Hilton’s new LXR brand to arrive in London as the Millennium Mayfair rebrands

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• Max says:

  9 Jan9 January 05:19

  OT. Anyone know if it is possible to pay an Amex card with the debit Curve card? Any limits if it is possible?

  • Thomas Howard says:

    9 Jan9 January 07:15

    It’s against their T&Cs but I have in the past. Generally it seems to be getting harder to create this kind of manufactured spend. If it works you’re lucky but I wouldn’t plan anything around it.

  • Rob Walker says:

    9 Jan9 January 09:13

    I’ve been doing it quite a lot recently. When backed by my IHG card, I can only get chunks of £100-200 through at once and then only one or two of those per day at best. My Lloyds Avios card always works fine.

    However… I still have the initial £10k limit on my Curve and when I asked for an increase, they basically told me to take a hike as I was mainly using it to pay credit cards with other credit cards.

    • Thomas Howard says:

      9 Jan9 January 09:43

      My Lloyds account is now refusing to accept Curve with the message its not a UK card (I think I looked its BIN up once and it was German). I can’t really check any more as I’ve exhausted my limit paying HMRC last quarters VAT and they haven’t responded to my email asking for more (I’m on the black card).

      • Anna says:

        9 Jan9 January 10:53

        I’ve had issues with Lloyds but the problem was that you can only make a limited number of debit card payments per month (possibly 3?). It’s worth waiting until the next calendar month and trying again.

      • Ali says:

        9 Jan9 January 13:42

        How do you pay your Lloyds account using curve?

      • Alan says:

        10 Jan10 January 00:08

        I’ve found the free online BIN lookups pretty unreliable. Not seen a way to make debit card payments to Lloyds though? Nothing online and phone system didn’t seem to offer it either – do you need to a current a/c holder with them?

• Gary Z says:

  9 Jan9 January 06:19

  O/T:

  My girlfriend and I would like to transfer some points from our BAEC household account to our Iberia accounts. I’m aware of the 90 day rule and the fact that we won’t be able to transfer from our household account. It’s just me and her in the household account.

  If we bring an end to the household account, how long does this usually take?
  I know it’s another 6 months until further changes can be made but would this also include the formation of a new household account? I read something about a 24 hour window – would it be possible to ‘suspend’ the account, transfer the points and then reactivate it?

  Thanks for any help

  • Tony says:

    9 Jan9 January 06:25

    Have you tried to move them while still in your household account? I’ve never had a problem moving from BA to Iberia. The restriction appears to be on movement the other way.

    • Matt says:

      9 Jan9 January 07:24

      And if that doesn’t work, open AerClub and transfer BA->AerClub->Iberia

      • Neil says:

        9 Jan9 January 07:39

        Or a Flybe account as Matt mentioned above. I have also never needed to close my household account with BA

  • Alan says:

    10 Jan10 January 00:09

    Just move via Avios.com – mine’s still open via AerClub and works fine despite my BAEC a/c being in a HHA

• TripRep says:

  9 Jan9 January 06:36

  That Habtoor palace looks far more in keeping with what I class as close to the original style of a WA.

  I had no clue as to what LXRs stands for.

  Well that was until I read its Luxury “based on experience rather than opulence” ( a tad pompous slogan)

  Also found out another new potential Hilton brand… “Signia”
  https://thegate.boardingarea.com/two-more-new-brands-from-hilton-lxr-hotels-resorts-and-signia-hilton/

  • Rob says:

    9 Jan9 January 09:12

    Habtoor Palace is cheaply built, however. I was talking about this someone yesterday who has stayed there. Hard to have a luxury hotel where many of the rooms DIRECTLY overlook an 8-lane motorway and the whole property is overshadowed by two far taller hotels built on either side.

• Nick says:

  9 Jan9 January 07:00

  “It is hard to see how LXR is going to carve out a brand identity when none of its properties were designed for it from scratch.”

  It appears that LXR is supposed to be a soft brand, with the properties maintaining their individual identities. This seems to be supported by Hilton in their media description, “We’ve connected legendary luxury properties into a network of hotels offering singular service and remarkable experiences.”

  I find it quite appealing if you want something different from the big groups.

  • Leo says:

    9 Jan9 January 07:44

    Isn’t that supposed to be “Curio” though? Most of the brands seem a bit arbitrary tp me….

    • Brian says:

      9 Jan9 January 08:21

      I would have thought Curio is a level below LXR – I don’t think any of the Curio hotels I’ve experienced would count as ‘legendary luxury’, even if they are nice.

    • TGLoyalty says:

      9 Jan9 January 09:06

      Curio is just 5* while LXR is 5* luxury.

    • Rob says:

      9 Jan9 January 09:09

      Indeed. Curio as 5-star and Tapestry (not in Europe yet?) as 4-star. Is LXR meant to sit above Curio?

