designerlaura Posted April 17, 2008 Report Posted April 17, 2008 Just went to Hotwire for the first time last night, and hoped I could find some reviews from past guests today-- so I was REALLY excited to find this site/board this a.m.! We are going to Chicago to catch 7 cubs games in May--- looks like the only hotel in Wrigley area is out of our budget, so I found a few on hotwire this morning-- just wanting some help on possibly identifying them... #1) 4* NMA - Water Tower - Gold Coast area $1364.0/5.0 --200+ reviewsfitness, business, restaurant, high speed, and it also is marked as a "customer favorite"-- I've looked at the Chicago hotel list, but wasn't able to match it up to any that said customer favorite, etc. do you have any idea what hotel this could be? I want to research parking, etc. before I committ."Best Value"#2)3.5* NMA - Water Tower - GCA $1193.5/5.0 -- 60+ reviewssmoke free rooms, pool(s), restaurant, high speed, tennis nearby"Best Value"#3) 4* Mag Mile-streeterville - $1223.5/5.0 --180+ reviewsfitness, business, restaurant, hsi"best value"#4)3* - Mag Mile- Streeterville - $1193.5/5.0 -- 80+ reviewslaundry, restaurant, fitness, pool, business, hsi, I really have been trying compare and research, but if it's not too much to ask for your guess on which ones these could be, that would help me A TON!!! We've never stayed in the city-- we've usually drove in to from suburbs, but we are curious to see if staying downtown will be any cheaper to take a cab to Wrigley rather than paying $20+ parking at the field, etc. (I realize most of these hotels will have parking fees too, so knowing possible names would help me decide.) Sorry to ramble.. I've been online for hours on end!!!T.I.A! :)
thereuare Posted April 17, 2008 Report Posted April 17, 2008 Welcome to BetterBidding!Let's try to reverse engineer this first... what is your maximum budget for this stay? What 'all-in' price would make it worthwhile to stay Downtown (vs. the suburbs).If you really want to stay Downtown, would you consider parking in the suburbs (not sure if a commuter lot is an option and then taking the train into the city) or parking out by the airport (where it may be cheaper) and then taking the train in to begin your stay? Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases
designerlaura Posted April 17, 2008 Author Report Posted April 17, 2008 I'm hoping to stay under $1000 for the hotel stay, would like to stay under $200 for parking-- I've been getting anywhere from 700-1000 with taxes included for hotels, etc. when searching on other hotel sites, and now the 4 hotels I found on hotwire are still within that budget. We've stayed in Shaumburg and liked the hotel last time, it's about 120/night-- however it just seemed like a long drive to the game, and since we're going to a game every day, we thought we may be better off staying more downtown and then taking a cab to the game? We had free parking @ the hotel in Shaumburg (sp) but we usually paid for parking @ Wrigley, so either way, we're anticipating parking fees weather it be at the hotel or at Wrigley... I really was hoping to stay closer to Wrigley, keep the cab cost down, but surely the cab isn't too much from downtown to Wrigley.. is it? (I didn't see if Priceline had any more hotels near Wrigley, just saw the one expensive one from Hotwire)I don't know that I want to use the train at all-- I think it'd be nice to have our car close by or at our hotel. I also don't think I want to take the train to Wrigley-- I've read that it can take a really long time on game days, etc.
thereuare Posted April 17, 2008 Report Posted April 17, 2008 If you're staying downtown would you need your car?Perhaps AaronJB or anyone else local or familiar with the area can comment, but i would think that takign the train to Wrigley would be the best method... certainly less traffic than taking the car and a few years back, when i went to Wrigley with some locals, we all took the train together (and if i remember correctly it was fast... we started from the Loop zone) and the stop was right near the entrance to Wrigley.Lastly, Chicago has a weekly pass for public transportation which is a great deal (i think it's like $20/week OR they have $5 unlimited passes for 24 hours from first use) but the weekly pass may only be available at an Aiport location, perhaps making parking there a increased option.Unless you intend to go outside of the downtown area, i'm not sure why you would need your car nearby, but you know your needs better than i do of course.I'd first start by doublechecking the info you received that taking the train to Wrigley 'takes a long time on gameday', as if this is true than perhaps all of the above is a moot point, but if taking the train to the stadium is ideal, then i think it opens up a wide range of options. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases
designerlaura Posted April 17, 2008 Author Report Posted April 17, 2008 thanks for responding and helping me with these options-- I will look into parking outside of the city maybe, at an airport?
