The Royal Sonesta Chicago River North

If you’re like me, a successful hotel stay means you never have to interact with guest services. Unfortunately that wasn't the case for our three night visit at the Royal Sonesta River North. We woke up to a 80 degree room when the AC went out, and the room phone never worked - so we either had to go down to the desk or try to get to them from our cell. The TV remote batteries died twice during our 3 day stay. Overall - annoying we had to spend vacation time chasing this stuff down. It took a couple of follow ups to get the second remote delivered, and we hung around the room to wait so when we got back in late that evening we didn’t have to deal with it then -we fall asleep to tv noise normally. It took over an hour to exchange a tv remote for a working one. And each time we had an issue, I waited to hear basic common customer service phrases that never came, like “We’re sorry that happened, let’s fix it” - I wasn’t asking for anything except recognition of the problem, and communication during the resolution- these things would have cost them nothing. Guest services needs some work at this hotel. They are friendly when things are going well, but brisk and snotty when there are issues. Management never reached out to me despite my requests left with Gabby, so I left feedback with their corporate office.

Great location, views and staff (especially Antwonne)

Everything about my stay was incredible. Everyone was SO friendly, but specifically, Kate in the restaurant, Beyoncé at the front desk and Spiro at the bell stand. Would absolutely stay here again. Thank you again for an amazing stay.

spent 3 days here on a short trip to chicago to see the cubs vs white sox. good location, short walk from the blue line airport connection, red line right outside the hotel to wrigley and other interesting spots. hotel room was spacious, huge bed, soft & comfy mattress and pillows, huge tv with many channels (including baseball). decent view of the city from floor to ceiling windows. stylish bathroom, but the heavy sliding bathroom door was a bit weird and hard to keep closed. the pool was lots of fun, perfect temperature and an even 3 1/2 feet across its length, the outdoor fresco terrace was very nice on a summers day. the staff were super friendly and helpful and gave us early checkin and late checkout, even though we didnt need it. short walk to the loop area and to shopping and food in the river north neighborhood. all in all, a perfect hotel experience!

Downtown Chicago is practically crawling with 4-star hotels charging similar rates, meaning the devil is entirely in the details. Would I choose to stay at the Royal Sonesta again? Absolutely not and here’s why: 1. Bedroom design Who designed these rooms and why do they hate shins? The bed's mattress sits on a wooden platform that protrudes hazardously into the room. Within 5 minutes of checking in, I had slammed my leg into the sharp corner, drawing actual blood and leaving a bruise (see attached photos). We had to barricade the corner with pillows for the rest of our stay to prevent further injury. 2. Customer service Our booking came with a “complimentary” bottle of wine and they offered red. Red wine doesn’t agree with me so I politely asked for white. Front desk gave me a flat, unapologetic “no”. It’s not like there wasn’t white wine in the hotel, it’s just that they refused to provide it - like someone offering pepper but claiming salt is an impossible ask. 3. Noise Boy, is this a noisy area! State Street is apparently the local speedway for drivers testing the physical limits of their subwoofers. Even all the way up on the 10th floor, the bass vibrated through the windows well past midnight. If you’re a light sleeper, look for somewhere along the river instead. 4. No coffee in the room I can’t remember ever staying in a 4-star hotel that lacked basic in-room coffee. Upon waking up, I looked for a coffee machine but couldn’t find it. A call to front desk revealed that coffee was only available from a giant urn in the lobby. So there I was, trailing down 10 floors in my pajamas just to get a medium blend, like I was staying at a high-rise La Quinta. 5. No bar / restaurant / room service Now this was the real kicker. The hotel has no bar, no restaurant and no room service available on Sunday and Monday evenings. You aren’t stranded in rural illinois; you’re paying 4-star rates in the heart of America’s second city! Shutting down basic amenities for two days a week seems just plain cheap.