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Priceline Hotel: Need the experts help!


Citygal
By Citygal,
in

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I checked dates of 6/18 - 6/20 and see this Express Deal:  Millennium Park, Loop, Grant Park - $129.  3-star, 8+ guest favorite rating, with the following amenities:  Free internet and breakfast, swimming, pets, restaurant, fitness, wifi, free breakfast, business center, and bed choice.  Any ideas?  We are going to the United Center so thought we would choose a hotel south of the river, but in actuality it doesn't matter that much.  Would prefer a 4-star but this rate with breakfast included seems sweet.  :)  Any other comments according to Express Deals offered at that time would be welcomed.  I can't remember what other ones popped up, but thought I would first inquire with you on this one.  Thanks so much!

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If you are going to United Center, I wouldn't focus the hotel location on that I'd focus it more on what you are going to be doing the rest of the time.

 

The 3* in the Loop Express Deal that you mention is likely the La Quinta Loop, as that's the only hotel at the 3* level in that zone w/breakfast and pool. That is a moderately newer property in the West portion of the Loop. Keep in mind that this is an office-heavy area and will be quiet later at night and on weekends.

 

Unfortunately, for these dates the potential LQ is about the best/cheapest option. If you are looking for something more deluxe, I see what appears to be the James for $155 on Hot.wire. If that listing is of interest, let me know and I'd be happy to point out which listing is which (you may not see the exact same price I do.)

 

Please keep us updated with what you decide and let us know if you have any hotel or city questions.

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Thanks much!  You're always so helpful.  I definitely don't want the office-heavy area...so thanks for that tip.  I will check on the "James" amenities, location, etc..., as I'm not familiar, but right now I'm seeing on Hotwire, $158 MMN, Water Tower a 3.5 star with free breakfast, free internet, and a business center.  Do you have a guess on that one? Otherwise I see a few around $160 - $170ish that look interesting.  

 

We can go with River North so as to avoid the possibility of something in the business district, unless you see something that looks pretty solid as a good guess on the south side of the river.  We have been lucky to get the Renaissance, and the Hyatt before...loved them both!  

 

Much appreciated!!

 

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Thank you so much! Always happy to help!

 

I'm seeing a 3.5* in the Mag Mile-WT area w/Complimentary Breakfast, Free Internet, Hi-Speed Internet, Business, Blind Accessible, Deaf Accessible, Travel Accessible, Room Accessible, Bathroom Accessible, Handicapped Parking, Roll-in Shower.

-- This is likely the Holiday Inn Express Cass.

 

The Cass used to be a budget/bargain property until it was taken over by Holiday Inn several years ago. They were smart to grab that location because the location is terrific, but this is is still a basic property with small rooms as the original property was basic before it was taken over.

 

I'm seeing a 4.5* in the Mag Mile-RN area for about the same price (I'm seeing it for $158, you may see a slightly different rate) w/Boutique, Restaurant, Fitness, Free Internet, Hi-Speed Internet, Business, Spa, Blind Accessible, Deaf Accessible, Travel Accessible, Room Accessible, Bathroom Accessible, Handicapped Parking, Roll-in Shower, Pet Friendly. 

-- Likely the James.

 

The James would definitely be a more luxurious hotel with larger rooms. Despite being in a different zone, it's about a block or two from the Cass so no difference in location, really.

 

Unfortunately, other than the LQ, the James and the Cass, everything else starts to get into the $170-180+ range. I see what appears to be the Hyatt on St Clair for $170, but I'd rather the James for about $10-12 less.

 

I'm seeing a 4* in the Loop area on PRICELINE EXPRESS, but with a 7+ rating. Again, for about the same price I'd rather the potential James on Hot.wire.

 

Thank you for keeping us updated on what you decide and let us know if you have additional questions.

 

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases... or thru our sister site MAPS and HOTELS.com for your regular rate purchases.

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I'm very intrigued with "The James" at that rate and just wrote to the other girls to see what they think.  Here's the deal:  We are going as a group of 5 gals...and desire 2 rooms, but we need two beds in each room.  Do you see if there's a bed choice on that hotel?

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Here's the deal:  We are going as a group of 5 gals...and desire 2 rooms, but we need two beds in each room.

In the future please include all of this information from the start so that we don't waste time researching properties which may not be offered for your dates or which are not within your budget when including more than one room and/or more than double occupancy in the search.

HOTWIRE does not show bed types, but you can 'force' more than one bed in the room by searching for more than double occupancy. HOTWIRE guarantees sleeping accommodations for every one you include in your search, but the second 'bed' could be a pullout sofabed, rollaway brought into the room, etc... would this be acceptable? What is your maximum budget per nite per room before fees/taxes?

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases... or thru our sister site MAPS and HOTELS.com for your regular rate purchases.

Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases

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I see the James when searching for 2 rooms/4 adults, but not 2r/5a.

 

Very rarely (in fact, I haven't seen it in quite a while) does HOTWIRE ever offer bed choice, as noted above, if you search for more than 2 per room, you should get some form of bedding for the entire party.

