Hilton HHonors - The Palmer House® Hilton Trip Reports and Reviews

I was at the Palmer House in Chicago 10/23 - 10/26. Here is a little report:

At check in, I was told without asking that I was upgraded to the Exec level on the 22th floor (I'm a HH Gold). For a non-suite room, it was large in size with two bathrooms, two closets and two double beds.

Breakfast consisted of the regular fruits, cereals and pastries was served at the lounge on the 23rd floor.

The express elevator has been upgraded and was quite responsive and fast when I used it.

Room service was a little slow and the food was not that great.

All in all, it was a nice stay.

Did anyone tell you when the exec lounge reopened? The lounge had been closed the 2nd week of October with no estimated time of reopening then.

I think the lounge was reopened a week ago.

For all those planning on staying at the Palmer House between now and the end of the year...
The executive lounge is again closed, according to the person who checked me in, it was only open last week because a group stayed at the Palmer House that had a contractual guarantee to have the executive lounge available. It will be open again for one week at the end of November, but not reopen again until at least the 1st of the year.

The LONG overdue renovation of the Palmer House Hilton in Chicago has begun! Actually, it seems like while it "appears" that they have actually finished some rooms (only on the 23rd Floor in the Executive Towers on the 200 - or smoking - series rooms) they're just not REALLY ready.

First off, I will say that when they ARE ready, it's going to be REALLY nice! Completely new bathrooms (Gorehn double headed showers, vanity style sinks and counters, picture frame mirrors, new toilets, marble (no more institution tile!).

The beds - major improvement! Down comforters, tapestry style bed spreads, new carpeting, wallpaper, curtains that actually CLOSE, painting, light fixtures, etc. They really did a top-to-bottom renovation. Including new TV's with BIG screens, DVD players in the room, Dream Machine CD/Clock/Alarm radios - the works!

Just a few "kinks" though to work out. Lights not working, TV's missing remote controls, High Speed Internet access not working, cordless phone not working.

Fortunately - the Palmer House has "Jack". Jack is in the maintenance department and this guy can get things done! He's incredibly nice, and willing to help out as much as he can. Admits when he can't fix something but promises - and comes through - with someone who can and does.

So, with the help from Jack and his crew, things got fixed, turned on, etc. and by the end of the stay the room was ready for the next guest.

I commend Hilton for recognizing the need to upgrade the Palmer House and really doing it all. I'm eager for the rest of the hotel to be completed. Perhaps the one suggestion I would give them is get someone and do a proper Quality Assurance review. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif

Very nice hotel. However, I was not impressed with the offerings in their lounge, unfortunately.

Hopefully that will improve also.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by PlatinumFlyer:


I commend Hilton for recognizing the need to upgrade the Palmer House and really doing it all. I'm eager for the rest of the hotel to be completed. Perhaps the one suggestion I would give them is get someone and do a proper Quality Assurance review. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif</font>
Amen to that! The Palmer House is a beautiful hotel with an awesome lobby but I found several problems in the rooms which was definitely a downer. Maintain the rooms(or fix problems in a timely manner) and I'd go back.

I just stayed on the Executive 23rd floor and I'd have to agree...the rooms were beautiful. I had two bathrooms in addition to all the other features listed above. The HHonors check-in desk was really helpful too! My agent's name was Kate, and she made the stay very pleasant.

rbank

Nice to hear. I'm booked there for one night, 3/14.

So, as a Gold, I should try to angle for a room on the 23rd floor?

Thank goodness. This was my first Hilton stay in a long time a couple years back. The Hotel was in dire need of a renovation. I almost never came back to Hilton after staying here. The Lounge was very so so.

It's true that the rooms and bathrooms are shabby. It's also true that the Exec Lounge is not special.

However, the Palmer House location is great. In addition, the staff has always been very helpful. We last stayed there in December and requested the "Pool Table Suite" in advance. The hotel made no guarantees, but we did get the suite, which made our teenage son very happy.

After that stay, I sent the GM a thank you note. He has already blocked the "Pool Table Suite" for our visit next week.

Great service with a personal touch!

I stay almost weekly at the PH and last for my birthday they gave me the 2 bedroom pool table suite. Had a part of 20 people and still there was plenty of room!!

I had been getting their "non-pool-table" suites regularly, but while they are very nice and a ton of room, I've opted for the renovated rooms which have the broadband internet.

My only complaint is that they're just not setup well to handle any internet issues. The main one being that it's not working in the room. Here's the secret: Hunt around for another box. It may be behind the curtains, the couch, the TV, even the bed, but if you find it, chances are that one works! Why it's not the one under the desk? That's a good question....

I always like my stays at the Palmer House.
Can't wait to see the new changes.

Is Palmer House a category 5 or 6 hotel?

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by PlatinumFlyer:
I stay almost weekly at the PH and last for my birthday they gave me the 2 bedroom pool table suite. Had a part of 20 people and still there was plenty of room!!

I had been getting their "non-pool-table" suites regularly, but while they are very nice and a ton of room, I've opted for the renovated rooms which have the broadband internet.

My only complaint is that they're just not setup well to handle any internet issues. The main one being that it's not working in the room. Here's the secret: Hunt around for another box. It may be behind the curtains, the couch, the TV, even the bed, but if you find it, chances are that one works! Why it's not the one under the desk? That's a good question....</font>

Exactly my point! Why get an exec room on the 23rd if the internet doesn't work! (non-suite of course). I did find the service to be exceptional when I had a complain about that very issue though.

I seem to remember someone saying--now I can't find the post--that the Palmer House actually categorizes its rooms according to size and desirability (i.e. categories 1-4). Has anyone else heard this? I'm scheduled to stay there next month and I can't remember whether category 1 rooms were supposed to be best or category 4. Does anyone else know about this?

