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Cheaper
Average
Higher
About
4.0
#156 of 212 hotels in Chicago
Location
4.7
Cleanliness
4.3
Service
4.0
Value
3.7
"The Chicago Hotel the World Knows Best." The hip & historic Palmer House Hilton has a history of over 140 years and after a multi-million dollar renovation continues to thrive in the heart of the theatre and financial district, just steps from the Art Institute, Millennium Park and State Street shopping. This Chicago hotel features 130,000 sq. ft. of function space with over 77 meeting rooms, seven ballrooms and two exhibition halls. Lockwood Restaurant and Bar, located just off the lobby and Potter's Lounge, perfect for cocktails will enhance your experience.
Star ratings are intended to indicate the general level of features, amenities, and services to expect. This property is classified according to Giata.
Places to stay are graded on a 0-100 scale. The higher the grade, the easier it is for travelers to find restaurants and things to do within walking distance.
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The Palmer House Hilton Hotel garners mixed reviews, with its prime Chicago location often being its most lauded feature, ideal for guests looking to explore the city's highlights. While the hotel's historic ambiance and elegant decor are appreciated, many travelers feel the value is compromised due to high costs, basic amenities carrying unexpected fees, and service that swings from attentive to unprofessional.
Guests have called out the need for room updates, pointing to cleanliness issues and noise concerns, and although some areas are celebrated for their charm, the overall atmosphere is marred by dated and neglected spaces.
Location
Convenient
Atmosphere
Historic
Rooms
Dated
Value
Expensive
Cleanliness
Mixed
Service
Inconsistent
Amenities
Underwhelming
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LOVED this hotel. Not only was it beautiful but the service was incredible. I want to give a special shout out to Richard at the check in desk for his over and above service and infectious positive attitude. Palmer House and their guests are lucky to have you!
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Date of stay: June 2024Trip type: Traveled on business
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from General Manager, General Manager at Palmer House a Hilton Hotel
Responded Jun 24, 2024
Dear Paula, Thank you for your review of Palmer House A Hilton Hotel. We're thrilled you had such a fantastic experience while staying with us. The combination of beautiful surroundings and exceptional service truly elevates the guest experience. We appreciate you recognizing Richard for his outstanding service. He is an asset to our Team and will be delighted to hear your kind words. We look forward to welcoming you back again soon. Sincerely, Henry Dornelas Hotel Manager
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First, I'll start by saying we would stay here again if we needed a location that is perfect for all things in (and near) the Loop. It is just 2 blocks from the Art institute. There are dozens of great restaurants and bars within walking distance and it is close to public transport. The room was clean and spacious with plenty of accessible outlets for charging. The shower was great and the bathroom had a large counter space. We were on the executive floor so we had access to an express elevator. The drawbacks--the breakfast that came with the room was extremely dissappointing. On one of the three days we were there, they ran out of food and we ended up eating snacks we had brought in our room. (They did give us a credit to use in the hotel when we complained.) The other two days, the line was long and the choices were underwhelming. There were eggs (my husband said they were pretty good), fruit, oatmeal, bread products, yogurt, and waffles or french toast. No cereal that we saw and no meat. The regular (black) tea ran out several times. We also had issues with parking. We booked the parking package and accidently parked in the wrong garage (On its sign it said parking for Palmer House but it wasn't the offial one.) Upon check in, we were told it was the wrong one so my husband went to move the car and we were charged $25 for about 10 min. I understand that the hotel is not responsible for it but I think there could be a warning on the website. In the right garage, the digital key did not work for in and out privileges and neither did the validated parking ticket we got from the front desk. The garage attendant took our name and room number and let us out and were not charged anything extra but it was still frustrating. All the staff was very friendly and helpful. It's worth staying here but just be aware, that despite the price and the Hilton name, you may feel let down on the little things that help make a stay special.
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Date of stay: December 2019
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Room Tip:It is worth upgrading to the executive floor during busy seasons to avoid the crowd at the...
