We stopped at the market the first day and picked up wine and chichi sandwiches to bring back to the W--and then had to eat them sitting on the floor because there was no table in our wee little room.

I didn't dislike the W, but I didn't love it. How many stars does MEH get?

Friday Style | Friday Playdate

I agree with Suebob--I felt like the W was very uncomfortable (I had big hate for the music in the lobby and the elevators) and I was not. cool. enough. to be there. The beds were comfy, and I loved the Bliss products, but the room was tiny and everything was just too hip for comfort. We didn't have any problems with the bill, but we did have an clogged toilet and the repair person dripped some white caulky substance on the bathtub and didn't clean it up. I'd go with 2.5 stars.

I agree with you...and Sueb0b et al. The bed and linens, etc. were great. The towels were big enough, but not thick enough for that kind of a hotel. A light in my bathroom was out. And my door--my hall door was broken. I got back Friday evening to discover it had been hanging open all day since the maids came in. It never got fixed, and I had to call the engineer twice to come up and close it.

But all that is nothing compared to the incessant beat of music. Played by a DJ who looked like he had been lobotomized (maybe listening to the incessant beat incessantly does that to you).

On the good side--the staff were all very accommodating. And they did have warning signs that the mirror at the sinks in the Ladies WC was a two-way to the Gents. So we could wave, I guess.

By Jane
ByJane.blogspot.com

Elana - Not that this will make you feel much better, but two years ago, I went to Vegas to present at the Society of Professional Journalists where, you know, people who write for a living would be. I'm blanking out on the hotel but can you believe that the organization had booked the event and the event room rate at a hotel with no wifi? For journalists. Yeah. lol

Jill
Writes Like She Talks

However, I am a very frequent business traveller and I knew exactly what I was in for, since I've stayed at Ws before. I too think it's ludicrous that there's no wireless in the rooms, and the wierd window between the bathroom just freaked my shit out. Literally. Also, only one bathrobe in a double room? Wierd.

However. I always do enjoy the W lobby, sitting around in a hip atmosphere with my geeky laptop (btw there is free wireless in the lobby - which is almost definitely why there's none in the rooms - they want people downstairs spending money).

Also, tip around the $8 water: in the mornings and during the day, they had those uber-cool bottles of water out front where the taxi stand is. For free.

ThreeSeven... attention deficits at work.

(And also pants, yes...)

Saturday night, after enough wine to sink the big ship that kept circling the Pier, we came back after dinner and I wanted to be online. Because that's what I like to do sometimes when wine is involved. We were cheap enough not to buy the online access in the room, so I went downstairs. I've dubbed the W the "Home of the all-night rave". I thought it was funny. Annoying, sort of, but mostly funny. No one bothered me, I found a free spot on a couch and hung out until I was done. The beautiful people sitting next to me were checking all of us out and a girl leaned over and said "Excuse me, Ma'am? What are all of you doing with the computers?"

Ma'am! Haha! I tried to explain but it was so loud and I was not in the best explaining mode, so we settled on the weird confluence of web geeks and glitterati (one of whom said, "OOh, I have a blog! So I guess it counted as outreach?) I'm happy to report though that MANY familiar BlogHer faces were holding their own near the bar, having a grand old time.

Free wireless should be part of the plan in a place like this. Agreed.

The restaurant was nice - a group of us ate there for a late dinner Thursday night.

What really irritated me was when I couldn't check in (roommates, room splitting, blahblah) I used the WC (please. WC?) downstairs to change. It was only hours later that I read on the outside of the door that the walls "opposite the wash basin" are TRANSPARENT. Clearly I was picking my teeth. No one was in there. That really bothered me. The signs on the mirror that say "You're not the only one checking you out" just seemed to me to be more "W jargon" that meant nothing to me - certainly not that someone was on the other side potentially watching.

My roommates and I decided that the rooms were only truly perfect for sharing if you were with someone who you absolutely didn't care if they saw you naked, and also no problem with hearing every possible bodily function (I'm with Suebob on this one, definitely.)