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by Lpas:
I seem to remember someone saying--now I can't find the post--that the Palmer House actually categorizes its rooms according to size and desirability (i.e. categories 1-4). Has anyone else heard this? I'm scheduled to stay there next month and I can't remember whether category 1 rooms were supposed to be best or category 4. Does anyone else know about this?</font>

I've not heard of that before. From my experience, there are 3 floors with the better rooms. 23 & 22 which are Executive Towers, and the rooms on 8 where the gym is. They tend to be larger, but I can't confirm broadband access.

As for renovated rooms, there seems to be a variety of renovations. Some are complete (see first post on this thread), others have just the bathrooms upgraded. I'd still consider those "better" than the standard rooms.

Also keep in mind that not all the rooms on 23,22 and 8 are better - just the majority. There still are a few "closets" where you'll find you can't open drawers, doors, etc. without bumping into something like room 23-245 - tiny!

I booked online and reserved a 21 day advanced rate for 1 night. I am a Diamond. I booked the cheapest room available. A couple days before my stay, the pre-arrivals coordinator emailed me telling me the pool table suite that I requested would be available. Cool! I took another look at my online res and in the comments it said : (along with alot of code) DO NOT WALK!!POOL TABLE ROOM!! The hotel was going be busting out of its seams that night I guess.

I arrived at 8PM and valeted(?) my car($31)
The lobby was very large and ornate. I did not realize how big this hotel was. Went to checkin and got in line. There was 1 dude ahead of me. Had I looked around directly behind me, I would have seen the HH checkin. DOH! I smiled at the checkin agent and gave her my name. Now comes the funny parts: The guy ahead of me just got there from Ohare after flying 30 hours that day from Australia. The lady said that they were all booked and that he could have a large living room suite with a "roll away" bed. He thought for all of half a second before he said that he wanted a normal bed. After a bit, agent said that he would be upgraded to the executive lounge for his troubles. He thanked them and left. My turn. Just in case, I gave the agent my Diamond card. She told me she would be right back. She went in the back room for a couple of minutes. I slowly started to put my hand in my pocket where I had the printouts stating what room I was getting and that I was not to be walked. Before I could get the copies out, she came back and told me that there was a problem and that I had 2 choices. They had reserved the pool table suite for me. It was very large but the attached bedroom was already rented out to someone else. They explained to me that the pool table suite can be rented out separately for parties and such. The hotel offers many different configs for their rooms. Made sense to me. They said I could have that room(Pool Table Suite) and they would get a roll away bed in there for me. I said what else is available? She said that I could have a parlor suite which was the same size as the Pool Table suite. I said I wanted both http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif She told me to wait a second and went back to the back room. During our whole conversation, I was in a very relaxed mood and we were both actually laughing at the situation. She came back and said that I would be able to use the Pool Table Suite for 2 hours. I said OK. I got 4 room key cards: 1 for the exec lounge, 1 for the pool table suite, and 2 for my parlor suite. I go to the elevator. Whoever said that the elevators were slow hasn't been here recently. I had to pop my ears after I got off. The elevators are divided by blocks of floors like the big high rises. It took me a couple minutes to get to my room. Did I already mention that the hotel was huge?

I walk into the room and it is huge. It seems a little bit old but still done in a very charming style. The suite has a wet bar, dining room table for 6, living room, 2 tvs, 2 fridges, 2 full baths, and a master bedroom. I dropped my bags and after a quick look around, I went looking for the pool table suite 2 stories down. I walk into the room and it is the same size as my parlor suite minus the bedroom.(I saw several door at the end of small hallways that I assumed went to connecting bedrooms. Pool table was in good shape. Cues were not. After looking around for a bit, got a call from my friend who had arrived at the hotel to meet me for some drinks. I don't drink much but he does. Went to the front of the hotel to meet him.(it took about 5 minutes) I got in his car and we went to the parking garage on the next block. The self-park garage is a block over and you have to go outside to get back to the hotel. Self park is $23. On the way back to the hotel, I noticed that there were several security officers at the different entrances to the hotel checking for room keys. That made me feel good. We head on up to the Executive Lounge on the executive floor. The elevator has a bench in it. I had to swipe my card to get in the elevator. This has got to be the biggest lounge that I have ever seen. There is a PC area, tv, cash bar,smoking section, non-smoking section, dedicated HH concierge, hot snacks, and unlimited soft drinks(yeah). We grab a seat and the bartender takes our drink order. I ask him if he wants my room number for the bill. He says to write it on a form and it will be an open tab. I said OK. The lounge closes at 11PM. At 11PM the bartender gives my friend one last drink and disappears. I thought he was gonna be back to get my signature for the bill. He never came back. I wish he did because I wanted to give him a tip because he was so cool. I had a White Russian and 4 diet cokes. That's a good ratio for me. I didn't even finish the White Russian http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif The Australian I had seen at check in showed up at the lounge and chain smoked for a couple a minutes, said hi and then went to sleep. My friend left at midnight and I headed back to my room. The lounge was in a different tower than my room so it was a elevator ride back to the lobby before hitting the elevators that went to my room. I have to make this trek one more time for breakfast.

