Our family has been to The Willows Hotel on 3 separate occasions and we will return in 2 weeks to stay there again. It is located less than one block from our daughter's apt. and within walking distance of great restaurants and shops. It is easily accessible from the train and buses. One stay was by myself in Winter and I had a great room that overlooked the street. The beds are wonderful. And even though it is an older hotel, we have never heard people coming or going. The rooms we've had with 2 beds faced the alley, but were spacious. The bathrooms are on the small side, but everything is sparkling clean and the front desk people are great. I am so glad we found this place since our daughter has 4 years to go.

Note: I marked that they do not have a swimming pool, but on our last visit, they had passes to the large Bally gym nearby, don't know if that's still going on.

I stayed at the Willows on a recent trip to Chicago and was slightly underwhelmed in comparison to other travelers who have reviewed it here.

My room, a first floor "suite", was apparently located under the stairwell that leads from the lobby to the second floor. This was not a problem during the day. But, was quite noisy at 3 am on Friday and Saturday night when drunken revelers came stomping home from the local bars. More so when the staff began digging ice from the ice machine next to my room at 6 am for the continental breakfast that the hotel serves in its lobby.

In the case of the Willows, the excessive noise could be contained by the simple installation of some acoustic tiles and/or insulation under the offending staircase and more considerate behavior by the staff.

The suite consisted of one large room with a wall installed in the middle of it and a couple of chairs, a tv and wet bar in the sitting area. It certainly was not worth the extra expense. The bedroom had a rather old window unit air conditioner which was unnecessary the night I was there. Heat, which would have been welcome the night of my visit, appears to be radiated steam heat as one might find in many older Chicago buildings. The bathroom was tiny and one could nat maneuver around its door without having to close it.

The bedding was quite comfortble. However, the room fixtures including carpet were old, worn and appeared to be in need of replacement

The neighborhood is quite nice. Many dining and drinking options are available within blocks of the hotel. It is quite close to the Lake Michigan beaches if one is traveling in summer. The hotel does offer a gym membership at a local Bally's.

The staff seems a bit inept. Not capable of dealing with difficulties encountered by other guests checking in at the same time I was.

There are only a scant few hotels in this neighborhood which is surprising given its proximity to Wrigley Field. My experience at all has been quite underwhelming (including at the Willow's sister hotel, the City Suites on Belmont, which backs up to an active El track). I suspect that the demand caused by the lack of competition in the neighborhood creates an environment where the hotel operators don't have to excel to keep guests coming back.

I just got home from my one night stay at The Willows hotel. I was pleasantly surprised by how nice the hotel was for how low the price. The hotel has a very nice atmosphere. The front desk can be a bit slow at times, but that is my only complaint. The room was very nice and clean. Located in a very nice neighborhood. About a 20 minute walk from Wrigley Field. The hotel is right by restaurants, shops, bars, etc... I will definitely consider staying here again for my next visit to chicago!

Great staff that were there when you needed them. What a GREAT experience it was staying near the heart of Boystown. The food, the people and the atmosphere near Halstead was wonderful.