It was all about the oysters

I spent five days at the Hilton New Orleans Riverside in New Orleans, Louisiana. I stayed in this particular hotel because it was associated with a conference I was attending. For the price I paid per night, I expected it to be a spectacular hotel and a room with a view. The hotel was very nice, and the room did have a view looking out over the traffic circle in front of the hotel toward Harrah’s Casino. It was kind of pretty at night, but the room itself was nothing special. I think I was in a section of the hotel that was an older part, because my colleagues were in a different area and were thrilled with their accommodations. (I was actually a little under-whelmed after reading the hotel website’s description.) The room was spacious, comfortable, and clean, so no complaints there. Parking was $30.00 a night for self-park and $36.00 for valet. I think that’s too high, but it was New Orleans after all and the parking garage was protected. Probably a good thing.

I ate several times in Drago’s Seafood Restaurant. Everything about this restaurant was absolutely wonderful. Even though it was always crowded, the service was outstanding and the food was amazing. It was worth the price of the trip just to have Drago’s signature dish: Charbroiled Oysters.

I did have an issue with the front desk. I found it fascinating that after I’d stayed two nights in the hotel that the desk clerk called me to tell me I hadn’t given them a credit card to pay for the room. “Uh, excuse me? You wouldn’t let me check in without giving you a card.” “Well,” she said, “we don’t have one on file.” So I asked her what she did with it. She said nothing - since I never gave it to them. (I’d had a very long day by this point.) I asked if the hotel was in the habit of allowing people to stay without first presenting a confirmed method of payment. She said “of course not.” I said “I’ve been in this room for two days, and you don’t know how I’m paying for it?” Like I said, I was really tired and didn’t really appreciate the problem that was not of my making. Besides, I was a little worried wondering just who had taken my credit card when I checked in. Somebody had that number.

Now I think I’ll backtrack a bit and fill you in on the reason I was so tired. I checked in the hotel on a Friday night. Apparently it was a designated party weekend at the Hilton, because the hallways were filled with people yelling, laughing, and slamming doors throughout the night on both Friday and Saturday nights. When I didn’t hear noise in the hallway (usually slowing a bit by around 3:30 a.m. or so,) I found myself listening to the couple in the next room. They were having serious domestic arguments complete with expletives that bounced around my room before landing. I realize this was not the fault of the Hilton, but considering the price of this hotel I somehow didn’t expect the clientele to be so... interesting.

Five days in New Orleans was too long, even with a nice hotel.