Next morning, I wake up and I get cleaned up. They serve breakfast until 11 AM so I slowly head on over the Exec Lounge. The lounge is pretty crowded but I easily find a spot to sit. They had bagels, cereal, juices, croissants, yogurt, and pastries. They had more stuff but I don't remember. Lot's of different kinds of coffee, teas and cappuchinos coming out of self serve machines. I don't drink it so I didn't really pay attention to it too much.
After eating, I went to see the HH concierge working on the floor about an error on my folio which was under my door that morning. I had already pre-paid for the room but there was an additional room charge on my bill for a night probably due to the confusion at checkin. She took care of it and I was back off to my room. I double checked the folio and I realized that they never charged me for the drinks we had on either folio. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif I heard in another post that this happened to someone else. Now I really wished I could have tipped the bartender http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gifI packed and got ready to leave. They said I didn't need to check out until 2 PM if I wanted. It was around 12:30 PM. I called a number to check out and gave my parking stub to the valet office. After 10 minutes, my car shows up and after giving the guy $5, I am off.

My take on the Palmer. It is an old hotel but still very nice. It is a big place. Exec Lounge is very nice. Food there is average. Bartender is awesome. They have good security at night. Fast elevators. Nice employees. If there was one bad point, the walls between bedrooms may be a bit thin. The next morning when I woke up, I could hear the next door neighbor arguing with someone. I tried going back to sleep. They kept arguing. I got up and went to the door and banged on it while yelling SHUT UP! I was able to get back to sleep. I didn't have a chance to eat at any of their restaurants so no comments there. I enjoyed it and valuewise, I don't think it could be beat.

Here are some pictures of the 2 different rooms. There are 3 pages of pics.

http://groups.msn.com/TheSuhFamilyWebsite/palmerhousehiltonchicago.msnw

[This message has been edited by korea71 (edited 05-11-2003).]

Did you originally request the pool table suite when you reserved "the cheapest room available"? Or is this how they took care of you as a Diamond?

Just curious. I probably won't make Diamond again for next year and it would be nice to make good use of it this year.

Interesting report Korea, Thanks.

One question though, why would you go to the trouble of checking into a hotel to do nothing but have a few drinks in the hotel lounge ? No nice dinner ? Cool bar ? ORD has a lot more to offer for a night out than the Hilton lounge.. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/wink.gif

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by pdhenry:
Did you originally request the pool table suite when you reserved "the cheapest room available"? Or is this how they took care of you as a Diamond?

Just curious. I probably won't make Diamond again for next year and it would be nice to make good use of it this year.</font>

I requested the room when they sent me an email asking me if I had any special requests. The pool table room is advertised on the Hilton website so it is no secret.(accomodations and ammenities) Whether or not I got this room as a Diamond, I don't know. I am pretty sure that they were told specifically not to walk me as a diamond as I saw the comments section on my original res. I guess it couldn't hurt to ask.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by JohnG:
Interesting report Korea, Thanks.

One question though, why would you go to the trouble of checking into a hotel to do nothing but have a few drinks in the hotel lounge ? No nice dinner ? Cool bar ? ORD has a lot more to offer for a night out than the Hilton lounge.. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/wink.gif

</font>

I already had dinner with some other friends before I got to the hotel. My friend that visited me also lives in Chicago so I didn't really have to show him around. I was just curious on what the Palmer had to offer so I was trying out their facilities. Actually the lounge that night was very empty so it was quite nice just to relax and talk about old times.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by korea71:
I requested the room when they sent me an email asking me if I had any special requests. The pool table room is advertised on the Hilton website so it is no secret.(accomodations and ammenities) Whether or not I got this room as a Diamond, I don't know. I am pretty sure that they were told specifically not to walk me as a diamond as I saw the comments section on my original res. I guess it couldn't hurt to ask.</font>

Great pix and report. Just curious about the process you used to pre-reserve a room and view the room assignment online. Care to share?? It would certainly ease a lot of the hassles at checkin if one could do this.
thanks

kelly786

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by kelly786:
Great pix and report. Just curious about the process you used to pre-reserve a room and view the room assignment online. Care to share?? It would certainly ease a lot of the hassles at checkin if one could do this.
thanks

kelly786</font>

You may request the "pool table suite" when making the res. either online or through their phone agents. They send you an email stating what kind of room they have for you or if you have any requests several days before you arrive. The comments I saw online, I had no control over. I believe it is an internal admin area from HH to each individual property. Even with this procedure, I didn't get the pool table suite.(except for 2 hours) I guess it all depends on availability.

As you were so quick to find the concierge and point out you were overcharged for the room(s) I thought you might have run back and pointed out the fact you were not charged for the drinks.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by worldtrav:
As you were so quick to find the concierge and point out you were overcharged for the room(s) I thought you might have run back and pointed out the fact you were not charged for the drinks.</font>

Would you?

Finally got the Pool Table Suite outright this past weekend. I had made the booking for the aftermath of the ORD 12 Country Vodka DO on May 10th. The bedroom included with the suite was very nice and large. Double beds and a nice large TV.

Hi,

I just got done staying at the Palmer House Hilton. I arrived on Sunday December 21st, at around 1:30pm. I was upgraded to a Junior Suite, from a studio room ahead of time. At check in, I was told I would recieve a full suite, and the wait would be a couple hours. Went out shopping, and came back around 5pm, and they must have forgot about my full suite, because I was given a junior, suite which was more than adequete. It had two bathrooms, which turns out to be really useful. I was on the 19th floor, the hilton is a walk from Michigan Avenue shopping, a good 15 minutes. The executive lounge in this hilton is excellent. Went there for Hors D'orves at 6:30pm, and the lounge was packed. They have free soft drinks, juice and water all in bottles from 6:00am til 11:00pm. Went back to the lounge at 10pm for some juice and they had cookies and brownies set out. Breakfest was cereal and pastries with lots of juices and yogart. The lounge also has cookies in the afternoon, as well as DVD's to check out and huge plamsa TV's. The hotel has a great health club, with lots of work out equipement, a pool, jacuzzi, sauna, and steamroom, all free for silver, gold or Diamond memebers. We ate at Giordano's, a chicago style pizza place a block away, at it was excellent!!! The next day I checked out at 2pm, I had to ask for later check out. Went to the lounge, and checked out the with attendant there; and warm up our left over pizza, and enjoyed some cookies and juice while we watched the news for an hour. By far the best hilton I have ever seen for a $74 a night rate. With the parking and tax the one night was $107. Another note is the parking is from whenever you arrive til 5pm the next day, so it can be over 24 hours, which is a huge money saver.

