Sheraton Chicago Hotel & Towers - Chicago, IL Review

I said above I'm picky and laid-back, I know that's weird, right?  But when it comes to hotels, I really am some of both.  Picky meaning that certain things just kill me - if it's dirty, I'll have issues.  But I'm laid-back because other things don't bother me even though the bother others - if it's small, I'll survive.  So after thinking of all the things about the Sheraton Chicago, I can say I had a few things that bugged me, but overall it was alright.  Would I stay there again?  Well, I can't say.  There are just so many similar priced hotels in Chicago, so why wouldn't I try another one?  One of these days, I'll find a hotel in Chicago I can truly give 5 stars to.

Why'd I choose it?
Like I said, there were so many similar hotels.  I shopped online a lot because I was shocked by the prices.  This particular one came out to $269 a night, including taxes and parking.  That is really high to someone like me who just went to Vegas last year and stayed in a much nicer room for only $144 a night.  I guess that's just how it is in Chicago because every hotel was coming up around the same.

So I ended up choosing the Sheraton Chicago because a) the prices were the same as most the hotels around and b) it promised a view of Navy Pier/Lake Michigan.  That's all I really wanted, a good view.  The view was pretty good too!  I could see all of Navy Pier and sections of Lake Michigan between the buildings that were in front of us.  I don't think it gets much better than this unless you want to pay even more so I was satisfied.

I also wanted to be on the Chicago River near Michigan Avenue because then I knew I'd be in walking distance to everything.  We walked to Michigan Avenue, the Hancock Tower, the beaches and Navy Pier multiple times each day. While we did get tired (my husband walks fast!) we found it was doable and felt good about it at the end of the trip.  I wore my step-o-meter and one day we hit just over 20k steps.  Considering I walk 5k on a normal day, that's a lot for me!

What about the room?
The room was decent, not perfect but decent.  It was a little small and the bed was smaller than what I'm used to in hotels.  We didn't sleep that well on the bed either and for the first time in all my vacations, I couldn't wait to get home to my own bed.  We walked a lot and my legs were achy each day, so it kind of stunk that the bed did not make them feel any better.

The bathroom was clean, that's what is important to me!  The shower did it's job of relieaving some aches each day and the mandarin and mint shampoo and shower gels smelled great!

Extras?
There are none, seriously.  The pool and health club cost $12 per person per day extra if you want to use them at all... ridiculous.  People with the more expensive rooms got to use these for free. I couldn't imagine paying $24 just to swim in the pool for a few hours.  I can almost understand why they'd charge for the Health club but not for the pool.  So if you have kids - go somewhere where the pool is free (although the pool did look nice on the website).

Overall
I would stay here again, if the price was good.  But otherwise I'm gonna keep looking because I'm sure that at least one of the hotels in Chicago has to be 5 stars.  Before I had stayed at the Best Western Grant Park which was cheaper but a little far south.  The location was great for access to all the attractions, except for the museums which we did not plan to visit anyway.  There were a lot of business travellers here, and a few kids, but overall the crowd seemed like couples and families with older kids.  Young kids would probably prefer a place with more activities.  If the price is right, give it a try.  I wouldn't say don't go, but I can't say it's great either.  Enjoy!

OH and I knew there wouldn't be a fridge b/c the website didn't mention one, but I did not expect the mini-bar.  If they have room for a mini-bar, they should have made it a fridge instead.  We could have used one for left-overs.