Hotwire Hotel: Help-ID 3.5* NMA, Water Tower, Gold Coast

[jgamstar]

As they say on the radio-long time listener, first time caller

3.5* NMA-Water Tower-Gold Coast for $159/night [7/11-14/07]

Fitness Center, Pool, Restaurant, Business Center, Internet, Tennis

Described as "distinctive establishment offers comfortable rooms, personal service and some upscale features."

What do you think, not only which hotel, but is this a good deal?

Thanks for any and all advice.

--GAM

[thereuare]

Welcome to BetterBidding!

This is a match for the Radisson so that would be our best guess. This is about $50 less per nite than the hotel's own website so seem like a decent deal and the reviews are generally positive.

Please use this HOTWIRE link to begin any purchases you make.

Let us know how it goes or if we can be of further help.

[AaronJB]

The Radisson is 1/2 a block from Michigan Ave. to give you an idea of location. If you have any interest in an IPhone (or any other Iproducts), the Apple Store is across the street. :)

[jgamstar]

Well...since you offered, two things--

First, the only way I can get to Hotwire and have it display any hotels in the Loop or NMA is to do a search in Orbitz, then click on the Hotwire "4* for a 2* price" banner at the top of the page. Hotwire shows no availability using the link from Betterbidding, Expedia, going directly to Hotwire.com, or even, ironically, clicking the HOTWIRE link on the left side of the Orbitz search. What's up with that?

Second, I concur with your preliminary ID of the Radisson. What's kept me from pulling the trigger are some negative reviews of the property from guests on both Orbitz and Expedia. I also have been less than impressed by earlier stays in Radissons. That said, we're not going to Chicago to sit in the hotel--we're going to do touristy stuff, and the location really couldn't be better. Anyone on the board ever stay at this Radisson? Can anyone suggest other non-bank-busting alternatives in the area. Our only real "must" is a pool--2 kids.

For those dates Hotwire appears to have the Raffaello (4*) for $219 (no pool, so DQ for us) another 4* Loop hotel I can't identify for $249 (again, no pool) and Chicago City Centre for $139 (has a pool, but also very mixed reviews on Exp & Orb-any advice?)

Thanks for any help you can provide.

--GAM

[thereuare]

Are you sure it's not that you're seeing this property when searching for 2adults/0children but not when searching for 2adults/2children?

[jgamstar]

You're absolutely right--the Orbitz link passes the city and dates, but not the kids.

Which, of course, raises an ethical and a practical question, that I was trying to avoid by not using Priceline (which I know sells only double occupancy). I have an 8 yr old and a 1 yr old, and I won't be asking for any extra bedding (though a crib would be nice)--am I DQ'ed from these hotels? Follow up: should I just go ahead and take my chances with Priceline?

--GAM

[thereuare]

It's a risk... and one that only you can decide if it's right for your family or not. If you'd like a bidding strategy we can assist with that if you choose to go that route.

However, anotoher aspect is that you would like a pool... which i don't think is all that common in Downtown Chicago. HOTWIRE will enable you know whether the property will have a pool or not.

If you go with hotwire please use this HOTWIRE link to begin any purchases. If you choose to go with priceline and would like a suggested strategy let us know that as well.

[AaronJB]

A pool is a risk with Priceline because there are more hotels in Chicago w/o pools than those that do have them (I could be off here, but I'm guessing probably 70-75% of downtown hotels do not have pools and 25-30% do.). The Chicago City Centre hotel is a former Holiday Inn that was bought out last Winter in a round of hotel buy-ups that included a bunch of other hotels, as well. I have not stayed there since the new management, but it was fine as a Holiday Inn (essentially, if you've stayed at a decent Holiday Inn, you know what to expect) when it was a HI. It is superbly located in a nice area between Michigan Ave. (a few blocks to the West) and Navy Pier (a few to the East.) Olive Park beach is also nearby; that's a smaller and less crowded beach than Oak Street to the North.

The City Center isn't luxurious and it's not worth it once it starts getting higher in price (on busy days, it can be over $200 regular rate, which seems nuts), but $139 isn't bad for it (especially during a busier Summer day), especially if you're not going to be in the room much.

With hotel reviews in Chicago, keep in mind that rates vary wildly. The City Center, for example, can be cheap one day and outrageous the next. When people are paying $200-250+ for that, I think yeah, they are going to be disappointed. I think with reviews you just have to look for things that are troubling/really dismaying. If you find things like that, then definitely don't stay there. But if they were disappointed because they paid $250 for the City Center and didn't feel that the service or hotel was worth $250, well - I'd feel the same way. It would be like paying $250 for a Holiday Inn (which, again, it was.)

I'm not seeing any downtown hotels available on HOTWIRE for these dates when searching for 2 adults/2 children.

There are some beautiful suburban areas (the North suburbs - Northbrook, Glenview, Deerfield, are very nice and have some very nice hotels), but they appear fairly pricey for these dates hotel-wise, as well. The Chicago Botanic Gardens (chicagobotanic.org, in the suburb of Glencoe) and Ravinia Music Festival (ravinia.org, in Highland Park) are also nearby.

[jgamstar]

Well, I decided I didn't want to risk a huge upcharge at the hotel by booking with Hotwire and not mentioning the kids. That led me to another strategy I thought you might be interested in, that got me 3 nights in a 4* for the price of 2.

I found the Wyndham Chicago on Expedia and Hotels.com for $207 for 7/11 and 7/12, and $261 for 7/13. Wyndham's Webmatch guaranteed rate was $260 for each night. Catch is, you have to book the no refunds Wyndham rate, then file a claim after, so you could be out for the whole amount, if the offers don't match EXACTLY, with Wyndham as the judge. I bit the bullet, and did it, filed the claim, and the only thing Wyndham asked was what my kids' ages were--they didn't need the Exp & H.c screen shots I'd made as backup. Very polite and professional, no hassles.

Long story short, 4* Wyndham-3 nights, $450+tax.

Rate discrepancy still exists, as of 5 pm CDT, if any one else needs a deal.

Thanks for all of your suggestions and advice, and I will recommend your site to my friends.

--GAM

[thereuare]

Glad you found something that worked well for your needs.

Please also remember that, as per our Support Page, we're an affilaite of the Wyndham Hotels. If you didn't, please remember to check our suport page links for your future travel purchases.

Enjoy your stay.