Timo
HH gold

WOW! I didn't know that Giordanos was so close to the Palmer House. Have been wanting to go t Giordanos for lunch sometime. (my nephew works for SWA). I hear Giordanos is awesome? With a stay at Palmer it wold be grrrreat!

Cool Timo. We're heading there for Sunday for a New Years trip. Will let you guys know what the treatment was like.
Happy New Year everyone. Go Michigan in the Rose Bowl!!!

I have found a new "home" in Chicago after this last stay at Palmer House. Everything Timo said is true. We only ever had to pay for lunch while we were out, and coincidentally Giordano's was a lunch stop outside the Sears Tower. The lounge fed us fine otherwise. Our full king suite (booked $99 KNS room) upgrade as Gold was 1300 sf with 2 baths. Yes, we'll be back.

Hello Everyone

In May, we will be arriving at the Palmer House on a Sunday AM. Taking Southwest Airlines to Midway. We will have 1 large suitcase on weels and 1 or 2 small carry-ons each.

Should we take the Train from the airport to Palmer House (how close is it to the hotel) or is it better to pay the extra $$ to take the shuttle to the hotel from the airport.

Looking forward to our stay. :)

Thanks for any advise.

I was there a couple of weeks ago, if you're flying into midway, the subway stops one block away from the hotel. It is a little walk from baggage claim to the subway stop at Midway, but not too bad. The only downside is the stairs from the subway stop to street level, again not too bad. You can't beat the price of $1.75 per person.

Since the Orange Line has to go all the way around the Loop to stop at Wabash/Adams, I always take the Orange Line from Midway to Roosevelt. Then follow the signs to the Red Line (free transfer) and take the Red Line (Howard) to Monroe. This stop is at the State Street entrance to the Palmer House.

The other benefit is that Roosevelt has elevators and Monroe has an escalator if you have a lot of luggage.

Just got back from another good stay at the Palmer House. Has anyone else noticed that the colors in the new carpet seem awfully loud (or is it just me?)

I came back last night from a weekend in Chicago. Since it was my 50th birthday, I paid extra attention when planning the trip and decided to book the Palmer House, a decision based on my previous stay there and comments on this forum.
As HH Gold, I was upgraded to a larger room with two bathtrooms (travelling with my brother), granted access to the newly refurbished Executive Club and sent a complimentary bottle of champagne by the concierge. I understand that HH Gold VIPS are always treated very well at that hotel. I also noticed that some public areas were renovated. The hotel is under excellent management and I will certainly be back soon.
That's the way to go, thank you Palmer House and Hilton.

I was staying on an HHonors award on Nov. 4 at the Palmer House Hilton and was pretty leary after reading these forums about tiny rooms, weary furniture, etc.
We contacted the Pre-arrivals desk by e-mail and asked for an upgrade.
We arrived and found ourselves in a junior suite on the top (23rd) floor with a view, and access to the executive lounge.
One of my best and certainly least expensive (35,000 points) hotel stays in the continental US. Better than the Waldorf, the Breakers, and as good as the Wesin La Paloma!

Does that mean it will be re-flagged with another brand?

^ My first trip to Chicago so I deceided to stay at the historic Palmer House Hilton. As a HH Gold I checked in the day before online and was upgraded from a "room assigned at check-in" AAA rate room to room XX172 in the executive tower. (the room was assigned to me online) It is a nice corner King room that has two windows. Not much of a view, since the hotel is in the middle of the loop. But it is definitely nice to be on the top floors away from the street noise.

The room is very elegantly decorated with a tapestry bed spread and two large european pillows, taffeta curtains, crown moldings, and gold leaf accented furniture. Very comfortable King bed with triple sheets and down comforter. The room is nicely sized, the bathroom is smaller than newer hotels, but The Palmer House has done a good job appointing it to make it feel elegant.

The executive lounge serves continental breakfast and the Latte Machine makes a darn good latte! The lounge appears to be open all day for free refrenshments and appetizers in the evening. I was not at the hotel in the eve to see what the appetizers were like, but at 10:30 when I returned, the lounge had chocolate chip cookies available - yum!

The hotel is very close to the blue line which makes it an easy $1.75 subway ride away from O'Hare. My flight out was later in the day so I asked for an extended check-out time and was offered an extension to 2:00, which is nice.

The lobby of the hotel is very grand, and the front desk reception at the HHonors line was very quick.

One note - In the welcome letter that I received with my key - I was instructed on my future returns to call (312)422-1834 within an hour of reaching the hotel, and my room key would be waiting for me at the bell desk on Monroe Street, and I would be able to bypass registration totally. I'll definitely try this next time.

All in all - a very nice hotel, and I would not hestitate to return. :-:

Great property and great staff. I'll return.

Ditto. Plus, you usually can get some great rates at hilton.com that make this great property easy on the expense account.

I just stayed at the Palmer House myself this past weekend. The staff was very accommodating - initially I had been upgraded to a Jnr Suite (with my diamond status). Since my room was not ready upon arrival, the manager upgraded me to a parlor suite on the 22nd floor. Great room(s) for a really cheap price.

Unfortunately, I understand that the Palmer House has been sold and that it may no longer be a Hilton property in the future. Can anyone confirm?

