Earlier this year, we visited Chicago for a night before heading to the suburbs to visit family. I chose the Hilton Chicago because I had a Hilton Spend the Night on Us voucher I needed to use from our timeshare presentation in Las Vegas. The voucher only covered $200 of the $270 nightly charge, but it was a good chance to try out one of Chicago’s historic hotels. Here’s my review of the Hilton Chicago.
Booking the Hilton Chicago with Points
While we didn’t use points for this stay, you can spend the night at the Hilton Chicago for about 60,000 Hilton Honors points though the price tends to vary.
Hilton Chicago Location
The Hilton Chicago is located downtown on Michigan Avenue. It’s very close to Grant Park and walking distance to Millenium Park which is known for the Cloud Gate sculpture (aka the Bean). Chicago is huge so no location is truly walkable to everything you will want to see, but the Hilton Chicago is a good location for tourists.
Dining and Amenities
The Hilton Chicago has several onsite dining options. The 720 South Bar and Grill is the main restaurant and bar. The 720 Grill serves breakfast and lunch. For Diamond members, the continental breakfast ($19 value) is free, or you can spend $15 to upgrade to the full breakfast bar ($33.95 value). My husband stuck with the continental breakfast while I “splurged” on the breakfast bar which included hot breakfast items like made-to-order eggs and omelets.
The Hilton Chicago has a grab and go option called Herb n’ Kitchen which is open daily until 11:00 pm. The hotel also has a pub called Kitty O’Sheas which serves brunch on the weekends.
The Hilton Chicago has a ton of amenities onsite. You can tell this is a popular conference hotel due to the number of guests walking around with name tags. To cater to this crowd, in addition to the massive amount of conference space, they offer business services such as AV rentals, a business center, cell phone rentals, photocopying, and more. Meeting space options include the grand ballroom located off the main entryway.
The Hilton Chicago also offers a fitness room, jogging track, and pool. Other services include a barbershop, a beauty salon, and a gift shop.
Lobby and Check-in
After passing by the grand ballroom at the entrance of the hotel, you’ll see a more traditional lobby with the massive check-in desk, the gift shop, and the hotel’s eateries. This isn’t really a lobby where you’ll want to sit and relax. With conferences going on, the lobby feels busy, almost like an office building right before 9:00 am.
The check-in process went smoothly. As a Diamond member, I was hoping for a suite upgrade but all they were able to offer was a room on a higher floor with no view.
Hilton Chicago King Bed Room
The Hilton Chicago has a huge bay of elevators leading up to the guest rooms though not all of them are functional. The lounge area by the elevators on our floor was aesthetically pleasing.
The king room was a good size, especially by city standards. While the decor was sparse, it set itself apart from the business hotel vibes you get from many other Hilton properties.
The bed was comfortable. The room only had one nightstand which I find inconvenient when there are two guests.
Across from the bed was a writing desk with a tablet and a small TV. We didn’t explore the tablet much so I am not entirely sure of its purpose. Coffee and glassware were located on the shelf under the TV.
To the left of the TV was an armchair and a full length mirror.
Across from the full length mirror was a large closet that contained a luggage rack, ironing board, and iron.
The decently sized bathroom was located to the left of the closet.
The bathroom had a toilet and vanity with one sink.
The vanity had some individual toiletries from Crabtree & Evelyn though shampoo, conditioner, and body wash were provided in bulk dispensers in the shower.
The shower tub combo had a large shower head and handheld shower head.
Final Thoughts
The Hilton Chicago is a solid choice if you are visiting Chicago for business or pleasure due to its convenient downtown location. Chicago has many luxury options like the Park Hyatt. While the Hilton is nice, it doesn’t quite make it into the bracket of a luxury hotel. With that said, with its grand lobby and higher-end finishes, this Hilton sets itself apart from the hundreds of other drab Hiltons across the world.
