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Hotels · United States

Where to stay in Chicago

Four Chicago hotels we have read the guest data on — a 3-star HI Chicago Hostel, a 4-star River Hotel, a 3-star Chicago South Loop Hotel, and a 3-star Sonesta ES Suites Chicago Downtown Magnificent Mile Medical — with the complaints written as plainly as the praise.

  • 4 properties reviewed
  • 3 areas covered
  • 2 head-to-head comparisons
  • Guest sentiment from our hotel data provider

Written by the TravelShifu editorial team · last checked · hotel method

Desk assessmentWe have not stayed here. This verdict is built from the property’s own records and third-party guest reviews, read in full — including the complaints.

Check Chicago rates

We hold no live rates, so nothing on this page quotes a nightly price. This opens the partner’s own Chicago search, where you can put in your dates and see the real number.

Ad · Trip.comBrowse all hotels in ChicagoOpens Trip.com's own search. Dates are not pre-filled — a date baked into a static page is wrong by the next morning.

Should you book this Chicago stay?

Where to stay in Chicago — the verdict

Stay at HI Chicago Hostel if the strongest headline in this sample is the product (8.5 from 12,676); compare the other three on location and cleanliness category scores before you treat star class as a guarantee; read Chicago South Loop Hotel carefully — cleanliness sits at 6.33 out of 10 in this seed.

POI rows exist for River Hotel (Millennium Park (Cloud Gate / 'The Bean') at 1 km, Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower) at 1 km); Sonesta ES Suites Chicago Downtown Magnificent Mile Medical (Millennium Park (Cloud Gate / The Bean) at 2.3 km, Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower) at 2.9 km). HI Chicago Hostel, Chicago South Loop Hotel have no POI rows in this ingest — we do not invent kilometre claims for those pins.

Guest headlines: HI Chicago Hostel posts 8.5 from 12,676; River Hotel posts 8.3 from 9,339; Chicago South Loop Hotel posts 8 from 4,228; Sonesta ES Suites Chicago Downtown Magnificent Mile Medical posts 8.2 from 4,066. We cite scale, count and date — never as structured data.

Nothing on this page quotes a nightly rate. We hold no live rates — the CTAs send you to Booking.com, Agoda, Trip.com or Vrbo. Those are partners; the links may earn commission.

Best for

  • First-time visitors comparing HI Chicago Hostel against softer-scoring pins
  • Anyone weighing dated cleanliness category scores before star class
  • Travellers who will not invent landmark walks where POI rows are missing

Not for

  • Anyone who needs verified landmark pins for every hotel — coverage is uneven here
  • Guests expecting a spotless story at Chicago South Loop Hotel without reading the cleanliness score
  • Readers hunting a quoted nightly rate on this page

Verdict last reviewed . Rates, refurbishments and management change — re-check anything time-sensitive before booking.

Best Hotels in Chicago

Chicago hotel choice is which map you want to wake up on. These four sit on different pins on purpose — HI Chicago Hostel (8.5 from 12,676), River Hotel (8.3 from 9,339), Chicago South Loop Hotel (8 from 4,228), Sonesta ES Suites Chicago Downtown Magnificent Mile Medical (8.2 from 4,066).

4 properties reviewed by our editors · Last checked 8 Aug 2026

Filter Chicago hotels by price band or trip type
  1. Building at HI Chicago Hostel

    Number 1: HI Chicago Hostel

    3-star hotelMid-rangeLoop & Wacker

    A 3-star HI Chicago Hostel at 24 E Ida B Wells Drive — no POI rows with a 8.5 headline from 12,676 reviews and lack of cleanliness in shared bathrooms named in the cons.

    • 8.5 out of 10 from 12,676 reviews
    • Location score 9.72 out of 10
    • Cleanliness score 6.71 out of 10
    • Parking

    our hotel data provider: 8.5/10 from 12,676 reviews — as of 6 Jan 2026

    Full review of HI Chicago Hostel
  2. Building at River Hotel

    Number 2: River Hotel

    4-star hotelUpscaleLoop & Wacker

    A 4-star River Hotel at 75A East Wacker Drive — Millennium Park (Cloud Gate / 'The Bean') at 1 km with a 8.3 headline from 9,339 reviews and room cleanliness issues named in the cons.

    • Millennium Park (Cloud Gate / 'The Bean') at 1 km
    • 8.3 out of 10 from 9,339 reviews
    • Location score 9.05 out of 10
    • Cleanliness score 7.55 out of 10

    our hotel data provider: 8.3/10 from 9,339 reviews — as of 10 Dec 2025

    Full review of River Hotel
  3. Building at Sonesta ES Suites Chicago Downtown Magnificent Mile Medical

    Number 3: Sonesta ES Suites Chicago Downtown Magnificent Mile Medical

    3-star hotelMid-rangeMagnificent Mile / Walton

    A 3-star Sonesta ES Suites Chicago Downtown Magnificent Mile Medical at 201 East Walton Place — Millennium Park (Cloud Gate / The Bean) at 2.3 km with a 8.2 headline from 4,066 reviews and cleanliness issues named in the cons.

