enjoyed it. FANTASTIC food, nice rooms, nice meeting space, curteous staff, nice grounds, and more! I highly recommend it for corporate meetings.

Today, I had my long run with my tri group, and then I hung with the family at the house. It was so nice to have a day where we didn't have to rush all over.

Boycotting Hilton

I guess I have been such a bad blogger that I completely forgot to discuss my boycot of Hilton Hotels. When we went to Utah in December, the last stay of the year would have put me into Diamond status with them. I asked at the hotel outside of Salt Lake if the THREE night stay would count as a 2009 stay or a 2010 stay because I could always check out and check back in. They said it would count for the year that you check in, so it would be a 2009 stay. As I am sure you have guessed by now, it counted as 2010. Of course, I assumed that Hilton would honor it if I just called them. WRONG. I called, and they refused to change it. The girl on the phone said that I "might" get a challenge offer that would help me get there faster this year. Wow, thanks.

So, I am going to keep a running total of the nights I stay in OTHER hotels and nights that I get the people traveling with me to stay in OTHER hotels.

So far in January, I have 7 nights that have gone to Westin/W, and in Feb so far, I have 8 booked (with 3 of those nights tied to 6 other people who I would have gotten to stay at Hilton but we are now staying at W because of me). So through Feb, that is 15 for me + 18 for the people traveling with me for a total of 33 nights for the first two months of the year. I will continue the updates. Hilton, probably not the best customer service. I wonder how many others are also changing due to this kind of experience??