Oh, how the mighty have fallen.
I gave Sharn's a 4 star review in 2017 mostly because of the nostalgic decor that reminded me of the 70's. Carpeted walls, ,lots of mirrors (Including the ceiling), and varied lighting. A less expensive alternative to the Sybaris.
Well, they lost one star when they remodeled the rooms. Sure, the decor was getting a little old and worn, but that couples retreat theme was their hook, what set them apart from the myriad hotels in the area. They seem to have kept the couples retreat theme by specifying 2 adults to a room. And, apparently some of the rooms still have mirrors, but the room we were given had none of that. More on why we did not get the room we wanted below.
The remodeling must have included a new boiler system, because the water in the rooms was boiling hot when turned to hot and just hot when turned to cold. If you wanted Cold water, you needed to use Ice, or keep some water in the mini-fridge. Large flat-screen TV's were also part of the remodeling, and they even had handy guides to help you figure out the bewildering mode & channel system of the all-purpose remote.
They lost the second star because of their reservation policy. There isn't one. I called about 2 weeks before my visit to Chicago to book the 2nd floor smoking room, and was assured I had the room reserved. When I called 2 days before my visit I was told I had no reservation. I then booked on-line at their attractive website, specifying I wanted the 2nd floor smoking room and got a printed sheet CONFIRMING my reservation. When I arrived, I was told that the second floor smoking room was already occupied by someone else. Management explained to me that when someone wants to stay an extra night then the reserved room may not be available. In EVERY hotel in the world, if someone wants to stay an extra night, the patron will be told that the management would be very happy to have them stay longer, but they would have to switch rooms because that one was reserved. Management was not even apologetic, and offered NO compensation for the inconvenience.
So Sharn's hotel have converted themselves from a unique hotel experience to the same thing you can get in a hundred other hotels and motels within a five mile radius. The ONLY thing that still sets them apart is that they still offer smoking rooms, which a lot of hotels do not. read more