Review Le Méridien Oakbrook Center
This is post ten of a ten part series of Chicago hotels reviews. Link to other hotel reviews are below. During lockdown from November 2020-February 2021 I took some staycations. At the time hotels were offering insanely low rates plus I had some accumulated free nights.
Pretty much everything in all hotels were closed at that time so I won’t be reviewing too many amenities. You can check the link to the hotel for more details. I also don’t discuss decor because I don’t care about that. When I travel I care about location, price and cleanliness. That is I want a clean room close to transit and all the things I want to do at a reasonable price.
Review Le Méridien Oakbrook Center
Le Méridien Oakbrook Center, 2100 Spring Road Oak Brook, Illinois 60523 630-368-9900. Hotel tax in Oakbrook is 9%. I stayed for four nights July 29-August 1, 2021.
I booked this hotel as soon as the Lollapalooza dates were announced. Where I live I can see and hear it – blasting, thumping bass from 11AM-10PM for four days. Even with the air conditioning on and the TV on top volume. In normal times I just go out all day and come back around 7-8PM and deal with it for a couple hours. That’s not possible right now and I had three free Marriott nights so I decided to become a refugee – in Oakbrook. I paid for the fourth night with discount Marriott gift cards.
I knew in advance that I was going to have to escape so I was ready to book as soon as I confirmed the dates. It’s a good thing I booked early because the hotel sold out and the rate for my paid night went up from $151 to $243 plus tax.
Hotel lobby
Pricey convenience items
Summary
This is a great location to flee to from the City. It’s located, literally, in the parking lot of Oakbrook Center. Oakbrook Center has many excellent restaurants as well as nice places to sit outside and hang out. I took the the Metra BNSF to Hinsdale ($6.25 each way) and pre-arranaged, several days in advance, for the complimentary hotel shuttle pick me up at the station. I tipped the masked man/boy shuttle driver a couple bucks in both directions. I thoroughly enjoyed my escape visit!
Hinsdale Metra Station
Hotel rooms
The Le Méridien used to be a Renaissance hotel. The 10 story building was built in 1965 and converted to a Le Méridien in 2014. I don’t know if or when the rooms were redone but the room was in excellent condition. I booked a standard king room and did not receive an upgrade because a wedding party booked up the hotel on the Friday and Saturday nights of my stay.
Hotel amenities
The fitness center was open. The spa was supposed to be open but I couldn’t find it! There is no pool. There is no room service. The lobby had a Mac you could use. The free shuttle will take you up to four miles around the area. There was really no reason to leave the mall.
Hotel patio. It was empty the whole time except when the wedding party had this event. Great place to sit and read.
Complimentary hotel shuttle
Fitness center
Dining and room service
The rooftop restaurant El Tapeo is supposed to be excellent but it was closed. The Lobby bar, Longitude 87, opened daily at 4PM. The odd thing about that bar is that the bar stools are about six inches higher than normal bar stools. I have drank at bars worldwide and never seen that before. They were almost impossible to get into. Someone must have built the bar too high and it was cheaper to make freakishly tall bar stools than to reconstruct the bar.
Longitute 87. Freakishly tall bar stools on right. Normal bar stools on left.
Room amenities
All rooms offer small mini fridges and a fancy illy coffee maker with packets of coffee. I could not log in to the wifi. The front desk gave me an IT 800 number to call and it turns out the wifi was down. I went to bed and it was working in the AM.
Review Le Méridien Oakbrook
This hotel is an excellent choice to flee to from the City. Across the street, on the perimeter of the mall, is a strip of restaurants including three Lettuce Entertain You’s (Link to get $10 off below) and within the mall is Table at Crate and Barrel (excellent), another Lettuce, Starbucks and more. I could see the Oakbrook Gibson’s from my room and a new gigantic RH Oakbrook just opened. While I was there I also went to the Sistine Chapel exhibit. There is also a Mario Tricoci Salon in the mall. If you want a treatment use my link below and get $20 off nay service. Enjoy!
Brunching at Table at Crate
Oakbrook Center has seating all over.
Booking hotels
I always recommend signing up for hotel loyalty programs. They’re free and they usually offer a member discount plus you’ll get emails alerting you to sales. Always click on the Offers, Deals, Specials, etc. tab on every hotel website to find current deals. Log in to your account when you’re searching. Read all the terms and conditions before booking including the terms for changing and cancelling. Some hotels offer prepaid rates. I never book those. Regardless of how attractive the “no cancellations” rate is don’t do it! There are too many uncertainties, especially now, and you don’t want to lose your money.
Check your rates after booking
Whenever I plan a trip I continually check my room rates up until I can no longer cancel. You’d be surprised how many times the rates go down. In normal times you can just call the 800 number and get them to change the rate. If your reservation allows changes call. 99% of the time I make a new reservation online and then cancel the old one online.
Marriott website and app
The Marriott app and website has a “flexible stay” search option. For example online flexible stay options allow you to search for a two night stay on any days in a particular month so you can find the cheapest rate. Generally weekends are more expensive than weekdays.
Le Méridien Oakbrook Center – Related
Review Intercontinental Chicago Mag Mile
Review The Waldorf Astoria Chicago
Review Hyatt Place River North
2021 Free Museum Days (Illinois residents)
Sign up for Ritual get $10 free
Join Lettuce Entertain You’s Frequent Diner Club. Use my link and get $10 free! (I also get $10 after you dine. Thank you.)
Visit any Tricoci Salon & Spa for the first time and receive $20 Off any service. Create your account, book your first appointment, and use my referral code at checkout in the salon to receive the discount.: CarolD30F or this link (Thank you I get $20 also).
