My day started somewhat in a hectic fashion with a morning voicemail indicating that my flight to Chicago had been cancelled. Scrambling to throw everything in my suitcase and headed for the airport, I called the airline to make alternate arrangements.
I arrived in Chicago slightly behind schedule. Tired, I went directly to the hotel. I walked into a warm and inviting lobby in an otherwise brutal winter midwestern winter. An agent with a lovely smile made eye contact with me so I headed her way to check in. We had a small talk and I told her about my hectic day. She seemed to actually care. I inquired about my room, and she told me she would find something nice for me. A few key strokes later, she said that she had found me a Crown Suite, a specialty suite a level below the Presidential Suite, which she did not have to do. She offered a late check out until 4PM without my asking, wrote down her name,
X, and asked me to call her at the front desk if I needed anything. She stepped out to give me my keys and directed me to the elevator (Love this touch from Westin). Before I headed up to my suite, I noticed the comfortable lobby had a few sets of sofas with people lounging and web surfing. To the otherside, there was a convenient store and a couple of computer stations for guest to use as well as to print out their boarding passes.
I headed upstairs to find an inviting living area in the Crown Suite. There was a large sofa along with chairs and ottomans. Because of its corner location, it offered a fantastic view of Michigan Ave. Lights of nearby stores, chatters, and the occasional honks of dissatisfied drivers penetrated the large sets of windows to decorate an otherwise oversized living space.
After a long session of people watching on Michigan Ave, I went to find the master bedroom. A spacious bathroom resides at the entrance to the Master Bedroom. I was excited to find the new line of Westin bath products, White Tea. For those who enjoy the refreshing scent at Westin Hotels know how addicting it is.
The master bedroom was an oversized alcove with an extra large double sink bathroom. Typical Westin amenities and comfort could be found in the room along with a bose stereo system.
An extra comfy chair and ottoman completes the room.
I sat down near the corner desk and took out my laptop. I located an wired as well as wireless internet for a reasonable $12.95 per day. But since my suite was across the street from
The 900 shops on Michigan Ave, I was able to take advantage of their complimentary wifi internet
. I briefly looked at the room service menu and found the typical Westin offerings.
A fierce fire truck with its overpowering siren raced down Michigan Ave. It dawned on me that because of the location of the suite, it might be slightly noisy throughout the night. As a light sleeper, it might be a problem. I decided to give
X a call and told her my concerns. Without hestitation, she started looking for alternate rooms. She said that all the other specialty suites were occupied for the evening, but there were a corner room with double bed near the top floor in the lower building (15 stories), a regular room with a gorgeous lake view on the top floor in the taller building (27 stories), an executive suite on a higher floor in the taller building. However, she warned me about the executive suite's location. All of those suites were directly across from the elevators. She asked me which one sounded good or if I preferred a different location
I was quite speechless. As if that wasn't enough, she then told me to sit back and enjoy the view while she sent a bellman with a set of keys to each of the rooms she mentioned so I could decide which one I liked better! ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ Now that's customer service!
A few moments later, the bellman arrived and I was able to go on my little adventure of a hotel tour!
It was awesome. I was able to take a look at all of the different room types. All of the rooms I visited were in excellent shape with brand new furniture and wall papers. The hotel had been recently renovated and everything was in excellent shape. Although I liked all of the rooms, none came close to the crown suite. So, I decided to keep it and deal with the noise.
After my tour
, I walked around the immediate area to find a variety of restaurants, cafes, and shops. The location was unbeatable. The John Hancock building was direct across from the Westin which offered a observatory of amazing views of the city. Two block away stood the drury lane theater, which offered a variety of theater programs. At the time, Meet me in St Louis was playing.
I retired into the suite later in the evening. Unfortunately, I did find the occasional sirens throughout the night to be a bit disturbing but only because I am a very light sleeper.
The next afternoon, I stopped by the front desk to see if I could be moved to a quieter location. Again,
X, was there and remembered me. She offered the same rooms she allowed me to see the night before. ^ I told her to give me the corner lake view room on the top floor. Without hesitation, she gave me another key and sent me on my way ^
I moved my belongings to my new room and was very satisfied. Though the room did not offer the spectacular view of Michigan Ave, it did have an awesome lake view:
All in all, it was a amazing stay. Everyone staff I spoke to was extremely courteous and helpful. They are very lucky to have a dedicated staff like
X onboard and I look forward to another wonderful stay in the near future.