I don't do stars, but I'm with Susan on the "Meh". I want to thank the BlogHer crew though (Hi Kristy!) for getting us a nice spot so close to the Pier for relatively cheap (regular rate is 500, I think?) It was indeed clean, and for me that is by far the most important thing. There are so many places to have fun in CHicago so between that and the conference I was rarely in the room anyway

I stayed at the Hotel Allegro my last night in town since I left Monday - it's farther from the Pier, but is a Kimpton property, also one of the hipper spots, but much more relaxed in general. Also, you can think in the lobby without earplugs. ; )

Laurie

I agree with SueBob, Susan, et al... meh. the peekaboo plantation shutters were bloody awful! and our room bill was a true dog's basket of a mess. but i did like rate, location, sangrias, and the replenishing bliss products :)

WNP? | Dietgirl

THAT'S where the extra toilet paper was!

Every time I got in the elevator with the Barry White-ish music I started thinking, "We're...too sexy for good lighting..." And the two way mirrors in the bathrooms? Like I need to see some pubescent bellhop popping a zit.

My biggest complaint was the lack of the coffee pot. I need some caffeine in my system before I walk to Starbucks.

Jeana
Link Textwww.daystocome.net

I liked the W...until I saw a friend's room at the James. The James is to vandyke as the W is to porn mustache.

I, too, knew what I was in for (mostly) but was also sursprised by the peek-a-boo shutters. The W looked like a place for a romantic rendezvous, so indeed, who wants to hear the reality of the less-sexy bodily functions?

I like that we had a choice of hotel this time, and if I had to choose again, I would choose the W. Can we have sexy and functional? Maybe not.

It seemed like the quiet areas had no cell-phone reception, and it was SO LOUD as soon as you stepped out of the elevator. So that's what the sign in the WC meant - thought it meant I'd be checked out as soon as I wandered into the bar.

I have noticed more expensive hotels usually add on more charges (e.g. internet) and extensively used the lobby's free wireless. I posted my whines here

http://notjustaworkingmom.blogspot.com/2007/07/back-in-fold-but-still-wh...

- and didn't even include the $14 package charge for three tiny packages my roommate brought up herself and my package which is still lost. Regular rates depend on how many rooms are available according to the front desk, but not sure if it actually follows the supply and demand rule. It's like booking an airline, rates change depending when you call.

And I did notice my recent "luxery" towels from Target were nicer than the W ones.

Nicole/wksocmom
Not Just A Working Mom
Silicon Valley Moms

Things I dug about the hotel: the beds, the tv, I had no qualms about the bathroom, and of course the bliss products. The staff was friendly enough.

Things I hated: The bottles of water reminding me that I am broke, the greasy dudes, the cooler-than-thouness, the food wasn't too good for the type of hotel. If a hotel could make you fat, this one did.

The whole music/living room thing- I guess it is more eurotrash, than rock'n'roll & I'm a rock'n'roller. For instance, some douchebag asked the bartender, not for bourbon, but for "sour mash" give me a break. Also give me a budweiser and some guitars.

Meanwhile, I had a great time at BlogHer, I just think next time I'll stay somewhere more low-key as it was too much sensory overload for me. Of course, if someone paid for it.........

Do note though, that the W is coming out with a new line of hotels called "aLoft" which is basically bringing the boutique brand to the comfort inn set.

Here's the link to their site there was an article in the WSJ a month or so about it.

PS. I'm no prude, but that mirror shit really ridiculous. Maybe I should have bought the gold vibe in the gift shop & put on a peep show! Jesus.

Amuse Me

The W Hotel was one of the few weak points. The party atmosphere made it really trying to check in on Thursday night, after one of the worst trips to Chicago I've ever experienced.

Not having a coffee maker was bad. Next time I'll look at the amenities of a hotel more carefully.

