AC Hotel Chicago Downtown — Hotel in Chicago

I arrived at 11:45 AM on Christmas Eve for an 8-day stay with my son and sister, our first visit to Chicago.

Check-In & Room: Check-in was smooth, and we were able to access our 7th-floor room early. The room had two beds, a sofa couch, and a clean bathroom. Free water in the mini-fridge was replenished regularly, though there was no microwave (available on the 4th floor). The frosted bathroom door lacked privacy, with visible gaps and no lock. The TV was occasionally slow and had unpredictable brightness issues.

Amenities: The 5th floor features a 3-ft heated pool and fitness center, though the chlorine smell was strong. Parking is on the 3rd and 4th floors. The AC Lounge and Kitchen are on the 4th floor, with a daily happy hour (4–6 PM). Bartender Andrew was exceptional—friendly, attentive, and meticulous. His margaritas were delicious, and the BBQ wings were a highlight. Andrew handled the bar solo with skill and great customer service during every visit.

Breakfast: We had breakfast on Christmas Day at the AC Kitchen ($19 per person, after tax). Desiree, the host, was festive and friendly. The buffet offered a variety of options, though reportedly carby the day before.

Elevator Incident: The elevators were unreliable, often malfunctioning. On Christmas Day, I was stuck for 15 minutes with another guest around 6:30pm. I learned being stuck in elevator this wasn’t an isolated issue, which was concerning. Staff responded appropriately and expressed apologies. Front desk lady called me, while still in the elevator, and told us that we will be compensated for the experience. I couldn’t remember if they said I would be getting a call or that I should stop by the front desk. The next morning (12/26) around 10:30am, I stopped by the front desk to inquire. The follow-up was disappointing. The front desk member that day was dismissive and showed poor customer service. He basically said he’s sorry and that the issue was fixed and shouldn’t happen again… He legit was shrugging his shoulders and asking what I wanted him to do about it… This staff member was the only one I encountered not wearing a name badge.

I received an email from management about 2 hours later comping that nights rate. My reply email to management thanking them and informing them of the poor customer service from the front desk staff (on 12/26) went unanswered, reflecting a lack of accountability.

Housekeeping: Housekeeping was consistent for most of our stay but lapsed in the last three days, with trash piling up and no face cloths (reportedly out of stock). On NYE, I had to call for service, which was eventually resolved.

Noise Issues: On New Years Day, the noise from neighboring rooms was disruptive, with thin walls allowing conversations and movement to be heard clearly.

Checkout: I appreciated the granted late checkout (1 PM) before my evening flight.

Overall: The location, bartender, and kitchen staff were excellent. However, management’s lack of response, housekeeping inconsistencies, elevator issues, and thin walls are notable drawbacks. While there are pros, I’m uncertain...

Firstly, I booked a room with a King bed. I booked that room 3 months in advance and on check in I was given a room with two double beds with zero explanation. Check in was easy but very brief. I was not told that I needed to use my key card to work the elevator for instance, or that there was a lounge on the 4th floor. ||Then to the room. The elevators are quite creaky and one broke down for a few days during my stay. The hotel posted signs telling guests to use the stairs. I was on the seventh floor though. The hallways are indeed tired and dreary. Very grey. ||The room itself was like a dorm room. Sparse, bare, pretty minimalist. One single armchair and a very uncomfortable chair at the 'desk'. Never been in a hotel room with an open 'closet' and only two tiny drawers. Then there was the lighting. This is easily the darkest room I've ever been in. Impossible to see to do anything at all. Makeup? Nope. Getting dressed? Nope. Had to keep the tv on for extra lighting. The wooden thing built around the AC unit is creepy. I kept wondering what they were hiding back there. All the pillows were soft and the mattress was hard, on a raised wooden base (watch your shins).||Ceiling in the bathroom is peeling, floors are uneven, and there were cobwebs over the curtains for the entire time I was there. Fair to say the room is tired and in need of an upgrade. ||Thermostat worked well but as the outdoor temps dropped, the hotel switched to heat (which was fine) so it wasn't possible to drop the thermostat below a certain temperature. ||Nice to have a fridge in the room. It's small but mighty. Top shelf will keep things frozen. Bottled water was supplied daily to the room. Microwave is on the 4th floor. ||Housekeeping is fine despite the cobwebs. They will service the room daily. They're very pleasant when you pass them in the hall. In fact most of the staff are really nice. ||Major pro: location. N Rush is one block off Michigan Ave and it's so incredibly central to everything. Easy walk to Millennium Park, the theatre district, Oak St, Navy Pier, everywhere. The hotel is surrounded by restaurants and there is a Trader Joes downstairs. Three Starbucks, including the largest one in the world, are a stone's throw away. ||I didn't pay a whole lot so I won't complain much but there are way too many hotels in downtown Chicago to stay at...

This is the second time I've stayed in this hotel during the last 12 months. My first stay was in August 2018, and it was great! No complaints whatsoever. Because it was so great, I decided to stay there again for a celebratory trip for my sister in June 2019. The first issue we noticed was the noise level. We were placed in a room that adjoined to another (which we didn't request or need). I understand that they can't always control where they put you, but it's good to know about noise nonetheless. The noise from our "neighbors" was insane. We could hear exactly what they were watching on TV, when they were drying their hair, and when they sneezed. Thank goodness we brought a sound machine to sleep, otherwise it would have been a major problem. (Our first trip, we had an identical room to this one except it wasn't adjoined and had no issues with noise)

When we decided to go to bed that night, we discovered that two out of three of our beds had dirty, stained sheets. One of the beds' mattress pads looked like it hadn't been changed in a while. We had to call down to the desk THREE times and it took 45 minutes for them to get us new sheets for one of the beds. At this point, we were just waiting on housekeeping so we could go to sleep. The replacement sheets they brought us still had stains! Use bleach or throw them out!!!! Also, the pull-out mattress was possibly broken. It made the worst creaking/breaking noise when someone who is less than 150lbs sat on it.

In the morning, we discovered that the knob to turn the shower on was completely broken. We checked out that morning and told the front desk of all these problems and all she did was apologize. With this many issues, ESPECIALLY with the broken things and lack of cleanliness, the least they could do was offered to comp part of the room or parking. We had to actually ask if there was something they could do since the stay was so poor. She comped parking, but only after we asked if they could do anything. IMO, this still wasn't enough.

I probably would not stay at this hotel again or recommend it to anyone, which is unfortunate because the location is perfect. Not worth it when you sleep on...