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Safari01329908758, Manager at Palmer House a Hilton Hotel
Responded Jan 4, 2020
Thank you for taking the time to share your comments concerning your stay at the Hilton Chicago. Excellent service is what we would like to be known for; therefore your feedback is extremely important as it helps us to improve upon our services and provide a memorable experience to our valued guests. Thank you once more for staying with us, we hope to welcome you back to the property in the future. Please feel free to contact me on the information below if there is anything myself or my team can do to provide further assistance.
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I stayed at Palmer House for President's weekend in Chicago. My first issue with the place was that they could not guarantee an early check in after a red eye. When I called in advance, I was given a curt response and then they hung up. When I arrived, there was a room. This hotel is absolutely HUGE. Unless they are 100% sold out, which probably is never the case, they should be able to give you a room. My room was in the farthest corner of the hotel, the view was a brick wall that had no natural sunlight so the room had a dark, dank, feeling. The hallways are large and wind around in a maze. The room was really basic, and seemed like an inefficient use of space. The closet was a full walk in closet, and the bathroom was so tight, only one person could stand in it at a time. I could not open the door to the bathroom while a towel was on the ground. The doors were really thin, and I could hear everything happening in the halls. It felt like Palmer House was looking to make a buck on everything. The WiFi is not complimentary, which seems silly because it's 2020 and the streets have free WiFi. Also, if you ask for a late check out, you have to pay $25 for each additional hour that you stay. The thing is, check out is automatic, so I'm not sure if there is a way to really enforce that unless you request it. The lobby of this hotel is really magnificent, but everything else in this hotel is just standard or substandard. I would only stay here if it's really a much better deal than everything else.
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Date of stay: February 2020
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Trip type: Traveled on business
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Dream16777302166, Executive Assistant at Palmer House a Hilton Hotel
Responded Feb 19, 2020
Thank you for taking the time to review your stay at the Palmer House. We truly apologize that you did not receive the typical Palmer House experience during your visit. We are interested in finding out more about your stay and would like to have a member of our management team contact you in order discuss your experience further in an effort to take the necessary steps to make this right. Please contact me at hynita.hilliard@hilton.com with the best way to contact you, your TripAdvisor user name, the reservation name and your hotel confirmation number. Sincerely, Hynita Hilliard Executive Assistant
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First problem was that I booked this hotel because according to Hilton's web site it had an executive lounge. It does not they've closed the lounge. So I guess the lounge is now a part of the hotel's long history. What I can say about this hotel is it's located centrally, near to the L but the elegance ends after you walk through the beautiful lobby. No coffee maker or tea in the room, no. bottled water in the room, wall mounted shampoo pump makes you feel like you're in a Hilton Garden Inn not an historic Hilton property. Breakfast buffet was not good and no worth the money, though the service was good. A whole salad setup but only one communal bowl of dressing, no oil/vinegar, no fat free options. The cinnamon rolls were made out of concrete, looks like something that came out of a plastic wrap and was microwaved. The do a high end afternoon tea but based on how disappointing the breakfast was I didn't want to risk it. I can say that the olives they had on the salad setup were very nice. So if you don't get a good deal on this hotel don't waste your time. It's no Waldorf-Astoria
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Date of stay: March 2020
Value
Cleanliness
Service
Trip type: Traveled on business
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from AlhajiA8, Manager at Palmer House a Hilton Hotel
Responded Mar 14, 2020
Hello RTDTravel, Thank you for taking the time to review your stay with us. We regret to hear of the issues you experienced during your stay including our lounge not being available. Our team has been made aware of your comments and this feedback will be used to continue to improve our service. With Gratitude, Alhaji Abubakar Hotel Night Manager
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I had high hopes for this hotel. My stay was a disaster.
The executive level room itself was not worth the extra cost, the room was dated - wallpaper coming off the walls, a chipped bathroom mirror, a 2 to 3 inch gap under a poorly fitting bathroom door, pulled up and torn carpet edges. The layout of the room was very strange and there was a hallway that led to nowhere at the side of the room.
