Hotwire Hotel: 4* Chicago (Mag Mile-Streeterville) Sheraton

[nick5]

I got a new hotel for your hotwire list:

Aloft in Chicago ORD South

9700 Balmoral Ave,

Rosemont, IL, 60018

April 5 - April 8, 2009 : 3 nights

Only $45/night. however, i checked their website and theyre charging me $26+tax for parking! Agggh!! (at least its better than the Tremont which charges $40+ for parking!)

Amenities:

Fitness Center, Business Center, High-speed Internet Access, Golf Nearby

Thanks so much for reporting.

What star rating was this??

I"m looking for a room in Chicago May 29,30th and everything is sky high. So now I'm starting to looking in the Airport area. This property you won would be something fun and different. 26.00 for parking is not wonderful but not horrid since it seems to be the practice in the area.

Have a great trip and report back how your stay was!!

Cheryl

[AaronJB]

The ALoft would be a fun property to try, although personally - if you have a car - I recommend the North suburbs (Glenview, Evanston, Skokie, Northbrook, Deerfield), as hotels in that area are generally quite nice, there are some local sights, a wide variety of nice restaurants and some of the nearby towns have very pleasant downtown areas. While the Evanston hotels do not have free parking, the hotels in the other suburbs mentioned do.

Additionally, these suburbs either have or are near Metra (metrarail.com) stations, which provide a nicer ride than the CTA train from the airport.

Just my 2 cents.

I made this its own topic, so if you do require help regarding these dates, the post can be visible rather than being part of the other topic.

[nick5]

Thanks Aaron. I appreciate your 2 cents as it is worth at least a buck ten at today's prices. :)

Ok, so here is what is going on. I am looking for something overnight on the 29th of May downtown Chicago because we are going to a concert at the Metro. (we would just taxi then and leave car parked)

I just found someone won the HardRock for 109.00 but for May 28-31.

I'm seeing 4* 95.00 a night for the 29th, 134.00 a night if I add 30th. Magnificent Mile Area - Streeterville --Fitness Center, Restaurant, Business Center, and Internet Access.

I'm trying to match up information. I typically do PRICELINE and have only ever used HOTWIRE once. I would do just the one night if this might be the Hard Rock, then move to another area Sat night. I think I can pick up a Hyatt Place for under 50.00.

Suggestions? I'm open!

Cheryl

[thereuare]

I'm seeing 4* 95.00 a night for the 29th, 134.00 a night if I add 30th. Magnificent Mile Area - Streeterville --Fitness Center, Restaurant, Business Center, and Internet Access.

This amenity combination matches about 4-5 hotels in this zone... one of them is the Hard Rock, but you could just as easily receive one of the others, and without any additional clues offered by HOTWIRE there is no telling which one you're likely to received.

Please use these PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links to begin your travel purchases.

Let us knwo what you decide and how it goes or if we ca be of further help.

[nick5]

Sheraton Chicago Hotel and Towers

May 29, 2009 4* 95.00

Magnificent Mile Area - Streeterville --Fitness Center, Restaurant, Business Center, and Internet Access.

Not the greatest reviews over on Trip advisor for a 4* but it is a very busy week and room rates are high all over. I"m happy with the 95.00 rate which would have been 114.00 total but I still had 50.00 in hotwire bucks so that brought this stay down to "the cheapest downtown Chicage sleepover unless sleeping with friends or relatives." :)

Cheryl

PS,, sorry Aaron I did not wait for your buck ten thoughts, but I was having trouble sleeping so jumped the bid. Sheraton is running 279.00 a night on their web site so guess it was better I grabbed the offer before it was yanked. Some places I checked prices for were sold out.

[AaronJB]

No problem - happy you were able to get something. My thoughts on the Sheraton are also mixed (I wouldn't classify it as a bad hotel, just average: a very pretty lobby leads to rooms that are somewhat on the bland and basic side for a 4* - service wasn't particularly friendly, either.), but I do like that part of the city. Fox and Obel Market and Cafe (fox-obel.com) is a nice breakfast/lunch/dinner option a block East of the hotel on McClurg and Illinois. Fun to browse around in the market area, too. Some rooms at the Sheraton also have very nice views of the surrounding area (either looking at the nearby buildings, lake, river or some combination). I don't particularly like Navy Pier (actually, I don't like Navy Pier), but that's a very easy walk from the Sheraton, too.

Pick up snacks at the Walgreens across the street or the Dominicks Grocery a block North, or at Fox and Obel. The last time I stayed at the Sheraton, I was surprised to see the room service prices, which were some of the highest I've seen in a city hotel.

You could walk to the Grand Red Line station and take that North to Addison; it's just a quick walk from that station to the Metro - you could then maybe taxi it back after the show. I went to the Metro a number of times in high school.

In the future though, if prices are high downtown, I do recommend the 'burbs, as there are some really nice areas around the city - plus free parking, cheaper hotel.

[nick5]

In the future though, if prices are high downtown, I do recommend the 'burbs, as there are some really nice areas around the city - plus free parking, cheaper hotel.

Aaron, I'm open to find something for the following night in the burbs. Something where we can just relax and perhaps do some shopping (browsing) May 30th. Do you have any suggestions of Hotwire (or even priceline) areas I should check out? I have not stayed in many of the out laying areas. I don't mind the driving to get to an outlaying area. I"m pretty much a 4 star or better gal,, but if a good 3.5 is a great price, I'm up for it. So, Chicago guru', suggestions?

Thanks,

Cheryl

PS, I jotted down all your suggestions for our concert stay and plan on using them. I like the idea of taking the Red line to Metro, then taxi back. I would have never ventured without your directions. TX

[AaronJB]

Glad I could be of help! :)

I think the Red Line will be fine going there, but if the concert's getting out at 11-12, then I'd rather recommend a taxi back for that. At least then you wouldn't have to pay taxi fare both ways, too.

If you are interested in the suburbs, I'd recommend trying a bid for the Deerfield area on PRICELINE. The Hyatt is a common 3.5* win in that area, although there may be others. Given that you have a fair amount of time, I'd start low ($37, and then work up by $3's - $40, etc.) I wouldn't go very high at all (given the prices, I'd be surprised if you had to go to $50) with bidding. There is also a 3.5* on HOTWIRE for $59 in the Northbrook area (Northbrook is next to Deerfield.)

The Hyatt in question is $87 for this particular date, so again, definitely would try to "lowball" on the bid. All of the hotels in that area are in that price-point neighborhood.

Depending on when you left that morning, you could take a nice, leisurely drive up the lakefront and into the suburbs and then over to your hotel. There is the option of the expressway, but there's also "scenic routes" that will take you on something of a "burb tour".

Additionally, the North suburbs are quite safe, and some of the towns are rather quaint. There's a number of malls - including Northbrook Court (which is essentially an indoor Michigan Ave; a lot of the same sort of upscale stores in a nice indoor setting), but a lot of the towns have some fun/funky stores, too.

The Chicago Botanic Garden is in the suburb of Glencoe (chicagobotanic.org), which is also nearby. Admission is free, and it should be absolutely gorgeous by May. Unfortunately, parking is a rip-off (raised now to $20 from $15), but I suppose their donations are probably not at their highest level right now. Still, in prime Spring season it's an absolutely beautiful place for a stroll - and it's pretty large, as well - probably 1.5-2mi from end-to-end and a mile or so width. There's also interior gardens and a lovely cafe.