Any hotels close to United Center NOT in the downtown area? (Chicago: extended stay, insurance)

[GaiaGoddess]

I am needing to book a hotel somewhere near the United Center, in April. I am not a city driver and don't want to pay for parking, so I'm looking for a hotel not in all the hustle and bustle of the downtown area (been there before, couldn't sleep due to constant sirens and horns honking). Does anyone know of one preferrably within 20 minutes that has an actual parking lot and isn't hard to drive to? Like to the west of United Center? Nothing shows up on Google but I can't believe ALL the hotels are in the downtown area! The closest one I can find is almost $200 a night, another reason I want to find one further away from downtown, I can't afford that much.

[marothisu]

A few thoughts:

1) I assume you are traveling for...something..to be at the United Center.

2) Most of the hotels outside of the O'Hare and Midway airport areas are located downtown, for obvious reasons. There are some others in areas like Lincoln Park and Lakeview, but that's not helpful to you in this case.

3) There is a Crowne Plaza in the Greektown (or nearby) area which is just west of downtown. Other than SoHo House, which I doubt you are a member of, that is the only legitimate hotel near United Center. There's one being built nearby too right now, and a few more proposed, but probably not helpful to you. The only issue is that parking costs $$$ there too. They have a parking lot and I honestly don't understand why it would cost a lot of money.

4) The "hotels" you are going to find near United Center are not proper hotels. You won't want to stay in them, and the area west of United Center is so-so, and a little more west of there is not that safe.

5) What are you using to get hotel prices? I just used Hotwire.com and got a ton of results for downtown area hotels for under $100/night in early February even (3 weeks from now).

6) Are you flying into town or driving? How long are you staying in town for?

[quigboto]

You might want to look into an Air BnB in West Loop or Wicker Park/Ukrainian Village, although the parking will probably be a dealbreaker.

[GaiaGoddess]

Originally Posted by marothisu

A few thoughts:

1) I assume you are traveling for...something..to be at the United Center.

Yeah i'm going to the David Gilmour concert there.

3) There is a Crowne Plaza in the Greektown (or nearby) area which is just west of downtown. Other than SoHo House, which I doubt you are a member of, that is the only legitimate hotel near United Center. There's one being built nearby too right now, and a few more proposed, but probably not helpful to you. The only issue is that parking costs $$$ there too. They have a parking lot and I honestly don't understand why it would cost a lot of money.

I checked that one out but it's $200 a night which sucks, but what i'm finding is that EVERY hotel is $200 a night!! Even the ones that say $100 or around there, once I click on the dates, it goes up to $200 a night. Because it's on the weekend probably.

4) The "hotels" you are going to find near United Center are not proper hotels. You won't want to stay in them, and the area west of United Center is so-so, and a little more west of there is not that safe.

I've kind of noticed that, lol However, I keep finding places in Wicker Park which is west of there but everything about that area says it's safe, really popular with travelers, has a lot of cool bars & restaurants and shops, etc. Then there's the area by the Frank Lloyd Wright homes in Oak Park, isn't that a nice area?

5) What are you using to get hotel prices? I just used Hotwire.com and got a ton of results for downtown area hotels for under $100/night in early February even (3 weeks from now).

I am using google and just searching for every hotel, then once I click on one it brings me to their websites.

6) Are you flying into town or driving? How long are you staying in town for?

Driving, staying from Thursday night til Sunday morning.

[GaiaGoddess]

Originally Posted by quigboto

You might want to look into an Air BnB in West Loop or Wicker Park/Ukrainian Village, although the parking will probably be a dealbreaker.

Yeah after finding out that every hotel is $200 a night and also has a parking fee (wtf!? I've never heard of that and I've stayed in a LOT of hotels), I am starting to think Airbnb is the best option. The only problem is there are 5 of us going, and 3 of us can't sleep unless we have our own bed. I still haven't found a listing on Airbnb that is close to United Center that also has 4 separate bedrooms.

