ben1233

I agree with the above poster that ~128K is likely for a suite. If the standard room is not available (70K) then gosh, I would be more likely to prefer the Conrad unless I was sitting on a Titanic-load of points. (The Palmer House is nice, but not on the same level as the Conrad). Also, I notice you are staying 3 nights. Any chance you could eek out a 4th? If so then you could go after the AXON/GLON deals at the Conrad.

Lastkly, keep in mind that at the Conrad, you'll get free breakfast whereas at the W=A you'll only get 15% off, I think (as a diamond).

I have my first award stay at the W=A next Friday and I'm very excited. Though I'm upset with myself that I burned a Q4FN cert at the Boca Beach Club earlier this year when I could have just used 21K points+$100 cash. The Q4FN would have been much better use at WA Chicago. Stupid me.

tucsnaz

Thanks for the great information. I'm still learning the Hilton redemption process, have only done it once before at the last minute when I had no other choice. It looks like I have a lot to learn.

We will be booking the Conrad and keep checking the W-A for availability.

RTWSTARALLIANCE

Can we get comments on reasonable transportation options to/from ORD? Public transportation options also appreciated. Thanks.

bamboola

Take the EL Blue line from ORD to Lake and State. From there, it's less than 2 miles to the Waldorf - i.e. a short cab ride.

Rumor has it that the Waldorf Chicago provides (on a first come, first serve basis) free transportation within a 2-mile radius from the hotel. So, if true, you can get a free ride to the EL for your trip back to ORD.

I'll be testing the route next week and will report back.

RTWSTARALLIANCE

Thank you. I am inbound late next week.

jamesteroh

CTA is your cheapest option if it's just you or you and one other person. If you don't mind walking 1/4 mile, take the blue line from ORD into the loop and transfer to the red line (I think Jackson or Lake is where you transfer at) and take the red line to chicago and state and walk to the hotel. It is no more than 1/4 mile. Or go to Jackson and just grab a cab.

NewbieRunner

Yes, a free ride is only from the hotel and they do not pick you up. I took the Blue Line to Lake and State and a cab from there. After a couple of nights at the Waldorf I was moving to the Conrad and got a ride in one of the limos.

RTWSTARALLIANCE

Thank you!

ben1233

Just completed a one night reward stay at the WA Chicago. I was in town to catch a Cubs/Dodgers game and wanted to see what all the hype was about...

This place is a real masterpiece inside and out. The attention to detail in the building itself is something not commonly found.

So the good...I was able to check in around 10:30 in the morning. I valeted my car and my bags were whisked away. When I entered the building, I got a chuckle because the front desk attendant knew my name without even having to say who I was. We went up to our room and indeed it was awesome. Lots of additional features built in everywhere...an ice drawer, the TV behind the bathroom mirror, a doorbell, marble everywhere, crown moulding, a great stereo with iPhone/iPhone/iPad interface (it could wake the neighbors!), and quality furniture. The room was quiet and the staff were excellent. I didn't sense any snobbery at all.

So the "iffy" parts....at check-in I'm always very pleasant. I make sure to let the person know I'm happy to be there. As most of us know, being friendly usually helps secure a room upgrade of some sort. Not here. What I found interesting is that she said "With award stays we don't provide upgrades. Only on paid stays." Now, I realize I'm only a gold but lots of folks both here and on TripAdvisor regularly get upgraded. It was my impression that they were fairly loose with the upgrades, but apparently this isn't the case. I do understand the T&C's that suites are technically not in-play for Golds, but even still. I didn't raise a fuss, I just thought it was interesting the way she stated the policy. I ended up on the 9th floor with basically no view. There was a return-air vent near the ceiling with about 1/4 inch of dust caked on the wall around it. That was the only housekeeping issue that I noted. Not bad, I guess.

