Four Points by Sheraton Chicago Schaumburg

I’m staying at the Four Points by Sheraton Schaumburg, and the key card system isn’t working anywhere in the property. Guests can’t get to their own rooms and need a front desk escort every time, even just to grab something or use the gym. This has been going on without any timeline for a fix. As a Bonvoy Gold member, I expected some service recovery. There was no compensation, discount, rebate, upgrade, or goodwill gesture. I asked for a bottle of water, a standard Gold benefit, and was told I’d already gotten one and should refill it at the gym. But I can’t get back to my room without an escort. When I asked when the keys would work, the only answer was, “they’re not working.” The lack of basic room access is unacceptable, and the indifference to fixing or compensating for such a major hassle is especially disappointing from a Marriott property. Management seems content to have guests depend on front desk escorts indefinitely without acknowledging the disruption. I’d choose one of the many other quality hotels in Schaumburg until they fix the key system and improve how they handle service recovery. I wouldn’t stay here again or recommend it. If I could give zero stars, I would.

It was aggravating to miss the entrance off Higgins and have to circle around, especially with the snow making it harder to see. Once inside, though, it was a very nice, clean hotel with nice rooms. There’s a bar, which I guess drinkers would like, but I would have preferred an included breakfast. There wasn’t one.

We expected more. The hotel was very clean and in a good spot, though there are lots of other places to stay in this little area. The front desk lady was nice and eventually sorted out the reservation for our second room. The rooms were short on basics: just one water bottle for two beds, no coffee stir sticks, and only about five Kleenex before the boxes ran out. Both toilets ran all night with no solution in sight. I took the tank off to look. The refrigerators in both rooms were so loud that I almost got up at 3:00 am to unplug mine. The shuttle bus alarm went off four times, at 4:00 pm, 3:00 am, 3:30 am, and 4:00 am, each time for three consecutive sessions before it was turned off. It was right outside our window. Loud men were also laughing and talking in the hall between 3:00 and 4:00 am. And breakfast, just don’t. One nice lady took our order, but she clearly wasn’t qualified. They ran out of coffee and hadn’t made more. We were the only people there, yet the food took forever and was bad when it arrived. The egg “bake” was an omelette with what seemed like a pound of cheese and a pound of tomatoes, and maybe some egg. The waffle was doused in whipped cream that wasn’t listed on the menu, great for a five-year-old. The potatoes were obviously a day old and reheated. A fork couldn’t pierce them, so we had to use our hands. I’d choose somewhere else.

The front-of-house staff were stellar, and the rooms were clean. There’s a small menu, and it’s about 20 minutes from O’Hare Airport. Target and Starbucks are within walking distance. It did the job when my flight was cancelled and I was stuck in Chicago for two days waiting for another flight.