We were awoken during to loud construction in the hotel next to and above our room. Housekeeping also had a cell phone ringer which went off loudly a number of times. Prior to my arrival, I had asked if a refrigerator came with my room or not and I was told it was usually $40 but they would comp it for me. When I arrived, I was told that my room would always have come with a fridge at no charge.
Aside from that, the executive lounge is currently closed and it does not sound like it is going to open again. The compensation you receive instead is a continental breakfast in the restaurant (need to pay extra for full breakfast) and a complimentary appetizer in the evening. While this may work for some people, it is certainly not the equivalent of the executive level amenities at other properties and is not at all what I thought I should get based upon the description on hilton.com. I chose this hotel based upon what I was told I would receive and the reality was nothing near what was stated.
At the end of our stay, they made us use the staff elevator to get to our room because our key did not work. Overall, the hotel was not at all worth it and I strongly recommend not staying here.
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Date of stay: January 2020Trip type: Traveled on business
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Calvin-HiltonHelp, on behalf of management at Palmer House a Hilton Hotel
Responded Jan 29, 2020
Thank you for taking the time to write a review about your recent stay at our hotel. We appreciate your feedback, and we’re very sorry you were unhappy with the condition of your guest room. Guest feedback is incredibly important to us. We are taking your comments into consideration as we take the steps necessary to make it right for you and our future guests. We hope to have another opportunity to serve you if your travels bring you back to our area.
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We were very pleasantly surprised by how stylish and old fashioned (in a good way) the Palmer House seemed when we first walked in. Genuinely welcoming staff ushered us in and directed us to the check in desk and as the full splendour of the lobby ceiling rose up before us we were taken aback by the grand glamour of the place. Desk staff were professional and efficient, our room was well oppointed and the bed was a generous size and very comfortable. Linen, towels and bathrobes were all fresh and perfectly laundered. All in all we had a very pleasant stay and the hotel was how you imagine hotels used to be so we were very pleasantly surprised to find that some still are and at a very fair price.
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Date of stay: March 2020
Value
Rooms
Service
Room Tip:Rooms on Executive Levels worth the supplement for the increased space and bed size, views of the...
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Excellent hotel, great location. Tries to cut corners by no longer offering free newspapers, you have to request a room coffeemaker a day in advance, raised the upgrade charge for breakfast to $14, room service apparently not available til after 5pm. Room attendants and restaurant workers very helpful.We stay at this hotel 4 or 5 times a year and try to downplay the deficiencies.
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Review collected in partnership with Hilton Hotels & Resorts
Date of stay: January 2020
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Traveled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Safari01329908758, Manager at Palmer House a Hilton Hotel
Responded Jan 16, 2020
Thank you for taking the time to share your comments concerning your stay at the Hilton Chicago. Excellent service is what we would like to be known for; therefore your feedback is extremely important as it helps us to improve upon our services and provide a memorable experience to our valued guests. Thank you once more for staying with us, we hope to welcome you back to the property in the future. Please feel free to contact me on the information below if there is anything myself or my team can do to provide further assistance
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Checkin: Absolutely terrible. We got there around 15:45, the checkin line was crazy long and it took us 50 minutes to finally get to the counter. When we complained about it they apologised and said their computer system had issues that day.
Location: Excellent, about 2 blocks from the art museum and other attractions. We could uber around everywhere we wanted to go for about $8. There are plenty of restaurants around.
Room: Size was decent, especially for a big city. The architecture is very classic, but we liked that, it added to the charm. The mattress was comfortable, with 4 pillows. The safe had been locked open (latch was set but door was open) so we couldn't use it. I msg'ed the concierge to fix it while we were out but they wanted us to wait for somebody to come fix it. After waiting 50 min to check in, I didn't want to waste any more time, so we simply brought our valuables with us. We were on the 16th floor but had no view to speak of. It was quiet.
Cleanliness: The room was clean enough, but the mirrors were obviously not cleaned. The mirror in the bathroom above the sink was fine, but there's also a magnifying mirror, a mirror on the bathroom door and another above the desk. None of those were clean and the bathroom door mirror had some kind of spray off that looked like when you flick a toothbrush at it. That made us paranoid about the cleanliness of the rest of the room, but after inspecting it the rest was fine.