I just stayed at the Palmer House myself this past weekend. The staff was very accommodating - initially I had been upgraded to a Jnr Suite (with my diamond status). Since my room was not ready upon arrival, the manager upgraded me to a parlor suite on the 22nd floor. Great room(s) for a really cheap price.

Unfortunately, I understand that the Palmer House has been sold and that it may no longer be a Hilton property in the future. Can anyone confirm?

I heard it was on the market but I have not seen anything regarding a sale. Too bad if it sheds its Hilton affiliation.

Hi,
I stay fairly frequently at the Palmer House Hilton, 1-3 times a month during the work week, and I have been doing so fairly regularly during the last year or so. On my very first few stays, when I had no status, I sometimes got upgraded to the executive floors. However, that has not happened for me the entire time I was a Gold, and although I just recently became a Diamond, it has not yet happened for me as a Diamond either. I do always stay at the Gov't rate, $136/night. I was just wondering the frequency of upgrades that other people experience and what their level and rate plan is. I do always get access to the executive lounge. Basically, I am wondering if I should be asking for an upgrade or if the rooms are all full with people paying a lot more than me.

Thanks.

I've often come to the conclusion that the rate you pay has more to do with getting an upgrade than your "status".

I stayed at this hotel for the cheapest Internet rate and got an upgrade ... from a broom closet to the smallest room I've ever stayed at.

NEVER again :td:

At this hotel I have found the upgrade to the Exec. Floor to be hit and miss... usually it seems to be an availability issue, not a rate issue. Several times I booked at a $69 broom closet rate and was upgraded to a 2 bedroom/livingroom/dining room/kitchen/2 bath suite. Not bad for the price!

Cheers,

Answida

have you been calling ahead with an upgrade request? If you call the Palmer House line, there is a voicemail box where you can leave an upgrade request. The only time I stayed there, I would have been upgraded into the executive level, but opted for a suite instead.

have you been calling ahead with an upgrade request? If you call the Palmer House line, there is a voicemail box where you can leave an upgrade request.

No, I have never called ahead before. One of my reasons for posting was to see if, and how, other people got upgrades there. I am staying there next week and I will call ahead and request an upgrade and see what happens. Thanks.

Last fall, as a Gold on a gov't rate, on a 3-4 nite stay going into the weekend, I peeked at the hilton.com on-line c/i options the night before, and found low floor# choices -- so passed on that. Next a.m., I called the voice mailbox before heading out to SFO, then on arrival, went directly to the HHonors c/i area and was not only offered Exec. floor choices but the staff looked for a while for a more spacious room with a partial lake view. I'd conclude that availability of u/g space and the staff knowing of your u/g interests may make a greater diff. than room rate at the PH.

Stayed there last week and was not upgraded to exec level. Was told they had upgraded me to the HHonors floor (hardly an upgrade for Diamond). I did however receive lounge access.

At the Hilton Chicago however I was recently upgraded to a 2 bedroom with dining room, office, 4 bathroom 2000sq foot suite, very very nice.

The same week at the Drake I was upgraded to exec room but no suite.

I stayed at the Palmer House in Chicago last week during the fire

(http://abclocal.go.com/wls/news/081...house_fire.html)

Is it appropriate to ask for a refund? I realize this situation is supposedly "not the hotel's fault" even though it is one of the only fire proof hotels in Chicago according to Wikipedia. A fire is a definite inconvenience and threat to safety- isn't the hotel responsible for preventing them?

I was already displeased with my stay- as a Diamond I was not upgraded to exec level and as this was a one night stay I would think they wouldn't mind reimbursing me. I wrote a letter to the hotel manager who has not responded (6 days have passed). Anyone else asked for a refund in a similar situation?

I would be thankful to be safe, and that everyone was safe. I would argue that the hotel should take reasonable efforts to prevent fires, but how do you know they did not? As far as the upgrade, are your preferences set for the upgrade or bonus points? Also, remember, while your status means they should upgrade you if they have the room, it doesn't mean that you deserve to stay free because they didn't. Some people have found that they have success in asking at the front desk upon check-in, or calling the hotel a day or two before to request the upgrade, so you might want to try that next time. My take is that you were already unhappy, and are looking for a way to get something for free, using the fire as a reason. I understand that people have asked for compensation for false fire alarms before, and I won't comment on that. However, you should be thankful that you were safe during the real thing, and not look for a way to get something for free because you were already unhappy with something else, IMO.

I would be thankful to be safe, and that everyone was safe. I would argue that the hotel should take reasonable efforts to prevent fires, but how do you know they did not? As far as the upgrade, are your preferences set for the upgrade or bonus points? Also, remember, while your status means they should upgrade you if they have the room, it doesn't mean that you deserve to stay free because they didn't. Some people have found that they have success in asking at the front desk upon check-in, or calling the hotel a day or two before to request the upgrade, so you might want to try that next time. My take is that you were already unhappy, and are looking for a way to get something for free, using the fire as a reason. I understand that people have asked for compensation for false fire alarms before, and I won't comment on that. However, you should be thankful that you were safe during the real thing, and not look for a way to get something for free because you were already unhappy with something else, IMO.

Wow...it was like you we're reading my mind. I agree and couldn't have said it better myself!

I was already displeased with my stay- as a Diamond I was not upgraded to exec level

You had access to the Exec Level, right?

As a Diamond I've been given a suite all 3 times that I've stayed there.
The last suite had a full living room, dining room table and two full baths.
However none of the suites were on the Exec floor.
(I'll gladly take the suite and then the elevator to get to the Exec floor.)

