This hotel is part of the Green Hotels Association and really tries to offer you a green hotel experience. It is clean. The staff is very nice. It is a quiet hotel. It is in the Lakeview neighborhood area of Chicago city proper -- apparently one of the best and safest neighborhoods in the actual city's limits. The area appears sketchy but I was assured by several locals that it is generally safe -- just be smart. As one would in a big city, keep your bags close to your body, your wallet in your front pocket, and be aware.

There are a number of nice little clothing boutiques around this hotel. It is literally right next to the metro train (you don't hear the train indoors -- no worries). Lots of young, hip twenty-somethings live in this area. A few blocks down is a heavy gay neighborhood. I went to a Thai restaurant a few doors down from the hotel for some inexpensive, good food and noticed there were a number of gay couples in the restaurant, one of those couples was even dressed in drag. A Jamba Juice and Clark's Nuts are across the street from the hotel.

Not knowing the area made me feel nervous, but I just played it safe and was actually very comfortable. The people in the area are very pleasant and customer friendly.

They have a continental breakfast downstairs in the morning -- but I didn't try it, so I can't comment. It's very easy to ride the travel from the hotel or get a cab.

They have free internet service.

Would I recommend, I am saying yes -- mostly because of the good customer service and green hotel experience. I'm more of a suburb girl, so the city neighborhood thing made me nervous -- I'm not going to discount this hotel for that reason.

Stayed for 3 nights. Excellent staff, location and value. Adequate, clean rooms with a decent continental breakfast thrown in for good measure. Hotel staff held our bags from check out til we left for airport late in the day on Sunday and refused a tip. Directly next to Belmont stop on red/brown line. Didn't notice any noise from train although other reviews did mention it. We have reservations for our trip in June. Rooms are more in summer but still not as much as other lesser hotels.

When we arrived at the hotel we were running a bit behind schedule (we were going to a taping of Wait Wait Don't Tell Me) and weren't sure how to get downtown, but the manager at the desk that evening was incredibly helpful- he helped us figure out where we were going, which train to take and had CTA day passes that he charged to our room (no fussing with the machines at the train stops!). There's a train stop right next door which was great for us- it made it super easy to get downtown and back to the hotel. The only problem with the train stop next door is that yes, it is a little noisy, but my boyfriend and I didn't mind it a bit.
The room itself (a standard queen) seemed a bit small at first but it turned out to be perfect for the two of us for two nights. Both the bathroom and the bedroom were very clean. The bathroom had lot of natural light which was really nice in the mornings. But honestly, I could go on for days about the bed. The blankets, the pillows, mattress, the sheets- perfect! It was the best sleep I've had at a hotel.
And one of the best things about staying there was the location. Belmont (and intersecting streets) has great food, cute stores and a convenient Walgreens within easy walking distance.
The only thing we didn't really prepare for was parking, but we found a parking ramp rather quickly and ended up leaving the car there for whole trip and walked/ took the train everywhere.

Clean hotel, nicely updated, FREE WI-FI. Parking is $22 a night, about average for a metropolitain area. Rooms are on the small side, but not too small for a short stay. Great price for a central location. This hotel is next to the EL, we stayed in a room on the West side but hardly noticed the trains. Other reviewers said they couldn't sleep they were so noisy. We did not have this problem at all. Would definately stay again.