Hotel 55 Chicago Downtown

What a novel concept for a hotel. If you’re looking for something a little different, I highly recommend this option. It’s like staying at a “mini” modern art museum. The rooms are above average quality. Great water pressure in the shower. We had a corner suite, which had 2 rooms with a rolling door between them and a double vanity. This is definitely a (4+ star) hotel — not a luxury hotel, but it definitely has several nice touches that put it above and beyond your upscale 4 star hotels at a similar price point. The on-site restaurant is wonderful, and the staff at the restaurant is very friendly. I got an email a few days before arriving offering a paid upgrade for about 1/2 the price it would have cost at full retail. I ended up getting a room on the 15th of 17 floors. The corner views are unfortunately just OK. The top of the hotel lines up with air conditioning units on top of several mid-rise buildings around it — but there are partial views of the skyline. It was a great deal for the price.

Stayed for business trip. The rooms are nice but some are positioned weird. My bed was right there as soon as I opened my door. Not ideal. I previously stayed there and my bed was around the corner which was better for me. Other than that, the beds are comfy, the bathroom is spacious and the art work is beautiful.

The hotel is lovely and interesting - an old building that’s been remodeled to look more modern (so just know the electric sockets are in odd places), and we really enjoyed the interactive art exhibits. The service was exceptional, all our requests were easily accommodated by cheerful and friendly staff. Our room was clean and freshened up every day, any extra bedding, towels, and toiletries were available upon request, and they also brought ice several times when we called down to request it. I dropped a star for two reasons - The first one is that the refrigerator in the room is absolutely absurd. It’s a very VERY old minibar fridge of the sort that, twenty or more years ago, would have charged you for removing items. All the items have been helpfully removed but the shelving isn’t big enough to store anything other than small items. You can put 20oz bottles on the bottom shelf and that’s about it. We wasted a LOT of food because we just couldn’t chill it overnight The second reason is that the street noise is unbearable. We stayed on the 8th floor and the cars in the street revving their engines or playing music at ear-bleeding volume was CLEARLY audible at all hours of the day and night. We put on white noise with our phones and that helped some but I was still woken every night at least once by what sounded like a club at peak party hours. Other friends who stayed in the same hotel at higher levels (12th and 16th floors respectively) had similar complaints. I don’t know if it’s lack of insulation, old glass, or what, but something really needs to be done. Otherwise it’s a lovely hotel in a great location. Just bring earplugs.