Historic Hotel Tours | Luxury Escapes in Chicago: Palmer House, The Drake, Hilton Chicago

[@CellaBella241]

My dad worked at The Drake for 40+ years. I have great memories of visiting there for various functions and Dad taking us "behind-the-scenes." My fave rooms/spaces are the French Room and, of course, the Gold Coast Room. 💜💜💜

[@magicalfam]

That’s amazing! I’m sure your dad has seen a lot through out the decades. You picked two great rooms 😁 thanks for watching and commenting!

[@raqueldiaz5024]

We have that hotel booked for 4 nights at end of September. Our first visit to Chicago! Excited to stay at The Palmer House even though ive heqrd the rooms are small…a little nervouzw about this but oh well. Thanks for video!!

[@magicalfam]

@@raqueldiaz5024 some of them are slightly small depending on the room type. Guest rooms start on the 8th floor. Floors 8 and 9 are original floors and have larger rooms compared to most. (Some have odd layouts but you get the size you might be looking for) Perks of a historic hotel 😂 Thanks for watching!

[@sandrat1205]

Thank you for the hotel tour! The Palmer House was my favorite with the peacock doors!

[@magicalfam]

We LOVE the Palmer House! It's our favorite of the three as well :) Peacock doors are pretty amazing

[@topat3]

I thoroughly enjoyed this video. Loved learning about the history of these three absolutely amazing hotels in Chicago. Such great history. So glad these hotels have survived and hope they continue to survive and will be cared for and maintained. So many cities tear down these building old hotels and other historic buildings to replace them with new buildings/highways/whatever, not realizing that so many people truly love history!

[@magicalfam]

We are happy to hear that you enjoy this video! 😊 we LOVE these hotels in Chicago. I’m happy Chicago kept most of them around. They had an unfortunate opportunity to rebuild the city after the great Chicago Fire. Buildings are not built that these days!

[@johnjacobjingleheimerschmidt]

Palmer house during market days great place to bring the boys after day of play. Easy cab or rideshare to Halstead. Lots of great architecture and sights nearby one down thumb is the parking cost is very pricey. Lockwood restaurant was good and service wow the waiter was just awesome 👌

[@magicalfam]

Thanks for watching! They certainly do not make buildings like they used to. Glad you had a great experience at the restaurant.

[@Paul-b5i3m]

I stayed at the Palmer House many years ago and loved it very much and I also ate lunch at the Drake Hotel with Apple executives that called us and wanted to see what we were doing at Gamemaster. I remember eating Bookbinder soup. There were several magazine articles about what we were doing developing a whole new client interface and a company that was lightyears ahead of everyone else (even Facebook). I still have that totally now-devalued Gamemaster stock that someday I will frame and hang on the wall in my office. ♦️(PS regarding my business stay at the Palmer House … I remember treating myself to somewhere on the top one or two floors where I procured a room and it was an “executive level” floor, where they had treats available, fresh coffee, and the WSJ. I was able to connect with other guests who had also chosen to stay on that “special” floor too. I have very fond memories of my stay at the Palmer House.

[@magicalfam]

Thank you for sharing your stories!! I’m sure you remember that lunch with Appel executives like it was yesterday. The Palmer House invented the concept of “executive level”. It’s evolved over the years but it’s like a concierge level now days. Of the 3 The Palmer House is my favorite with the most memories.

[@easternpa2]

Great tour, thank you. I stayed at The Drake when we had a series of meetings for a week and spent a winter at LondonHouse on the river. I booked a room at the Hilton Chicago later this year for the Phillies at Cubs and the NASCAR race both within a few days apart. I had to cancel, though, since I can't make it work. Thank you for these great tours. I really enjoyed it.

[@magicalfam]

Thanks for watching! I’m glad you enjoyed the hotel tours! LondonHouse is a perfect location.

