Grand Royal Hotel O'Hare - Chicago

If I could rate this below one star, I would. From outside, the hotel was pitch black, looked abandoned, and had no sign showing its name. The lobby heat was broken, and it felt like a block of ice. Our room was awful: blood near the tub drain, black mold, blood stains on the bed, shredded curtains, and pepperoni crumbs on the bed. The walls were so thin we could hear everyone's conversations, and there were weird people staying there. I've never seen a sketchier hotel. As a woman, I wouldn't feel safe or comfortable sleeping there. It's not even close to the airport. The worker who was nice didn't question our demand for a refund and just said, “Oh, ok, sorry about that.” We're thankful the refund is being processed, but the response made me wonder if people leaving is normal there. This place needs to shut down. Spend extra and stay somewhere safer.

I was concerned by the reviews, but ended up pleasantly surprised. The building looked fancy from outside, with a glass atrium, and I noticed it used to be a Holiday Inn. The front desk woman was kind and let me check in two hours early without any trouble. Parking was free, too. The room was great and very clean, with a Keurig and microwave. The shower was nice as well. The location felt safe and was handy to I-90, with several food choices nearby. I believe an airport shuttle ran 19 hours a day. For $70, I was very satisfied and had no complaints. I'll stay here again when I'm back in the Chicago area.

Worst stay I've had. The Wi-Fi in room 207 wasn't available, only in the lobby, and the in-room phone didn't work. The AC was loud and didn't heat or cool the room properly. I tried calling from the airport almost ten times about the shuttle, but nobody answered. I called again when I was near the lobby; the phone rang and still went unanswered. When I asked in person, they said they were busy. I saw the concierge woman playing a game on her phone when I rang from near the lobby. Ridiculous service, with no accountability. Breakfast was packaged food.

American Airlines put us here after our flight was canceled. The staff were friendly, but the hotel felt cold and wasn’t very clean. Breakfast was just a pot of coffee and packaged muffins, and there was no WiFi or TV service.