The Gwen, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Michigan Avenue Chicago

The Gwen, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Michigan Avenue Chicago

At The Gwen, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Michigan Avenue Chicago, the rooftop restaurant Upstairs at the Gwen sits a few minutes from the Wrigley Building and Tribune Tower, with Millennium Park and the John Hancock Center close enough for an evening walk back. Built in 2000, the hotel runs 311 rooms across 17 floors, with suites carrying a pillowtop mattress and, in some cases, an indoor fireplace, plus bathrobes and cable TV as standard. Downstairs, a second restaurant, a bar and 24-hour room service cover meals without leaving the building, and a 24-hour fitness center, spa and business center with event facilities and conference space make it workable for someone running a full day of meetings before switching to sightseeing. Front-desk staff speak Chinese, English and Spanish, useful for guests who don't want to repeat themselves. Pets are welcome for a further $125 per stay, on top of the standard $200 deposit charged per room per stay, worth knowing before arrival rather than at checkout. Families get Family rooms and babysitting on request. Anyone chasing an intimate, six-room inn should look past this one: 311 rooms over 17 floors is built for volume and flexible scheduling, not quiet. What the address has that most Michigan Avenue hotels do not is that rooftop kitchen itself, a full restaurant at height rather than a bar pouring cocktails against the skyline. Check-in runs from 3pm, check-out by noon, with a doorman at the entrance and a garden squeezed between the terrace and the street. The Gwen puts a full rooftop restaurant, Upstairs at the Gwen, above Michigan Avenue, steps from the Wrigley Building and Tribune Tower. With 311 rooms, a 24-hour gym and business center, it suits meeting-heavy trips and traveling pets more than a quiet escape.