60611 Travel Guide
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.
Tags: Hotel Restaurants / Peninsula Hotels / Chicago Hotels / → All Tags
We Ate 'Whipped Chlorophyll' At The Peninsula Chicago's Avenues
Only days before Chicago's Peninsula Hotel was voted second in CN Traveler's Top Hotels in the United States, we finally sat down for a meal at the hotel's celebrated and highly awarded Avenues Restaurant. Already intimately familiar with the hotel, including their afternoon tea service, we expected that this last missing piece to completely blow us away.
And the thing is, our meal at Avenues did so much more than delight our tastebuds; it caused an epiphany in response to the service from the maitre d' and wait staff. Read on for the whole story and the drool-worthy concoctions including "whipped chlorophyll."
Having lived in Chicago for a period and experienced most every hotel—not an exaggeration—through their afternoon teas, restaurants, bars, or actual rooms, we nonetheless have remained always a few steps away from dining at Avenues. For one, the pricetag stopped us (an 8-course meal, with each course consisting of about three bites, costs $118), and we also could never rustle up friends to accompany us and appreciate it.
But with the electricity out in a friend's apartment on his birthday, we decided that it was time for Avenues.
Tags: HotelChatter Reviews / Chicago Hotels / Boutique Hotels / → All Tags
Chicago's Raffaello Hotel is Mag Mile Style Without A High Pricetag
Just when we thought that you couldn't get anything better on Chicago's Michigan Avenue than The Peninsula, we stayed at the Raffaello Hotel a mere two blocks away. Whoa—hold up a second—like the Raffaello could ever trump any Peninsula, let alone one that placed in the top hotels as voted by CN Traveler. No way—what we mean is that the Raffaello is smaller, less fussy, more vintage, quieter, and closer by mere steps to some of Michigan Avenue's top attractions.
We were surprised by the Raffaello's innate charm. Like we said during our video tour of the room, the Raffaello is the Chicago 4-star underdog hotel; it's extremely easy to overlook it when it's neighbors with such illustrious and large properties as The Drake, The Westin, The Park Hyatt and The Four Seasons. And those are just within two blocks. But with a king bed room rate that we scored of $139, it's easy to see why one should pay some attention to the boutique Raffaello.
Tags: Sweet Suites / Hotel Packages / Four Seasons Hotels / Chicago Hotels / → All Tags
Four Seasons Chicago Unveils New Suites
For those who roll like VIPs when traveling, the Four Seasons Chicago wants to give you an incentive to stay at its newly designed suites with its Suite Rewards package.
For every night you stay at either the one- or two-bedroom suites, the hotel will give you a $100 gift card to The 900 Shops on the Magnificent Mile, which has an indoor entrance via the hotel so you have easy access for those nighttime Gucci cravings; free parking, which regularly costs $46 for valet and $34 for self-parking; and breakfast for two.
And it's not a chintzy continental breakfast, either. The Midwest Breakfast comes with fresh juice; two eggs with bacon, ham or sausage; hash browns; pastries; and coffee, hot chocolate or tea.
Tags: Hotel Video Tours / Chicago Hotels / Retro Hotels / → All Tags
In The Shadow Of The John Hancock Building At The Raffaello Chicago
Sometimes you stay in hotels because you're on a vacation, and other times you stay in hotels because of a business trip or special occasion, but you never plan for emergencies when you need to stay in a hotel, such as in the case of electrical problems at home. During our recent visit to Chicago, this is exactly what happened to friends of ours, and so we ended up next door in the Raffaello Hotel, a small but four-star property a block off of Michigan Avenue and cuddled right up to the rear of the John Hancock Center.
The hotel, for all its vintage charm and excellent location, is about as under-the-radar as you can get; there were no tour groups checking in, or really any tourists or groups for that matter. The clientele skews older and more sophisticated, like these are the people who have been coming here for years and years, desire a comfortable room and proximity to the lake, prime shopping and downtown, and yet aren't willing to pay Four Seasons prices for it—our king room was $139. You won't find a bar scene—although they do have a small bar off the lobby—and you will not miss the traffic noise of Michigan Ave, since the Raffaello is tucked just far enough back to miss out on that hubbub.
Tags: Hotel Wine Tastings / Wine-Tasting Hotels / Marriott Hotels / Chicago Hotels / → All Tags
Crush Some Grapes at the Chicago Marriott Mag Mile's Wine Tasting
If you've always wanted to try making wine after seeing that I Love Lucy episode where Lucy stomps grape with her feet and laughter ensues, go to the Chicago Marriott Downtown Magnificent Mile's annual Wine Tasting and Grape Crushing event on Oct. 20 from 4:30 to 7 p.m. Okay, so you won't actually be stomping on grapes with your feet and it won't be as hilarious. Instead, you'll use a destemmer crusher machine to help turn those grapes into vino. At least it'll save your tootsies from turning purple and your clothes from getting stained.
As part of the second annual festivities, Executive Chef Myk Banas of the hotel's restaurant, Harvest, will host a wine tasting inside the Grand Lobby. You'll get to swish the 2008 Farmstead Red American Sangiovese wine from last year's harvest crush. There also will be hors d'oeuvres paired with the vintage, such as various house-made sausages, like chicken sausage, and artisan cheeses from the Midwest. After the tasting, you'll have your chance to crush hundreds of grapes for next year's 2010 vintage.
