Hotwire Hotel: 4* Chicago (Millenium-Loop-Grant Park) Hyatt Regency

[DaLuc]

Hi all,

My husband and I are headed to Chicago for a wedding on Aug 1 at the InterContinental. We'd love to stay the night of the wedding there but standard rates for this hotel are insane. From what I read on these boards it's hard to tell which 4* hotel is really the InterContinental. I've never used Hotwire before but am excited at getting a good deal on an expensive hotel. I won't have a car so I need to be near to the InterContinental either for taking a cab or walking, which makes me hesitant to randomly bid on a hotel when I don't have an exact geographic location for it before I pay.

The other hotel that I love the looks of is The James and it seems that I see it listed for 8/1-8/4 for $120/night 4.5* Amenities: Restaurant, Fitness, Hi-Speed Internet, Business, Laundry, Spa. Can anyone confirm that this is the James? Also, I'd prefer to pay top dollar for a nice room for 8/1 & 8/2 but then step down to save some cash on 8/3 before we head home. It seems that The James only lets me book 8/1-8/4 and not 8/1-8/3 only. Do most hotels only put a certain number of nights on Hotwire.

Should I wait until closer to the dates to book? Are there better deals closer to travel dates? Also, would you recommend using Priceline or Hotwire?

Thanks in advance!!

[thereuare]

Welcome to BetterBidding!

I've never used Hotwire before but am excited at getting a good deal on an expensive hotel. I won't have a car so I need to be near to the InterContinental either for taking a cab or walking, which makes me hesitant to randomly bid on a hotel when I don't have an exact geographic location for it before I pay.

Chicago, and its zones, aren't that big, so that i think you would be able to work a plan if you won a hotel in the same zone as the Inter-Continental (or possibily even the Loop zone)... it sounds like you'd be fine potentially saving a few hundred dollars on your hotel stay and paying a much smaller amount for cab/bus/train fare should you end up not in walking distance to the event.

Do most hotels only put a certain number of nights on Hotwire.

hot.tiwre only shows the least expensive option at each star level in each zone. So for your 3 nite search the James (which i agree with your guess) is the least expensive 4.5* in that zone... for the 2 nite stay it is not (either because another hotel is cheaper for the 2 nite stay OR the James has not offered inventory for a 2 nite stay)

would you recommend using Priceline or Hotwire?

It depends what is more important to you... the lower cost (of PRICELINE) or having an educated guess as to what you make likely receive (and therefore an educated guess of the location as well) by using HOTWIRE.

Given you have 'requirements' regarding how close you end up to a particular location, if you see a good deal which works well for your plans i would advise taking it, since it can disappear at any time (and leave you with more expenisve options or similarly priced options which may not work as well for your needs for this stay). For a more indepth discussion see the related link in our PRICELINE FAQ.

What is your maximum budget for this stay?

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

[DaLuc]

Hi,

Thanks for all the help! We hadn't set out budget in stone, just assuming that we'd be paying at least $100-$150/night for a decent hotel in Chicago. We were warned by other wedding goers that the InterContinental wedding rate is $279 for the night but we could get the RedRoofInn for only about $110. Don't mean to sound like a snob but I don't want to stay at the RRI! And... we don't want to shell out the big bucks like $300/night either. I was looking to see what Hotwire and/or Priceline offered as I hadn't used either.

I'm all for getting the most bang for my buck, so it seems like if we can get a 4.5* for $120/night, that's a better deal than a 4* for $110/night. We've also decided we want to book one hotel for all three nights.

I'd say the bottom line is we'd like a room at max $120/night and within either walking distance or a quick cab ride from the InterContinental for the wedding and nearby all the other sites Chicago has to offer.

I like modern, well-designed hotel rooms and am willing to sacrifice space for the "cool" factor. I like staying in places that aren't like every other hotel in every other city. One of my favorite stays was the Washington Jefferson hotel in NYC. (http://www.wjhotel.com/index.php)

DaLuc

[AaronJB]

For 8/1-4, I'm seeing a 4.5* in the Mag Mile/Streeterville area with fitness, business, restaurant and internet for $109, which would appear to be a match for the Intercontinental. Please use the site's HOTWIRE link.

[DaLuc]

Just wondering about some HOTWIRE things...

Is it possible to phone a hotel directly and ask if they will accept a HOTWIRE priced reservation at the desk? Instead of going through Hotwire? Does that work?

Thanks!

[AaronJB]

No. HOTWIRE and PRICELINE rates are only available through each service. I was at a downtown hotel once and someone walked up as I was checking out and they asked if they could get the PRICELINE rate. The check-in clerk told them, "No, but you can pay the $300 walk-up rate."

[DaLuc]

Hi, I am trying to ID this hotel:

4* Mag Mile ID help, 8/1-8/4

4*

Fitness

Restaurant

Business Center

High-speed Internet

Spa

$87/night

Trip Advisor 3.5/5 out of 560+ reviews.

Is this the Hyatt Regency Chicago? What do you think of the hotel/location?

Thanks!!

[thereuare]

Please keep all posts for the same stay in the same thread.

Best guess for the property above is the Hyatt.

What happened to the InterContinental above... I thought you'd jump on that given it's within your budget and the wedding location.

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

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

[AaronJB]

The Hyatt isn't anything special as a hotel - it's a giant, impersonal convention hotel. However, it is about a 3-5 minute walk to the Intercontinental from there, so certainly close.

[DaLuc]

Hi all,

My husband was super excited at the thought of getting a room for only $60 a night possibly through PRICELINE, so I caved and gave up my hopes of a fancy hotel stay in Chicago. Most likely we'll be off exploring most of the time as it is.

I bid for NMA 4* up to $81 with no luck using the re-bid zones.

Then I went for the Loop area 4* starting at $55. They offered that if I re-bid my offer would be accepted for $15 more. I declined and re-bid adding a zone for $60 and it was accepted.

8/1-8/4 Hyatt Regency Chicago for $60/night. I'm satisfied that my hubby will be happy. Now we're probably go out to two fancy dinners instead of one!!

I didn't realize tho that you can add nights on to a Priceline win? The itinerary page said that I could add nights on to either end of my stay for the same price. Does this mean I could have bid for a one-night stay (say Sunday night 8/2) and then won my hotel and added Saturday and Monday nights on? If so, oh well, now I know for next time.

Thanks for the help!!! Of course I used your PRICELINE link. This is SUCH an awesome site!!

Cheers :)

[thereuare]

Congratulations on your success!

Glad to hear that you (and your husband) are happy with the results... everybody wins! :)

Regarding the 'add a nite' feature... it's not always offered, and even when it is, it doesn't guarantee you''ll be able to extend the stay. If you try to extend the stay you may be successful, but you could also be told that a room is not available, or that a room is not available at the same price but is available if you're willing to pay $xx (and you'll then be given the option to pay that amount or not). Also, you can only extend the stay for up to the same number of nites as your original purchase... so if you only bid for one nite you can only extend for one nite (not two)

Thank you for sharing your win with the board and using our PRICELINE link to begin your bidding.

Enjoy your stay.