The Westin Chicago River North — Hotel in Chicago

Bigger hotel that is a volume hotel with a good location for River North.

I booked my stay in the SPG app. I'm a SPG Platinum for Life, so I travel a fair amount and have been very loyal.

When I arrived at the hotel, my reservation was not in the hotel's system. It took awhile for the hotel to figure it out and they made another reservation, which showed up as a 2nd reservation in the SPG app. I had to reiterate a couple different times and show the hotel that my reservation was indeed for their property. I never did get the actual room that I reserved, much less an upgrade. I believe the hotel was at or near capacity for the night. The hotel didn't ask for my SPG number and I later went back to make sure it was on the new reservation so I could get the Platinum points at least, which wasn't offered originally (that should have been my clue at the time of getting the room key). I ultimately put the issue on SPG and not the hotel; however, the hotel could have handled it a little better.

The reservation was the least of my two concerns. My more pressing concern was that the hotel lost/gave away my luggage.

I dropped my bag off with the hotel in the morning and was coming back at night to check in. While the check-in process was dragging out, I became aware that my luggage was lost. Needless to say, there was a lot of confusion and I had to explain the facts to the security/staff. I believe the hotel was trying to find a way to blame me for the issue, but the security cameras don't lie, which came back highlighting the hotel's error and not mine. The hotel staff preferred to send me to my room, presumably so I was out of sight out of mind while they researched the issue. The staff even had the hotel's part of the original claim ticket in their garbage. I chose not to go to the room, especially with a shift change approaching and my luggage still missing. Over the course of a couple hours, you mentally start adding up the cost of what was in your bag, how you deal with the needs of the next day, how you will have the time to go shopping to replace everything you lost, and how much a hotel is responsible for (web searches say it doesn't end well for the customer...so be aware). After a couple long hours, walking into luggage rooms a few different times to confirm my luggage was not in there, and checking in with the from desk/security periodically, there was finally a resolution. While I was standing at the front desk to get an update, a hotel guest came down steaming mad to the front desk because they were not given their luggage and given someone else's luggage. My luggage had been found after a long 2 1/2 hour process. The other guest's luggage was in storage, so happy ending there too. I would put this squarely on the shoulders of the hotel. They said they've never lost luggage and they can still say that, although I had a close scare.

Considering both issues, I'm not sure what the hotel should've done for me to keep me happy. I technically didn't ask for any points, but was offered a minimal amount of points for my troubles. The minimal amount of points I received doesn't seem enough to me as it's nowhere close to even staying at the hotel for a night on SPG points. I should've been that guy that really complained and receives 10,000 points because their shirt wasn't pressed perfectly.

For being SPG Platinum for Life, I have never once had an upgrade at this hotel and have stayed at this hotel several nights over the years. The best that I hope for is getting the room that I actually reserved, which I didn't get on this stay.

My quick comments on the property. The location is great. The rooms are fine. The bathrooms are a little dated. Don't ever expect an upgrade at this property. The staff is overall pretty good. The club lounge is fine, but not great. The restaurant is fine, but a little expensive, which isn't uncommon for hotel restaurants. The lobby bar is fine too. Very open, inviting space with a nice outdoor space too. Overall, a decent hotel. You will pay more for this property than you should because of its great location.

In summary, customers should be aware given this is a high volume hotel that lacks attention to detail at times. I hope your experience is...

As Elite member and not traveling for 2 years due to Covid, I expected a little more. The hotel itself is tired and worn out. I stayed here in the late 90's and I think they still have the same pillows! No lie. There was brown water discharge out of the bathroom sink faucet. Stains on the curtains that looked like blood. Caulking peeling around the sink. Layers of thick dust behind the mirror in the bathroom. The Club Lounge was closed on weekends and closes at noon during the week. Can't even get water or go relax. Sunday night - no club and restaurant in hotel quits serving food at 3. No food options in the hotel other than a turkey sandwich in the sundries area that expired 4 days previously. No microwave in room or access to one. It's 2021 - there's no microwave? They offered $10 voucher for breakfast since club was closed, but only option was a $30 breakfast buffet. Doesn't even come close to covering the cost of the buffet. Again, no club access. A few of the staff at front desk were rude. I asked for a suite upgrade since the occupancy was 44% and I was told that 'guests pay for those suites and we don't just give them out for free'. As if my 75 travel nights I accumulate per year that gained me the free suite upgrade in the first place was done at no cost. I wasn't asking for a handout, just inquiring about an upgrade. Overall, the carpet is new, the lobby is nice. The lounge (when you can actually get in it) is small and sort of cramped. The eco-thermostat is a pain. When you adjust the temperature in the room, it switches the fan to automatic instead of constant 'On'. So turning out the light and closing your eyes...moments later the fan kicks off and it is deadly silent (except for the sirens you hear outside) The AC broke and maintenance came to repair it. I turned to 69 and it climbed to 78 in the room. They did not fix it even though they said they did, so I asked to be moved. The windows don't even remotely open up a crack so there is no possible way to get ANY breeze or fresh air. The beds are worn down but I have to go back and mention the pillows again...it was like you wadded up a sweatshirt and put it inside a king pillowcase. I requested 4 additional pillows and they were all of equal quality. Too many other options to choose. Although the location was fine, the Renaissance across the street is a way better choice or the countless other hotels within walking distance. Disappointed overall. I felt like they were...

When I arrived, I was checked into a room (1418) with a toilet that barely flushed, and hissed every 10-15 minutes. I was worried but it was still technically functional and I’d had a long travel day so I went to sleep.

When I woke up at 6AM, the toilet no longer functioned. The flush was unresponsive. I called the front desk immediately and no one showed up.

When no one arrived, I called back. I was told a guest had “overflowed their bathroom.” Actually, it was a water main break. Floors 11-20 had their water shut off. So I got ready without water and went to the first day of my conference in the hotel. The operator assured me she’d make a note and have them come back after the emergency. Spoiler: they did not.

The elevators were a disaster the whole trip. I never saw more than one operating at once. At peak times the line was close to 40 people. Folks on lower floors on the way down were usually turned away by packed elevators. At no time were any signs posted about construction impacts, even though construction sounds could clearly be heard from several shafts that week.

Meanwhile, when I got back to my room... the water was back but the toilet was nonfunctional. At this point I hadn’t showered in 48 hours due to the water main break and I was giving a talk the next morning at the conference.

So I called the front desk a third time, and asked that maintenance be sent up. I explained how urgent my need was and they said they’d be up immediately. 20 minutes later, still no sign of anyone - but I did overhear what sounded like maintenance knocking on doors down the hall. When they never came to my room, I called the front desk again. (I am a solo female traveler and can’t flag down random men safely.)

The same front desk attendant was rather rude with me, and said, “They were just there!” I reconfirmed that I had received no visitor, and asked what room she’d sent them to. She’d sent them to the wrong room. Eventually they came and removed a piece to restore the weak flushing, but the hissing continued the whole trip, waking me up at night.

There was also construction noise above my room the whole trip, presumably due to the water main but they never notified me about that potential impact so I wasted time during conference breaks waiting for that single elevator just to encounter migraine-triggering noise.

The maintenance at this hotel is clearly subpar, and the staff unequipped to deal with problems. Stay...