Tags: Peninsula Hotels / Breast Cancer Awareness / Pink Hotels / Chicago Hotels / → All Tags
Peninsula Chicago Offers Pink Ribbon Dining and Spa Specials
Jumping on the pink-ribbon-filled Breast Cancer Awareness Month bandwagon, The Peninsula Chicago offers month-long specials to benefit the cause.
The hotel shows its true colors with a rosy-hued backlit entrance and logo as part of the Lynn Sage Cancer Research Foundation's annual Light the Way to Find a Cure campaign to remind ladies about the importance of doing self-exams on their tatas. The two marble lions flanking the Pen's entrance also got swathed in pink ribbons for the occasion.
Tags: Spa Packages / Hotel Spas / Chicago Hotels / Sports Widow Hotels / → All Tags
Ditch the Football Fanatics for the Spa at the Four Seasons Chicago
You get to chillax in the quiet Four Seasons' spa lounge rather than hear shouting over bad calls from the ref.
If you dread Sundays in the fall because your living room gets overrun by football fanatics, you can ditch the noisy, chest-thumping crowd and make a play for the Four Seasons Chicago's "Getaway from the Gridiron" spa package as a game-day alternative. (Yes, it's very similar to last year's Gridiron Getaway.)
For $175, the spa day package includes a stress-busting 55-minute Swedish massage, a one-day pass to the Four Seasons' pool and fitness club, a complimentary make-up session at the Bobbi Brown counter at Bloomingdale’s along with a gift, and a Football Season Survival Kit with surprise presents, Bloomie’s coupons and a voucher for 20 percent off a couple's massage at the spa when booked on Sunday through Thursday—that is, if you can get your other half away from the game long enough.
Tags: Chicago Hotels / Pirate Hotels / Courtyard By Marriott Hotels / Hotel Packages / → All Tags
The Courtyarrrd Chicago Celebrates 'Talk Like A Pirate' Day
We'd feel silly slinging buccaneer slang on international Talk Like A Pirate Day on Sept. 19. And it's not because we don't think piratese is a valid international language. It's because we we just can't get that gravelly "Arrrggg" down. But we can muster an "aye" for the Courtyard Chicago Downtown/River North's pirate package.
Mateys and lasses who sign up for the pirate package will get one night's stay at the Courtyard and two VIP tickets to the Field Museum's "The Real Pirates: The Untold Story of The Whydah from Slave Ship to Pirate Ship" exhibit. The VIP status entitles you to skip the line at the museum and get basic admission as well as entry into "The Real Pirates."
Unlike regular tickets to the exhibit, the VIP passes don't have time or date assignments. The museum display showcases 200 artifacts recovered from the Whydah, the first fully authenticated pirate ship to be discovered in U.S. waters. Admission to the special exhibit ordinarily costs $23 on top of the museum's regular $15 entry fee.
Tags: Chicago Hotels / Oprah Winfrey / Affinia Hotels / Hotel News / → All Tags
Keep Oprah's Season Kickoff Party Going At The Affinia Chicago
Oprah tickets are harder to score than this season's new Chanel handbag, but the daytime diva is shutting down Michigan Avenue to throw a huge, free block party on Sept. 8 to celebrate the start of her TV show's 24th season.
If you don't want to have to fight crazy book club members to get into the televised event, the Affinia Chicago offers you a strategy: stay at its nearby hotel to be close to the action and you'll get a room for $109 per night.
Tags: Chicago Hotels / Pet-Friendly Hotels / Affinia Hotels / → All Tags
Affinia Chicago to Offset Fees for Jet-Setting Pets
As more and more airlines hike up their pet fees—to the point where getting your four-legged creature on board may cost more than a ticket for yourself—Affinia Chicago wants to throw traveling pet owners a bone. The hotel will waive its pet rate to help compensate for the high airline fees as part of its new Jet Set Pets program.
Just show your receipt for pet charges incurred during your travel to Chicago, and the hotel won't charge you its usual $25 Jet Set Pets fee. The offer is good through Dec. 31. But the pet-friendly Affinia goes beyond to help Fido feel at home in the Windy City. Of course, as part of the package he'll get the standard pet perks, like a plush doggie bed, food and water bowls, and walking and sitting services. But the concierges will also arrange for pet taxis and even a pet psychic (paw readings, anyone?).
Tags: Hotel Renovations / Doubletree Hotels / Chicago Hotels / → All Tags
The Doubletree Doubles Down with Mag Mile Hotel Renovations
The Doubletree Hotel Chicago Magnificent Mile recently unveiled a $21 million makeover befitting its swanky Gold Coast environs.
L.A. design firm Cole Martinez Curtis and Associates transformed the saggy, '70s-looking Chicago City Centre Hotel & Sports Club into the taut, this-decade Doubletree. The common spaces and 500 new rooms stick with a muted black-and-gray color scheme with pops of maroon and blue. The guestroom bathrooms also go for chic with granite countertops and dark wood cabinets.
The design team also tried to spiff up the lobby (which has free WiFi—score!). But as Hospitality Design reported, it wasn’t an easy feat:
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