At the Hilton Chicago however I was recently upgraded to a 2 bedroom with dining room, office, 4 bathroom 2000sq foot suite, very very nice.

The same week at the Drake I was upgraded to exec room but no suite.

Did you have to ask for the upgrade at the Hilton Chicago or Drake?

I think that you should get a refund, if you were inconvenienced, your stay was interfered with. If they didn't provide the service, you should ask for the refund. A analogous thing happened on an AA flight from BRU-ORD. The engine cover threw off on TO and hit the wing, putting a hole in it. They landed safely at LHR and put us on another plane. I received a full refund on the return, without asking. It was a bit scary, especially when the co pilot leaned across us in Business to check the damage and said that it didn't look good.

I stayed at the Palmer House in Chicago last week during the fire

Your link doesn't work. Was there a fire there? I see something about a freon leak to which firemen were dispatched.

What floor were you on? Were you there when it happened? Were you personally inconvenienced? If so, how?

The lack of an upgrade is unrelated.

We were once woken up at 1:30 am and evacuated from the Dorchester Hotel in London due to a fire in their basement. We had to trek up the road to a neighbouring hotel and camp out in their ballroom for a couple of hours. Since it was the night before our flight out it left us a bit groggy that day. The hotel gave us all a bottle of sparkling wine and reduced everyone's bill by 50% for that night. I thought that was fair.

I was in a hotel fire in England several years ago and the hotel proactively comped our rooms for the inconvenience.

However, whether I would ask for compensation or, more appropriately reimbursement, would really depend on the level of inconvenience.

In my case, for example, the fire was late at night (after midnight - maybe 1am), we were stuck outdoors in various stages of undress for over two hours.

One gal was stuck out there without her wig and was extremely embarrassed in front of several co-workers.

It was cold and rainy and I remember that I did not have shoes or socks.

The time spent outside seriously compromised our sleep - and we were zombies at work the next day.

Several people with rooms closer to the fire had to dryclean their clothes several times to get rid of the smoke odor. The hotel offered to send it out for cleaning and ship it to them at home. I think they had to buy a few new items to get through the trip for which they kept receipts (reasonable prices) and were reimbursed.

I don't think that anyone in my group had anything that could not be salvaged but possibly other guests were not so lucky.

I assume that the hotel's insurance company paid for just about everything.

There was no fire last week at the Palmer House. The incident being referred to here was a freon leak, which caused the hotel to be cleared for approximately three hours in the afternoon:

http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/cst-nws-spill14.html

The only referenced fire at the Palmer House, according to the WLS-TV website (where the OP got the news story), happened in August of 2005:

http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=News&id=3339989

That said, I'm not sure that the freon leak (in and of itself) is enough for compensation, either. We don't know if the OP was one of the persons injured by it (though I'm going to presume that she was not injured), and there's no other mention of inconvenience other than "there was a fire" (which there really wasn't).

The upgrade issue, as mentioned in post 6, is another unrelated matter - one that I believe has even less merit with regard to compensation, as executive level upgrades are not a guaranteed benefit for Diamonds. If someone is going to base their stay satisfaction on non-guaranteed benefits, then I think they're going to be set up for dissatisfaction on quite a frequent basis.

Mike

Definitely shouldn't get a refund just for not getting an upgrade.

For the "freon leak" I wouldn expect to get some sort of compensation for the inconvenience. Of course the comp amount would be contingent upon how much of an inconvenience you experienced. An evacuation of a bldg for your safety in the middle of the afternoon isn't really all that bad unless you consider missing an episode of Oprah a travesty :p . Being evacuated in the middle of the night on the other hand...

I wouldn't expect to get a 100% refund, but I would probably expect a letter of apology and maybe some sort of gift expressing their regrets.

Either way, I've had far worst experiences that what you supposedly endured and usually I complain only if the event was caused by management failings rather than a event that is outside the control of management. Of course this is just my opinion...

This FT thread is cooky.

I look at it this way. Evacuated and saved. I don't care what time of day it is.

How about some of you look at it this way.

When you don't go into work and get paid for it - do you give the money back for the inconvenience?

Anyone been here this year? I am debating which Hilton to stay in.
Suggestions please?

Hey anyone stayed here since last year?
Or is this place a dump?
Help a brother out please.
I am bring my wife and son with me.
Thanks,
Jon

Hey anyone stayed here since last year?
Or is this place a dump?
Help a brother out please.
I am bring my wife and son with me.
Thanks,
Jon

No it's not a dump. If you're a Diamond they take very good care of you. As the chicago properties are often discussed, there might be other threads with more recent information that discuss this property. I think i've even done a review :confused: , but I can't remember. Everytime I've stayed at this property I've scored a sweet, suite! :D

There is an active discussion of the Palmer House and which rooms are desireable here (http://flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=448059&page=2).

This is my most HATED HILTON!..$30 roomservice breakfast..small rooms..and a freaky smell! :td:

Howdy,

Well, I was Diamond from like 2000 through sometime 2007 (not exactly sure when I lost it - I wasn't traveling for a year; had maybe 10-15 stays). Anyway - when I was Diamond I frequently stayed at the Palmer House - and sometimes got great upgrades; almost always got something - slightly nicer room, etc...

Anyway - with 31 stays since December - I'm back on the road (oh boy).

So I'm Diamond again (which is good - now at least I can generally get into the hotel I want to get into).

So I check in the other the day to the Palmer house - and as is my custom ask about the possibility of an upgrade (and I do take a moment to note that this is not a big deal at all - no family with me on this one (if the family is tagging along; I do mention it - it matters a lot more to me)).

Anyway (yes....eventually I'll get to the bloody point).

The check-in person looks up at me in shock and states firmly,"There are no upgrades here Sir, we do not do that ever".

