IL Travel Guide
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Hotel Palomar Chicago Won't Open Until May But You Can Make a Rezzie Now
UPDATE: The hotel's reps tell us that it will actually open a few weeks before May 1. So Spring 2010 is the preferred opening time frame. Rezzies are still being accepted for May 1 and beyond.
Just as you start to hunker down for the winter in Chicago, we'd like to give you something to look forward to when the ice thaws--the upcoming Hotel Palomar Chicago has just announced that it will be opening in May 2010.
Located in Chi-town's River North neighborhood the 261-room hotel will be as Kimpton as you expect it to be (stylish decor, eco-friendly practices, free wine hours etc.) but it will also have a heated indoor pool and sundeck and a restaurant adjacent to the hotel with what will be "the city's largest mixology station." Um. Yeah, you will find us here at 5pm. Not in the lobby drinking wine.
Now, May is a long ways off so forgive us if we're not clicking immediately to make a reservation but for those of you who can't wait, the hotel is accepting reservations for May 1. Rates start at $190 a night for a king deluxe room.
Tags: Hotel High Tea / Hilton Hotels / Chicago Hotels / → All Tags
The Palmer House and the Joffrey Ballet Duet for Nutcracker Teas
Chicago's Palmer House Hilton is getting into the holiday spirit with its new series of Joffrey Nutcracker Teas with the famed company's ballerinas and danseurs making an appearance.
The teas, held Saturdays through December 26, kick off on November 21 with the lighting of the Christmas tree at the South Loop hotel's grand lobby. Kiddies can help decorate the tree beforehand and garnish some Nutcracker cookies.
Tags: Sports Hotels / NFL Hotels / Chicago Hotels / Boutique Hotels / → All Tags
The Hotel Blake's Playbook Focuses on Attracting Super Sports Fans
As the home of the Bears, Cubs, Blackhawks and Bulls, Chicago is a serious sports town. Hotel Blake wants to win over you visiting sports fans with game-related deals.
As part of the Get Your Game On package, you'll get 20 percent off the best available rate (we found a room with a king-sized bed for $139), two free drink vouchers at Custom House's Lounge for pre-gaming and a complimentary continental breakfast to soak up your hangover. The coolest package perks are the free poster board and markers, so you can make a sign to cheer on your team, and a free Chicago baseball cap. To be clear, it's not a Cubs cap, but a generic "Chicago sports" hat. But still, it's cool.
Tags: NFL Hotels / Chicago Hotels / Hyatt Regency Hotels / → All Tags
Hut, Hut, Hike Over to the Hyatt Regency in Chicago for a Gridiron Getaway
Football fans who want to head to Chicago to see some pigskin may want to take advantage of the Hyatt Regency McCormick Place's Gridiron Getaway deal. Since the hotel's attached to the McCormick Place Convention Center, it's a popular spot for conventioneers, but the Hyatt Regency's also near the da Bears' castle, Soldier Field.
As part of the package, you'll get a room for two for $109 per night. That rate is good for all 2009-10 season weekend home games, so check to see when your favorite team will be in Chi-Town. We wish the package would include dual-purpose face/belly paint, but no such luck.
Tags: Hotel Desserts / Hotel Food / Hotel Restaurants / Chicago Hotels / → All Tags
Did You Know The Palmer House Hilton in Chicago Invented The Brownie?
Chicago's Palmer House Hilton has some serious bragging rights when it comes to dessert. The hotel invented the brownie. According the Palmer House, socialite and owner Bertha Palmer asked the hotel chefs to create a sweet for the Women's Pavilion at the the World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893 and they came up with the all-magnificent brownie.
We headed to the Palmer House to see if the first brownie house served up a killer dose of chocolatey goodness after 116 years. The newest brownie incarnation in the hotel restaurant, Lockwood, is different from the original treat, which supposedly had an apricot glaze and nuts. Our version, our waiter told us, is only the base of Bertha's original brownie.
Tags: Hotel Cars / Hotel Amenities / Hotel Services / W Hotels / Starwood Hotels / → All Tags
What It's Like Riding Around in The W Hotel's Free Car Service
When you stay at one of the W Hotels, take advantage of its Acura Experience, a complimentary car service. Of course, there are limitations; the car will only bring you within a five-mile radius of the hotel. That may not seem like a lot, but if you are directionally challenged, it's helpful to have someone drive you to a destination. And if you're arranging for a rehearsal dinner, you can save money on renting a trolley and instead transport your wedding party in the free seven-seat vehicles instead.