 

PRICELINE EXPRESS does offer bed choice on SOME listings, but not seeing a ton on these dates.

 

What would be the top end of your budget? As this is a girl's trip, are you looking for a particular type of hotel or are you primarily just looking for a place to sleep?

 

When taking the 2rooms/5adults into account, HOTWIRE has the La Quinta for $141 and the 4/4.5*'s north of the river jump to around $180 for 4* and around $200+ for 4.5*.

 

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases... or thru our sister site MAPS and HOTELS.com for your regular rate purchases.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Back to this thread after a bit of down-time with pneumonia.  First of all, I always appreciate anyone's help and advice and would never "waste anyone's time."  My original search was for a core group of us ladies with tickets to a Chicago event.....which quickly grew to include 2 more ladies, so we ordered more tickets to the event, and now need an additional hotel room which needs to be for a 1-night stay instead of a 2-night stay like the other room.  

 

So this is what we'd like:  (Via Hot.wire search, 4 - star MMRN or MMWT)

 

Room 1:  Searching for "4" people in order to get 2 beds, hopefully not double beds.  (Dates of 6/18 & 6/19 - 2 night's stay)  

Room 2:  Searching for "4" people in order to get 2 beds, hopefully not double beds.  (Dates of 6/18 - 1 night's stay)

 

I worry that if I book one room and then go back to grab another one for the second group of ladies, the booked option may not pop up and then we wouldn't all get the same deal at the same hotel?  I see what looks to be a good option at MMRN, rated 90% satisfied for $166, and that would fit our budget well.  

 

Thoughts?  Opinions?  Hope I'm not forgetting anything -- 

 

TIA,

Mary

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Welcome back and hope you are feeling better. :)

When you have a situation with a party with two separate dates it becomes a little difficult, with variables (price may be quite different for one night vs two, no guarantees that you may get the same hotel, etc) but I think we can absolutely try and figure out options.

 

In terms of the two nights, unfortunately these dates are expensive, with the most reasonable option I see being the 4* Mag Mile-RN on Hot.wire w/Boutique, Restaurant, Fitness, Smoke Free, Hi-Speed Internet, Business, Blind Accessible, Travel Accessible, Room Accessible, Bathroom Accessible, Handicapped Parking, Roll-in Shower for $166 (you may see a slightly different price), which would likely be the Hotel Chicago.

 

Hot.wire and Price.line do offer "add a night", but the issue is that if you (for example), booked two rooms for one night, Hot.wire and Price.line do not allow you to add a night for just one of the rooms (and they may not let you add a night in general if there isn't inventory.)

 

What would be your max budget per room/per night?

 

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases... or thru our sister site MAPS and HOTELS.com for your regular rate purchases.

 

 

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We would hope to keep it maxed at $200 / night but it's looking more and more like we will have to book the regular way because a bunch of the gals don't want to risk getting double beds and putting two of us in one of those.  :(  I think I will close this thread for now and call it futile!  I will look forward to the usual trip with just hubby and myself when we LOVE to find a bargain in Chicago, and will perhaps call on the board's expertise at that time.  

 

Thank you for everyone's efforts.  It's just getting too complicated!  

 

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I'd be very happy to help suggest regular rate, but it's really not that complicated in terms of booking and we would be happy to help if you want to go that route.

 

The issue with $200 becomes are you finding regular rate options at that price or below? Plus, you will possibly run into extra person fees with 4 in a room reg rate. 

 

I mean, I'm seeing the Marriott Mag Mile for $220 for the two nights on Expe.dia non-refundable, but would that be of interest vs $164 for the potential Hotel Chicago on HOTWIRE for the two nights? Or the Renaissance is $244.

 

Please do use the links (including to Expe.dia) under the Support Page if you do ultimately decide to book regular rate but I still think that, while there may be some compromises, discount rate still does offer more appeal in this situation.

 

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases... or thru our sister site MAPS and HOTELS.com for your regular rate purchases.

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Two other options:

1) use PRICELINE EXPRESS for a hotel that shows a 'Bed Choice' when one of the choices shown offers two (queen) beds

2) use the Hotels..com checkbox of our sister site MAPS and HOTELS.com... the interface easily allows you to evaluate all of your options by showing star ratings and hotel prices for your specific dates on the map (you can easily filter out hotels that are below your star rating or over your budget using the filters on the left side of the page after your search is completed)

Good luck and let us know whatever you ultimately decide to book (even if a regular rate hotel thru Expedia, Hotels.com, or some other source)

Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases

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We are holding rooms at the Residence Inn for the first night for the entire group -- going with a sure thing!  The breakfast is a plus, and everyone can use their Marriott points.  

 

For the second night, (6/19), my friend and I are going to switch hotels! (The others head home.)  So, it's just the two of us, and we would desire something 4-star, close to the River.  North of the River is good, but a location just south of it would be okay too -- however, we want to avoid the business district.  Looking for something that might be in the price point of $150 - $170? (Ballpark)  

 

I see a 4.5 star for $165-ish on Hotwire that says 100% satisfaction!  Wow!   Would you have time to peruse the choices and give a couple of guesses for us?  

