Maximise your Avios, air miles and hotel points

Hilton’s ‘Spark’ brand to make its international debut …. in Romford

Links on Head for Points may support the site by paying a commission.  See here for all partner links.

Back in January 2023, Hilton announced (yet another) new brand – Spark.

The first Spark hotel opened in Mystic, Connecticut in September 2023 and a handful of other sites have opened in the US since then.

Hilton is now looking to launch Spark outside the US. It’s clearly important to make the right choice for what will be the flagship international site.

Where is better than above an Asda in Romford?

Spark by Hilton Romford logo

What is a Spark hotel?

Before we get into the Romford hotel, here are the key things you need to know about Spark:

  • it is a ‘premium economy’ hotel brand, whatever that means
  • it is PURELY a conversion brand – there are no plans for new hotels to be built under the ‘Spark’ brand
  • it will offer all guests a simple free breakfast (coffee, juice, bagel)
  • all hotels will feature a 24/7 mini market in the lobby

Interestingly, Hilton claims that Spark will bring ‘consistency’, which is the factor it feels is missing from the economy end of the hotel market at present. This is interesting given that all Spark hotels will be conversions – with little ability to bring consistency to things such as room size – and implies that a substantial level of upgrading will be required.

Of course, if all hotels have to be refurbished before opening, they will be consistent in terms of ‘newness’ – although after a few years there will clearly be gaps opening up between the state of older and newer Spark hotels.

Here is a room mock-up released by Hilton when the brand was first announced:

Spark by Hilton bedroom

Looking at the images, Spark appears to be aimed at the Travelodge end of the market. This is a space dominated by Wyndham and Choice in the US, and where Hilton, Marriott and IHG have tended to steer clear.

Called ‘a compelling investment option for owners’, Spark aims to provide ‘a simple, reliable and comfortable stay’ for every guest at an ‘accessible’ price.

Core brand characteristics will include ‘colourful statement walls’ and ‘energizing artwork’ in public areas and lots of ‘multi-functional seating, including rocking chairs’. Room features include open wardrobes, a fridge, a ‘bright’ bathroom and a ‘multi-purpose work table’.

And so to Romford ….

Next to the railway station in Romford, Essex is/was an Ibis Styles hotel. Here is a CGI render from the initial Accor annoucement back in late 2021:

Spark by Hilton Romford

The hotel was due to open in 2022 and was effectively a new build, with an old office building being gutted and additional floors added on top. However, it’s not clear if it was ever used by the general public.

At some point in 2022 – possibly before it even opened, I can’t be sure – it was handed over to the Home Office to house asylum seekers. The last of these checked out in February 2024.

The owners have decided not to re-open under the Ibis Styles brand and the hotel is currently being converted to ‘Spark by Hilton London Romford’.

It claims to be opening in May 2024 but isn’t taking any reservations. The photographs on the Hilton site show it as an Ibis Styles and, to be honest, it looks quite funky so hopefully not much is changed.

Depending on the price, the hotel may well be able to survive purely on people looking for a low cost option near London. It might even be a cheap way of knocking up elite night credits via a mattress run if you are just short of requalifying for Hilton Diamond Elite status.

Romford station is over the road with services to Westfield Stratford taking just 10 minutes and trains to Liverpool Street taking 15 minutes.

You can find out more on the Hilton website here.

PS. If you are not a regular Head for Points visitor, why not sign up for our FREE weekly or daily newsletters? They are full of the latest Avios, airline, hotel and credit card points news and will help you travel better. To join our 65,000 free subscribers, click the button below or visit this page of the site to find out more. Thank you.

How to earn Hilton Honors points and status from UK credit cards

How to earn Hilton Honors points and status from UK credit cards (April 2025)

There are various ways of earning Hilton Honors points from UK credit and debit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses.

There are two dedicated Hilton Honors debit cards. These are especially attractive when spending abroad due to the 0% or 0.5% FX fee, depending on card.

You also receive FREE Hilton Honors status for as long as you hold the debit cards – Gold status with the Plus card and Silver status with the basic card. This is a great reason to apply even if you rarely use it.

We reviewed the Hilton Honors Plus Debit Card here and the Hilton Honors Debit Card here.

You can apply for either card here.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 30th April 2025, the annual fee on the basic Hilton Honors debit card is halved from £60 to £30. The sign-up bonus is also easier to earn – you need to spend £1,000 either in the UK or abroad within three months. The usual bonus rule requires you to spend the full £1,000 outside the UK.