The W bathroom..well, was weird. Those shutters and sliding door! I want privacy in the bathroom. The sliding door meant there were no hooks on the back of the door. I felt like there was nowhere to hang towels or stuff in that bathroom

I agree about the free Wi-Fi but felt there was enough in the lobby

Is there an online questionnaire to give feedback about the conference?
-----------------------------
Viviane
Viviane's Sex Carnival
http://www.thesexcarnival.com

I want to see any and all of them, friends. My roommates and I cracked up when Lauren (of oodleday.com) threw open the shutters from inside the bathroom, and it reminded us of a scene from Oklahoma! Or Hee-Haw. I'm not sure which.

Sorry - it was funny at the time. ; )

Laurie

(Other awesome roommate woman is Genie from inabottle.org)

I was kicking myself the whole time because my brother (who used to live in Chicago) recommended the City Centre, but I thought the W would be so luxurious.

Here are the things I liked about the W:
The bed was comfortable.

Here are the things I hated about the W:
No coffeemaker.
Overcharged for internet access.
Had to renew internet charge every day.
Mystery charges on bill.
Took forever to answer the phone.
Very poor bathroom lighting.
Ridiculous shutters in bathroom.
Horrible room lighting.
Small print on everything.
No lighted dial on clock. (Duh)
No plug by desk for laptop cord.
Wake-up calls that went on forever unless you actually talk to the person.
Room service was ridiculously expensive.
When I complained about no coffeemaker I was told I could get coffee in the lobby, and it was $3.95.
Hated the night-life scene.
Absurd window blinds that were hard to roll up and down.
Pretentious employees.

I left a comment on their in-room survey saying "This hotel is long on pretense and short on comfort. That about sums up my feelings.

Kalyn Denny
Kalyn's Kitchen

...for charging for every little thing. The next class down and you get free breakfast, local calls, wifi, etc. The W doesn't expect business travelers, they expect people who are there to spend lots of money.

I thought it was sort of fun in a wacky sort of way. I took a picture of the mini bar and actually added it up -- there was $400 worth of stuff there.

I loved the chairs facing the waterfront and the weird little couches that were by the taxi stand. It was definitely an interesting anthropological experience.

----
Jen
http://yawwblog.blogspot.com
http://angryfatgirlz.blogspot.com
http://toledolefty.blogspot.com

Has anybody informed the brass at The W Hotel about this thread? If not, perhaps someone should let them know so that they can see just how much future business they're losing. Since reading about your experiences, why would I stay there?

-Bob
bobafifi.com
usedviolins.com
fluteplayer.net

When I checked out on Monday, the manager on duty assured me that the hotel manager would respond to my concerns and that I would hear from someone that day.
It's now Wednesday. For the record, I suggested that for all the mess ups with the bill they send each Blogher a small refund. A couple of years ago I stayed at a Hampton Inn and had asked for extra time to check out. They declined. When I was paying my bill I mentioned to the person at the check out that I found it unsatisfactory that I couldn't extend my time for an hour.
She said, " You weren't satisified?"
Me, " Well just with that part. The room was lovely."
She said, " Then your stay is on us. We have 100% satisfaction guaranteed. We didn't live up that, so your stay is free."

To me, that's the Gold Standard. I actually tried to pay for part of the bill and she wouldn't hear of it.

Thanks for sharing all your experiences.

elana
Blogher Contributing Editor,Business&CareersFunnyBusiness

I just called them 1-888-625-5144 and talked with a woman with an accent (French perhaps?). I told her there were a bunch of angry women on BlogHer.org writing about their stay at the Chicago hotel and that someone at The W might want to read what they were saying. She said, "Ok"

-Bob
bobafifi.com
usedviolins.com
fluteplayer.net

Oh, ladies. I'm about to out myself:I loved the shutters. And the sliding door. In fact, I was taking notes in my room at the W so I can re-create the look at home. Someday.

I can see how it could feel questionable with a roommate, but you could always just run the water if you're worried about noise.

