Hotwire Hotel: 4.5* Chicago (Mag Mile-Streeterville) James Hotel

[sadiebrooklyn]

Planning a family trip to chicago and really wanted to stay at the Intercontinental - so my husband suggest I look on your website for tips on bidding via PRICELINE or HOTWIRE. All my research on your website led me to believe that if I put in for the 4.5 star hotel with hotwire, I would get the Intercontinental (my kids were particularly excited to swim in the pool there)

so instead of doing what I usually do and name my own price via PRICELINE for a 4 star hotel in a general area - I put in the big bucks ($185.00 per night) assuming I would get The Intercontinental.

Didn't happen. I got the James Hotel instead.

Now I can see that it is a very swanky establishment - but it doesn't even have a pool. And not only am I out over $600.00 but my kids have NO pool at all.

next time I will just use PRICELINE and skip looking for advice on your forum

[thereuare]

Welcome to BetterBidding!

Sorry to hear you didn't receive the hotel you were hoping for, but what made you think you were going to receive the Inter-Continental? Can you please add a reply to this thread with the dates of your stay (so this thread can appear in the Priceline and Hotwire Calendar of Wins) and the amenities shown before your purchase... you can still view this information by going to HOTWIRE and clicking the MY ACCOUNT link near the top right of their home page.

Feel free to ask for help before your next opaque purchase.

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

[sadiebrooklyn]

My dates were:

friday 8/27/10 to monday 8/30/10

we booked it at $185.00 per night (not including taxes and fees). The total for the three nights came to: $656.93

these were the amenities listed for the James Hotel:

4.5-star Hotel in Magnificent Mile Area - Streeterville

This Hotel features the following amenities:

Fitness Center

Guests have access to exercise equipment; an additional charge may apply.

Restaurant(s)

Property offers at least one restaurant on the premises; hours and days of operation may vary.

Business Center

Guests have access to business equipment and services; an additional charge may apply.

Laundry Facilities (self-service)

<amenity names only please... not descriptions>

High-Speed Internet Access

Guestrooms are equipped with high-speed Internet access; an extra charge may apply.

Spa Services

Guests have access to a spa facility or spa services; an extra charge typically applies.

[AaronJB]

Thank you for the follow-up; very nice deal for this well-located property, which isn't seen very often as a win.

[MrB]

Hi: So sorry it wasn't what you wanted. The list didn't say "pool" so it was a chance. I still value the board very much but know there are chances and this wasn't an exact match without the pool icon. I was just there for lunch at David Burke's Primehouse which was great although not likely for kids (only $15.99 for a steak, shaken martini and excellent side!). The hotel is closely located to a lot though.

[crito]

I hope you won't take this the wrong way, but if you had used Hotwire and this forum carefully, you could have figured out that the hotel you were looking at wasn't the Intercontinental. The pool icon is sometimes missing from the Intercontinental, but that hotel never shows Laundry or Spa. So the sensible conclusion isn't that you should go back to using Priceline, but that you should use Hotwire and this forum just a little more carefully!