This review is part of a series about my experience of my first ever package holiday – a trip to Lapland. You can find out more about the trip here.
I was flying from Manchester to Kittila (for Lapland) very early the next day and decided to drive down the night before and stay at the Hilton Manchester Airport.
I had booked the stay well in advance and had arranged for 2 connecting rooms to be assigned to us (MrsTravelFreak, myself and the 2 JuniorTravelFreaks). The cash rate for each room was £109 but the same room was also available for only 20,000 Hilton Hhonors points which I thought was much better.
Due to unforeseen circumstances, the four and a half hour drive took almost six hours and we arrived at the hotel after 10pm so I didn’t get the chance to try dinner.
Check-in was efficient although I wasn’t asked the usual questions (paper, wakeup etc.) nor given the usual ‘Welcome back’ script. The staff member who was checking me in wore a ‘trainee’ name badge so I assume she was fairly new (although I couldn’t see anyone who was training her!).
The concierge asked if I needed some help with my many bags (which I stupidly declined) and the other staff that I interacted with were very smiley. I took the elevator to the 2nd floor and was a bit disappointed to discover that my two connecting rooms were right next to the lift despite my Hilton HHonors profile stating the opposite. The room was certainly nice enough and seemed fairly modern. Here are a couple of pictures of the room: 
The central door that connected the rooms was locked, and this required a call downstairs to ask someone to rectify, however, a gentleman appeared after only 5 minutes and the task was completed without any drama.
I was quite pleased with the Gold HHonors benefits offered here:
- Room upgrade (although this may have been the only rooms that connected)
- Free breakfast for myself + 1 guest (the kids managed to grab a croissant too)
- 2 free drinks vouchers for the bar – not restricted to house wine and beer either
The shuttle bus to the airport runs on demand 24 hours a day. At 05:30 the minibus was full but another appeared almost immediately so there were no tears or tantrums from any guests. The ride to Terminal 2 took less than 10 minutes.
My stay here was short but certainly functional; I would happily stay here again if the need arose.
Hilton Manchester Airport, Outwood Lane, Manchester. Website
