IL Chicago Swissotel

[srmc]

Location: On E. Wacker Drive, just south of the river and about a 3-minute walk to Michigan Avenue. Only potential drawback is that aside from the restaurants in the hotel (which include an outpost of the Palm) and at the Hyatt next door, you are a bit out of the way from all the dining/shopping across the river. It's not far, but if you like to be right in the middle of the action you might be a little disappointed.

Service: Fine. I was only there for 2 nights and had minimal interaction with the staff, so nothing stood out either way. I was offered an upgrade for $30 at check in but turned it down.

Room: Huge! Great north-facing view of the river and the Tribune/Wrigley/Hancock buildings. Bedding was quite comfortable, though the mattress was nothing special. Lighting was good. Carpet and other finishes were contemporary, clean, and did not show wear. I loved the bathroom--separate tub/shower units, large vanity. Bathrobes seem to be standard issue. My only problem was locating an electrical outlet to plug in the iron.

Stay: Quite good. I would definitely go back.

[ktbear7476]

Hiya! Just wanted to report back after our stay at the Swissotel. The room was pretty big, very nicely furnished. As long as you don't mind walks it is a great place to stay (it is a good 4-5 blocks to get to the Art Institute and Mag Mile and all that other fun stuff...but not an unreasonable distance by any means). As others have reported the views were spectacular and every time I had a question the Concierge was quite helpful. Definitely a steal for $79 a night.

Kt

[lindabobhat]

We stayed at Swissotel over Memorial Day Weekend. While our lakeview room was spectacular (overlooking the Chicago River where it meets Lake Michigan and Navy Pier) I was very disappointed with the room and the service at this hotel. Furniture in room was beat up, a handle missing from a dresser drawer, a picture in the bathroom with mold growing on the mat inside the frame, desk phone not working...I could go on, but those were some of the problems we encountered. I also hated that there were no fitted sheets - woke up each morning sleeping right on the mattress as the sheets had come loose. As for service issues, the concierge gave us erroneous info about the Navy Pier trolley; the maid failed to replace toiletries and towels, despite a $3 tip that had been left (I normally tip $1-2 per day and wait until the day we leave to tip the maid, but I decided to try something different this time since we were at a 4* hotel.) We had a voucher for a breakfast buffet that included tax & gratuity, but still left a $5 tip for the waiter; when we returned the next day, he put us in the back of the restaurant and pretty much forgot about us; we removed our own dirty dishes and I finally got a refill on my coffee after asking another waiter (while our waiter doted on a party of 8 without vouchers that was seated after us - they were immediately greeted with a thermal carafe of coffee while my cup sat empty....) Needless to say, we didn't tip him the second day. I should note that we had booked a "bed & breakfast" special that had been promoted on Travelzoo - while the value was very good for a downtown hotel especially given the added breakfast, I didn't feel like I truly experienced a 4* hotel (despite my best efforts to be an appreciative guest.) Yes, the room view was teriffic, but I paid extra for a lake view room. I would probably stay here again if I found a similar deal. All in all, I feel like this hotel has 4* potential, but is probably in need of a renovation and some intense customer service training for its staff. I honestly expected more from a hotel of this caliber (and left wondering if I had been treated differently because of the price I paid.)

[tchrchgo]

Won this Swissotel priceline for $75.

Stayed last night in order to be downtown for the thanksgiving parade. Hotel is VERY hard to find- it is at the END of upper wacker- and if you're not familiar with upper/lower wacker you can get very mixed up! we spent 25 minutes just driving around all the wackers.

I did not want to spend the $45 for hotel valet parking, since the public parking next door was $28, but after 25 minutes of driving around I just wanted to be at the hotel! So I paid the big bucks to drop the car at the door. My initial impressions were positive. Very classy entrance, nice staff. Very kid friendly, have a little desk with crayons and coloring books while you check in, and give you a kids pack with things for the kids to do.

Pool is nice, whirlpool very nice. BUT... there were definitely some low class, trashy people in the hotel who felt they deserved the entire pool to themselves, doing cannonballs, etc.

Room was nice, but more like 3* Hyatt, than a 4*. Beds very small- luckily we brought our inflatable bed. Bathroom was nice, separate shower and bathtub, lots of toiletries. But the hairdryer was hanging in the closet, didn't find it till my hair was dry. They also short you on pillows- 2 per bed instead of the usual 4 per bed.

Location is not great- a good walk from any sights. And there is not direct route to anything- you have to walk up, down, to this side and that side. And with priceline we got the cheap view, not the navy pier view even though the hotel was pretty empty.

Valet service is a joke- takes forever to get the car, and then they stand right next to you until you tip them. I understand they work hard and all- but for $45 I should have the right not to tip someone for just driving my car up to the door.

Anyway, I would not be terribly disappointed if I won it again, but next time I would bid lower.

[lwitchel]

I got this for $61/night 4/6-4/9/07 and my impression gibes with the positive ones above.

I asked for a room with a view if possible and the desk clerk came up with a room on the 22nd floor with a panoramic view of Lake Michigan and Navy Pier. It was hard to leave the room.

In other ways, it was all I expect from a four star hotel - including the slight negatives of being charged for services like Wi-Fi ($10 for 24 hours) and a fitness room (the pool is free, the workout room is $10.80). I didn't opt for either. As mentioned above the location requires a walk. It's about 8-10 blocks walk from the El; the nearest stops are Clark/Lake or Washington. Walk north to Wacker, then east along Wacker drive and the river towards the lake. It is a bit hard to figure out the first time.

[angelmum3]

Won this hotel on Priceline - it was during a doctor convention and the Shamrock Shuffle March 28 - 30, 2008 With taxes the two nights came to around $400 (compared to Hotwire and hotels, this was a great deal!! Most hotels were coming up in the $400 per night, this hotel didnt come up on any site, their own site said they were sold out for this weekend)

As it was a sellout I was pleasantly surprised to win this 4* - I also concur with all that has been said previously. the staff was kind and helpful. I arrive in Union Station, take the 151 Sheridan Bus to Michigan Ave/ upper Wacker Drive and walk the 3 blocks to the hotel. Check in was smooth, and uneventful. I arrived at 11am, and requested a room with 2 double beds. The room wasnt ready (as expected, it was a sellout week according to the desk staff) they held my suitcase while I went out for lunch, when I returned at 2 the room was ready.

We walked to Navy Pier, across Wacker, down by the sign - follow signs to Navy Pier.. Plenty of shopping, and food courts there...

Sat March 29th was the turn off the lights night for the environment and the Hotel participated. They kept hall lights and elevator and stairwell lights on... they closed the pool and the hot tub, but provided wine and fondue in the darkened lobby - hotel staff had flashlights. It was a unique experience to see the lights go off on Michigan Ave and Navy Pier's Ferris Wheel.

I have pictures of the room I can upload to the photo area.