      • Brian says:

        9 Jan9 January 10:23

        Rob, did you know that the Doubletree in South Ken is rebranding as Curio this spring?

        • Rob says:

          9 Jan9 January 11:13

          No – interesting. Put my brother in here once but never actually went in. It is in a very posh location but the hotel historically wasn’t up to much. Has only been a DoubleTree for a while.

      • TGLoyalty says:

        9 Jan9 January 11:17

        That’s how I saw it from a recent random news article I saw online about Hilton’s aspirations of an organic move into the Luxury sector

      • Brian says:

        9 Jan9 January 12:43

        I’ve stayed there twice. Rooms are fine – second stay was in a refurbished one that was nice. It doesn’t have anything particularly special about it, though, unlike, say, the Reichshof in Hamburg, so not sure what will make it Curio…

      • Leo says:

        9 Jan9 January 13:00

        Sort of makes sense – the only Curio I stayed at was the Del in Coronado. Expensive, nice location and definitely historic (for the States) but in reality a massive convention machine. If you weren’t wearing a blazer and chinos carrying a folder you stuck out like a sore thumb….

• Gavin says:

  9 Jan9 January 07:20

  Off topic – any idea how to boost my wife’s credit rating as shortly want to apply for a mortgage as need to relocate to somewhere in London and buy a place as doing a 2 hr commute to St Pauls is getting silly. It’s currently 969 on Experian. She isn’t on electoral roll (non EU citizen), but she is on all household bills, has a mobile contract in her name, pays off credit card each month, two bank accounts.

  • Anna says:

    9 Jan9 January 07:35

    Isn’t 969 a pretty good credit rating?

  • Genghis says:

    9 Jan9 January 07:41

    From what you’ve said I wouldn’t worry. It doesn’t matter what Experian think, remember.

  • Neil says:

    9 Jan9 January 07:43

    When you make the application, you will find that your credit rating only plays a small part in the application. What the lender will really be looking at is how often you default on payments / direct debits and potentially flag any charge cards as they often do not have any credit limits however must be paid off in full each month.

  • John says:

    9 Jan9 January 07:53

    Experian’s credit rating is meaningless unless Experian is a mortgage lender. Mortgage lenders look at far more factors that what some company that doesn’t even lend money itself thinks. Sure they may auto-decline anyone with a crap rating, and they likely also auto-decline non-EU citizens who don’t have ILR. Using credit cards may be bad for mortgage chances, especially if you have high limits.

    • Andrew says:

      9 Jan9 January 08:53

      “Using credit cards may be bad for mortgage chances, especially if you have high limits.”

      It’s not what you use, it’s how you use it.

      • Gavin says:

        9 Jan9 January 11:03

        thanks all, limits aren’t high on her card and it’s paid off each month. Appreciate not much more can be done, and Experian isn’t a mortgage lender. No ILR presently but there are some lenders who are still happy to lend.

• Nick G says:

  9 Jan9 January 07:27

  I thought you weren’t going again to the FS rob after last time? Was it any better?

  • Anna says:

    9 Jan9 January 07:37

    £12.50 for a child’s breakfast! Would it hurt these hotels to offer a free portion of toast or cereal, which is generally all that small children eat for breakfast and costs 50p at most?

    • Claire says:

      9 Jan9 January 08:24

      Especially when your kids are 12+. My lad is now 14 looks like a grown man but still won’t eat more than half a bowl of cereals at breakfast, but we get hit with a full adult breakfast charge for him now. We just leave them in the room now (at 14 & 11) and smuggle a croissant/apple or whatever up for them, no way I’m paying £20+ for a slice of toast or some rice crispies!

  • Rob says:

    9 Jan9 January 09:10

    We reached a settlement after my very messy “we don’t have a restaurant and this weekend we don’t even have a chef” stay in August 2017! New restaurant is now open and is, at least for families, a big improvement on the old one.

• Aliks says:

  9 Jan9 January 07:52

  OT Journey Latin America just sent me 2 complimentary tickets to the Olympia Holiday & Travel Show at the end of Jan.

  I don’t think I am short of ideas for my bucket list, but it might be interesting

  JLA say the tickets are worth £30 – but does anyone have a view on whether its worth going?

  • Genghis says:

    9 Jan9 January 07:54

    I get free tickets every year. In reality worth a couple of quid. Worth going once for an hour or so but I’ve not been now for years.

    • RussellH says:

      9 Jan9 January 15:44

      I get free entry with the Sunday Times Travel Mag, as presumably does every other reader.

      One of the European Tourist Offices once offered to hand out leaflets for my business from their stand. I used a unique e-mail address on the leaflets and never had a single enquiry. Perhaps more worrying, that address never even got spammed!
      🙂

  • John says:

    9 Jan9 January 07:55

    Hasn’t Rob been several times? If you have nothing else to do and it isn’t inconvenient to get there why not?