We tried out the car service for ourselves at the W Chicago - City Center at an opportune time, when it was raining. Our ride was silver with a black interior and it wasn't too flashy with its Acura-W signage, which was nice, since you don't necessarily want to announce to the city that you're a tourist. The car had some techie details like a built-in GPS with on-demand Zagat reviews. As far as amenities, our driver offered us free water and towels. Although the car can hold seven, it would be a tight squeeze. But if you're traveling less than five miles, the ride should be bearable.
Tags: Rock N' Roll Hotels / Celebrity Scoop / Chicago Hotels / → All Tags
Days Inn Lincoln Park Has a Secret, Star-Studded Rock 'n' Roll Past
Tucked away in a strip with an independent movie theater and chain stores like Jamba Juice is an unassuming hotel with a bad-boy rock 'n' rolla past. The Days Inn Lincoln Park is nicknamed the Rock & Roll Days Inn for its musician clientele, which includes Sean Lennon, Twisted Sister, Nelly Furtado, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Dave Matthews, KRS One and the Foo Fighters.
It's rumored to be the place where Courtney Love and Kurt Cobain conceived their child, says Stefanie Hrejsa, general manager of the hotel. Years later, Love allegedly walked out of the hotel and said she couldn't stay there because of the painful memories, Hrejsa says.
Tags: Thompson Hotels / Hotel Industry News / Stephen Brandman / Chicago Hotels / Hotel News / → All Tags
On December 1st, The Hotel Sax Chicago Will Be Thompsonized
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."
Tags: Hotel Bookshelves / Libraries / Doubletree Hotels / Chicago Hotels / → All Tags
theWit's Library Gets People Talking, More Than Reading
The lobby of theWit buzzes with businessmen chatting, workers scurrying about and people wandering in and out, but head to the second floor of the hotel and you'll find some peace in the library.
But it's not a library per se. Yes, the table in the middle of the room has small stacks of oversized coffee-table books on everything from fashion to architecture to music that you can peruse. (The most popular one among library visitors is Frank Lloyd Wright Complete Works, Vol. 3: 1943-1959.) But it's more about the atmosphere.
Tags: Hotel Renovations / W Hotels / Chicago Hotels / → All Tags
Inside the New Room at The W Chicago-City Center
Since the W considers itself the purveyor of cool, it makes sense that the chain would decide to redo the W Chicago-City Center. It was the first W hotel to come to the city in 2001 and it was looking a little shabby.
The $35 million makeover targeted the W Living Room, a.k.a. the lobby, and the hotel's 235 guestrooms and suites. What was hot back in '01, aside from 'N Sync, was dark decor with oversized furniture. The hotel tried to get away from that dated look throughout the hotel with bright, airy spaces.
Tags: Hotel Restaurants / Chicago Hotels / Hotel News / → All Tags
Chicago's New Hotel Restaurants Become Culinary Hot Spots
If you want to check out Chicago's hottest restaurants, you'll have to to go a hotel. Whether it's the cool atmosphere or the delish food, hotel restaurants have become the big trend around town. We'll give you three of the best new hotel restaurants in Chicago:
Pelago in Raffaello Hotel
This Italian restaurant adds seafood to the mix with dishes like from-scratch ravioli filled with Dover sole and caviar. It also offers an affordable yet yummy lunch menu of dishes like tagliolini with organic spinach, crab meat and roasted garlic. But whichever meal you choose, you know it'll be good since Chef Mauro Mafrici snagged a Michelin star at his former Tribeca restaurant Lo Scalco. But the atmosphere is just as much of a draw, with porcelain chandeliers dangling above white chairs and tablecloths and aquamarine damask banquettes.
Tags: Hotel Technology / Hotel Openings / Chicago Hotels / → All Tags
Elysian Chicago Gives a Sneak Peek of Its Rooms and TV Mirrors
The Elysian Chicago's grand-opening date got pushed back to mid-November, but the hotel's giving us a taste of what to expect in its 188 guest rooms and suites, which include high-tech amenities like television mirrors.
Averaging at 890 square feet, rooms are decked out in grays and other muted shades. And they all have marble bathrooms with soaking tubs, furnished balconies fireplaces and kitchens. But the perks we like most are the free wireless and the dual vanities with inset SÉURA LCD televisions in the bathrooms. When you turn it on, the LCD picture floats on one of the two mirrors. When you turn it off, the LCD vanishes, leaving behind a normal-looking mirror. What fun it'll be getting ready at the vanity for a night on the town; the downside is that it'll add another hour to our prep time for sure.
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