Room 1433 at Hotel Sax Chicago.

We received a couple of tips lately that there was something brewing with Thompson Hotels and usually when more than one tip comes in, we know something's up. But today we have confirmation that indeed The Hotel Sax in Chicago, best known for its RockBand studio and where we recently shacked up the other week, is turning into a Thompson Hotel.

The conversion will officially happen on December 1st and while the hotel was recently renovated a few years ago, we fully expect the place to get "Thompsonized."]]> juliana 2009-11-04T13:10:52-05:00 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2009/10/15/112559/11 <![CDATA[<p><img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/6193/Sax.jpg" class="top"> <p>After booking the pleasant surprise that was a <b>$99</b> name-your-own-price dealy on Priceline for our stay at Chicago's <b><a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/Hotel+Sax+Chicago/ian/150418">Hotel Sax</a></b>, we couldn't wait to check the place out, especially since we still remember it as the ugly <b>House of Blues Hotel</b>. We knew it had a dreamy location right on the Chicago River and cuddled up next to the stunning Marina City towers and across the street from the Trump International Hotel & Tower, but is it worthy of such a spot and&#151;even more importantly&#151;is it worth the $99 we paid for the night? Let's break it down... <p><b>Check-in:</b><br>The entrance of the Hotel Sax is perpetually dark, as it is directly in the shadow of the JetSetCD 2009-10-15T13:11:10-05:00 41.8884610 -87.628841 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2009/10/14/2130/6636 <![CDATA[<p><!-- Start of Brightcove Player --> <div style="display:none"> </div> <script language="JavaScript" type="text/javascript" src="http://admin.brightcove.com/js/BrightcoveExperiences.js"></script> <object id="myExperience44717891001" class="BrightcoveExperience"> <param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /> <param name="width" value="486" /> <param name="height" value="412" /> <param name="playerID" value="4862856001" /> <param name="publisherID" value="1321358962"/> <param name="isVid" value="true" /> <param name="@videoPlayer" value="44717891001" /> </object> <!-- End of Brightcove Player --> <p>When we needed a quickie place to crash for a night in Chicago while still attempting to enjoy our evening by avoiding the super cheapie motels, we naturally turned to a name-your-own-price deal. After great success with our <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2009/5/28/114113/537/hotels/Inside_The_Marriott_Berlin_Our_Temporary_Home_On_the_Platz">hotel in Berlin</a> before, we opted for Priceline and came out of the negotiations with a 4-star hotel in the River North neighborhood for <b>$80 a night</b>, or $99 including taxes JetSetCD 2009-10-14T11:05:07-05:00 41.8884610 -87.628841 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2009/9/24/21559/9012

Rockers will throw up some hand horns for two Chicago hotels' rock-star perks. Hotel Sax and the Hard Rock Hotel offer programs and packages that lend out guitars to guests for rocking out.

Taking inspiration from the Red Hot Chili Peppers' Flea—who infamously played bass nekkid, save for a sock covering his naughty bits—Hotel Sax's "Celebrity Rider" package comes with an acoustic guitar and tube socks. We love it.

The package also offers a two-night stay in a one-bedroom suite, which includes beverages by Heineken and a juice bar with a smoothie tender. Plus, you'll get the VIP treatment in the hotel lobby's Crimson Lounge, where celebs like to party when they are in town. ]]> Jennifer Kester 2009-09-24T09:33:48-05:00 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2008/5/1/9023/81380 <![CDATA[<p><embed src="http://services.brightcove.com/services/viewer/federated_f8/1321361467" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" flashVars="videoId=1442781055&playerId=1321361467&viewerSecureGatewayURL=https://services.brightcove.com/services/amfgateway&servicesURL=http://services.brightcove.com/services&cdnURL=http://admin.brightcove.com&domain=embed&autoStart=false&" base="http://admin.brightcove.com" name="flashObj" width="399" height="338" seamlesstabbing="false" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" swLiveConnect="true" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/shockwave/download/index.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash"></embed><p><p>Much like the Hard Rock Hotel has a <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2008/3/11/235313/698/hotels/Meet_The_Vibe_Manager_at_the_Hard_Rock_San_Diego">Vibe Manager</a>, the <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/Hotel+Sax+Chicago/ian/150418"><b>Hotel Sax</b></a> in Chicago has Studio Hosts to man their sixth floor Studio (see video) which is powered by XBox and features hit games from Guitar Hero to Rockband to Madden 08' and Dance, Dance Revolution. All of the above is why the hotel topped our <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2008/2/24/144612/104/hotels/Best_Geek_Hotels_in_the_World_2_0"><b>Best Geek Hotels 2.0</b></a> list back in February.<p>So what's it like in the life of a Studio Host here. From the <a href="http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/lifestyle/explore/chi-sleeps_studio_sidebar_0501may01,0,5261513.story">Chicago Tribune</a>:<blockquote><p> And the hotel has trained staff attendants, now called studio hosts, to help guests with all the cool toys. Mostly, people just need help swapping juliana 2008-05-01T11:40:49-05:00 41.888175 -87.629546 Search HotelChatter string http://www.hotelchatter.com/search/