I am looking for a moderately priced hotel in downtown Chicago. Does anyone have any experience with the Elms Hotel on East Elm Street? Does anyone have and suggestions on nice (not necessarily fancy) affordable ($100 or less per night) hotels in downtown Chicago?
Thanks for any help!!

I prefer the Marriott on the magnificent mile- Baaak!!

I second the Marriot. Great location close to everything. If you have kids, they had the best and cheapest room service I've seen. Chocolate Chip pancakes for like $3.00 and ice cream sundaes for $1.50. My kids lived it up! The adult menu was good too.

The Marriot is great as it is in the middle of the Magnificent Mile. Down towards the Water Tower is the Westin and it has the softest beds in town. It is also accross the street from the Cheesecake Factory, YUM!

Sorry to say this but you will NOT find hotels in downtown Chicago under $100! I think the above referred to Mariott is around $200 night. Downtown Chiago is very expensive. Some cheaper alternatives are the downtown Motel 6 just off the Mag mile at $140/night and The Holiday Inn at Merchandise Mart about the same price. the holiday Inn does have the benefit of a pool, but it is in more the business area and is several blocks (short cab ride) from tourist attractions. For a family, I recommend the Embassy Suites more in the $175 range because all rooms are suites and have separate TV room with fridge and microwave where you an spread out and eat breakfast in the room, saving costs. If you really want cheap and downtown, there is a motel I pass daily going to work called the Ohio Street Motel (Ohio and LaSalle streets) it looks old rundown and cheap, definitely a motel. I don't know anyone who has stayed there and wouldn't rec it though. If you truly can't afford downtown prices, look in the near north/Lincoln Park areas and use cabs or the subway to get downtown. The Days Inn Lincoln Park (about 3 miles from downtown but still in the city) is small but clean and nice. Rooms there go for about $110/night. Good Luck, Chicago is a very expensive city, I had sticker price shock when I moved here from Nashville, TN!

Susan,
My family and I stayed at the Homewood Suites on a recent Chicago trip. I believe it is on Grand Avenue. Don't remember the exact price but think it was around $150. I booked through Quikbook or one of those other room brokers. The location was excellent, only about a block from a subway station, walk a block the other way and you are on Michigan Avenue. There was also a free trolley to the Navy Pier that passed every 30 minutes or so. The people at this hotel are incredibly friendly. Also, they served a free, cooked to order breakfast every morning (huge). They also serve practically a complete meal at their Manager's Reception. This was something like 7 to 9 p.m. each weeknight. We only ate there one night but if you were serious in cutting your food budget this could be a big help. They even had free wine, etc. The night we ate they had chicken tacos, fajitas, nachos, rice, etc.
Our room had a separate bedroom with a queen or king bed and pull out sofa in living area that made a bed. Also two TVs and a kitchen. I highly recommend this hotel. It is not very big. The lobby is on the 6th floor.

Forgot to mention, Homewood Suites has a rooftop pool (enclosed) that we all enjoyed after long days of sightseeing.

I second everything Beth has said. You are really chancing it with a hotel under $100. Personally, I would go with the Lincoln Park option & take public transportation to the sites. That way, you are near bars/restaurants at night, when you are done with your day of activity. If you don't like that idea, the Marriott is a good choice, as are the other hotels mentioned. There is also a hotel in the downtown Loop area called, I believe, Club Quarters. I know some folks who stayed there & liked it. I think it was reasonably priced by Chicago standards.

There are a few (very few) hotels that give you decent rooms in the not too far above $100 a night range. My favorite is the Claridge Hotel a block (or 2) above Oak Street; in early 2000 I stayed there for $105 a night. Small rooms, but comfortable and great location. Try www.hotrooms.com and see what they suggest. Also check out some online specials on the various hotel web site. Marriott has been running some online deals. Under no circumstances take a room at the Quality Inn Downtown hotel, no matter how good the price. It's NOT downtown and the the quality is awful.
In the lower moderate category, I'd include the Holiday Inn Mart Plaza (not as nice but not as expensive as the Holiday Inn City Centre), the Midland, the Silversmith (I liked it very much but it may be out of the moderate category now), the Day's Inn.
BTilke

Aloha,
We used Priceline.com and got the Palmer House Hilton for $100/night.
Not bad for an old "Grand Dame" hotel in Chicago.
You may have similair luck if you ask for a 3 star hotel in the same area and low ball you bid. I think it's non-reundable, tho, so you better be able to go once they accept the bid.

