Having never been to Chicago before, we were looking for a hotel that was in a good location, had a spacious room, was decorated well and had a good bar. We found all of this and more at the Thompson Chicago when we stayed six nights over New Year.
Situated in downtown Chicago, the hotel is just a few minutes walk from Michigan Avenue and the Magnificent Mile and close to lots of shops, bars and restaurants.
The hotel interior has been designed by British designer Tara Bernard and is just simply stunning. Low but warm lighting, rich textures and stylish furniture with beautiful wooden beamed ceilings greet you as you walk in.
One of the great things about staying here is the free coffee in the morning! It’s served either at the bar or in Nico Osteria. The coffee was really good and is a lovely touch, especially as you could get one to take away as you headed out for the day.
Another great thing about staying at Thompson Chicago is that it’s a dog-friendly hotel. We love dogs, so it was always a delight when we saw dogs in the lobby or in the lift with us!
The bar
The bar at the hotel – Salone Nico – is gorgeous with a wall of green plants, giving it an urban garden feel. We had drinks at the bar the first night we arrived as we’d booked dinner at their restaurant Nico Osteria, and the bar was buzzing (although it was a Friday night.) We also had drinks another night too as we had a voucher from the hotel. They have a great cocktail menu, if you’re in to cocktails.
The restaurant
Nico Osteria serves Italian food and is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner every day. We had dinner here on the first night we arrived and enjoyed the food very much. The restaurant itself is beautifully decorated and you don’t feel as though you’re in a hotel.
They also have counter seating if you like to watch the chefs at work.
The room
We booked a Junior Suite, which is a corner room with a separate living room area. The room is quite spacious at around 450 square feet. The bed was really comfy, which is always a good thing!
After a great first night’s sleep, this was the view we woke up to in the morning. Stunning!
Although we had a separate living room area, we didn’t really use it. We preferred to just watch TV in bed, which is a luxury for us as we don’t have a TV in our bedroom back home.
I loved the design features of the room. These lampshades above the bed are just lovely!
The bathroom was a really good size with a bath and separate large shower. The luxury toiletries were D.S Durga, which is a Brooklyn-based perfume house.
I love having a bath when I’m on holiday so I always look for a room that has one, especially if we’re staying for more than two nights. We always walk a lot on city breaks so a bath helps ease sore and tired muscles!
The hotel has a gym but no spa. The gym is open 24 hours for those of you with jet lag! Whilst breakfast wasn’t included, there are lots of places nearby to get breakfast, including the Original Pancake House which is across the road.
The neighbourhood is lovely. There are beautiful, historic homes on one side of the hotel and designer stores around the corner.
Lake Michigan is just a few minutes walk away where you’ll see lots of walkers and runners and in summer I’m sure, lot of sunbathers.
We walked a lot when we were in Chicago and felt that the hotel was in an ideal location. Our stay wasn’t entirely without incident though… one day we got back to the hotel at 4:30 pm and our room hadn’t be cleaned yet, however they sorted it quite quickly and offered us a bar voucher for cocktails in compensation.
We thoroughly enjoyed our stay at Thompson Chicago and would stay again next time we’re in the Windy City.
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