[beaniemac]

Originally Posted by GaiaGoddess

Yeah after finding out that every hotel is $200 a night and also has a parking fee (wtf!? I've never heard of that and I've stayed in a LOT of hotels), I am starting to think Airbnb is the best option. The only problem is there are 5 of us going, and 3 of us can't sleep unless we have our own bed. I still haven't found a listing on Airbnb that is close to United Center that also has 4 separate bedrooms.

the reason you're not finding airbnb homes near the united center with 4 seperate BR's is because those homes would run at least half a million dollars (in that area), and even if you were to find one, they are going to charge you out the ass.

[personone]

There is a Marriott at UIC/Medical District that is right down the street from the United Center. Address is 625 South Ashland Ave. I don't know anything about the parking situation, and it may be pretty expensive but that is the only traditional hotel that is close to the United Center.

[chet everett]

Originally Posted by personone

There is a Marriott at UIC/Medical District that is right down the street from the United Center. Address is 625 South Ashland Ave. I don't know anything about the parking situation, and it may be pretty expensive but that is the only traditional hotel that is close to the United Center.

There is a very limited market for the Medical Center Marriott and they rarely discount rooms -- most folks staying there are in one of two categories, neither of whom are paying their own way. The first category is folks traveling for medical conferences / pharmaceutical meetings whose tab is covered by the institution / firm they work for. The second category is folks with hard to diagnose medical conditions living far from the medical centers -- for folks with good insurance their carrier is covering their costs.

If the OP already has a car it is not too difficult to use the lodging facilities in HILLSIDE IL -- a straight shot west (just about 11 miles and generally under 20 minutes when road conditions are clear) on 290 these places are around $75 before discounts like AAA have FREE PARKING and safe rooms, I have referred business travels to each of these and they are acceptable:

Chicago - Hillside Hotel | Extended Stay America

Hillside Hotels Near Chicago O Hare Airport | Best Western Hillside Hotel

Holiday Inn Express & Suites Chicago West-O'Hare Arpt Area Hotel in Hillside, Illinois - Hillside Hotels

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by GaiaGoddess

Yeah i'm going to the David Gilmour concert there.

Thanks for the heads up. He's one of my favorite guitarists ever. Love his work in Pink Floyd and solo too.

I've kind of noticed that, lol However, I keep finding places in Wicker Park which is west of there but everything about that area says it's safe, really popular with travelers, has a lot of cool bars & restaurants and shops, etc. Then there's the area by the Frank Lloyd Wright homes in Oak Park, isn't that a nice area?

Wicker Park is NOT west of the United Center. It's north of it - in fact it's almost due north of it. It's a cool area with a number of shops, bars, and restaurants - and mostly safe for a visitor. Sometimes some weird things happen at night, but not usually. There's a lot of people out in certain areas there.

Oak Park is a suburb and nice. You could do that in 20 minutes without much traffic, but when there is traffic, it's going to definitely take longer than 20 minutes to get to the U/C from there.

I am using google and just searching for every hotel, then once I click on one it brings me to their websites.

I just dropped you a massive hint. Why didn't you take it? Go to Hotwire.com, and look. I just looked on those dates and almost all of the rates that came up were under $200/night. Many of them were under $150/night and some even under $100/night. However, all of them are downtown which you seem to have an issue with (for the record though, a lot of hotels have the sound thing figured out - it's not like everyone who comes to down is used to living somewhere with some noise).

Parking is going to cost you money though at any of these places. Maybe you should look at AirBnb at areas like Ukrainian Village (which is quiet and south of Wicker Park) or Wicker Park (just stay away from the North/Milwaukee/Damen and Division/Damen intersections if you have a problem with noise as a lot of people are out there on weekends).

[jdiddy]

I don't understand the need to be near the united center. Seems like you're driving to the concert, so whether you're five minutes or thirty min away doesn't seem like a big deal.

Plus, staying with a group means airbnb will likely have far better options than a hotel.

See here, for example:

https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/6863178...99cc95dffb0147