My husband and I were planning a long weekend trip to Chicago in April about two months out. When I began my hotel search, everything seemed to be at least $300/night for downtown hotels- a price I was unwilling to pay outside of New York or Europe. I found a AAA rate at Hotel Blake for $171, and the website looked promising, so I booked it. A couple of weeks ago I decided to check the reviews, and unfortunately they were far from good. I looked online at every hotel chain I could think of in addition to hotels.com, expedia, etc. but there was not a room to be found at any price. Alas, we were left with The Blake. Concerned that the hotel would be overbooked and that we would be left without a room when we were able to check in around 11:30 pm on a Thursday, I re-confirmed our reservation online AND called around 5 pm the night we were going to check-in. Thankfully when we arrived, our room was available. However, the restaurant adjacent to the hotel was already closed and there was no mini-bar in the room (which I can not positively confirm I read online, but I thought I did). That was a tad disappointing considering it was my birthday and we wanted to have a celebratory night-cap without having to venture outside.
The room was not overly spacious, but sufficed for a tourist visit to Chicago (We did have the smallest room they offer though). The rooms are a bit noisy (there's a huge space between the marble floor and the bottom of the door), especially if you happen to be near the elevator as we were. No flat screen tvs as mentioned on the website when I first booked. It is quite obvious that this was the plan since as another review mentioned, there are jacks on the wall both in the room and in the bathroom. As my husband said, it is as if they had all these great ideas to remodel the hotel, but they ran out of money. I actually liked the shower sans tub, but that fact should be included in the room description for those that must have a soak. We had no problems with towels, but housekeeping replenished only the shampoo when we had used up all toiletries. The ice bucket was tiny and yes, only one ice machine on the 12th floor. The fitness room was actually pretty nice- new equipment, towels, water cooler, and flat screen tv. There was no spa, even though the sign in the hallway indicates one.
Overall, I would say that Hotel Blake certainly has the potential to be a good hotel. The location was convenient and the hotel staff was pleasant. However, I would not pay more than $150/night for a room. And given the lack of certain amenities (room service, mini-bar, bathrobe, etc.), I don't think it should be affiliated with the Preferred Group of Hotels. This hotel is not even close to being in the same league as the Grand Hotel in Minneapolis or the Marco Ocean Beach Resort in Marco Island (two "Preferred" hotels I have frequented).
I think the only way I would stay here again would be if they offered room rates significantly cheaper than others in the loop/mag mile area.
hotel reviews