I recently stayed at the Hotel Monaco and I must say, it has become one of my favorite hotels in the windy city. In the past, I've always stayed at the Marriott or the Hilton so this time I thought I'd go with a boutique hotel. I've stayed at some of the Kimpton properties in San Francisco so I was delighted that they are running the Monaco. Basically, I like the friendly, real-people atmosphere as opposed to the corporate style places I've used before. I do work out and they had a decent fitness center with the treadmill I normally use. South Water Kitchen served a terrific meal even in a city of great restaurants. I really dug the complimentary coffee, high speed internet and newspaper. I get tired of being nickel and dimed by the corporate hotels and liked the fact that the Monaco offered a bunch of freebies -- especially liked the afternoon wine service. All in all, I will return to the Monaco. It's a great alternative.