Good luck...Go Cubbies!
Kal

About five years ago, my husband and I picked a hotel (the Cass Hotel) based strictly on price. It was cheap, but it was nasty. My husband got there before me, took one look at the room, and checked out. He met me in the lobby, we picked up a guide to Chicago and called a service called Hot Rooms. We ended up in the Clariton Executive Plaza on Wacker Drive for $79 a night. We could have also chosen the International on Michigan Avenue for that price.
Since then, whenever we go to Chicago, we use Hot Rooms (yes, its a goofy name, but they work). They now have a website (hotrooms.com).
One other thing we've discovered - Call the day before you leave. Sometimes, if a hotel still has empty rooms on Thursday, they'll drop the weekend rate. This doesn't always work, so make reservations ahead of time just in case. Just make sure you can cancel the day before.

Oops, I just checked the hot rooms website and they now charge a $25 cancellation fee.

However, they are listing a price of $99 for the Executive Plaze and $129 for the Westin. If you are able to go up to about $140, your options increase considerably.

Also, the other hotel in my first post was the Intercontinental, not the international. I have since stayed there and was not impressed.

Just wanted to let you know you can get a hotel for less than $200 a night downtown... We used Priceline.com and have a room at the Westin River North on the 10th for $85 + tax and 4 nights at the Hyatt Regency Chicago at $115.00 per night.... good luck!!

We just returned from three days in Chicago.We stayed at the House of Blues Hotel for $129. a night.The kids(14 and 15) loved it and the staff was the nicest and most helpful of anywhere we have stayed.I booked through HotRooms.com.Also be sure to get a City Pass if you are going to do the museums.
The kids liked Pizzaria Uno but order small ones and Bin Pao which was great.
We also took the Architecture tour by boat as well as the tour on the Double Decker.We found the bus tour too slow and not really good value but the architecture tour was great.The Museum of Science and Industry was very crowded,very dirty and we had to stand in line for everything forever.Also the drink machines were empty.We had a great time even in the heat. Have fun.

I've stayed at the Palmer House numerous times, and it's very nice. If you can find a good Hilton promotional rate, I'd recommend it.

Any comments on a choice between the Monaco or the Renaissance? We're meeting our daugther and her husband for a weekend in October. Is south of the river not as nice as north? Is there public transportation from these hotels to the museums, etc.? Thanks for any help!

South of the river is quieter and closer to the museums (except Terra and Museum of Contemporary Art) but has less shopping and weekend action. You are talking about only a few blocks difference, however. Cabs are always available and are the recommended way of getting around. Buses are, well, buses. The L (elevated train/subway) doesn't go to most tourist sites, although it does go to Wrigley Field and Oak Park. There is a free tourist shuttle to Navy Pier and around North Michigan - do a search for Chicago Trolley or ask at your hotel. Other sites to check are
for information
www.ci.chi.il.us/Tourism/Downtown
www.transitchicago.com

for arts, happenings, restaurants
www.chireader.com
www.metromix.com
www.chicagomag.com
www.searchchicago.com/dining/
www.hottix.com

Any comments about these hotels:

The Burnham
The Allegro
The W

how are the locations?
Thanks,Bill

Bill, the Allegro is a smart little boutique hotel very popular with European travelers. I remember it from its pre-Allegro days at the Bismark (aka the Abysmark), a truly awful hotel. It's located in the theater district; not right on Michigan Ave but an easy walk. It's similar to the Monaco and other boutique hotels.
BTilke