Hyatt Mccormick or Non-Conference Hotel

[Becca_in_MD]

A spin-off from the thread complaining about the Hilton this year...

Reviews for the Hyatt McCormick Place? It's getting more tempting to stay there. My big hang-up is being able to get from there into the Loop in the evenings and back without paying for a cab. Or just to be able to walk a few blocks to get a quick bite to eat or run into CVS or Walgreens. I was pleasantly surprised that PC ran shuttles between all the hotels at night. I thought we would have to pay for a cab to go to my Exec's gathering on Fri. night.

How about the non-conference hotels? I can't convince my D to stay at one. At least the weather was great this year, but last year was so hot. She doesn't want to walk in the heat or rain to get on the shuttle. But it was the same distance from the Essex to the shuttle than from my room in the Hilton. Your reviews and experiences?

 

[tiggerhale]

We stayed at the Best Western Grant Park. A few hiccups with the rooms (one guy hadn't checked out so we got switched to another set) but you couldn't beat the location. 2 blocks from the Hilton so we caught the shuttles there. Rest of the time it was just a quick walk wherever we wanted to go.

 

[BethCooks4U]

I stayed at the Hyatt McCormick and it was very nice. There was a slight issue with our room but they made it good. We took the shuttle to the Sheraton and a cab twice. It was $15 but divided by 4 wasn't bad. My director went to a restaurant 4-5 blocks from the Hyatt and enjoyed it. I heard they were building more around there - hopefully a drug store too...I would stay there again. It sure was nice to be right there.

 

[esavvymom]

I've stayed at the Embassy Suites- one block from the Sheraton. We loved it- and it has larger rooms (you have a living room area separate from the sleeping area). Plus they include a large breakfast (continental & hot), and afternoon snacks. I know PC offers breakfast, etc, but if you are there an "off day" for PC meals, that's a plus (or like us this year, we missed breakfast on Friday because of the lines at the shuttle).One BIG advantage to ME with non-conference hotels (or at least booking on my own), I am not bound by the cancellation policy being 3 weeks out. You can cancel your own reservation up to the day before the arrival in most places...or at the very least, 72 hrs. I found that there was no COST savings by booking through Experient/PC. The only thing you may have to arrange with the front-desk when you check in or make the reservation is having each consultant's name who is rooming with you added to the list, so you can get the charges split and your own receipts for taxes. Otherwise, I got the same rates as PC had posted. (Sometimes better, since I had AAA.)And nothing says you have to room with your director. You can always find other roommates!

 

[poohritz]

I could not go this year, but one year I stayed at the travel lodge around the corner from the hilton. not too bad place decent on price and the room was just what I needed to sleep in. had one room mate and it turned out to be about 250 each for the entire stay if i remember right.

 

[PamperedChefLayla]

We atayed at the Hilton and had another great problem free stay and it was better this year becauase there was no traffic jam trying to leave on Saturday. But more than likely we will stay somewhere different next year.

 

[nicki25]

Has anyone ever stayed at the Ramada at Kenwood/Hyde Park?? We are going on a family vacation to Chicago in a couple weeks & this is the only hotel that we could find a room(found out we will be there during Lollapalooza).

 

[chefsteph07]

We stay at the McKormick EVERY year! I love it!
We stayed away from the cabs and were able to take the bus for $2.25 ea way and it basically got us everywhere we wanted to go.

 

[kreaser]

Yep....Steph and I are roomies every year...I have been going to conference for 13 years and only missed one. And One year I stayed somewhere other than the Hyatt McCormick...wont stay anywhere else!! It was our "little secret" for years before PC made it a "conference hotel"...

 

[chefa]

I always stay at the Sheraton because I love the location plus the staff is so friendly & helpful. Lots of yummy restaurants within easy walking distance (& lots of great pizzarias if you crave Chicago deep dish), close to Navy Pier & the Chicago river. Have stayed there since 1998. DH went with me this year and said he wants to go next year so I need to promote to Director so he can watch me walk!

