LaVell Thompson, J.
Google
For the most part, I had a fairly positive experience with this place. I would liken it to a cross between an Airbnb experience and staying at a hotel. It's sort of a hybrid between the two. There's just enough of a customer service experience, whereby if you run into any trouble, there's someone available who can help you. And there is just enough discretion so that you'll feel like you're in an airbnb experience, complete with the full living situation of a bedroom with a half kitchen.
So I guess I'll begin with a positive thing. I'll start by saying that I discovered this particular place via a third-party app. Anyway, as you'll see from my photos, when I first arrived, I thought that the foyer area was "decent" enough in appearance. It is not anything grandiose or luxurious because the building is quite old. That should not deter you from staying here.
The elevator worked fine during the entirety of my stay. So, even though I was on a top floor, floor number 5, there was never any fear that I would somehow be forced to ever take stairs to the top floor. Exiting the elevator, one is greeted with a decent and nice little sitting area, followed by a long corridor that leads to the room.
At this juncture is where the first complaint begins! When I arrived at my room, I entered the security code and followed all instructions as given to me. Unfortunately, after countless tries, I was unsuccessful in unlocking the door to go into my room. I wondered, at one point, if perhaps I either had the wrong room or if maybe the code was wrong! To their defense, what I later learned was that I was granted an earlier check-in than listed. As a result, persons responsible for communicating my early check-in did not communicate that to whomever needed to know. So, had I arrived at my original time, it's likely that I would not have had this problem.
Secondarily, I can communicate my initial impression of the space on the whole. WOW!! I have to say that I was impressed. For the most part, the space was very clean and neat and organized! All of the silverware included in the room was pristine, as well as the dishes, glasses, cooking utensils, and the pots and pans. The microwave was very clean; so was the stove top. Even the refrigerator was spotless!
I didn't find a crumb or speck of debris on the floor anywhere. The bedroom area, too, was great! Of course, my being who I am, I pulled back all of the linens to check for bed bugs or any kind of old hairs or anything of the sort. I wanted to ensure the bed was clean and presentable. I found nothing!
So, yes! Overall, this was a very positive experience! You're saying to yourself, "If it was this great, why give them 4 stars?" Well, that's simply because of my initial problem with the locks. The other issue I had was the temperature of the room. When I visited this place, it was in late January/early February. I was there on business for the week doing some auditions. I don't need to tell you what the temperature and weather are like, in winter, in Chicago, Illinois!
The room was freezing cold! I kept playing with the thermostat and playing with it and playing with it. I called multiple times to try and get it repaired but was unsuccessful. Eventually, I finagled a few mechanisms, and finally had it fixed. The customer service people were in the process of requesting the super to come out; however, it would be a day or two before he could get there.
You might encounter some others saying that this place is a dump or a waste of time. I disagree. The Sonder isn't a 5-star hotel experience, nor is it meant to be. Yes. The building is quite old. However, a place like this is is reserved for the traveller who knows that he or she will be in one location longer than a few days, and would like to be practical and save a few pennies. If you're ever in Chicago Illinois, and and have the time to do so, I fully recommend staying here. I'm confident I would stay here again. (NOT THE FULL REVIEW)