  • Vivian says:

    9 Jan9 January 11:01

    code OLYWEB will get 2 tickets for £3. There are other promo codes that come with travel magazines.

  • ADS says:

    9 Jan9 January 16:19

    worth having a look at the speakers on each day and timing your visit – they usually get some good ones / speak about a wide range of destinations

• roger says:

  9 Jan9 January 08:05

  Does anyone know P&O offer from Amex (now expired but may come back as it usually does); can be used to book channel crossing – e.g. Dover to Calais?
  Also taking my car for very first time to EU (benelux) from west london, what are my best options?

  I have Amex Travel offer but cannot use to book any travel for channel crossing.

  • Genghis says:

    9 Jan9 January 08:11

    Take Eurotunnel. Ferries are full of “rough ‘uns”.

    • roger says:

      9 Jan9 January 08:12

      Cheers, Genghis.
      Never have seen any Amex offer for EuroTunnel, any feedback, best ways to book etc.?

      • Lady London says:

        9 Jan9 January 12:20

        There are lots of offers especially at this time of year. The Daily Mail has a website and I think the Mirror? might have one too.
        Hotukdeals and vouchercodes also usually feature these when available. Returns often don’t cost much more than singles on tunnel and ferry.

        If doing Benelux I would still do tunnel or via Calais. It’s the shortest crossing. Longer crossings such as Harwich to Hoek of Holland (if that’s still going) are…er… longer and can have rougher water.

        Aferry dot com will find most ferry options on one search and good for other ferries eg Scandinavia. They do miss some of the special offers though.

        Lastly some of the ferry co’s and I think Eurotunnel do offer carnets for frequent travellers. This removes a lot of the seasonal pricing you’d normally be subject to and can break even with 6 oneways in a year or less.

    • Genghis says:

      9 Jan9 January 08:13

      Oh, and don’t forget your high vis. Have EUR100 in the car to pay off the Gendarmes when they fine you even though you’ve done nothing wrong.

    • Pierre says:

      9 Jan9 January 09:59

      I’m in 2 minds on this one:
      Ferry: takes longer to get to from London, longer crossing time, not good with toddlers. However, it can be much cheaper than Eurotunnel (I’m talking £20 return and a free case of wine on a day trip), and delays are less important than Eurotunnel.

      Eurotunnel: Can be booked with Clubcard, quicker if things run smoothly. Though more expensive, and if things go south you’re in trouble (Last year I had about £200 worth of tickets refunded due to a handful of faulty trains leading to 5-hour delays, not fun staying in the car at night with a 4 y.o. and a 1.y.o without knowing when you’ll depart)

      • Genghis says:

        9 Jan9 January 10:03

        I wouldn’t put any value on the wine. I once asked a guy at the shop: “what grape variety is the free case of red”. “red”. Perhaps OK as red wine vinegar.

      • Alex says:

        9 Jan9 January 14:01

        More details needed on the 20£+free case deal with ferry, please! 🙂

    • Lady London says:

      9 Jan9 January 11:26

      Oi! I take the ferry a lot especially for work.

      • Genghis says:

        9 Jan9 January 11:31

        Exactly 🙂

      • TripRep says:

        9 Jan9 January 12:20

        ROTFLMAO,

        Genghis – hilarious. 😀

      • Genghis says:

        9 Jan9 January 12:32

        To clarify, Lady London and I met at the HfP Xmas party. Only said in jest.

  • Sandra says:

    9 Jan9 January 08:43

    Eurotunnel using Tesco clubcard as Genghis says. Seriously though, look on AA/RAC or other motoring site at up to date info. regarding what you have to carry in car – hi vis, breathalyser kit etc. If you do get stopped for something and gendarmes check you can get fined on the spot if you don’t have the stuff in your car and also if caught speeding and checks in high season on main roads to ports often catch speeding drivers late for their homeward ferry!

  • RussellH says:

    9 Jan9 January 15:55

    Where in Benelux?
    For Belgium or Luxembourg Dover-Calais or Dover-Dunkerque (longer crossing but shorter drive, DFDS only).
    For Netherlands, and if you like overnight crossings, then Harwich-Hoek (Stena) might be your best bet.
    High vis jackets only compulsory in France, but you do need a warning triangle – never understood why they are not at least recommended here – I always have two in the car anyway.
    If going to (or even near) Luxemburg remember to fill up there – much cheaper than anywhere else in Europe, and prices fixed, so you pay no more at quiet, rural garages. You may find filling stations sparse in other countries close to Luxemburg!
    For amusement drive through Martelange – the east side of the road is in Luxemburg, the west side in Belgium. About all there is on the Luxemburg side is 7 filling stations – one is always closed – a different one each day.

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