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Priceline Hotel: 3.5* Chicago (Downtown - River North) Holiday Inn Chicago Mart Plaza


JHN
By JHN,
in

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I'd greatly appreciate any help with identifying the following two Priceline Express hotels:

 

1. 3.5* Downtown-River North (Chicago). Dates: 9/3/17 to 9/8/17. $133/night. Rating: Very good 8+. Amenities:  Business Center, Restaurant, Free Internet, Indoor or Outdoor Pool, Fitness Center, No Smoking Rooms/Facilities

 

Do you think this is the Courtyard by Marriott Chicago Downtown/River North or the Holiday Inn Chicago Mart Plaza?

 

2. 3* Skokie-Evanston. Dates 9/8/17 to 9/12/17.  $54/night. Rating: Exceptional 9+. Amenities: Free Parking, Business Center, Free Internet, Free Breakfast, Indoor or Outdoor Pool, Fitness Center, No Smoking Rooms/Facilities 

 

Thank you!

 

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I'm very familiar with Chicago, so would be happy to research and offer suggestions - let us know more about what you are looking for and we would be happy to look at what's available.

 

I'm seeing on PRICELINE EXPRESS (please confirm that the correct dates of travel are showing on the landing page after clicking)

 

3* Skokie - Evanston for $54
Free Parking
Business Center
Free Internet
Free Breakfast
Indoor or Outdoor Pool
Fitness Center
No Smoking Rooms/Facilities
>>>My guess would be the Hampton Inn Skokie.

 

3.5* Downtown - River North for $132
Business Center
Restaurant
Free Internet
Indoor or Outdoor Pool
Fitness Center
No Smoking Rooms/Facilities
>>>This would be a possible match for the Holiday Inn Mart Plaza.

 

I'll note that I do very much think the Evanston/Skokie area is nice, but it's definitely a trek in from downtown and when you look at Skokie (where the Hampton Inn is), the trek becomes longer/more complex (it starts to become bus to train and then downtown and then the concern becomes how late do the buses run and things like that). I do recommend the burbs (see also Northbrook/Glenview/Deerfield) at times - they're quite nice and parking is free if you're driving. However, I would really only recommend them to those who are driving (as in many instances it becomes too much of a hassle to get around in the suburbs if you're not driving) and also, when the price difference between there and down is large enough to make the trip from outside the city downtown worthwhile.

 

For downtown, I'm seeing higher rated properties for only a few dollars more.

 

4.5* Downtown - River North for $139
Pets Allowed
Business Center
Restaurant
Free Internet
Fitness Center
No Smoking Rooms/Facilities
>>>This would be a possible match for the James

 

4.5* Magnificent Mile -Gold Coast for $136
Pets Allowed
Business Center
Restaurant
Free Internet
Indoor or Outdoor Pool
Fitness Center
No Smoking Rooms/Facilities
.>>>Possible match for the W Lakeshore.

 

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

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AaronJB:  Thank you for your quick reply and willingness to assist. By way of context, our daughter starts college in the fall, and we'll be traveling from out of state, via car, to drop her off.  Our plan is to spend the week (9/3-9/8) hanging out in Chicago and then spend that weekend (9/9 and 9/10) in the Evanston/Skokie area so that we can be closer to the campus. So, there will be three of us traveling (my wife, my daughter, and myself), we will have a vehicle, and we'll need a room with two beds.  One option is to stay in the suburbs the entire time and just commute into Chicago during that week. Another option would be to split the hotel time:  spend week in Chicago and then move to another hotel for the weekend in Evanston/Skokie area. I'd love to bid for a place in Chicago, but that's not really an option since there are three of us and we'll need two beds (hence my Express searches).  The $1 discrepancy between your 3.5* River North option and mine (132 v. 133) is due to the fact that I chose the two bed option. 

 

I'm open to any advice on my hotel strategy!  Two more specific questions for you:

 

1. With the first hotel I found (3.5* Downtown-River North for 9/3-9/8), what makes you think that it's a match for the Holiday Inn Mart Plaza and not the Marriott Courtyard/River North?  When I first ran the search and tried to identify the hotel via the amenities list, I thought it was the Holiday Inn Mart Plaza.  I then found this thread where the person got the Courtyard property.  Both have the same amenities list.  I can't figure out how to tell them apart  What am I missing?

 

2. With the second hotel I found (3* Skokie-Evanston for 9/8-9/12), does $54/night seem a little low for the Hampton?  Based on the amenities list and customer rating, I, too, thought it was a match for the Hampton.  A straight Priceline search shows the Hampton going for $135/night during that time.  The $54 rate caused me to wonder whether it could be another hotel; however, I couldn't come up with another plausible choice.  Thoughts?

 

Again, thanks for your help!

 

 

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Happy to help! 
 

I'd guess the 9/8-12 3* in Skokie with a 9+ customer rating would be the Hampton, but unfortunately, I'm seeing a "no longer available" message when I try to click on the listing and the inventory appears to be gone.

 

I'll do some research for this time period and then outline a few different options (as well as some thoughts on pros/cons) and then post back in a little while. Would also be happy to answer any Evanston questions - Evanston has changed pretty dramatically over the years and really does offer quite a lot in terms of restaurants/shopping. It's very much a mix of aspects of the city with aspects of the suburbs. There's also the Old Orchard Mall to the West and the very nice North Shore suburbs to the North. 

 

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

 

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Downtown has two large conventions at the end of this period - 

PRINT® 17
McCormick Place South
Map It09/10/201709/14/201725000

 

AAO HNSF 2017 Annual Meeting & OTO Expo
Lakeside Center at McCormick Place
Map It09/10/201709/13/201710000

 

While this is primarily an issue for downtown, you may see some slightly higher prices in the "near-burbs" (Evanston, Skokie) starting 9/9 because of spillover with people looking for cheaper rates.

