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St. Regis Chicago Review
Fall in Chicago is one of my favorite travel experiences. Autumn colors hadn’t appeared in time for this year’s arrival, but there was plenty else to enjoy, including more museums, friends, and, of course, hotels. I’m focusing on that last one today, a one-night stay at one of the newer luxury properties downtown. Indeed, we packed a lot into this short visit. Let’s take a look at the experience in my St. Regis Chicago review.
Booking
I reserved this stay with one of the five 50k free night awards I obtained from a Marriott Bonvoy Business welcome offer earlier in the year (the same offer is back through the middle of this month). Since the total award rate was 64k, I topped off with 14k of Bonvoy points. Marriott’s pretty clever with their award pricing, so I was happy enough securing the Superior King room for just under the 15k point top-off maximum. Alternatively, the all-in cash rate including taxes and fees for the night of my stay was $867.59.
Location
Nestled on the eastern end of Wacker Drive, the St. Regis Chicago offer stellar views of Lake Michigan and the Chicago River. The hotel’s off on its own a bit, about a half-mile hike from Wacker’s intersection with Michigan Avenue. I found that trade-off more than acceptable given the outstanding views of the river and expansive lake. And some may have fun checking out the other properties nearby, including:
- Swissotel, the chain’s only stateside property
- Radisson Blu Aqua’s and its attractive exterior
- The world’s largest Hyatt, which apparently matters to some
The Chicago Architecture Center, one of my favorite stops in the city, is just 0.4 miles away, and the hotel’s adjacent to Lakeshore East Park. The nearest entrance to Millennium Park is a couple blocks to the southwest, with the Art Institute just to the south of that space.
Check-In
After a Blue Line ride from O’Hare and a brisk walk, I arrived at St. Regis Chicago at approximately 10 am. The bell staff and concierge promptly greeted with me, with the latter individual unnecessarily apologizing for the wait (I was next in line after the guest at the front desk). When my turn came, I queried on check-in while joking about how early I was. I didn’t have high expectations for availability at such an early time, but the front desk agent was happy to accommodate.
A few days prior to arrival, Marriott confirmed a Nightly Upgrade Award, my first ever which has actually cleared, to a Metropolitan Suite. The front desk agent queried about my interest in a paid upgrade to an even larger space, the Caroline Astor Suite. I confirmed that the Metropolitan Suite was sufficient, considering the original booking was a Superior King Room for two. The agent was quick to acquiesce but still offered a look at the Caroline Astor Suite. I took him up on this free preview. He issued the keys for the Metropolitan Suite and requested the bellman accompany me to the Caroline Astor Suite.
That suite was predictably spacious with stellar views of the river and lake (sorry, no photos). With metaphorically bigger fish to fry, I departed to the Metropolitan Suite, home for the next thirty or so hours.
Room
I arrived at the seventh floor and exited to the quietest hotel hallway in recent memory. I enjoyed the silence while following the path to a far end of the building; the quiet brought its own sort of luxury. And I must give a shout out to the awesome elevators at the St. Regis; I never had to press a button within the elevator once.
The Metropolitan Suite’s heavy front door opened to the entryway and living room, all one big space overlooking the park and Lakeshore Drive beyond. The bright entry area housed the cabinet with minibar and Nespresso machine. A two-person table sat at the edge leading to the living room, with a sizable-but-unremarkable couch and easy chair against the window. The living room’s television was enormous, almost awkwardly so. I estimated it was a 70″ monitor, but it felt more like 80″ with how shallow the living room was. Perhaps the most striking room feature was the blue carpeting flowing throughout the living room and bedroom.
The king size mattress took up the vast majority of the bedroom; there wasn’t room for much else. Indeed, space only existed for a small walkway on each side of the bed, and again, another huge television mounted to face it. The suite didn’t offer a proper desk, designers perhaps rationalizing the living room’s small round table as efficient for all tasks. In my opinion, no dedicated desk in a 700 square foot suite is a clear miscalculation.
The highlight of the suite was the bathroom and dressing area. A corridor between the bedroom and bathroom holding a wide luggage shelf, spacious closet, and drawers led to a bathroom close in size to many hotel rooms elsewhere. The bright dual vanity came first on the left, with shower and toilet alcoves to the right. Just past sat the mammoth tub, more like a plunge pool than a bath. The experience was divine.
