I travel weekly for work and prefer Hilton brand over the HGI or Hampton brands. I have stayed away from this hotel when coming to Albany because of bad past experiences (prior to 2000). I decided to give it another try on this stay, and I am glad I did. The rooms still need a lot of work, but the service and amenities have improved exponentially. As such, I am going to break this review into two sections:

Service/Amenities: The front desk staff was amazing, answering all questions, providing recommendations, etc. This is such a welcome change. Rachel is just the type of person you want to interact with when you are tired from a work trip. I wish I knew the name of the wonderful woman who was working in the concierge lounge. The breakfast was wonderful, and it was so nice to start the day with a friendly hello and a warm smile. The light snacks available in the evening are a welcome treat as well.

The mattresses were wonderful, and I definitely prefer the bedding to what is used at the HGI/Hampton Inn hotels.

Room Quality/Maintenance: This is where I have to give some warnings. The room was very clean. I was not concerned with the quality of housekeeping, but the room itself needs serious maintenance. The intake vent for the HVAC system had missing slats and you could see the standing water/rust/mold inside. This was really quite gross. The ceiling also had a lot of areas where the paint/plaster/concrete - not sure what the material is - were buckled and peeling. The carpets were quite stained, but again clean and smelled nice. It just seemed very dated. I will say I am surprised that rooms that are listed as being on the executive floor and are either more money or are upgrades don't at least have issues like this touched up.

All in all - it was a nice stay, and I will be staying there again. I hope that the company makes some updates and this will definitely bring this to a 5 star rating.

Rooms were musty, carpet stained, windows dirty and I ended up getting sick from just breathing in the air. Tried to change rooms 3 times and sadly all rooms were in same condition and we ended up having to go to another hotel. Tried to call the manager next morning left countless voice messages but there was no response or just basic curtesy to apologize for the inconvenience caused.

Three of my friends and I rode the Erie Canal trail from Buffalo. I wanted to treat my friends to a nice hotel in Albany when we completed our ride. As a diamond member of Hilton, I decided to stay at the Albany Hilton. I used a combination of points and money to book two rooms on the executive floor. We were all disappointed with our stay. The rooms were not what I expected. The bath tubs were slick and very dangerous while taking a shower. The carpet was stained and nails were sticking up at the joints which I stepped on. Bad on me for not wearing shoes. Flakes of paint were bubbling off the ceiling. The executive lounge ended up being closed the night we were there even though it was supposed to be open. The front desk did quickly get us drinks and an appetizers in the first floor lounge. This hotel really needs an update and cleaning.