thereuare Posted April 17, 2008 Report Posted April 17, 2008 I would look into parking at the Airport (depending upon costs) or there may be options in the suburbs (even cheper than airport parking) as well and then take the commuter railroad in (AaronJB or another local will porbably be able to respond better than i would) or suggest other options.If you 'pack heavy' you could drive into the city, drop off the bags and have one person check-in while the other drives to the remote parking and then commutes back in (same on the return).Let us know once you find out yoru parking options and we'll then be able to advise further with specific hotels and available options. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases
designerlaura Posted April 17, 2008 Author Report Posted April 17, 2008 Talked to the hubby--I think we are just going to go ahead & park @ the hotel--- I'm just wanting to get opinion on which hotel I may be selecting-- I narrowed down to this one:3-star Mag Mile- Streeterville3.5/5 trip advisor 80 reviewsPoints of interest: 1. Water Tower, 2. Cultural Center, 3. MotorolaTravel information: 9.6 miles to Chicago Midway (MDW), 15.5 miles to Chicago O'Hare Intl. (ORD)aundry, Restaurant, Pool, Fitness, Business, High SpeedFrom everything I've read, I'd guess it's the Holiday Inn Mart-Plaza, but the thing that's throwing me off is it says I'm saving $25 and retail is only $144... every other site I look this hotel up on, it's more in the $200 range, so I'm not sure that is in fact the right hotel.... I feel like I'm saving more than $25/night on hotwire...I called the Holiday Inn and parking is only $28 w/ in and out privilages, etc. so that's ideal-- everything is within our budget, but I'm just not 100% that I'm looking into the correct hotel?! I read some other posts and saw the City Centre one was similar, but I still think this description matched Holiday Inn...If I get some response and encouragement to just do it, then I'll be happy to book from here & post all the details, etc. THanks for all your help so far!
thereuare Posted April 17, 2008 Report Posted April 17, 2008 The above is a match for the Holiday Inn Mart Plaza so that would be our best guess.The suggested retail price/savings is based upon a hotel of that star quality in the zone... not necessarily the hote you're purchasing. So while the suggested retail amount is sometimes correct, it often is not.HOWEVER, i'll note that i'm not currently seeing this property on my own HOTWIRE search.Please use these PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links to begin your travel purchases.Let us know what you're currently seeing and if you see above and take it how it goes. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases
designerlaura Posted April 18, 2008 Author Report Posted April 18, 2008 OK, not sure what happened, I was looking at the one that seemed like Hard Rock earlier, but I was pretty sure I was going for the 3-star one (thinking it was Holiday Inn, etc.) Anyways, both were 119/night, when I finally booked & confirmed it was the HARD ROCK!!!??? lol.... I'm sure it was my own mistake, as the ammenities were not those of the other 119 hotel which was 3-star, etc. So... now I'm back to parking issues... may need to send a message to the Chicago expert and get his opinion on a garage to park at.... I know there were some in Lincoln Park area (near Wrigley) that were only $18/day, which is WAY cheaper than the $45 Hard Rock charges at their hotel!!! Regardless, I'm sure we'll be happy with our stay, and we're still staying at a 4-star hotel, awesome location for way cheap! Even w/ 45 parking I was still coming in around budget.
thereuare Posted April 18, 2008 Report Posted April 18, 2008 Thank you for sharing your results with the board.Can you please adda reply to this thread with the price and amenities of the hotel you did purchase... you can still view all of this information by going to HOTWIRE and clicking the MY ACCOUNT link near the top right corner of their home page. This will confirm exactly what you did purchase and how it compares to previous reports.Thanks for sharing your outcome and for using our HOTWIRE link to begin your purchase.Enjoy your stay and the games! Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases
designerlaura Posted April 18, 2008 Author Report Posted April 18, 2008 Hard Rock Hotel - Magnificent Mile Area- Streeterville4-star$119.00 per night05/10-05/16Amenities: Fitness Center Restaurant(s) Business Center High-speed Internet Access
thereuare Posted April 18, 2008 Report Posted April 18, 2008 Thanks for the follow-up. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases
Recommended Posts
Register now, we have a huge community of travel enthusiasts to answer any questions you might have.
Sign In Now