After travelling since 5am on our check-in date we would have liked to have checked in at 3pm as stated, however we were advised that the room was not ready, and no-one could give an indication when it might be ready..

Tired and weary we were left to sit in the bar until 6pm with a tired and bored 2 year old and a grumpy 5 month old without so much as a complimentary drink. This completely ruined our first evenings plan. Upon complaining we were offered a half hearted apology by the manager.

The very tatty room (a junior suite) was finally ready at 6pm, alas we entered to find the previous guests underwear strewn into a lightshade, old food in the fridge, sticky/dirty patch on the bedside table. Also no bed for the toddler, nor a cot for the baby (as we had ordered)! There was also no safe for our valuables.

Having stayed in Hiltons before we wonderd where our nice fluffy slippers and bathrobes were, it seems that the previous guests dirty Hilton slippers were still under the bed

We were also situated directly over the function room which was holding a rather loud wedding celebration until 2am.

The bathroom was filthy, with a leaking toilet and a shower that would not turn off once on (we reported this several times). Hot water could only be gained after running the tap for 5 minutes (!) There was mould in the shower too - yuk...

Every day we had to ask for sufficient towels, as only two bath towels were left (funnily enough toddlers and babies shower/bath too).

The hotel corridors were constantly littered with used towels in piles, as well as empty pizza boxes/other assorted rubbish.

The pool was pretty good, however the jacuzzi was broken and there was a puddle of smelly urine in the ladies changing rooms

On the positive side I must say that the staff in the restaurant went out of their way to make the children welcome. Our 2 yr old son got very special attention, such as hot chocolate in the mornings and ice cream ( if he ate his supper!)

Not really up to the Hilton name - rooms are large and clean and beds are quite nice. However, corridors are always full of room-service trays. Restaurant is nothing special and the bar is quite pricey. I was surprised to find many Americans staying here as a base for exploring London - this hotel is no-where near London and, in fact, you have to get to Croydon train station before getting a 25 minute train into central London.
On a more positive note, it is relatively cheap (due to location) and the check-in staff are always really helpful.

Having read some of the reviews on this site I was apprehensive about attending the Hilton Croydon for a wedding. But I was pleasntly surprised and left wondering how it came to get such dire reviews.

First up the staff were absolutely superb - genuinely committed, friendly, dryly funny - flawless in fact.

The food I ate was extremely nice, with a terrific performance delivered for the Indian wedding meal.

The rooms had some general wear but were nevertheless clean and wholly acceptable. There was thick double glazing that kept out the noise of the busy nearby road - so I am somewhat mystified how guests could be disturbed by external noises.

As another reviewer pointed out, what I presume is the first stage of a major refurbishment of rooms is taking place on the third floor.

The third floor just being refurbished, over a half a million pound just been spent on refurbishing the third floor and giving it a touch of luxury, with high-speed internet access these rooms are designed to cater for business clientele and leisure a like.
I am very loyal to this hotel, staff are great, and they band backwards to make you happy. Give ait try I am sure you will not get disappointed.