The city of Chicago is an absolutely wonderful place to visit, especially if you are going in the summer or fall before the really cold winter and the winds start to set in. There are a lot of attractions to see – Cubs or Bears games, the great Water Tower mall, the Sears tower, and my favorite, the Shedd Aquarium, where you can see just about every species of fish that exists on the planet.

But if you are going to be staying in Chicago, you need to think about what hotel you’re going to be at. And if you can afford it, the best luxury hotel in the Chicago area is definitely the Orrington, without question. This is where I always stay. It is absolutely beautiful. From the moment you walk in, you see the black and white marble tiled floor and you know that this is a classy place to stay in. Just to the right of the lobby, is an amazingly nice bar area, lit with dim lights and many leather chairs to lounge around in.

If you’re single, you can definitely meet women in the bar, because there are always young women around at this hotel. There is even a piano there, and sometimes there is live music performance. Last time I was there, there was a female jazz singer who was really great.

Then you go up to your room in the elevator (which is one of the nicest elevators I’ve ridden in.) Inside your room, you will be amazed at how nice it is. The ceiling is very very high, so you don’t feel cramped at all. The beds are huge, with lots of space to lay around on, and there are chairs and a little writing desk too. There’s a big wooden closet where you can find very comfortable bathrobes and towels, along with an iron and ironing board. There is also a mini-bar that sells small bottles of whiskey and wine, as well as lots of snacks. The TV is big and there are many movies that you can watch on-demand. And, the best thing is, there is fast wireless internet, so if you’ve got a laptop, you can get online in your room. If you’re staying in Chicago, the Orrington is THE place to stay!

My husband and I stayed at The Drake Hotel in Chicago last year and it was wonderful. The Drake Hotel is one of the most luxurious hotels in Chicago. We stayed for eight days and were able to have two different rooms during the stay.

For the first four days we were in a suite that had a beautiful view of Lake Michigan. The last four nights we stayed on the other side of the hotel and we got an awesome view of the Chicago skyline, especially at night. The rooms were large and the beds were very comfortable. When choosing this hotel, I knew it would be on the expensive side, but I have to say it was worth it. Every thing looked so elegant, but was very comfortable. The rooms had large bathrooms with excellent lighting, even the bathrobe was so great.

The best part of the hotel was the many restaurants there. My favorite was the Cape Cod Room. It is the best seafood restaurant that we have ever been to. We had dinner at this place four of the eight nights we were there. Not only was the food very fresh and very delicious, the service was wonderful. The restaurant did get busy on Saturday night and we did have to wait more than 40 minutes for our dinner, but it was so good, when it finally did get to the table. One of their other restaurants was Drake Bros’. We went their for breakfast a couple of times, but their Sunday brunch is the best. They have a very large menu and their place a great view of Lake Michigan. The Sunday we went there was a Jazz group playing and it really added to the atmosphere. Another thing that I loved about this hotel was the proximity to all the places we wanted to go.

It is very close to Oak Street Beach, which is where we spent several days. Although the hotel is quite expensive for the average family, I would recommend it for the couple who is looking for some luxury in their hectic lives. We couldn’t afford to go here all the time, but we sure enjoyed it while we were there.