The primary reason for staying at Hilton Helsinki Strand is because I'm a HHonors member. Secondary reason is that other hotels weren't enticing enough.
The Hotel
I'd booked on the Hilton website. 24 hours before my scheduled arrival, I checked-in on the website and choose my room. The actual check in was quick, taking 3 minutes tops. I was pleasantly, surprised that I didn't have to let time imprint my credit card again. All the nice receptionist needed was my passport for ID purposes. She then handed me a small folder with my keys and WiFi password. This is the way it should be. Pre-checked customers should be able to just pick up the key. But this is the first time Hilton had afforded me such hassle-free check-in.
Room
I had a "King Executive Seaview," a room on the 7th floor. As a first-timer to this hotel, I didn't realize that the 7th floor was the executive floor, where the executive lounge was. Embarrassingly, I had to call down to ask where the lounge was and was informed that I was on the same floor as the lounge!
At first glance, the room was surprisingly small. That's probably because the king-size bed took up most of the space. Everything looked new. In fact, the room still smelt of new furniture. I later saw that this property was newly "opened" in December 2015. Later, saw from Googling that the hotel was completed renovated and the renovation completed in December 2015.
Bedside USB ports
Desk power panel.
Instead of providing universal AC power outlets, there were plenty of built-in USB ports, which provided enough amp for my Android to say "charging," instead of "charging slowly. Some beside the bed, and at the desk. There was one universal AC power outlet in the bathroom.
Lounge
Breakfasts in the morning, and canapés from 17:00 are served. The canapes, are hearty enough as dinner. As I was there during the winter months, the lounge wasn't crowded at all. Food and drinks were ample. No complaints whatsoever.
Lounge, food area.
Partial view of Lounge.
Epilogue
Great hotel. Staff, hardware, everything were very efficient. Some may feel that location is far from the city-center. But it's just a few tram stops, and 2 subway stops away. The nearest tram, bus, subway stops are about 150 meters away.
