DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Jacksonville Riverfront

Came for a concert and location was great. The hotel is beyond outdated and needs a complete renovation. Rooms had filthy carpet and bad outlets. Not updated since built. Pool was dirty and needed to be redone and service at pool bar was poor and drinks were gross (note to bartender: check fruit before putting it in a drink!). Staff is friendly but not helpful for information if you need food late or if you get bad service. Won’t book here again.

Location

Central location

I loved the location and the view of the river.

This place is terrible, dirty and run down. They haven't remodeled this place since it opened. I wouldn't recommend this place to my dog. Nothing works furniture is old and broken. The staff lied and said I never made them aware of any issue. I literally made them aware upon arrival. The carpet is absolutely filthy. I could write a book on how bad it is.

First of all I stay in hotel 50+ nights a year, primarily hiltons. This was the worst hotel I’ve ever “stayed in”. Walking to my room I noticed there was just bits of trash and such along the floor. I got my first room changed after finding a condom wrapper and weed paraphernalia under the ac unit, along with clumps of dirt and dust on the front of the AC vent. I didn’t even check the first room any further. The total for the night was in the $170-$190 Range after taxes and fees. The woman at the front desk was very apologetic and changed my room with no upgrade or comp on anything.

Second room had no condom wrappers but had dirty carpet, water damage in multiple spots on the ceiling, mold behind the night stand, burn holes in the carpet, and a dismantled fire alarm. I didn’t dig too deep because I had to work on booking another hotel.

The view of the river was nice I could see the hotel I ended up staying in from the balcony.

I did not like anything about this property besides the valet services.

Very outdated & disgusting. Sinks clogged, showers clogged, walls dirty, I felt very uncomfortable sleeping there

We checked in on June 30th and immediately had to relocate rooms due to strong odors and overall uncleanliness. Unfortunately, that was only the beginning of several major issues during our stay.

While returning to the hotel one evening, we pulled into the parking lot (which is completely open and accessible to anyone) and found three young people hanging around. As we parked, they began approaching our vehicle, and moments later four more individuals dressed in all black ran into the lot behind us. We felt extremely unsafe. We notified the staff and security, but security did not want to confront them and told us the police would need to be called.

Another incident occurred when we returned to our room after being out: someone had attempted to access our room through the adjoining door. Security and staff said the only solution was to move us again. While we were reporting this, another guest was at the desk saying someone had actually entered his room. This made us even more concerned about the lack of security and control within the hotel.

Additionally, while using the pool, four kids and two adults were swimming and openly stated they were not guests; they simply came up because the pool was open and free. The gates leading to the Riverwalk were never locked, allowing anyone to walk directly into the pool area without restriction.

Overall, the lack of safety, security, and cleanliness were major issues throughout our stay. The one positive note is that the staff themselves were very kind and tried their best to be accommodating, but the environment and security protocols were far below acceptable standards.

Location

Cool atmosphere, very relaxing

Location on the river is great and staff is excellent. Regular visitors due to location near Baptist Hospital. There are other nearby hotels but nicest thing of all is Alvita on the front desk. She is so welcoming and helpful that she brings us back. A great stay and we look forward to our already planned next visit.

As an event organization, we've hosted events at hotels across the country for the past six years. Unfortunately, our experience at the DoubleTree by Hilton Jacksonville Riverfront was, by far, the worst we've encountered when it came to guest room quality.

To be fair, our event itself was a success. The lobby, banquet facilities, and most of the staff met our expectations. However, the overwhelming amount of negative feedback we received from our attendees regarding the guest rooms was simply unacceptable.

When we selected this property nearly 10 months before our event, we were assured that the hotel would be fully renovated by the time we arrived. That did not happen. As a result, we were left trying to manage an extraordinary number of guest complaints throughout the weekend.

The issues reported included large bugs in rooms, a foul odor in the lower parking garage and interior areas, dirty showers, stained and unclean linens, blood stains on walls, what appeared to be human waste on a pull-out couch mattress, and numerous other sanitation and maintenance concerns. We have extensive photos and videos documenting these conditions.

Beyond the room conditions, one guest was the victim of a scam while staying at the hotel, and there were attempted thefts involving an iPad and a pair of Ray-Ban Meta glasses. These incidents only added to an already disappointing experience.

We met with hotel management via phone hoping they would acknowledge the severity of the situation and work toward a meaningful resolution. Unfortunately, the only consistent response we received was that any complaints should have been addressed at the front desk. There was little accountability and no genuine effort to make things right.

What was especially disappointing is that, while we waited for an apology or follow-up regarding the experience of our guests, the only calls we received from the hotel were about collecting a $300 banquet overage.

I want to be clear that I do not believe this reflects every DoubleTree by Hilton property. We've had excellent experiences with other Hilton hotels. However, I cannot, in good conscience, recommend this location to anyone hosting an event or traveling to Jacksonville.

Looking back, I wish I had given more weight to the property's existing reviews instead of relying on the assurances that renovations would be completed. It's genuinely disappointing—and honestly embarrassing—that I even have to write this review after trusting the hotel with our event. See the attached photos, there's hundreds more. So much more I could say, but I believe the overall point is clear.

Looking at the river from my room

The location is great. Being on the Riverwalk and near the friendship fountain was awesome. Having Ruth Chris within the hotel is very convenient.