[@cgimovieman]

I grew up in the Midwest and Chicago is my absolute favorite big city in the U.S. We share some common ground as I too live in Florida, in the Orlando area, and have for 26 years now. But I get back to Chicago at least once every year. Usually in October for the marathon, as I’m a very avid distance runner running it every year. Also a huge Cubs fan. But I’ve tried to make my way around staying at many of Chicago’s great hotels over the years. I stayed in the Palmer House way back in 2003, and the main Hilton on Michigan Avenue in 2007. I’ll finally be staying at The Drake later this year in October. Just made a reservation and I’m very excited. But the city has so many cool venues to stay at. The Intercontinental is also very historic and beautiful. The Club Quarters by the river in the historic Mather Tower is another, albeit with smaller rooms. As more modern hotels go, I love the Swissotel by the river and the Fairmont. I could go on and on. These 3 though are definitely at the top of the list.

[@magicalfam]

Thanks for watching and commenting! We are going back next month and hope to capture some our trip into a video. They defiantly do not make hotels / buildings like they used to. We defiantly do not get that here in Florida. Maybe St. Augustine but even that is different. The Drake is another iconic hotel in Chicago and its nice that Lake Michigan is right across the street

[@csaintjoy]

Thank you for the tour. I’ve been at The Palmer. Now I have to stay at the other two

[@magicalfam]

@@csaintjoy appreciate you watching and commenting! They are great hotels.

[@snv648]

My great gramdfsther used to visit Bertha Palmers boudoir every Saturday morning, to pick up her soiled kid gloves. He was a cleaner.

[@magicalfam]

How cool is that!? Thank you for sharing that!

[@alanalcantara2828]

Enjoyed the video. I will be staying at The Palmer for a week beginning the end of July. I look forward to my stay…

[@magicalfam]

That is coming up soon! Please report back if you enjoyed it. Thank you for watching!

[@ericlee6495]

Hey 👋 Mark thank you for sharing with us 😊❤Magical family travel 😊❤

[@magicalfam]

Thank you for watching! Hope you enjoyed the Drake😁❤️

[@ericlee6495]

@@magicalfam yes I did

[@magicalfam]

@@ericlee6495 I’m glad! 😁

[@kendalson7100]

The Cape Cod Room was fashionable for lunch when I was a kid. The Playboy Building was the building between The Drake and the Hancock Center. The shopping arcade at the Palmer House was fun. They had Peacock's jewelers, Trader Vics, a good coffee shop, a Pendleton shop and a store that sold British goods. Brownies were invented there. The Boulevard Room at the Conrad Hilton was a fancy nightclub at one time. I was born at South Shore Hospital! Chicago was nice a long time ago.

[@magicalfam]

Many people I worked with in my department at the Palmer House were there for 25+ years. I've heard many stories of Trader Vic's (now a parking garage) and the many conventions that came to town. They still make the brownies to this day the way they were invented at the hotel! Thank you for sharing all of that great information. Chicago was in its glory days then.

[@cocoaorange1]

I live in Chicago, I want to try one of those brownies.

[@magicalfam]

@@cocoaorange1 they are delicious! 😋

[@briansieve]

I really enjoyed this. Thank you

[@magicalfam]

@@briansieve thanks for watching!! Glad you enjoyed it 😁

[@charleshamilton9274]

This was absolutely fun. Spontaneous. Genuine. Informative. I thought about moving to Chicago but, dude, those winters. What a challenge, to be the Director of Engineering for a very large building built over 100 years ago. Keeping everything up to contemporary code/standards…yikes! Did you relocate to Celebration, Florida? Best of all, no state income tax!

[@magicalfam]

The winter is part of the reason why we left 😂 That and we wanted to be closer to Disney World. We moved toward the Windermere/ Winter Garden area. Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@cocoaorange1]

I enjoyed this video, cool to see the interiors.

[@magicalfam]

Thank you! We appreciate you watching

[@timward3116]

Thank you for the tours! Great to see the inside of places I'll never get to go to.

[@magicalfam]

Never say never! Thanks for watching the video.

[@timward3116]

@@magicalfam Funny true story: Many years ago, when I was in Chicago for training, there was a fast food restaurant (Burger King?) across the street from the Palmer House. Standing in front of the fast food place and looking across the street at the Palmer House, I chatted with a homeless drunk guy. I told him the story about Phil Collins's "No Jacket Required" album being so-named because the Palmer House would not admit him to a restaurant due to his many-thousand-dollar leather blazer being deemed inappropriate attire. When I finished the story, the homeless guy said with a birp, "Yeah, they did the same thing to me."

