INTRODUCTION:
On a recent impulse trip to Chicago, I needed a moderately priced hotel in a safe neighborhood to stay at the very next night, and the Best Western University Plaza was just about the only hotel that fit my criteria. The hotel is located near the edge of Evanston, which puts it within comfortable travel distance to Michigan Avenue and the Loop, but you'll still need to hail a cab or take the L. I'd recommend taking the L just for pure economic reasons, and there are two stops within about two blocks in either direction of the hotel. Plus, considering how traffic can be on Lake Shore Drive and Michigan Avenue, you will get there a lot quicker on the train.
LOBBY/COMMON ROOMS:
The Best Western tries to do a little of everything, and excels at none of it. It presents itself as a business traveler's dream, a great bed and breakfast style get-away, and an executive class luxury hotel. It is none of those things, as any traveller will quickly learn by walking around the common areas. The lobby is very nice, and decorated in quality materials. The initial impression is certainly a good one, and it does convey an air of class, I would consider it comparable to many Hiltons, which is probably the target that the owners were aiming for. This is not the area that the hotel falls short in on the "luxury" image, that will come later. A brief glance would let the business customers know that the so-called "business center" is not going to come even close to meeting even the most rudimentary of needs. The generic and sterile looking dining and continental breakfast area also quickly dispels any bed and breakfast image that the hotel implies on their website... a cold bowl of cereal and a stale bagel are not what the bed and breakfast crowd are seeking.
AMENITIES:
The University Plaza is pretty typical of mid-range hotels. There is a seasonal pool, a continental breakfast, free USA Today in the morning, wireless internet, a small fitness center, small business center, and some relatively nice meeting rooms. Once you begin leaving the lobby and wandering to these areas, it becomes apparent that they have not maintained things quite as well outside the immediate lobby area, but things are still in pretty good shape, and all the equipment provided is relatively modern and functional. There are a couple nice features that the University Plaza offers that some nearby hotels may not, though. First, there is a large on-site parking garage, and while it is not any cheaper than other nearby public garages or lots, it does seem quite secure and safe. Secondly, there is a complimentary shuttle provided by the hotel that goes around parts of Evanston during the day. Evanston is an enjoyable place to look around in itself, but I only used the shuttles to get to the train stations on this particular trip.
ROOMS:
The weakest point of my stay was the quality of my room. I stayed in a double queen room, since that is all that was available on a 24 hour notice, and although I had a private balcony with a wonderful view of the parking garage and the townhouse across the street, there nothing about the room that fit with the image projected by the lobby. The lobby was distinctly Hilton, and the room was distinctly Econo Lodge. The wallpaper was torn or peeling in a few places, the bathroom was old and not incredibly clean, and the beds were bowed in the middle and lacking in any form of support. The door to the balcony was incredibly difficult to open and close, but the only thing I saw from my balcony of any interest was a minor car accident, so not being able to access the balcony isn't as big a negative as you might think. The room furniture was generic cheap-hotel, but seemed to be in decent shape. There was plenty of space in the room, which was probably the only real strong point for the price.
SERVICE:
Another area that failed to impress was the customer service. I returned to the front desk after looking at my room to let them know that it appeared my bathroom had not been cleaned, and commented that the beds were some of the least comfortable I'd seen. The desk attendant, clearly labeled by her badge as "shift manager" was quite disinterested and said she would send someone up to clean the bathroom, without ever looking up from her computer monitor. Not only was the bathroom never cleaned, I was staying more than one night, and the room wasn't cleaned the next day either. This time I got more frustrated, and did manage to get the room cleaned, but it was done by an extremely unhappy housekeeper who cut as many corners as possible.
CONCLUSION:
There are a lot of hotels in the Chicago area, but for the traveller that likes to be pampered and likes to save as much as possible, there aren't a lot of options. A cursory internet search might put the Best Western University Plaza near the top of such a list, but the misleading website photos and descriptions are a thin veil hiding a relatively unremarkable hotel. It's not the worst place I've ever stayed at, but it's far from being the best. There is one other concern about this hotel that did not fit well within my review, and that is the safety of the neighborhoods surrounding the hotel. To the west you have downtown Evanston and some very nice areas, but within a block to the east things get pretty disreputable pretty quickly. I do not advise walking alone through that area at night.
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
