DoubleTree by Hilton Edinburgh City Centre

After a long journey, the complimentary snacks and drinks were a huge plus. The rooms were spacious and clean, and breakfast was delicious. Becca was so comforting and kind from check-in right through to checkout, and it was lovely to see her at the front desk again when we left. I’d definitely recommend this hotel to anyone coming to Edinburgh for comfort and a warm welcome.

Our room had maintenance ladders taking up space and smelled strongly of damp and mould. When I called reception, they didn’t apologise and just told us to come back for another key. We’d already waited four hours to check in after being told it would take a minute or two. Then we had to wait for the lift again, since one was out of service and the single working lift served every floor. Back at reception, the unhelpful woman handed over new keys without an apology or even telling us the new room number. A staff member we passed in the hallway said maintenance had been carried out that day without reception being informed. How can a third party or maintenance worker enter rooms without checking with reception that they’re vacant? Where’s the record of who comes in and out, and when? As female travellers, we found the possibility of unrecorded access to guest rooms a serious safety concern. Staff showed no concern even after we raised it. The rooms were small, dated, and badly maintained. The bathrooms were especially old, the LED mirror was broken, and so was the TV. The whole hotel needs a lot of work. At £200 for one night we weren’t expecting luxury, but we’ve had much better facilities and service at budget chains than this Hilton. We complained again at checkout and weren’t told how to make a formal complaint or offered any effort to address what happened. The service was terrible. I won’t return, and I’d tell anyone considering it to look elsewhere.

The fish in the restaurant was incredible, and it was enormous, about the size of my head. I loved the hot chocolate at reception, and the warm chocolate cookie at check-in was another nice touch. We stayed two nights on the staff rate and were pleasantly surprised that breakfast was free. It was a really good stay, with a helpful gentleman assisting us throughout, though I didn’t catch his name. The staff seemed happy and very accommodating. I’ll definitely come back next time I’m in Edinburgh.

I’ve travelled for work for 12 years and stayed at Hilton hotels many times. This was by far my worst, and I’ll choose somewhere else in Edinburgh next time. I spent five nights here in February 2026, and the room was dirty, cold, and very dated. There were hairs in the shower and on the bathroom walls, urine splashes on the wall and units, coffee stains on the room safety card, and food residue on a poorly cleaned carpet. The room was cold because a steady, more-than-draft breeze came through the soaking wet windows. When I complained, the manager said they had checked and the AC worked fine. The comfortable bed was one positive, but in that cold room the duvet felt more like a thin sheet. For all five days, only one lift was running while the other was being repaired. It was very slow, with long waits, and on five occasions it was full of dirty laundry. Staff told me to get the next one, including once after I’d waited more than 10 minutes. Poor service. There was a welcome fruit bowl in the room, but it didn’t look fresh. By day two the strawberries were covered in mould. Although the room was meant to be cleaned daily, I had to take the fruit to reception on day four and ask them to remove it. I showed the duty manager and explained that leaving rotting fruit in the room wasn’t acceptable. He smiled and took it away. I ate breakfast on the first morning. The coffee machine wasn’t heating water, and the food selection was average at best. The two breakfast staff, a man and a woman whose names I didn’t catch, were the only people showing a decent level of customer service. The manager, reception team, and cleaners could learn from them.