The Intercontinental Chicago Hotel made some renovations in the rooms and main corridors in order to renovate the space and generate in the guests the feeling of being in a more contemporary place. By: Duván Chaverra Agudelo.
In Latin America, when we hear about the American city of Chicago (Illinois), we tend to associate it with that historic basketball team of the 90s, the Chicago Bulls, led by who is cataloged as the best player of all time: Michael Jordan. But this city also has other interesting sites to visit.
Located along the southwest shore of Lake Michigan, its main tourist attractions are its cultural environment, thanks to the fact that it has some of the most recognized museums and art galleries in the world. Its mixture of musical genres delights the ears with an interpretation of classic jazz, blues, soul, even more urban and modern genres such as Hip Hop or House, as this city is also famous for being the cradle of this genre of electronic music.
Chicago is also known as the "Second City" or the "Windy City", and in addition to being the third most populous town in the United States, it receives thousands of visitors throughout the year, which makes the hotel sector prepare 365 days a year to give the best attention to its guests.
And one of the most recognized establishments there is the Intercontinental Chicago Hotel, located on the renowned Magnificent Mile, a boulevard where the most exclusive shopping centers, museums and restaurants in the city are located.
On this occasion, HOTEL MANAGEMENT presents some of the most important renovations recently carried out by this establishment in one of its towers, and to talk about it we invited the general manager of the hotel, Edward Andrews, who explained the reasons why they decided to make representative changes and what were the areas intervened.
Rooms and corridors
All modifications were made to the Historic Tower. The rooms and corridors were the main renovated areas, as management saw the need to change the face of these two sites in order to improve the operation of the hotel and create a new impression among its guests, taking advantage of the summer season, which attracts more guests.
The multi-million dollar renovation included a total of 328 rooms and suites, along the corridors of the 9th to 41st floors of this tower. "For the guest rooms, new carpets, curtains, borders and nuances were added with the aim of refreshing the space and achieving in the visitors a more contemporary feeling in the rooms where they rest," explained the manager of the establishment.
Additionally, the hotel decided to insert in the rooms new lamps, office chairs, cabinets, armchairs and pillows, in addition to some blankets that gave an extra dimension to place.
"We wanted to make sure we're creating a good contemporary aesthetic, including all the modern conveniences, but with the historical significance and grandeur that InterContinental Chicago represents," said Edward Andrews.
He added that the hotel he runs has always stood out for its historical roots and that they have always tried to maintain that slogan every time they carry out works like these: "At the time of executing any new reform it was very important for us to have maintained the historical and architectural importance of the property that it has in thought and attention to detail."
Runners
New carpets and decorative elements gave the runners of the Intercontinental Chicago a more natural and full of life image.
"The runners also received a major renovation with the new brown carpet, as well as adding floral prints on embossed wallpaper and new contemporary lighting fixtures and wall applications, all with the intention of brightening up the hotel's general public spaces," said Edward Andrews.
The general manager of the establishment also added that the duration of all the aforementioned renovations was approximately 120 days, and that this process did not affect the stay of the guests who were in the hotel during the modifications, since the floors were closed as they were being intervened.
Additionally, Andrews added that guest comments about the renovation of the rooms and main corridors of the Historic Tower have been positive and that for the moment they have not learned of any discomfort on the part of a user, he also added that for the future they plan to continue carrying out renovations but did not give details about it.
Finally, Edward Andrews when questioned about whether electronic security renovations had been planned said that all the rooms of the hotel already had smoke detectors and alarms, so they consider that "it is not necessary to add more security systems for the moment".
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The Hotel
The Chicago InterContinental features a main entrance on the prestigious Magnificent Mile, Chicago's most desirable address. Originally built in 1929 as the Medinah Athletic Club, an all-male luxury club, the property has been recognized as one of the most elegant in Chicago.
The hotel has 792 rooms, including 73 luxury and decorated suites. The historic Junior Olympic Pool is recognized as one of the best indoor pools in the U.S. and is included within Chicago's top architectural tours.
The hotel's dining and leisure options include: a modern American food restaurant with Mediterranean influences called Zest; the lobby bar offers classic cocktails and ENO a luxury and accessible wine that features cheese and chocolate pairings.
