I had stayed at the Affinia Chicago and other Affinia properties many times over the past several years.

Recently, I had to cancel a reservation. Despite what appears to be a mixup between Amex Travel services and Affinia's policies, Affinia insisted on charging me for a missed stay.

I spoke personally with the manager and explained that I was a loyal customer and that when I travel, I typically travel with large groups and that I make the hotel recommendations. I reminded her that I was rescheduling my trip to Chicago for 2 weeks later, and would be bringing 4-5 colleagues with me. She was smug and continued to insist on charging me.

If this is the kind of service that a frequent customer receives, imagine the service you'll receive as a first-time customer!

Go elsewhere. There are plenty of boutiques and chains in Chicago that truly value their customers.

I spent nearly a week at the Affinia while on business. I chose the hotel because of the reviews I read in this forum. I typically stay at the large hotel chains. We arrived at about 8pm and the bell/doorman working was absolutely wonderful. He was there throughout our stay, new our names, greeted us like family, and was the brightest spot of our stay. When checking in we found no soap, shampoo, or other ammenities. Light bulbs were missing-the lamps were in poor shape and hanging by a thread, etc. Just lots of very small but irritating problems. We never had a thorough job cleaning in our 6 days...the night housekeeping staff came up every night with things forgotten by the day cleaners. We were on the 7th floor but if you are above that good luck. On two occasions we tried to make it up to the roof-top bar and gave up after 15 minutes of waiting on an elevator. It is shameful how long some folks waited to get to and from their rooms. Many guests would take the one elevator to 7 and walk the rest of the way. We found the hotel front desk staff bored and marginally interested in any of our questions or issues. Sure we got done what we needed to but there was no real interest. I have no idea what expectations the other reviewers have of a hotel but this place is really luke warm, at best. The hotel restaurant is a farce. It is totally pretentious for no good reason. The food is way over-priced as are the drinks...$13 for a house specialty that really isn't special. All in all it is equal to the likes of an Embassy Suites without the free breakfast. For the price there are way better places in Chicago.

I am beginning to think boutique hotel means "small rooms." I'll trade some trendiness for larger, more comortable rooms and some double or triple-paned windows. My wife was in town to take the bar exam, and noise at night was a concern. The desk said we were on the quiet side, yikes.

The rooms were clean; the staff was a hit (doorman) and a miss (desk staff). We did enjoy the bar at the top, but did not eat at the restaurant. All in all, I'm just thinking Chicago has better to offer than this hotel. You won't be disappointed if you stay here, but if you're expecting the 4th-ranked hotel in Chicago (per TA) you will be a little disappointed.

Location is great!

Booked 5 nights at the Affinia Chicago from 22nd May following the good reviews on Trip Advisor and can honestly say that it lived up to it's reputation. We booked the hotel in November, and from the outset we received updates from the concierge via email to keep us informed of what our options were for pre-booking room amenities, such as the pillow menu and bath robes, and tours etc. Nearing the time of the booking, we received a further update to anticipate out arrival. We had a small query with the room charge, which we contacted the hotel about – we were amazed at how efficiently and quickly they sorted it out. When we arrived at the hotel, the fantastic service continued. The staff were just wonderful; attentive, helpful and professional. We had requested a quiet room, high up, with a view and with a double bed and had all of these requests met. The room was on the 26th floor with great views. It was large, well equipped, nicely decorated and maintained and had a very comfortable super king bed (the choice of pillow’s was a nice touch). The hotel restaurant had some of the best food we had ever tasted (breakfast and dinner). The location is right on the corner of the magnificent mile and is perfect for walking to anywhere within the main area of Chicago town. It's also right next door to a great pizza restaurant - Gino's East. We've visited many places across the globe, but the combination of a great hotel, really friendly people, delicious food and a wonderful city made this one of the best city breaks that we've ever had. We can highly recommend this hotel.