I stammer something ... and am again greeting with a rebuff of awe.

So - I have a few questions (conditionally).

1. Are there still upgrades at the Palmer House for Diamonds?

2. If not - any advice on where I should look downtown? The Drake?

Thanks in advance.

Keep the faith,

Pakse

[Below added in the edit]

I would like to get an upgrade 33% of the time to a slightly nicer room (better view maybe, or a hair larger, or a bit newer, etc...) - of that 33% - I would like to once in a while get into a 'real' upgrade, i.e. jr. suite, etc... That's what I mean when I say upgrade.

So - I have a few questions (conditionally).

1. Are there still upgrades at the Palmer House for Diamonds?

2. If not - any advice on where I should look downtown? The Drake?

Thanks in advance.

Keep the faith,

Pakse

[Below added in the edit]

I would like to get an upgrade 33% of the time to a slightly nicer room (better view maybe, or a hair larger, or a bit newer, etc...) - of that 33% - I would like to once in a while get into a 'real' upgrade, i.e. jr. suite, etc... That's what I mean when I say upgrade.

I have stayed on the PH dozens of times over the past ten years, though very little in the past three. However, late last year I was still getting some sort of upgrade. I would often book the room described on the website as "Small" or something like that for very cheap $ (i.e. $129 or so), and never every stayed in one of these closets.

Twice last year, I received real upgrades to suites, other times, always something.

I'd say my avg is close to 80% there.

Strange - did you check in at the Hhonors desk? Did you ask upstairs as well?

You know that there are some very small rooms there, and upgrades can be minor.

Strange - did you check in at the Hhonors desk? Did you ask upstairs as well?I was wondering the same, as I've done pretty well at the PH as well.

I've been upgraded to huge suites on every stay at the PH. So I am in thinking the same as the last two posters. Once, you stay at the PH, as a Diamond, they put you preferences on file.


Were you at the "Honors check-in area" under the stairs, not the regular check in?
Is your Hilton status proper reflected with the hotel on your reservation?
Did you inquire upstairs as the previous poster mention?


I would get that employees name and let the FD manager know what was said.

Also, we need to remember hotels have higher occupancy than 4/5 years ago and although people do get upgraded to suites its not a diamond benefit.

I was there late last year when they told me that they didn't upgrade to Exec floor any more, but had a Diamond Floor which had some very nice rooms, but no lounge access.

I stayed there last September... Small room overlooking the garbage collection alley, Had to argue with the Honors checkin to get a pass to the exec lounge. When Hilton sent me their "how was your stay" I replied with the complaints, and soon received a phone call from the manager. Unfortunately, she left voicemail and after three attempts to return the call with her not in the office, I decided it just wasn't worth it. Our stay was for a full week, and total folio was over a grand

I am not a confrontational person normally and I think most who have read my replies here on the HH forum know that I handle things tactfully (w/ a charming smile even), but I would have been tempted to press the issue with the desk agent... saying something along the lines of, "Oh, you never give upgrades? That is odd since the last X number of times I stayed here I was given upgrades of such and such. But if you insist that you never upgrade then you might want to inform the rest of your staff." :):):) ;)

As to the Drake, I would recommend it. 100% upgrade success for myself (and my family), even on award stays. Always book smallest room / restricted view and have always been upgraded to something better.

I'm confused. I'm going to be staying in Chicago a lot over the next year and just called the Palmer House to inquire about the Diamond Level compared to the Executive Level. The lady told me there was a lounge on the Diamond Level. Can any confirm?

"diamond level"? What is that? Is this a hotel specific thing at the Palmer House?

Or are you talking about HHonors Diamond Level? :confused:

The Palmer house has a floor called the "Diamond Level" and that is what they upgrade Gold and Platinum members to. They also have an executive level. When I used to travel there a few years ago, Gold and Diamond members got upgraded to the Executive Level. I was there a few weeks ago, right before I got my Gold status back, and they said they don't upgrade to the executive floor anymore and you have to pay for it. They also said they have a special floor for Gold and Diamond members called the Diamond Level. I went to that floor and saw a big sign that said Diamond Level, but didn't see any lounge. When I called the hotel, they said there is a lounge on both levels.

The Palmer house has a floor called the "Diamond Level" and that is what they upgrade Gold and Platinum members to. They also have an executive level. When I used to travel there a few years ago, Gold and Diamond members got upgraded to the Executive Level. I was there a few weeks ago, right before I got my Gold status back, and they said they don't upgrade to the executive floor anymore and you have to pay for it. They also said they have a special floor for Gold and Diamond members called the Diamond Level. I went to that floor and saw a big sign that said Diamond Level, but didn't see any lounge. When I called the hotel, they said there is a lounge on both levels.

I'd like to request some reviews since the reno.Hhonors doesn't have "platinum" members.:p

Humm, I'll admit I haven't been at the PH in a while, as most of stays have been at the Conrad.

Can we get some comparisons to the "Executive Level" and the "Diamond Level" with pictures? You know I like pretty pictures.:)

thanks in advance :D

Sorry, I meant Diamond. I get Hilton and Marriott confused.

Any recent stays/experiences?

I've stayed here twice in the last couple of months. First time, was "upgraded" to a Diamond Floor (20th, I think). Second time, I was "upgraded" to an HHonors Floor (I'm still Diamond). Other than I sign by the elevators, I don't think there's anything special about these floors. Both times, I asked about executive floor upgrades and was told that one had to pay for them now ($55, I think). I didn't bother pulling out the rules -- they were just 1 night stays. On the second stay, I had checked OLCI and saw that I could select a room on the executive floor, but all of the choices there said "small room," so I didn't do OLCI. As has been posted here, there are some VERY small rooms at this property.