I do commiserate with some of the complaints about the W, though. Particularly related to the Internet connection. Or the lack thereof.

I couldn't get a connection in my room unless I used a free, unsecured service with one bar of connectivity that was no doubt originating from somewhere across town. And even when I went down to the lobby, I couldn't get achieve a connection DESPITE the fact that others around me were using their laptops. It was all very confusing and frustrating to me.

I had incorrect charges on my bill, but as soon as I walked up to the counter they said they were changing it.

So, really, I guess my one *major* complaint would be about the wifi connection.

jes

My spouse was with me for one night and we took lots of pictures of the room because it cracked us up so much (what was with the fuzzy black pillow cube thingie?). I loved the bathrobe and the beds and bedding and the Bliss goodies (and why didn't I think to stash them away so that I would keep getting more?)

However, I agree with the wifi question (although we all went into that with our eyes open) and found the hidden surcharges to be REALLY annoying (and there were a lot of them). I was also dinged for more than a hundred dollars in long distance calls THAT I HADN'T MADE. It turned out that their system will not permit operator assisted calls so I was dinged for every calling card call I made, as though I'd called long distance. The charges were removed, after I was put on hold for a while but I was told that "for future reference" I could not make calling card calls from the hotel without being charged. WTF?

The phone was also broken in my room (so I had to use the desk phone) and I found that the "Whatever Whenever" line rang endlessly no matter when I called it.

I realized that, all in all, I was much more comfortable asking for assistance (including tips on where to eat and assistance with my bags) from the staff at the rinky dink hotel I stayed at in advance of the conference.

That being said, I'm really glad I had the experience (even if I did feel like a fish out of water in the 'living room') but next time I will stay at the City Centre type alternative.

And do you think anyone actually orders the 7.00 water (sparkling or still) for their dogs?

laurie
www.notjustaboutcancer.blogspot.com

While I'm sure that some of you on this thread wouldn't have wanted to stay at the hostel (no bathrobes, in room refrigerators, or swanky branding), I thought it was AWESOME! If you're curious, here's just a bit of what I thought made it special.

• Awesome group of BlogHers in residence--Jennette from Pastaqueen, Adrienne from Babytoolkit, Cassie at Indecisivepeach.com, and Jennifer from The I'mPerfect Mom.
• Friendly staff.
• International, interesting guests.
• Convenient location--to conference and to Chicago airports.
• Free wi-fi, ping pong/table tennis, huge kitchen if you wanted to prepare any meals.
• Quiet rooms (it was just bunk beds and lockers for storing your stuff).
• Great price (three nights for less than $120).

I'll definitely be staying at hostels during conferences from now on. Thank you BlogHer!!

Shonnie Lavender | Coach, Author, Speaker
MyBlogCoach.com | Lavender Log | I Do! I Do!

Rarely do I complain about accommodations, but this was ridiculous.

The bed was amazingly comfortable. That's all the good I can say about the W Chicago; at least they got the bed right.

Pounding music in the lobby? Dimly lit elevators, with more nightclub music? Rooms so dimly lit that you couldn't see to put your makeup on. No privacy in the bathroom. I have a hard time believing that this hotel bills itself as a business hotel. It seemed to me that the W is just trying too hard to be hip. True hip doesn't make you want to pull your hair out for annoyance.

Elise Bauer
Simply Recipes
Learning Movable Type

Hello,

I don't know if anyone's still following this thread, but in case you didn't get the email (I know some people room-shared without giving the W their info), I got one this morning inviting feedback.

This is the GM, is asking for your opinion on your experience:

GMHeather.Steenge@whotels.com

I, Asshole

Thanks for the link. I just emailed her and she (Heather Steenge, General Manager) replied right away! She says that they've been reading this thread and that they're going to "install WiFi in the fourth quarter of this year. "

-Bob
bobafifi.com
usedviolins.com
fluteplayer.net

I stayed at the City Center (and I was very pleased with them all around), but when I went to the W, I was just confused. The most bizarre lobby concept I've ever experienced.