Overall, its a good hotel I'd go back.
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Date of stay: December 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Safari01329908758, Owner at Palmer House a Hilton Hotel
Responded Jan 4, 2020
Thank you for taking the time to share your comments concerning your stay at the Hilton Chicago. Excellent service is what we would like to be known for; therefore your feedback is extremely important as it helps us to improve upon our services and provide a memorable experience to our valued guests. Thank you once more for staying with us, we hope to welcome you back to the property in the future. Please feel free to contact me on the information below if there is anything myself or my team can do to provide further assistance.
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I was staying in a King room, though the bed appeared to be a Queen. It was quite comfortable to sleep in, though I've read other reviews of poor quality beds, this was not the case for me.
The bathroom had the standard shower-over-bath found in most US hotels, with good quality water pressure and plenty of hot water. I would have preferred an exhaust fan in the bathroom to avoid it becoming filled with steam but it did also save me from needing to iron any business shirts.
This was mostly suitable for a single traveller on business rather than a couple on a holiday. The room was very small for the price and so the placement of one suitcase would have been a problem if there were two people. The room only had one night stand, with an approximately 15cm / 6" gap on the other side. The second person would have had to climb into bed from the foot of the bed rather than being able to get into it normally. If they needed to get up in the middle of the night, it would have been very disruptive for the other person.
The room had a comfortable armchair at the desk, but the seat was chosen for comfort, not ergonomics, so it was NOT comfortable to use a laptop in the room.
Wardrobe was decently sized with 10 hangers that could be removed from the rack (see earlier comment about hanging shirt in the bathroom to benefit from steam), as well as a small electronic safe. The room contained a minifridge with snacks.
You can choose your own room. Mine faced south toward Adams St (so that I had a view toward other buildings, not just another wing of the same hotel. You should be aware though there are three giant cooling fans on the building at the corner of Adams and State (you can see them on Google Maps satellite view). These are NOISY so you would want a high floor if you were in the same part of the hotel. Anything around floors 12-16 would be extremely noisy, I think. Aim for the highest floor if you want a quieter room (or choose another part of the hotel!).
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Date of stay: August 2022
Rooms
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Traveled on business
Room Tip:Don't choose floors 12-16 if you're on the south side of the hotel, facing Adams St
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We went on our first vacation of the year and Palmer House was the best choice. We stayed from January 18th until January 21st, Edward and Keely in guest services were very helpful. Concierge Nicholas and Robert gave us all the point of interest. The hotel is located in the loop. State St shopping, millennium park, Wills Tower all are writhing 5-10 mins of walking distance. There’s a ton of restaurants. The hotel itself has many dining and take out options. We stayed at the executive level the best part Being the executive floor has their own elevators and needs your room key to access.
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Date of stay: January 2020Trip type: Traveled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from NorthStar35812378513, Front Office Manager at Palmer House a Hilton Hotel
Responded Feb 5, 2020
Thank you for taking the time to share your comments concerning your stay. Excellent service is what we would like to be known for; therefore your feedback is extremely important as it helps us to improve upon our services and provide a memorable experience to our valued guests.
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I agree buy a jug. With the reservation system you will have trouble making this request. I tried for something and failed. This place is huge and if you have trouble walking/breathing cancel and go to a smaller boutique hotel who and better able to accommodate quests requests.
There are more places to choose from in the Chicago area.
PRICE RANGE
$174 - $357 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
ALSO KNOWN AS
the palmer house hilton hotel chicago, hilton hotel chicago, hilton hotel palmer, palmer house chicago, chicago palmer house hilton, palmer house hilton chicago, palmer hilton house, hilton chicago, chicago hilton
LOCATION
United StatesIllinoisChicagoCentral / Downtown / The Loop
NUMBER OF ROOMS
1,641
Prices are the average nightly price provided by our partners and may not include all taxes and fees. Taxes and fees that are shown are estimates only. Please see our partners for more details.
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