NEW: Hilton Honors Plus Debit

10,000 bonus points, Hilton Gold status and NO FX fees Read our full review

NEW: Hilton Honors Debit

2,500 bonus points, Hilton Silver status and 0.5% FX fees Read our full review

There is another way of getting Hilton Honors status, and earning Hilton Honors points, from a payment card.

Holders of The Platinum Card from American Express receive FREE Hilton Honors Gold status for as long as they hold the card.  It also comes with Marriott Bonvoy Gold, Radisson Rewards Premium and MeliaRewards Gold status.

We reviewed American Express Platinum in detail here and you can apply here.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Platinum is increased from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to a huge 80,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (80,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

The Platinum Card from American Express

80,000 bonus points and great travel benefits – for a large fee Read our full review

You can also earn Hilton Honors points indirectly with:

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on the ‘free for a year’ American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card is increased from 20,000 Membership Rewards points to 30,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (30,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

and for small business owners:

The conversion rate from American Express to Hilton Honors points is 1:2.

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which can be used to earn Hilton Honors points.

Category

Hilton Honors

Comments (81)

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

  • tootsci says:
    11 May11 May 08:17

    The other thing these sorts of hotels are often good for (along with Premier Inn) are their proximity to hospitals. I need to stay nearby to King George Hospital to work later this year. Was initially booked in to the HIE Newbury Park (via BA Hotels for the Avios) as that was the closest, but got an email saying the booking had to be cancelled (not sure what’s going on there?) so I’ve booked into the PI Romford West instead. This Spark is right by Queens Hospital so I’m sure it’ll get trade from that too as well

  • Greenpen says:
    11 May11 May 08:23

    I am completely befuddled by the vast majority of hotel brands. I just don’t understand them. Throw in the variability of rooms in an establishment and you really don’t know what you’re getting.

    To me ‘Hilton’ means a great hotel, iconic even. The catch-phrase “What do you want, the Hilton” or “It’s not the Hilton you know” sticks in my mind from somewhere. I’ve stayed in some nice Hilton’s and some awful ones over the years; I’ve no idea whether they were branded or not, just some lived up to my expectations and others failed dramatically.

    • sayling says:
      11 May11 May 09:53

      I’m with you on this one

    • NorthernLass says:
      11 May11 May 10:24

      I can get my head around Conrad/WA at one end, and Hampton/Homewood at the other, but what is the difference when it comes to Canopy/Curio/Tapestry etc?!

      • TGLoyalty says:
        11 May11 May 13:37

        Canopy is a bit like an Indigo it has set brand standards but inspired by the local area. Usually new build or fully refurbishment.

        Curio is a collection of individual 5* type properties which are meant to have a destination vibe to them ie great bar/restaurant etc that keep their independence but leverage the Hilton systems.

        Tapestry is again a collection of independent hotels as above but it’s 3/4* hotels.

        It’s really not that hard.

        • HampshireHog says:
          11 May11 May 16:48

          I think you’ve just adequately illustrated what quite a few folk have been saying about far too many brands, I have no idea whether what you say is true or not nor would I know where to look to decide I wanted to stay in a hotel in such a sun category

          • TGLoyalty says:
            11 May11 May 17:14

            Yet in the other comment you look for independent hotels that rely on their own brand! Make your mind up.

            Do you want fewer brands so you know what sort of property you’re getting or far more?

        • HampshireHog says:
          11 May11 May 17:57

          I prefer a canapé in my mouth and a tapestry on the wall. Simples.

    • Tiberius says:
      11 May11 May 10:31

      Especially growing up in Manchester where Hilton = luxury skyscraper

      (I have since been and it is definitely not luxury and no longer the only skyscraper!)

      • TGLoyalty says:
        11 May11 May 13:29

        It’s slowly become like all hotels of this kind … long due a refurb and the prices reflect that tbh.

        • HampshireHog says:
          11 May11 May 17:52

          For me there are only two reasons to stay at a chain, a brand with standards I can be confident of or use/earn points opportunities. A plethora of meaningless brand names simply puts me off, hence i increasingly turn to Premier Inn if I just want a quality VFM bed for the night in the UK. Pretty simple really

          • TGLoyalty says:
            11 May11 May 20:33

            Which is fine in the U.K. and probably Germany … some people like that globally.