Staci Carsten
All Pacific Mortgage
http://allpacificmortgage.blogspot.com/

No offense to the participants of this conference, but why would there be a hip hotel planned? From just reading the comments above, nearly every poster is not hip in the W Hotels sense of the word hip. Putting the mommy/Middle America crowd into a young, party hotel is just ridiculous and incredibly poor and insensitive planning on the part of the hotel organizer.

I think it's also appalling that noone here has made any talk of "Hey, maybe we should vet hotels FIRST" or "Hey, maybe we should have a better list of participant wants and needs." Come one folks, even the admitted organizer of the hotel didn't apologize for the decision -- don't you think she deserves to be held accountable?

Finally, don't you all realize it's also ridiculous to just opt for the "chosen" hotel? Don't you research where you're going to stay? You were all going to a major city, where there were a plethora of other options.

First, in answer to samsd, we were getting an incredible rate (so we thought) at the W, it was the closest hotel to the conference, and I for one had an image of the W being a great hotel. I was disappointed to say the least.

I had to laugh at the fake shark aquariums being projected onto the walls by the elevators. And plastic cups with marbles in the elevator? My crew joked that the decorating was done by Design on a Dime.

I've stayed at many 4 star and above hotels and this was ludicrous. Everything was contrived. Nothing was convenient or comfortable (well, except the beds--those were awesome). This was the first hotel I've been in that didn't offer at least a coffee pot in the room.

Frankly, I don't fault the people who found the hotel. I think we all thought, because of the W's marketing hype, that it would be commiserate with other 4 stars. Not having stayed there before, I had much higher expectations and I think the organizers probably did too.

Chilihead
Don't Try This at Home

Earlier this week I had lunch with some thirty-somethings (barely thirty-somethings) and mentioned I had just stayed at The W in Chicago.
I said that I wasn't their target audience. In unison they said "We're the target!" They love The W.

Also, they said they were there for the marathon and got an incredible rate...around $130 a night.

At 56 I am not the target for lots of businesses. I get that. I want that. But even if I'm not the desired demographic, figure out how to make me feel welcome. If you can't make me feel welcome, figure out how to avoid from making me feel "un-welcome."

As to the myriad of billing errors, annoying internet service, and lack of response on the whatever/whenever line, the company needs to do more than simply give us lip service and blame a computer gone wild for erratic billing.

It's called accountability. It's a very hip thing to do.

\

elana
Blogher Contributing Editor,Business&CareersFunnyBusiness

Interesting thread on the W - the comments echo the consensus of travel site reviews: the hotel consistently fails to deliver on it's brand promise. I stopped in to check out the lobby design - loved it! - although, admittedly, a few choices failed to meet the form + function standard.

Thought you all might appreciate Valeria Maltoni's  "Innovation: Is Your Customer Service more like Barron Hilton or Paris Hilton?" post on Fast Company's blog.

-Nina

Nina Burokas blogs at Better Living through Brand and brandingpersonal.

Yesterday, I invited Heather Steenge to make a post of her own here. She wrote back, "We actually have a Starwood employee in our corporate offices who I am trying to get to assist us in responding on your site as well."

It'll be interesting to see if they actually do.

-Bob
bobafifi.com
usedviolins.com
fluteplayer.net

> Just curious since I didn't think I saw you there? ~TW

I wasn't there, so what?
http://www.blogher.com/w-hotel-form-over-function#comment-24927

-Bob
bobafifi.com
usedviolins.com
fluteplayer.net

Do explain what it does have to do with then...what made you jump in when you weren't involved and clearly no one was in danger?~TW

With all due respect TW, had you actually read my posts, you would have known that I wasn't there, right? Perhaps my interest lies in how The W handles (or doesn't handle) their customers, perhaps it's something else.

Regards.

-Bob
bobafifi.com
usedviolins.com
fluteplayer.net