 

Much gratitude!

Mary

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Some of what i'm seeing in your price range:

4* River North for $153/nite

Boutique

Smoke Free

Fitness

Restaurant

Business

Hi-Speed Internet

Blind Accessible

Travel Accessible

Room Accessible

Bathroom Accessible

Handicapped Parking

Roll-in Shower

--> Hotel Chicago Downtown, Autograph Collection

4.5* River North for $163/nite

Boutique

Fitness

Restaurant

Business

Hi-Speed Internet

--> i believe this is a new (limited) set for the Hotel Palomar, but if you're interested in this property i would repeat your search for 2adults/2children and what appears to be the same hotel appears for the same price (it may differ by just a few dollars on your search) with:

Boutique

Smoke Free

Fitness

Restaurant

Business

Hi-Speed Internet

--> i believe this to be the Hotel Palomar as well and given this hotel has been seen with this amenity set in the past, this would be the better way to play it (as well as ensures separate sleeping accommodations for you and your friend since there will be bedding for 4 people)

Do either of the above work for your needs?

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases... or thru our sister site MAPS and HOTELS.com for your regular rate purchases.

Let us know what you decide and how it goes.

Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases

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Out of curiosity, which Residence Inn? If the one on Walton, I'd suggest calling ahead to request a room on the top couple of floors facing North, which may result in a partial lake view. If the other, newer Residence Inn in the River North area, great location in terms of nearby restaurants in River North.

 

I'm seeing: (you may see slightly different prices) when searching for 2 people for 6/19:

 

4.5* Mag Mile N-WT $173 Restaurant, Pool, Indoor Pool, Fitness, Free Internet, Hi-Speed Internet, Business

-- Likely Hyatt (on St Clair)

 

4* Mag Mile-RN $155 Boutique, Restaurant, Fitness, Smoke Free, Hi-Speed Internet, Business, Blind Accessible, Travel Accessible, Room Accessible, Bathroom Accessible, Handicapped Parking, Roll-in Shower

-- Possible match for Hotel Chicago

 

I'm seeing a 4.5* in the Mag Mile-RN area w/Boutique, Restaurant, Fitness, Hi-Speed Internet, Business. This hasn't been ID'd/reported to the board. It may be something else, but my concern is the risk that the W Lakeshore (which has been seen at the 4* level with this amenity set) may have been upgraded to 4.5*. It may be something else, though.

 

I do see what appears to be the Intercontinental for $169 on PRICELINE EXPRESS. A 4.5* w/Indoor or Outdoor Pool, Pets Allowed, Restaurant, Business Center, Fitness Center in the River North-NMA area. The clue as to this being the IC is in the fine print on the detail page, with the mention of Grand Tower, which the IC has. "Pets are only allowed in the Grand Tower. There is a 100USD fee, 50USD which is refundable. Dogs and cats without size restriction. Pets must be kenneled when guests are out of the room."

 

Please keep us updated on what you decide and let us know if you have any questions before booking. I'm also quite familiar with the city if you have restaurant questions or need recommendations.

 

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases... or thru our sister site MAPS and HOTELS.com for your regular rate purchases.

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Much appreciated, "thereyouare and AaronJB!"  

 

With regard to the Marriott we chose for our first night, it's the one on Dearborn.  We've stayed there before as a group, and loved it.  Great location, rooms are lovely, and the breakfast is a definite perk!  Expensive, but splitting it.

 

SO, thanks for mentioning what you believe to be those secret hotels to be!  Between Hotel Chicago, Hotel Palomar, Intercontinental and that particular Hyatt, which do you think would be the best experience?  Going for location, up-to-date rooms, & spaciousness.  My knee-jerk is to concentrate on the Hotel Chicago just going by past comments from this board, location, and price point, but I would love to hear your recommendation(s)!!  

 

Regards,

Mary

 

 

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I was concerned about the 4.5* Mag Mile-RN, as it was unidentified. If you do search for 2 adults and 2 children (which would be good anyways, as if you are only two adults and would prefer two beds it's best to indicate four people) and see a 4.5* Mag Mile-RN w/Boutique, Restaurant, Fitness, Smoke Free, Hi-Speed Internet, Business (which has been previously seen with the Palomar), I'd go with that without hesitation. Not only is that a very nice property in a great location, but if you did get the Palomar, couldn't be easier to walk from the RI over to that hotel.

 

I'd rather the Palomar than the IC, Hyatt. The Hotel Chicago (which used to be the House of Blues Hotel and Hotel Sax, the HOB is still next door) is fine, but I'd rather the Kimpton property (the Palomar.)

 

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases... or thru our sister site MAPS and HOTELS.com for your regular rate purchases.

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  • 1 year later...

Ahhh...see that I didn't "close this thread" as you prefer.  So sorry.  In the end, we decided to stay put and bite the bullet for the extra $$ since my friend I stayed with was recovering from knee surgery and wasn't looking forward to the extra hassle of switching hotels.  As always, the hunt / investigative work is made so much easier with the help of this panel and you are much appreciated!!

 

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