Chicago: Something for everyone at The James

One of the things I look forward to most when I visit Chicago are all of the new downtown boutique hotels. For instance, The James is the love child of Danny Enrico, founder and CEO of Equinox Fitness Clubs, and Brad Wilson, a former VP for W Hotels Worldwide. Plus, this hotel made the UK edition of Condé Nast Traveller’s list of hot hotels for May 2007. So, you already know it’s going to be stylish and super-mod. The question is, is it a good deal?

Deal: Yes and no. The best available online room rate that I could find for several dates that I tried during the summer and fall was $359/night (excluding taxes) for a double room. That’s notably high-priced for accommodations in downtown Chicago. However, this hotel has an enticing bouquet of package deals designed to pique your interest – and make the room rates look more reasonable.

Have you stayed at The James? Thumbs-up or thumbs-down? Let us know in Comments section below.

Details: For example, the Fit! package includes a 1-hour session with a personal trainer, a healthy in-room breakfast and an autographed copy of Jim Karas’s The Cardio-Free Diet Book; it costs $80/night more than the best available room rate. For $70 extra/night, the Explore! package is an better deal, including in-room breakfast for two, a city map and two Chicago CityPass booklets (normally $49.50 each) for free admission to some major attractions, such as the Field Museum and Shedd Aquarium.

When: Most of the package deals are available through December 30th, 2007 (subject to availability).

Why Go: The hotel’s location just off the Magnificent Mile is unbeatable – if you don’t bring a car, that is.

Why Not: You can usually find boutique hotel rooms for much less in downtown Chicago. For example, rooms at popular Kimpton Hotels start at just over $250/night, including taxes and fees.

Critique: The website is a work in progress. For example, the packages advertised online expired last month, although I could still book them online today. Also, I repeatedly got an error code when searching using the online booking engine; however, this didn’t prevent me from making a reservation.

Connect: Wireless high-speed Internet access is complimentary for guests.

Contact: The James Chicago, (877) 526-3755

Related Los Angeles Times links:
Chicago: Eat, drink & play around July 4th
Chicago: Early check-in, pack light at Sheraton
Destination: Midwestern States

– Sara Benson, L.A. Times Travel Deal Detective

[Photo credit: Courtesy of The James Chicago]

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This entry was posted on Monday, July 2, 2007 at 6:12 pm by Sara Benson and is filed under Gourmet, Luxury Travel, Midwestern States, Spa. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a comment, or trackback from your own site.