    • Millennium Park (Cloud Gate / The Bean) at 2.3 km
    • 8.2 out of 10 from 4,066 reviews
    • Location score 9.17 out of 10
    • Cleanliness score 7.66 out of 10

    our hotel data provider: 8.2/10 from 4,066 reviews — as of 8 Jan 2026

    Full review of Sonesta ES Suites Chicago Downtown Magnificent Mile Medical
  4. Building at Chicago South Loop Hotel

    Number 4: Chicago South Loop Hotel

    3-star hotelMid-rangeSouth Loop

    A 3-star Chicago South Loop Hotel at 11 West 26th Street — no POI rows with a 8 headline from 4,228 reviews and cleanliness issues named in the cons.

    • 8 out of 10 from 4,228 reviews
    • Location score 8.84 out of 10
    • Cleanliness score 6.33 out of 10
    • Fitness facilities

    our hotel data provider: 8/10 from 4,228 reviews — as of 9 Jan 2026

    Full review of Chicago South Loop Hotel

Where to stay in Chicago: best areas by trip type

Pick the area before you pick the property. In Chicago the walk out of the front door decides more of the trip than the room does.

Chicago at a glance

Best area for families:
Loop & Wacker — best area for families in Chicago
Best area for couples:
Loop & Wacker — best area for couples in Chicago
Best area for a first visit:
Loop & Wacker — best area for a first visit in Chicago

Loop & Wacker

Typical nightly rate: 3-star through 4-star for this sample per night

Best for first-time visitors · couples · families

Loop & Wacker — River Hotel puts Millennium Park (Cloud Gate / 'The Bean') at 1 km, Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower) at 1 km, The Magnificent Mile (North Michigan Avenue shopping district) at 0.3 km on our hotel data provider’s figures.

Trade-off: HI Chicago Hostel: lack of cleanliness in shared bathrooms, noise issues from other guests; River Hotel: room cleanliness issues, small room size

Getting around: HI Chicago Hostel has no supplier distance table we can cite — plan walks on a map. River Hotel lists Millennium Park (Cloud Gate / 'The Bean') at 1 km, Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower) at 1 km.

Close to: Millennium Park (Cloud Gate / 'The Bean'), Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower), The Magnificent Mile (North Michigan Avenue shopping district), Art Institute of Chicago, 360 CHICAGO / John Hancock Center

  • 3-Star
  • Loop

See 2 hotels in Loop & Wacker

South Loop

Typical nightly rate: 3-star band for this sample per night

Best for first-time visitors · couples · families

South Loop — Chicago South Loop Hotel posts location at 8.84 out of 10 with no POI kilometre rows in this ingest.

Trade-off: Chicago South Loop Hotel: cleanliness issues, room maintenance problems

Getting around: Chicago South Loop Hotel has no supplier distance table we can cite — plan walks on a map.

  • 3-Star
  • South Loop

See 1 hotel in South Loop

Magnificent Mile / Walton

Typical nightly rate: 3-star band for this sample per night

Best for first-time visitors · couples · families

Magnificent Mile / Walton — Sonesta ES Suites Chicago Downtown Magnificent Mile Medical puts Millennium Park (Cloud Gate / The Bean) at 2.3 km, Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower) at 2.9 km, Magnificent Mile (North Michigan Avenue) at 0.3 km on our hotel data provider’s figures.

Trade-off: Sonesta ES Suites Chicago Downtown Magnificent Mile Medical: cleanliness issues, inconsistent service

Getting around: Sonesta ES Suites Chicago Downtown Magnificent Mile Medical lists Millennium Park (Cloud Gate / The Bean) at 2.3 km, Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower) at 2.9 km.

Close to: Millennium Park (Cloud Gate / The Bean), Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower), Magnificent Mile (North Michigan Avenue), 360 CHICAGO / John Hancock Observatory, Navy Pier

  • 3-Star
  • Magnificent Mile / Walton

See 1 hotel in Magnificent Mile / Walton

The full guide

Read the full Chicago guide

Neighbourhoods, transport, costs and seasons — then use Popular searches for the where-to-stay guide, itinerary, eats hub and these property shortlists.

Read the full Chicago guide

Straight comparisons

Hand-picked pairs, not every possible pair. Each of these exists because it is a decision readers in Chicago genuinely have to make.

Popular Chicago searches

Chicago hotels — common questions

Which area of Chicago is best for a first visit?
Start from the neighbourhoods on this page and the hotel with the POI pins or location score that match your days — not the highest star class alone. In this sample the strongest headline is HI Chicago Hostel at 8.5 from 12,676 as of 6 January 2026.
Should I book Chicago hotels direct or through a booking site?
It varies by property and by date, which is why we never quote a nightly rate here. Check the partner link for your dates, then check the hotel’s own site before you confirm. Booking.com, Agoda, Trip.com and Vrbo are partners; those links may earn commission.
Why do you show guest scores but never a star-rating snippet in search results?
Because the scores are not ours. Every review number on this site comes from a supplier’s aggregate. We show the supplier score plainly, attributed and dated, and we never emit it as structured data. We have not stayed — this is a desk assessment from our hotel data provider’s dated guest analysis on the page.
HI Chicago Hostel or River Hotel?
HI Chicago Hostel posts 8.5 from 12,676; River Hotel posts 8.3 from 9,339. Full comparison: /hotels/chicago/compare/hi-chicago-hostel-vs-river-hotel. We have not stayed — this is a desk assessment from our hotel data provider’s dated guest analysis on the page.