[@magicalfam]

@@timward3116 😆 different ends of the spectrum but hey they were both denied access. Many of the restaurants they had at the Palmer House are no longer there. Trader Vic’s was a very popular one but was already gone before I worked there. The level it was on turned into a parking garage. More $ from valet/ parking I guess.

[@timward3116]

@@magicalfam Interesting! I grew up in Chicagoland but have been a Phoenician most of my life (but the Chicagoan in me never left me). Phoenix has no hotels like the Palmer House or the Drake (or the Conrad Hilton, as I still call it). The era of gold peacocks is gone, and there are no remnants of it here anyway. The closest we come is The Arizona Biltmore - and I've never been to it. I miss the lake, the smell of bus exhaust, seeing my breath on a cold day, and and walking by heavy doors of wood, brass, and glass that I would never pass through. As mentioned, I had been there for training. And I actually moved back for two years almost 20 years ago, but life took me back to Phoenix and that's okay. But there's nothing like the Loop. You gotta go to Chicago for that!

[@magicalfam]

@@timward3116 I think I mentioned it in the video but we are from Chicagoland area too(now live in Florida. We went back to Chicago after living in California for two years. Then said forget the winter and moved to Florida. You had me at missing the lake but not seeing your breath on a cold day 😁Chicago is unlike anything else and we think it is one of the world’s best cities. So much to offer! If it just wasn’t so cold 🥶

[@cocoaorange1]

I was shocked to see Peacock Jewellers closed post pandemic. I never knew the company had such a strong connection to the hotel.

[@magicalfam]

Yes! A lot of history at The Palmer House

[@mitchellgraves2774]

Whats the top places to stay if you was only staying one night and didnt wanna be far from the riverwalk. Rates a night as well ranges pls?

[@magicalfam]

I wont be able to tell you rates as that is constantly changing depending on dates / events happening in the city. However of the three my personal favorite is Palmer House. If you are looking for something right on the river, I would suggest looking at London House Chicago. It is right on the river and has a great rooftop bar! Amazing décor and views.

[@brentgindelberger8851]

You scanned the list of movies at the Hilton Chicago. Probably the biggest one was The Fugitive. It's where the convention was being held that Harrison Ford interrupted and then the chase began.

[@magicalfam]

Thanks for watching and commenting! That is a good one! This is probably the most filmed hotel in Chicago.

[@fragwagon]

When were you working at The Drake? I was a bellman there from '93 to '07. So many memories and stories!

[@magicalfam]

More recently. (2021-2022). Was Hank the director of engineering when you left? A great hotel!

[@fragwagon]

@magicalfam engineering was super Irish during my time there, I remember a Pat Murphy but that memory fails. It was an Indian gentleman in charge when I left. That boiler room was legendary on St. Paddy's Day, or so I heard!!

[@magicalfam]

@@fragwagon This is great! If walls could talk in there

[@briansieve]

Miller's Pub, Baby.

[@magicalfam]

@@briansieve a great spot!

[@Pat-RickSmith]

From what I am gathering you must have been a 399 Engineer ??? If so I am a current engineer at SAIC on Wabash

[@magicalfam]

@@Pat-RickSmith I was not with 399. People in the dept and chief engineers I worked with were 399. I was a manager role, not part of the union.

[@marksears1124]

You don't need to apologize

[@magicalfam]

For what, Hilton Chicago? Thanks for watching.

[@gavincashman]

I'd like to stay here for week in July 2025 for holiday go sightseeing see Major league baseball ⚾️

[@magicalfam]

It’s a beautiful city and Chicago shines best in the summer! If you need any recommendations let us know.

[@kmotch]

Went to the drake in December for afternoon tea and it wasn’t good at all and the service was terrible.

[@magicalfam]

It’s definitely BUSY during that time. Extra tables are brought out

[@kmotch]

@@magicalfam perhaps they also put us next to the radiators by the window and it was sweltering hot, asked numerous times for the heating to be turned down but they didn’t do anything.

[@magicalfam]

@@kmotch that’s a complain I remember. Old building still uses radiators to heat the place.

[@michaelhurley3171]

Why does Drake have a hotel in Chicago when he's from Toronto? 😅😅😅

[@magicalfam]

😂😂😂 too funny