The Lumen

“My favorite of the Hilton franchise so far!”

I don’t always love having to stay in hotels, especially when they are chosen for me because we’re traveling for kids sports teams or as a large party where blocks of rooms have been reserved ahead of time. They’re almost always blah, impersonal, and devoid of personality, which sets me up for hype… more

I don’t always love having to stay in hotels, especially when they are chosen for me because we’re traveling for kids sports teams or as a large party where blocks of rooms have been reserved ahead of time. They’re almost always blah, impersonal, and devoid of personality, which sets me up for hyper focusing on imperfections and invariably, identification of a random stray hair (I suffer from a major hair phobia and will switch hotels if I find one in the shower 🤢) in the bathroom. The Graduate is gloriously unique and CLEAN and so refreshingly decorated to pay homage to the movie it’s inspired by, all while recognizing the historically relevant SMU theme and notable university alumni! The room keys are modeled after student id’s with Eric Dickerson’s photo, school ID number, and signature on the front, and his student tenure on the back! For those that don’t know of him, Dickerson was a decorated football player for SMU that went on to play in the NFL. The room was decorated in a fashion consistent with a college grad returning to his childhood bedroom and period appropriate with richly wallpapered horses one might find in a young boys bedroom decades ago. Notepads by the bed mimic scantrons or testing sheets for noting a student’s test answers, along with a freshly sharpened #2 pencil. The room was immaculate and the bedding consisted of 2 types of pillowcases, satin and cotton, to accommodate preferences. So appreciated since my daughter’s silk bonnet was packed away! We showered, sans stray and offending hairs, with glorious water pressure and Malin Goetz shampoo and body wash! It was just absolutely wonderful and served as the perfect salve to disappointed and exhausted heart. We ended up paying for 2 different hotels that night, with The Graduate being the second hotel of the two. We were not able to get the first hotel refunded because the cancellation policy, even though I was falsely promised accommodations, but the experience we walked into at The Graduate more than made up for the lost funds from the first hotel. How did we stumble upon this jewel, since it wasn’t the Hilton Reservation specialists that got us here? Well… We were arriving later than expected after a full day of packing and loading and I was all set to stay in any of the nicer Hilton’s in downtown Dallas to be close to the apartment we were moving our daughter into that weekend, and called the Hilton reservation number while in route, to confirm that the valet or hotel parking situation could accommodate an oversized vehicle, aka a U-Haul. I didn’t care what we needed to pay so long as we were assured a luxuriously soft bed and secure parking for the mixing truck. After explaining all of this and sitting on hold while their booking agent called around with our criteria, we were steered away from booking at the Curio or Canopy hotels I originally wanted, which were less than a mile from the Uptown location I was aiming for, and instead booked me at the Homes 2 Suites in the hospital district, assuring me that our moving truck would parked directly in front of the hotel and watched overnight for extra security. I was skeptical, given my knowledge of the various tiers of Hilton hotels, but went with it exhausted and ready to be done with the day. Well, I was right to be skeptical and upon arrival, and a quick convo with the front desk attendant, discovered that the “secure parking located right in front of the hotel” was in fact on the street at a parking meter in a sketchy area nowhere near our ultimate destination. I cried and was so tired that I couldn’t even think straight to pull us out of the situation. So, with my limited knowledge of the Dallas landscape, I thought my best option was to find something near Southern Methodist University (SMU) since one of our sons had played a collegiate basketball game against them a few years back, and I remembered the area being safe. We found The Graduate right across the street from SMU and the valet assured me we were in a nice area, that had its own police department even though they’re still considered Dallas, and he’d personally watch our moving truck even though he didn’t think it was necessary given the low crime rates. He wasn’t wrong and the truck was exactly as we’d left it the next morning.

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“SMU visit”

We had a great time staying here for the SMU football game. Borders campus and easy 10 minute or so walk to the stadium. Rooms were SMU themed and very cute. Would definitely stay here again if visiting a student or going to an event at SMU.

“Recently “remodeled” but not maintained adequately”

Only because of the hotel’s proximity to SMU, this is our sixth stay since the remodel to a Graduate Property. We want to love the property, but the lack of maintenance continues to disappoint us (and others based on the reviews). I’ll give credit to the valet service as they are the most helpful … more

Only because of the hotel’s proximity to SMU, this is our sixth stay since the remodel to a Graduate Property. We want to love the property, but the lack of maintenance continues to disappoint us (and others based on the reviews). I’ll give credit to the valet service as they are the most helpful employees. The other services line up best with lesser hotels - not one at this price point.

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