Hotwire Hotel: 4* Chicago (Millennium-Loop-Grant Park) Palmer House Hilton

I am attending a conference at the Drake Hotel associated with the National Restaurant Association a couple of days in advance of the show at McCormick. The conference negotiated rate at the Drake is $199/night . I was able to use HHonors points to book the two nights but at a rate of 50,000 points per night. I thought if the rates came down on hotwire, and i could get another hotel in walking distance, i might cancel the points and go Hotwire. There are three hotel available for 2 nights starting May 19 in NMA. One is a 3* Bed choice, Boutique, No Smoking, Rest, with 70% approval, so I assume the Tremont. The rate is $102 for a queen bed one person. It is only .3mi walking from the Drake (great) but the hotel looks dingy to me. The next is a 3.5* which has been identified on here as the Indigo at only $74/night. It is about .7 mi walking.

The third hotel is a 4* with the same 4 amenities as many other hotels in the NMA area. Maybe with the approval rating you can guess which it is. one person, $96, fitness, restaurant, business center, hs internet. 60% approval rating.

Any idea which hotel this 4* is? Also, any good things to say about the Tremont?

Thanks

Good morning. :)

The 4* NMA could possibly be the Allerton, Knickerbocker, Drake, Avenue or Westin MA. However, if a 60% approval is showing, my guess would be that the Allerton would be more likely.

Personally, I'd go with the Indigo. While the distance may say 0.7Mi, having walked that many, many times, it seems like an awfully short 0.7M - quick city blocks through a nice area. You would even go a "scenic route" and cross under Lake Shore Drive at Division to the beach, then walk along the beach the short distance to the Oak Street underpass, and come up right at the Drake. Or you could walk through the Gold Coast area to Oak Street, then head briefly East. Plus, the Indigo's a very nice property in the Gold Coast neighborhood. I'm seeing what would appear to be the Indigo, as well - a 3.5* NMA w/Boutique, Restaurant, Fitness, Hi-Speed Internet, Business, Golf, Tennis, Spa for $74. There's an Edwardo's Pizza a couple of doors down from the Indigo, as well, and the Lincoln Park Zoo is about a 15-17 minute walk Due North. There's also a subway station a couple of blocks away.

Please use the site's HOTWIRE or PRICELINE links to start your purchases and searches.

Thank you for the great information. There is a slight change today as the amenities have changed on the 4* hotel to now be: Boutique, Restaurant, Fitness, Hi-Speed Internet, Business, Golf and the 60% approval, $94 price staying the same. That looks to be the Whitehall which is only .3 mi from the Drake. I looked at the Whitehall website and its remodeled and looks to be quite nice. Do you agree its the Whitehall? If its remodeled and nice, why do you think only a 60% approval rating?

Thanks

The Whitehall is an older, somewhat basic (it's generally the cheapest of the 4* properties when looking at regular rate) independent property that has a terrific location going for it, but got some rather mixed reviews for a long time (some negative service reviews, some negative property reviews.) I see a note on a renovation that occurred in 2006, but some recent reviews on tripadvisor still seem awfully negative (there are some positive ones, but the negative ones are pretty negative.)

I'd still strongly recommend the Indigo - the distance may be 0.7M, but that's a very easy, very nice walk through the Gold Coast. It's maybe a 5 minute walk.

In the area, I'd highly recommend Goddess Grocery (http://www.goddessandgrocer.com/), which is a really pretty little grocer/cafe - very good for a quick bite.

Please use the site's HOTWIRE or PRICELINE links to start your purchases and searches.

I ended up using Hilton points to stay these days at the conference hotel (The Drake.) However I did stay two nights after the conference at the Palmer House Hilton from May 21 -- 23 from PRICELINE and Better Bidding.

Your Offer Price Per Room, Per Night: $79.00

Subtotal: $158.00

Taxes & Fees: $32.80

Total Charges*: $190.80

Thanks for closing this thread with your decision and sharing your add-on win with the board.

Thank you for sharing your win and using the PRICELINE links on the board to begin your bidding.

Hope you enjoyed your stay. Please remember to follow-up your threads with whatever you end up doing for the stay, even if you choose to book direct, cancel your trip, etc.