            The brand are differentiated they just don’t interest you but they do and will interest many others.

            I see a place for Hilton, Hampton, Garden Inn, Canopy, Conrad and Waldorf Astoria in the world and seems so do Hilton’s customers and so do their customers.

    • PeteM says:
      11 May11 May 10:48

      Yet there’s also plenty of dreadful Hiltons… Now you can’t rely on TripAdvisor or review sites either, it’s back to doing a lot more research on each property.

      • Chris Higham says:
        11 May11 May 22:34

        The Hilton Leicester / Northampton/ etc which are weirdly identically bad for example

        • TGLoyalty says:
          12 May12 May 00:56

          They’re all ex-stakis properties.

          Funny enough the Leicester property was sold to the same company as the Warwick property (now a Delta) and is meant to be converting to a doubletree.

    • Can2 says:
      11 May11 May 13:26

      Clearly that is big chains’ trick to spread as much as possible. They can licence a Tapestry when there is a nearby Curio. A Conrad can open few streets down from WA.

    • HampshireHog says:
      11 May11 May 16:46

      The Bangkok Hilton of course may have different associations for some peeps

  • lumma says:
    11 May11 May 08:54

    There’s a big Network Rail operations site next to Romford station too. Can see them using this hotel extensively

  • Simon C says:
    11 May11 May 09:01

    Technically Romford hasn’t been in Essex for nearly 60 years. Doubtless to the relief of Essex.

    • Ian says:
      11 May11 May 09:39

      There’s nothing ‘technically’ about, Romford is not in Essex!

      • sayling says:
        11 May11 May 10:10

        Pah – no London postcode; not in London 😉

        Full disclosure: I live in Edmonton, London, N9, part of the London Borough of Enfield, which is in Middlesex. Proud Londoner and someone who supports the continuing recognition of Middlesex.

        Also somewhat confused, obviously

      • Ian says:
        11 May11 May 11:41

        Always was in Essex!

    • memesweeper says:
      11 May11 May 14:49

      local government = in London
      postally = not in London

  • Richie says:
    11 May11 May 09:20

    I found out about Nest rooms at Ibis Budget this week, looks ok for a short stay.

    • Rob says:
      11 May11 May 09:56

      Many Ibis Budget hotels are not in Accor Live Limitless, note. Can be important if there is a bonus points promo on.

  • Richie says:
    11 May11 May 11:36

    Which brand has hotels in the UK with 6ft/1.8m wide beds and at least 250 thread count cotton bed linen?

  • Ian says:
    11 May11 May 11:43

    Essex is poorly served by Hilton and not much better with other chains.

    At least this is potentially better than the doubletree at Dartford which is very poor.

    Will all depend upon the price

    • BBbetter says:
      11 May11 May 16:19

      Essex, Norfolk and Suffolk – all 3 counties lack decent hotels.
      Strange that they are so close to London and the hotels are simply rubbish.

      • LittleNick says:
        16 May16 May 08:41

        Surely there’s good independent hotels not connected to any chain of brands?

  • TooPoorToBeHere says:
    11 May11 May 12:42

    Mega mega mega

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

New to Head for Points?

Welcome!  We’re the UK’s most-read source of business travel, Avios, frequent flyer and hotel loyalty news. Let us improve how you travel. Got any questions? Ask them in our forums.

Get 25,000 Avios with the Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard

GET A SIGN-UP BONUS OF 18,000 VIRGIN POINTS!

Latest Forum Posts

Get 80,000 bonus points (worth 80,000 Avios) and £400 of dining credit with The Platinum Card (Offer ends 27th May)

Check reward flight availability instantly for free!

See a whole year of reward seat availability on one page at SeatSpy.com

Get up to 10,000 bonus Hilton Honors points

Booking a luxury hotel?

Our luxury hotel booking service offers you GUARANTEED extra benefits over booking direct. Works with Four Seasons, Mandarin Oriental, The Ritz Carlton, St Regis and more. We've booked £1.7 million of rooms to date. Click for details.

SME? GET THE ONLY FREE SMALL BUSINESS CREDIT CARD WHICH CAN EARN AVIOS

Get points worth 30,000 Avios with 'first year free' American Express Gold (ends 27th May)

The UK's biggest frequent flyer website uses cookies, which you can block via your browser settings. Continuing implies your consent to this policy. Our privacy policy is here.

Got it!