We went down to Bernards after the game with our 2 drink tickets. The prices on the wine list are eye-popping. That said, I believe their 'house' cabernet is Ladera which is well over $30 a bottle retail. So you do get quality. Despite the price of a wine and a martini being the same, they wouldn't let us order anything but beer or wine. I ended up having a couple of wines (pours are very small) and my buddy had a Vesper martini. One of the servers came over to give us some nuts and chips and spilled a fair amount of the martini on my friend's pants. We got a quick apology and not much else.

Overall this place is well deserving of the accolades. I will probably stay here again, but I would certainly see how the rates at the Conrad compare when I travel to chicago. I think the Conrad's rooms are almost as nice (w/ free breakfast) but can usually be had for significantly less.

RTWSTARALLIANCE

Was in Chicago for meetings and stayed one night at the WA. Knew in advance had been upgraded to Astoria suite. Was further upgraded then became apparent that suite was not going to be available anytime soon. Took Astoria suite which was on a very very high floor. The suite was nice and bar excellent.

We did find the service to be so so and not polished. Their car service is good as service at PH is not available until 6 PM. Ferragamo amenities. If you have AT&T cell service shut your phone off then on about two minutes later. That should get you a signal. Would return without doubt. The place is class!

bamboola

We also just completed a one-night stay. Took the CTA Blue Line from ORD to Clark & Lake. The short cab ride to the Waldorf cost around $5, plus an extra $2 for luggage.

I noticed online that we had been pre-assigned to an Astoria suite, but got downgraded to a Waldorf suite at check-in. Upon asking, we ended up in an Astoria suite on the 7th floor with a huge terrace. Despite the lower floor, the room was quiet.

Our room had Asprey toiletries, which are being phased out and replaced by Ferragamo products. Housekeeping brought me extras of both.

As Diamond members, we got the free drink coupons that can be used in the 2nd floor bar or in the 3rd floor restaurant Balsan. We had our free drinks with dinner at Balsan and also used the 15% off food coupon. The waiter was friendly and cheerful and returned the food coupon to us in case we wanted to re-use it for breakfast the following morning.

Food portions were on the small side (probably average-sized, but not the gargantuan ones that Americans expect.) We each ordered a large plate and then ordered a third large plate and a dessert to share.

As noted in the post above, we also found the service to be so-so. The Balsan staff was wonderful and there is an obligatory 18% tip accessed. Since there is no tipping elsewhere in the hotel, the service seemed perfunctory.

We called downstairs in the morning for the hotel car to take us back to the CTA station and were told to come downstairs about 10 minutes before we wanted to leave. Yet when we went downstairs, we were told the hotel car was not available that morning. BTW, with luggage, you want the Lake and Clark CTA station, which has an elevator. The hotel is between two CTA stations. The other one at Chicago and Milwaukee does not have an elevator.

dabaobao

you can't reserve the car, it's first come first serve, if you can pay to stay there, you can pay $5 dollar taxi anyway

bamboola

Yes, I know we can't reserve the car. We were told the car would be first come, first serve and that there might be wait. However, once we went downstairs, we were told that the car would not be available at all during the day because the car and the driver were performing "security duty."

DrSifu

Hilton Gold through credit card sign-up
Zero Stays

Trying to book 6 nights at this hotel, but would really like a King bed as opposed to 2 queens which is the only one bookable at 52,500 points. The King room costs 113,925 pts. The best available rate difference between these two rooms is only $30 ($435 vs $465).

Should I call the hotel directly after booking to see what they can do or should I just cross my fingers and hope to get upgraded at check-in? Would love a suite upgrade, but trying to take small steps since this is my first Hilton redemption.

Going in mid-August.

Thanks in advance.

jamesteroh

I would make sure you tell the property you would rather have one king at check in (and you could try calling the night before). When they do upgrades they are going to assume you want a double bedded queen room if that is what you reserve, they aren't going to upgrade you into a room with one bed unless you ask.


If you realy want a suite, I would do a point upgrade. Suite upgrades are not a gold benefit and a lot of times diamonds don't get them, and August is a very busy time for hotels in Chicago