On both stays, I was given executive floor access. They had sodas and waters available, along with snacks in the evening (around 8 p.m.). A decent selection of typical breakfast fare in the morning.

The fitness center is under renovation. They have some equipment in a meeting room on the 3rd floor right now. I'm not sure when the work is going to be done.

The hotel is in pretty good shape. It's old, but maintained fairly well. I'm not overwhelmed by it, and I've picked it mostly because it's two blocks from the courthouse where I've needed to be the next morning.

I will be staying at the Palmer House on an upcoming weekend for 3 nights. I have heard that they usually don't give upgrades or lounge access to elites. I am currently a gold and am wondering what my chances are of getting an upgrade or lounge access?

Thanks.

There are plenty of existing threads on this property, like this one:
Palmer House Upgrades? Do they still exist? (http://flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=812915&highlight=palmer+house)

My experience is upgrades are based on availabiltiy. Personally, this property has been good to me in regard to upgardes.

Check to make sure that your preference are proper.

I used to (~2005) stay there weekly, and I was upgraded every time after I made gold (room on the top 2 floor, lounge access). They actually gave me my own key to the exec floor, so I could check in upstairs. The exec concierges were very good and accommodating to diamonds.

There are plenty of existing threads on this property, like this one:
Palmer House Upgrades? Do they still exist? (http://flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=812915&highlight=palmer+house)

My experience is upgrades are based on availabiltiy. Personally, this property has been good to me in regard to upgardes.

Check to make sure that your preference are proper.:rolleyes: Cheap Elite, do you realize that the "other thread" you linked to is this thread?

:rolleyes: Cheap Elite, do you realize that the "other thread" you linked to is this thread?

Not sure why you felt the need to include the "rolleyes" icon. Beckles, just so you are aware, the link was separate when I made my post. You can see where firstflyer's thread (Palmer House Hilton) was merged into the Palmer House Upgrades?...... thread.

The mods merged the thread AFTER I made my comment and hit the RBP button so both threads could be reviewed since the topic is the same. The mods then merged the threads, and now it looks as though I was referencing the same thread. Besides it's been three day so I don't know why your comment is even needed?? I gave the OP previous helpful information.

Not sure why you felt the need to include the "rolleyes" icon. Beckles, just so you are aware, the link was separate when I made my post. You can see where firstflyer's thread (Palmer House Hilton) was merged into the Palmer House Upgrades?...... thread.

The mods merged the thread AFTER I made my comment and hit the RBP button so both threads could be reviewed since the topic is the same. The mods then merged the threads, and now it looks as though I was referencing the same thread. Besides it's been three day so I don't know why your comment is even needed?? I gave the OP previous helpful information.I apologize for the :rolleyes: in that case ... I honestly thought you had just said to yourself "Hey, I know there's a thread on this already" and posted a link back to the same thread ... I was mistaken. My apologies.

I apologize for the :rolleyes: in that case ... I honestly thought you had just said to yourself "Hey, I know there's a thread on this already" and posted a link back to the same thread ... I was mistaken. My apologies.

No Worries. We're cool! :)

:rolleyes: Cheap Elite, do you realize that the "other thread" you linked to is this thread?



Not sure why you felt the need to include the "rolleyes" icon. Beckles, just so you are aware, the link was separate when I made my post. You can see where firstflyer's thread (Palmer House Hilton) was merged into the Palmer House Upgrades?...... thread.

The mods merged the thread AFTER I made my comment and hit the RBP button so both threads could be reviewed since the topic is the same. The mods then merged the threads, and now it looks as though I was referencing the same thread. Besides it's been three day so I don't know why your comment is even needed?? I gave the OP previous helpful information.

I apologize for the :rolleyes: in that case ... I honestly thought you had just said to yourself "Hey, I know there's a thread on this already" and posted a link back to the same thread ... I was mistaken. My apologies.

No Worries. We're cool! :)I meant to edit — or, at least ask Cheap Elite to edit — what Cheap Elite posted once I merged the two threads together and it must have simply slipped my mind.

Please accept my apologies for any confusion or inconvenience this has caused. This one is my fault and I take full responsibility for what happened.

Thank you for your understanding and patience. Now let us please return to the topic already in progress.

Regards,

Canarsie
Co-Moderator, Hilton forum

Currently at PH. I've stayed here 6-7 times over the past year, as a Diamond, and several time prior to that. I'm always welcomed as a repeat visitor. I used to be upgraded to exec floors (22,23) or occasionally some jr suite. As of earlier this year (going on vague memory) they have at least one special diamond floor (as previously posted). I am on 20, which is one such floor. I think there are 1 or 2 others, but not sure. I have been told they do NOT upgrade to exec floor any more, but feel strongly YMMV. I have not roamed the hallways or asked staff, but I think the only lounge is on 23, as always. There is certainly no lounge on this floor. I have always been given the special key card at check-in to get access to 23 for the lounge. The diamond floor(s) are recently renovated (but no flat screens, which i think is highly disappointing in this day and age). The HHonors check-in desk is no longer under the stairs (as previously posted) but rather is one end of the normal check-in desk. It is worth noting that many of my recent stays have been during conferences (or the marathon) when I believe the hotel has been sold out, which may have something to do with the lack of upgrades, but I do think there is some sort of policy. Also, I don't know of any way to access the 23rd floor, other than special key card, so I'm not sure how you would get there *prior* to check-in, as another poster had mentioned. Personally, I don't love this place, but I need to stay here per corporate policy. BTW, in my diamond floor room, the only bath amenities are 1 (!) bar of soap, shampoo and conditioner.