I stayed here for one night after spending approximately 10 weeks in Chicago on business. During that time, I typically stayed at the W Lakeshore, the Embassy Suites Downtown or the Hilton Garden Inn. The ES and HGI are all very close to the Homewood Suites, and I agree it is a great location.

After my one night stay at the Homewood, I was pretty upset with myself for not having tried it out sooner. I definitely prefer it to both the ES and the HGI. And there's no doubt that the location is better than the W, unless you really want a view of Lake Michigan for some reason.

So, I'd say you can't go wrong with the Homewood Suites. They offer a free breakfast and a manager's reception with a decent selection of free food, beer and wine. Not gourmet by any means, but passable -- and free is always good.

The full kitchen in the suite was a nice plus and definitely would have been great for my Sunday - Thursday schedule. Didn't notice the bed being any worse than either of the other two Hilton properties.

Earlier in the year, I used my 3 free night certs for a 3 night leisure stay at the Conrad Chicago. I was not terribly impressed with the Conrad. If I had to do it over, knowing what I know now, I would have chosen to stay at the Homewood Suites (which is basically right across the street from the Conrad), paid for the 3 nights, and saved my free night certs for a different property. Live and learn, I guess, but what I'm trying to stay is, you made a solid choice. I doubt you'll be disappointed if you are familiar with the Homewood brand. The ONLY drawback I can see is that Homewood only offers 250 My Way points instead of the HGI 750 or the ES 1000. Even so, I would still choose the Homewood in the future.