Hilton Elite Daily Food and Beverage Credit
The Hilton elite daily food and beverage credit has been one of the more polarizing hotel loyalty program changes in recent years. I eventually came to the conclusion that it’s a net win in my situation. Big picture, the extra flexibility my family and I obtain from the credit more than makes up for any financial devaluation that may have occurred, if at all. But beyond the basic info Hilton has provided about this credit, I’ve noticed each property interprets it differently. To avoid surprises, I confirm the eligible establishments for the credit at check-in. But I recently noticed that Hilton (somewhat) informs us here in advance. It’s news to me, and it may be to you.
Tap in the App!
While preparing for our recent stay at the Hilton Durham near Duke University, I noticed some helpful info. After swiping to this reservation, I tapped on the Hotel Guide tile. I then tapped Dining, and the following summary appeared:
As a Diamond member, you’ll receive a Daily $15 F&B Credit each night of your stay for you and up to one additional guest registered to the same room to use at Bluestone Grille.Â
Jumping ahead in the summary:
Prefer a snack instead? Use your credit towards purchases in the gift shop which is adjacent to the front desk and open 24 hours. Excludes alcohol.
When we arrived at the property, I asked where the credit is eligible (again, that’s my habit). Importantly, the front desk agent quoted the same policy as described in the app terms.
But Wait….
So I was pleased the app held accurate elite F&B credit info for the Hilton Durham near Duke University. But what about a few other existing reservations? Let’s take a look.
Within the Hotel Guide for my upcoming Waldorf Astoria Chicago reservation, I tapped Dining. But the Dining area only briefly described the Brass Tack restaurant located at the property; no information about F&B credit eligibility was included. I returned to the Hotel Guide and tapped Breakfast (oddly, a separate tile from Dining). Here, the app mentions the $25 F&B credit (up to two) when charging a Brass Tack meal to the room.
My Conrad Washington, DC reservation didn’t offer a Hotel Guide tile. Instead, I tapped on the Honors Benefits tile and received the standard $25 F&B credit (up to two) language rather than specific options where the credit is eligible.
How about the Grand Wailea? I couldn’t find specific credit info anywhere in the app. Tapping Hotel Guide, then Dining only revealed brief restaurant descriptions but no credit info. The Breakfast tile didn’t provide any of that info, either.
Conclusion
Similar to each F&B credit experience at check-in, we’re left with somewhat inconsistent info from property to property in-app. Different hotels retain this information within different app menus, if at all. And, obviously, the app doesn’t necessarily reflect all of the options available to an elite member at a given property. But on the bright side, if F&B credit eligibility info is listed in the app, elites can feel more confident about using this benefit at the defined outlet.
Going forward, I’ll still ask at check-in about the F&B credit-eligible locations at a property, as I prefer to know all my options before committing. But the app feature, while imperfect, can provide enough info for some who don’t want to deliberate such minutiae at check-in.
Perhaps in the future we’ll see a more uniform implementation of this information within the app or elsewhere. Admittedly, I haven’t done an exhaustive review of how different Hilton properties provide this info on their websites, if at all. But I don’t have high expectations.
How has your experience been clarifying Hilton elite food and beverage credits, whether online or in person?
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allways register 2 people 😉
So true! I mess this up frequently (along with forgetting to reserve 2 ppl to a rm on Marriott, too). Then I have to get corrected at the front desk at check-i n (when I remember). Hilton is still bad, though, even when I have 2 on the res to only apply 1, $15 credit, & must correct at check-out
When I stay multiple days, I notice that different hotels stop and start the F&B credit at different times (ie. anytime during the stay or each day’s F&B credit must be used that day), but I am not sure what the policy is for each hotel when I check in. That is what I find most irritating.
ArkansasTraveler,
I’m disappointed yet not surprised. Anyone looking to reasonably use the F&B credit must delve into such minutiae at a less-than-convenient level. Don’t give up!