My husband and I have stayed at the Raphael twice, but the reviews I now read on Fodors are scary...seedy, mold, etc. Does anyone have another suggestion for a hotel within walking distance of that area that would fit our bill and be in about the $150 price range or less? Thanks very much.

Are you referring to Chicago's Magnificent Mile? If so, when are you going? (rates vary widely!)

Would you consider priceline, since it's just the two of you? You can usually score amazing deals bidding 4* on priceline. I've never paid more than $80/night on priceline, but if you'll be there on a particularly busy weekend, it might not work for you.

We had a good experience at the Hilton Garden Inn Chicago Downtown Magnificent Mile. It is two blocks from the Miracle Mile. As I recall it was less expensive than most of the hotels in the area and I expect you would be able to find it for less than $150 through some discount site or the other.

I guess I'm confused about my "Miles." Where one finds Neiman Marcus, Marshall Fields, Mark Shale, the Drake Hotel is the one to which I am referring. The Priceline idea sounds good, but the weekend we're going is in September and that is a popular travel time weather wise...still is worth a try. I'll also call the Hilton. Any more tips? Thanks.

The only "mile" in Chicago is the Magnificent one. There's probably a miracle mile somewhere, but I don't know where!

Check out the list of hotels on www.biddingfortravel.com - you can go to various hotel websites and see what they're charging. Or try hotwire.

I've not tried to get a priceline hotel in Chicago in September, but I've never paid more than $80/night for a 4* hotel through them in the summer time.

It's really too early right now to find hotel deals for September. You could always book a refundable hotel for now, and just keep watching for sales. Once you are certain of your dates, it doesn't hurt to try priceline early. Sometimes you get good deals early, sometimes last minute. As you get closer to your trip, if you don't have something through priceline yet, start checking the Chicago hotel deals advertised at www.travelzoo.com There are often really great deals posted there, a month or two out.

I think Priceline is worth a try. Thank you very much. Will start trying this summer when our dates are definite.

Try the Amafli hotel or the Crowne Plaza Allerton or the Doubletree suites

Also agree on price line as you can pick the lcoation if you are concerned

The Miracle Mile is in Miami.

If you are referring to CHicago,
check out the Hyatt through
Travelzoo.
Read about it here:
They are offering a $69 special,
$10 more for Lake View.
Quite a deal, if you can still
get it.

I'm not seeing that special on travelzoo right now, but as I mentioned in my previous posts, finding a hotel deal on travelzoo right now for September just isn't likely. Most of the deals available now are for March and April.

The Whitehall or Tremont are similar in style and location to the Raphael, but in better shape. However, September is a very difficult month to find a hotel deal in Chicago; you can check the convention schedule on choosechicago.com to see if there are any big groups (20,000 or more)in town that weekend.