 

Some thoughts:

 

All suburbs:

9/3-7:

(PRICELINE EXPRESS)
3* Skokie - Evanston for $54 (please confirm that the correct dates of travel are showing on the landing page after clicking the link.)
Free Parking
Business Center
Free Internet
Free Breakfast
Indoor or Outdoor Pool
Fitness Center
No Smoking Rooms/Facilities
>>>I'm still seeing the potential Hampton (9+ review) for this time period and can click through to the purchase page. Unfortunately, I'm only seeing it for this specific part of the time.

 

9/7-12:

Hotwire (searching for 3 adults)

4* Northbrook - Wheeling for $86.00
Free Parking
Pet Friendly
Indoor Pool
Smoke Free
Fitness
Pool
Restaurant
Business
Laundry
Hi-Speed Internet
Golf
Blind Accessible
Deaf Accessible
Travel Accessible
Room Accessible
Bathroom Accessible
Handicapped Parking
Roll-in Shower
==>  Guess would be the Renaissance North Shore, which has been seen with this amenity set previously. Seeing a 4/5 tripadvisor rating on the detail page with 500-1000 reviews. If this is the Renaissance, it's somewhat far North but also (unless something has changed) there is a shuttle to the nearby Metra. Additionally, this property is on the other side of the highway from the Chicago Botanic Garden, which is one of the most highly regarded Garden museums in the US and quite a beautifully maintained facility.

 

I'm also seeing the Holiday Inn North Shore for these dates further South in Skokie, but that's never been a particularly good hotel - it's an older property that gets very mixed reviews.

 

Staying in the suburbs would be cheaper and result in free parking for the entire period - hotel parking downtown is generally around 45-75 +/- and lot parking is generally around 30-35+ city tax. The problem would be having to drive into the city or drive to the nearest Metra station and then take the Metra downtown, which does take some time (although there are express options in the morning/evening rush during the week.)

 

Part Downtown/Part Burbs:

 

9/3-8 HOTWIRE (3 adults)

 

3.5* River North for $150.00
Free Internet
Indoor Pool
Smoke Free
Fitness
Pool
Restaurant
Business
Laundry
Hi-Speed Internet
Golf
Blind Accessible
Deaf Accessible
Travel Accessible
Room Accessible
Bathroom Accessible
Handicapped Parking
Roll-in Shower
==>  This would be a possible match for the Holiday Inn Mart Plaza. If you do stay at this property, I'd ask at check-in about the view rooms. The location of this property does result in quite a few rooms having some degree of nice views (river/city)and the price difference between the view/non-view is usually around $7-8.

 

9/8-12:

 

4* Northbrook - Wheeling for $86.00
Free Parking
Pet Friendly
Indoor Pool
Smoke Free
Fitness
Pool
Restaurant
Business
Laundry
Hi-Speed Internet
Golf
Blind Accessible
Deaf Accessible
Travel Accessible
Room Accessible
Bathroom Accessible
Handicapped Parking
Roll-in Shower
==>  Again, this would be a possible match for the Renaissance North Shore, showing the same amenities/stats as the 9/7-12 listing above.

 

There's a lot of options/variations. I'm also seeing a very reasonable 4* option in the Lincoln Park area on PRICELINE EXPRESS for the entire time period, but unfortunately it doesn't appear as if two beds are an option. Lincoln Park would be an appealing option, from the standpoint of being in-between Evanston and Downtown (although certainly closer to downtown) as well as a fun area with a lot of restaurants and shops. It's worth exploring (the Zoo is free) even if you don't stay there.

 

Let us know your thoughts on the above and please ask any questions before booking. I would be more than happy to do more research/offer other options if anything above is not of interest.

 

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

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  • 1 year later...

I never updated this thread after I booked the room (I guess better late than never). Used Priceline Express and the Holiday Inn Mart Plaza was described with this amenity set:

Business Center
Restaurant
Free Internet
Indoor or Outdoor Pool
Fitness Center
No Smoking Rooms/Facilities

 

As noted in one of the earlier posts, we had three travelers and we were looking to split time between downtown Chicago and Evanston/Skokie. I made these reservations in mid-March 2017 for a stay in early September 2017. In addition to the Holiday Inn Mart Plaza, I also booked the Hampton Inn in Skokie (just going through standard Priceline -- not bidding or Priceline Express) for $135/night from 9/8 to 9/13. Both properties worked out very well for us. Thank you AaronJB for your help. A couple of notes on the pricing of these properties.

 

1. Downtown Chicago -- When I was searching in early March 2017 for this leg of the stay, there weren't many options for 4 to 4.5* hotels around the $150 price range with two beds (using Priceline Express). So I went ahead and booked the Mart Plaza for $133 in mid-March. Between the time I booked and the time of our trip, I would occasionally check the offerings on PE (just to torture myself!). Around late June/early July, several more 4-4.5* options appeared (in the downtown areas I was looking at) at slightly lower prices ($110-140). I'm not certain if there is an optimal time to book a reservation, but, at least in this case, it would have been better to wait a couple of months.

 

2. Skokie-Evanston -- As noted in my first post, when I first started looking for this second leg of the trip, a 3* hotel (with a 9+ rating) appeared for $54 a night. However, when I would try to book it through PE it would then say the offer was no longer available. I pursued this for about a week. Some days the $54 listing wouldn't even appear, other days it was present, but then, again, it would become unavailable once I tried to book it. So, I finally just made the reservation using regular Priceline. Here, purchasing early was wise -- the price kept going up through the spring and summer.

 

I used the PRICELINE link to make the purchases. As always, I really appreciate the help I get from this site. 

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