 

[mspibb]

We stayed at Hyatt McCormick this year (because one of our roomies won a free room! WAHOO!) I really liked being able to go back and forth to the room. However, I always walked all over (last year we stayed at Hotel 71) to CVS, Dunkin Donuts, Filenes and this year didn't get to do those kinds of things. We took cabs over to eat in the evening but splitting the fares it wasn't all that bad... especially since we didn't have to pay for a room!

 

[SpiritdancerIA]

In four years of attending NC, I've stayed in an official hotel twice (the Sheraton both times), and in a non-conference hotel the last two years.

Last year, we stayed at the White Hall (waaaay up off the north end of Michigan Ave). We mostly took a cab to the Sheraton to catch the shuttle bus - walking the length of Michigan Ave. isn't for when you are in a hurry! Costwise, well, we split cabs, so the fares weren't too horrible. Why White Hall? One of our cluster traded in time-share points for two hotel rooms (my port of the room was something like $5 for ALL of conference!).

This year, we stayed at Embassy Suites - but on State Street, not the one across from the Sheraton. We had about a 6 block walk, but it was pretty quick, and very nice weather this year. Cab fare, the one time I split with my D, was $6 for the two of us to the Sheraton. Why State Street? $50 per night less than the one closer to Navy Pier. We weren't the only PC folks staying there - I'd estimate there were around 50 or 60 of us, based on seeing different people with logowear and/or conference totes. I'd probably stay there again (the hotel & staff were great!), but probably won't room with the same people (differences of opinion and style - looooong story best told offline!).

Where I end up rooming next year will depend in large part on how my business is doing - I personally would have preferred to be in walking distance of the conference center, just so I could have avoided the shuttle bus lines for the Sheraton! (I don't think HO realizes how many of us are staying in hotels other than the conference hotels, and most of those near the Sheraton - so they way underestimated the number of buses needed on Thursday evening)

 

[BethCooks4U]

In four years of attending NC, I've stayed in an official hotel twice (the Sheraton both times), and in a non-conference hotel the last two years.

Last year, we stayed at the White Hall (waaaay up off the north end of Michigan Ave). We mostly took a cab to the Sheraton to catch the shuttle bus - walking the length of Michigan Ave. isn't for when you are in a hurry! Costwise, well, we split cabs, so the fares weren't too horrible. Why White Hall? One of our cluster traded in time-share points for two hotel rooms (my port of the room was something like $5 for ALL of conference!).

This year, we stayed at Embassy Suites - but on State Street, not the one across from the Sheraton. We had about a 6 block walk, but it was pretty quick, and very nice weather this year. Cab fare, the one time I split with my D, was $6 for the two of us to the Sheraton. Why State Street? $50 per night less than the one closer to Navy Pier. We weren't the only PC folks staying there - I'd estimate there were around 50 or 60 of us, based on seeing different people with logowear and/or conference totes. I'd probably stay there again (the hotel & staff were great!), but probably won't room with the same people (differences of opinion and style - looooong story best told offline!).

Where I end up rooming next year will depend in large part on how my business is doing - I personally would have preferred to be in walking distance of the conference center, just so I could have avoided the shuttle bus lines for the Sheraton! (I don't think HO realizes how many of us are staying in hotels other than the conference hotels, and most of those near the Sheraton - so they way underestimated the number of bees needed on Thursday evening)

they know how many consultants are registered. I don't know if they know the number at each hotel though... That was the best part of being at the Hyatt McCormack. No shuttle lines.

 

[wadesgirl]

This was the first year I experienced lines at the shuttles from the hotel. A family friend who works for ITA says that ITA who usually handles everything for conference was only in charge of the food this year. So other companies were handling the buses, etc. Now we do have to realize that leaving conference there will always be lines. Trying to board buses when 6000 consultants are leaving all at one time isn't the easiest thing to do.

 

[ChefCKHall]

This was the first year I experienced lines at the shuttles from the hotel. A family friend who works for ITA says that ITA who usually handles everything for conference was only in charge of the food this year. So other companies were handling the buses, etc. Now we do have to realize that leaving conference there will always be lines. Trying to board buses when 6000 consultants are leaving all at one time isn't the easiest thing to do.

I was on the first bus out! HEHEHE!!