The Peninsula Chicago

A Hong Kong House Half a Block Off Michigan Avenue

The Peninsula group built its reputation in Hong Kong, and when it came to Chicago it brought the flagship's logic with it: a tower of its own rather than a conversion, drawn by Elkus Manfredi and finished at the turn of the millennium, with the public rooms stacked vertically instead of spread across a single lobby floor. Twenty storeys, three hundred and thirty nine rooms, eighty three suites, and the wellness floors placed at the top where most hotels put their best suites. The address is East Superior, half a block from Michigan Avenue. What you notice first is the proportion of the rooms, and what you notice next is how quiet a building this size manages to be.

Why It Works

Chicago has a handful of hotels at this level, and the Peninsula separates itself on service rather than on decoration. The house standard is Forbes Five Star and AAA Five Diamond, and it shows in operational detail: the speed at the door, the way the Lobby handles a late arrival, the fact that four different dining rooms all work. The second reason is the vertical plan. Putting the pool and the spa on the top two floors, glazed towards the lake, turns a city swim into something worth the lift. The third is that children and pets are genuinely accommodated at a level where they often are not.

Why This Location

East Superior sits half a block off Michigan Avenue, which puts the Magnificent Mile shopping at the door without the noise of being on it. The Museum of Contemporary Art is a two minute walk east, the Water Tower and the old pumping station stand across the avenue, and Oak Street Beach is about ten minutes north on foot. The Riverwalk and the Loop are fifteen to twenty minutes south, the Red Line stops at Chicago Avenue a block and a half west, and the whole of River North, with its galleries and restaurants, lies immediately behind the hotel. For a stay built around shopping, museums and the lake, the position is hard to fault.

Fast Facts

• Price: Luxury

• Vibe: Grand, serene, service led, international

• Rooms: Three hundred and thirty nine rooms and eighty three suites over twenty floors, with city and lake outlooks

• Best For: City breaks with a shopping and museum agenda, families who want a real pool, long business stays

• Our Favorite Thing About the Hotel: The twenty five metre pool on the top floors, glazed from floor to ceiling towards Lake Michigan

• Dining: Shanghai Terrace for Cantonese and Shanghainese cooking, Z Bar for cocktails and shared plates, Pierrot Gourmet for the café hours, The Lobby for all day dining and afternoon tea

• Amenities: Peninsula Spa, fitness centre, indoor pool and sun terrace, pets welcome, family provision

• Attractions: Magnificent Mile (at the door), Museum of Contemporary Art (about two minutes on foot), Water Tower, Oak Street Beach (about ten minutes), River North galleries

Two Floors of Sky: the Pool and the Spa

The decision that defines this hotel is where the wellness floors went. Most towers sell the top to the suites; here the top two floors hold the fitness centre, the spa and a twenty five metre pool with floor to ceiling glass looking out over Lake Michigan. Swimming lengths at that height, with the lake filling the window, is a different proposition from a basement pool and a mirror. A sun terrace opens off it in the warm months. The spa carries the Peninsula treatment list and keeps the same hush as the rest of the building. It is the single reason a good number of guests rebook.

Four Dining Rooms and an Inherited Tea

Four rooms, each with a different job. Shanghai Terrace is the serious one, Cantonese and Shanghainese cooking in a room styled after a Shanghai club of the nineteen thirties, with a terrace for the warm months. Z Bar takes the cocktails and the shared plates, and it holds its own following among people who are not staying. Pierrot Gourmet handles breakfast, pastry and the middle of the day in a European café register. The Lobby covers all day dining and stages the afternoon tea, the group's inherited ritual and still the easiest way to see the building at its best without booking a room.