Now, for a few minor room quibbles:
- The closet held only one bathrobe, an oddity for such a suite (and a two-person stay).
- Turndown service was minimal. Housekeeping laid out slippers next to the bed and appeared to relocate the complimentary water from the Nespresso machine to the bedside.
- The living room carpet included a prominent stain, instantly aging a property that’s just over a year old. Perhaps this speaks more to the previous clientele than the property itself.
Amenities
Dining
The St. Regis Chicago houses two restaurants, Miru and Tre Dita. Each outlet offers a prominent bar, but those looking for the more traditional St. Regis version will prefer Tre Dita’s. I briefly checked out Tre Dita in the late afternoon after a museum visit; the bar was open while dinner service hadn’t yet begun. The space is inviting, but Tre Dita’s second floor views are easily outdone by Miru’s on the twelfth.
The overall breakfast experience at Miru is perhaps my favorite yet in Chicago, easily besting other luxury properties like Park Hyatt and Ritz-Carlton. Our four-top was located next to the floor to ceiling windows overlooking the Chicago River and Lake Michigan. Navy Pier and the beautiful Lake Point Tower complemented the view. I ordered the American breakfast, with eggs over medium, bacon, potatoes, seasonal greens, and toast. Portions were large but not obscenely so. Eggs came out over hard, but my thoughtful server corrected that without me mentioning a word (more on that later). Breakfast lasted close to two hours, and I’m not sure which I consumed more of – gorgeous views or cups of outstanding St. Regis Metropolis Special Blend. Service was impeccable, and I didn’t want to give up the view. Little did I know, I didn’t have to.
Spa
The spa, fitness center, and pool are located on the eleventh floor. The elevators open to the spa reception area, with the gym immediately to the left. The walkway opens up to the spacious fitness center, again sporting one of the property’s biggest traits – floor to ceiling views everywhere. I enjoyed the same view from the treadmill that I had at breakfast earlier. The area left plenty of space between cardio and weight machines. Indeed, the open areas throughout exude true luxury in this prime location.
On the other side of spa reception is a large, family-friendly pool overlooking the river and lake. Staff take great care of this flawless area, with plenty of inviting seating and towels. The rear of the pool area opens to outdoor lounge seating, also a useful workspace. Stairs up from this area lead to yet more outdoor relaxation areas adjacent to Miru.
Service
Superior service came throughout the stay. The front desk agent cited my Bonvoy Platinum status, and a 10 am early check-in wasn’t an issue at all. He offered a 4 pm checkout before I even brought up a late departure. These little touches made a one-night stay feel like a much longer one.
My waitress at Miru breakfast was thoughtful throughout. As I enjoyed my meal, she noticed that my eggs came out overcooked and offered to bring a corrected over medium version. I happily accepted something I didn’t feel like making a fuss about. She voluntarily brought more toast out to enjoy with that over medium goodness, as well. She welcomed this long breakfast without hesitation, noting that guests naturally like a leisurely one here.
The variety of hotel employees, from bellstaff to concierge to front desk and housekeeping, warmly greeted me at every turn, asking if there was anything they could do to enhance my stay. I couldn’t think of much else, since staff generally predicted my desires. Staff seems to make a true effort to distinguish their level of service here, something we unfortunately can’t assume at all luxury properties.
St. Regis Chicago – Conclusion
The short stay offered lots of little things which added up to a lot. The only item which didn’t exceed my expectations was the Metropolitan Suite, maybe due to my unreasonable excitement from the Nightly Upgrade Award clearing. The St. Regis Chicago went above and beyond in all other areas, and I will undoubtedly visit again. I’m intrigued to stayin a base room next time, taking it all in without the flash of a suite. I’ll choose this St. Regis again to relive some of these stellar experiences. Does that mean I’ll miss out on unique ones at other properties? Probably, but I don’t care. Perhaps that’s the best compliment I can give the St. Regis Chicago.
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No desk! That’s outRegis!
I love it, Starbucks Man!
I bet for every 100k miles to memories readers there’s 0 that would ever pay for a hotel like this.
What do you mean by “pay,” Frank? 😉
I’m glad you had a good visit. I did not like the hotel, found the finished and furniture cheap, the staff was poorly trained, and they were gaming the breakfast benefit. I called them out, wrote about it, got it picked up and they changed their tune.
Anthony,
Some items you mention are why I generally avoid staying in hotels within a month (or several more, at the very least) of opening.