Ok, you've read all the not-so-good reviews. Here's my take: is the hotel old, yes? Is the paper coming off the walls and you wonder will you wonder why the lamps don't work, yes? But, if you're ok with that - then stay. People like me booked this hotel for the location and because it's cheaper than most in Chicago. As long as you're not looking for luxury, and you just want a clean bed to sleep in, you will be fine. For longer stays, I recommend the Hard Rock down the street.

I booked this hotel because of its proximity to Grant Park and was very apprehensive having read the negative reviews but actually, it's not too bad. It IS being refurbished in a piecemeal way. Instead of completely finishing a set of rooms, different bits are done. The wallpaper and furniture is old fashioned but the windows are modern, the original woodwork is being restored and our bathroom had been refurbished........although the plug holes were incomplete and the cistern lid didn't fit!!! The service is good, it's very clean, rooms and public areas, with plenty of linen changed as often as you wish and a few toiletries. it's true there aren't many amenities. Perhaps my expectations are not as high as some as I am aware that the Congress is a classical old building and Chicago hotel rooms are very expensive at busy times. But we came for the Blues festival and not the hotel amenities and it was fine for that!

Four of us went to Chicago for the Blues Festival and picked the Congress Plaza because of it's location. We were also apprehensive after reading some of the reviews, but would agree that we were pleasantly surprised! In addition to the great location, the rooms and the hotel lobby were very clean. The hotel is old, but has a lot of character. If you stay, take time to view the awesome great room. What impressed us the most, was the friendly and helpful staff! We felt well taken care of and we all agreed we would not hesitate to stay there again.

I went to Chicago for a family vacation in August 2007 and we had a great time....stayed at the Embassy Suites near Navy Pier. In May 2008 I went for a week for a nursing convention. Our reservation was booked through the nursing organization sponsoring the event and the hospital I work for, so I didn't get to pick my hotel this time. I think I would rather eat a roach than ever go back there! If you go to the website, you will see a hotel with class and charm and pictures of rooms....only some of which have been renovated. The common areas of the hotel are beautiful. However the rooms leave alot to be desired. We stayed in an economy room with 2 double beds. For 2 people staying one week, there was 1 small dresser, a desk, and a closet with 5 hangers. The outlets were just above the baseboards and were painted over with several coats of paint making them difficult to use. The wallpaper was at least 20 years old. The ONLY amenities were an old iron, hairdryer in the bathroom, and a safe. You could rent a fridge for $10 per night if you wanted. The bathroom was fair in size but because of the placement of the toilet and the slanted back of the tub, you had to practically step over the toilet to get into the shower. You could only enter the shower after the water had run a bit and wasn't brownish anymore. The shelf over the sink was so wide, it covered 1/2 of the sink....I almost knocked myself out spiting out toothpaste! The ceiling fan was hanging at least 4 inches from the ceiling and went on everytime the light went on. Thank goodness we had brought a night light or the fan would have woken us up at night if we used the bathroom. You also couldn't have the light/fan on and have the door open or you couldn't hear anything else in the room. The bathroom had been updated but very poorly. The tiles were not aligned and the caulk around the tub was a mess. The paint was also peeling in spots! The TV was a flat screen and was mounted on the wall. No HD or high quality cable in this hotel...the picture had alot of static. So because we couldn't drink the water in the room, we tried to buy a bottle in the store...they wanted $5.25 for a bottle of water!!! We wanted to go to a Brazilian Steakhouse and the concierge sent us to one he recommended. It was closed...not closed as in it was going to open later, closed as in accepting application for it's Grand Opening in another month! When you walk into this hotel the first thing you notice is that you have to cross a picket line...of the housekeeping staff!! The ones that did work, didn't speak any English. We didn't have much tempertaure control in the room The fan was high, low, or off so we had the windows open to cool off the room. The housekeepers would come in and clean and shut the windows. We would return to a very warm/ humid room. Because of the temp problems and needing to keep the windows open we didn't sleep at night because of the noise. Now when you go to a city, you expect noise. However, the elevated train ran behind the hotel and made sleeping very difficult. The location isn't great especially if you want to go to Navy Pier, American Girl, or the fancy Michigan Ave stores. It is located on South Michigan and is about 12 blocks from the "fun areas" and the majority of good restaurtants. It is located within walking distance to the Planetarium, Shedd Aquarium, and Museum of Science and Industry....all of which are great day activities. Because of 3 large conventions going on in the city we were unable to find another hotel room until our last night. We were switched to the Wyndham and not only was it beautiful, clean, updated, and centrally located, the staff was friendly. Everyone we came in contact with at the Wyndham said hello. When I checked out of the Congress, I told the front desk staff how unhappy I was. They didn't ask why, apologize, or offer to get me a manager to speak with they just handed me my bill.

I stayed at the Congress Hotel in June, 2008 and it was the by far the worst experience I have ever had with a hotel. My purse was stolen from the hotel room the second night of our visit. From that point on, the hotel not only refused to deal with me or the other hotel guests staying with me, but blatantly denied that I had brought my purse into the hotel. There are more details to this incident, as I'm sure you can guess, but I would advise anybody to not stay at this hotel. My perception is that they are backhanded, deny everything to save face, and will not treat you as a guest like counterpart hotel chains would. Save yourself the trauma, grief, and money and stay somewhere else in Chicago... it's a beautiful city and this hotel does it disservice.