Had a great long weekend stay here. The rooms are modern and spacious, complete with hardwood floors—a nice alternative to grungy hotel carpet. But beware, they’re a bit slippery! And I wish they’d done the entire room in hardwoods; there’s carpet surrounding the bed. Speaking of the bed, it’s quite possibly the most comfortable that I’ve ever slept in. There’s also FREE wi-fi in the room, which is a big plus in my book. Didn’t partake of the mini-bar but was pleasantly surprised to see how reasonable the prices were.

Noise was a bit of an issue; our room was on the 8th floor, corner of Erie and State, and we heard quite a bit of street noise especially at night (or the occasional 3:30 a.m. brawl…). The only other complaint is the annoying elevator security system which was slightly tempermental.

Our stay included a free continental breakfast which was pretty typical – bagels, croissants, scones, cereal, fruit and yogurt. Loads of Starbucks nearby, too.

Checked out the Vertigo Sky Lounge on the Friday night that we were there, before heading elsewhere. The view is great – perfect for a nice spring/summer night. It’s a bit to “scene-y” for my taste, especially with the silly velvet rope at the entrance. Don’t think that’s necessary although there was a line to get in around 11 p.m. Drinks are pretty reasonably-priced, though, in my opinion.

Location really can’t be beat for checking out the city.

Beautiful hotel coupled with unprofessional and inattentive staff equals pretty vacant experience. We stayed in the standard room which still afforded ceiling to floor glass windows, beautiful glass showers, and city views in this newer high rise hotel in downtown Chicago. Really the only negative was the unprofessional staff. Several times during the stay there was no hot water. Apparently they were having a hot water problem and the engineering staff had no clue what they were doing. He came into the room, tested out the shower and said, "you're right there is no hot water and I have no idea why but it should be fixed in a few hours." The manager who sounded like he was in his 20s, very inarticulate and unhelpful promised a discount for a future stay which never came into fruition. A frustrating experience not having hot water, not being able to shower at your convenience, showering in different hotel rooms and empty promises from unprofessional, incompetent, juvenile staff put a damper on what could have been a perfect experience. Additionally, skip the mediocre over-priced food in their restaurant and room service.

Dana Hotel and Spa is very new and is oriented to tech-savvy people who like industrial chic design. The service is great. A good continental breakfast of fresh food is provided. As for the room, the flat screen TV, iPod dock, showerhead on the ceiling and especially the floor-to-ceiling windows are fun. The bed was a bit soft and I didn't like the exposed concrete walls and minimal lighting but these are matters of taste. Also there was traffic noise (on the 17th floor) and from the elevator which our room was near. A glass wall with just a curtain separates the bathroom/shower and the room. The staff leaves the curtain open and also raises the window shades when they make up the room so you have to remember to pull it closed when you return and use the bathroom. We stayed 4 days and I never figured out the TV menu or the elevator security system. Also, oddly, the free wireless internet had some problem with Yahoo - I was never able to check my email although most other websites worked fine. The location was great, I like the rooftop bar, and the 4th night free deal made it a good value since we were staying 4 nights. But I probably will choose more conventional lodging if I'm back in Chicago.

The location is right off the mag mile where there are lots of restaurants and bars for night life. The valet met us as the cab pulled up. The staff was all friendly-particularly the bellhops. We had a corner room and it rocked!! Very clean and the housekeeping was easily accessible for extra towels, etc. The consierge desk was extra helpful as we were trying to find a bar to play the Brewers/Cardinals game (not hard in Cubs town!). The only downfall was slow service at the bar. Breakfast service was prompt and friendly and it was nice to have a complimentary breakfast included in the stay. We didn't get room service but used the in room fridge and it was more than reasonable compared to other hotels in Chicago. We booked the 3 nights so we saved 25%. We have stayed at the Drake and Hard Rock (worst hotel stay in the city I've had) in the past, and while the view of the Drake over Lake Michigan was spectacular, the room at the Dana was much cleaner and newer and the valet staff had much more urgency at the Dana. This is an ideal hotel also if you are using public transportation around the city. Only 2 blocks from the redline which gets you all over the main stops in the city-or to jump onto other lines to get into the neighborhoods. We will for sure visit the Dana again soon.