Disclosure: Four Seasons Hotel Chicago hosted our October 2026 stay. The impressions below are our own.
Book Four Seasons Hotel Chicago if you want a city hotel where the spa is part of the reason to stay, not an afterthought. The executive suite gave us proper living space, the welcome included a chocolate version of Chicago’s Bean, and the service was polished throughout. Still, the pool, whirlpool, sauna and steam rooms are what made the hotel feel worth building time around.
I would choose it for a Chicago trip with enough slack in the schedule to use the hotel. The address puts you beside the Magnificent Mile and close to Gold Coast restaurants, while the scale of the property gives you room to decompress when you come back. Even with children using the pool, the wellness area felt calm during our visit. Among city hotel spas I have used, this was one of the strongest.
A large Chicago hotel with the right address
Four Seasons Hotel Chicago is at 120 East Delaware Place, in the 900 North Michigan Avenue building. For a visit built around restaurants, shopping and time by the lake, the location works hard for you. Michigan Avenue is right outside the immediate hotel area, and Oak Street adds another cluster of boutiques and dining nearby.
The hotel feels generous as soon as you arrive. During our October visit, golden autumn arrangements lined the entrance hall beneath a suspended installation, with polished stone underfoot and a staircase ahead. The arrival has scale, but the service mattered more. Across the stay, the staff made the hotel easy to enjoy rather than formal or fussy.
The property opened in March 1989. Its official fact sheet lists 345 rooms, including 185 suites, which explains the range of accommodation choices. A major renovation completed in 2020 refreshed the public spaces and accommodations and introduced Adorn as the hotel’s signature restaurant. The spa received its own renovation in June 2023. This is an established Chicago hotel that has kept putting money into the spaces guests use most.
Our executive suite: the upgrade that makes sense
We stayed in an executive suite, and the separate living area was the point. There was a sofa and armchair around a glass coffee table, plus a small round table with two chairs by the window. The bedroom sat through a separate doorway. It felt like somewhere you could spend part of the day, with enough space for the welcome amenities without taking over the bed or crowding a narrow desk.
Light wood, pale walls, blue upholstery and patterned carpeting kept the rooms calm and understated. The living room’s large windows brought the surrounding city into view. I liked that the suite had a proper place to sit together and a separate place to sleep. On a city stay, that separation is often what makes the upgrade worth paying for.
Choosing an executive suite
The hotel’s current accommodation guide lists several executive suite categories, including city-view and lake-view options, at 575 square feet (53 square metres). If you are choosing between them, look at the outlook and sleeping arrangements as closely as the category name. Our strongest impression was the space and layout, rather than a specific view designation.
The bedroom had a window seat, warm bedside lighting and a blue upholstered bench at the foot of the bed. It carried through the relaxed feel of the living room. If you expect to spend meaningful time at the hotel, this is the suite configuration that makes the room part of the trip rather than just a place to sleep.
A chocolate Bean waiting upstairs
The welcome was pure Chicago. A large, metallic-looking chocolate Bean sat on the table beside a wooden mallet, small pastries and a handwritten card. It referenced Cloud Gate, the sculpture most visitors know as the Bean, and connected the room to the city outside in a way that felt specific.
It also showed that a memorable amenity does not need to be stiff. The little mallet and sculptural chocolate gave the setup personality. Because our stay was hosted, I would treat this welcome as part of our visit, rather than something every guest should expect automatically. For a celebration, it is the kind of detail I would discuss with the hotel before arrival.
The spa and pool are the reason to book
Give the wellness facilities real time in the itinerary. The renovated spa spans 8,000 square feet, with four treatment rooms and interiors by Rottet Studio. The pool area is its strongest shared space: a domed ceiling, pale finishes, butterfly artwork and lounge chairs around the water give it a softer feel than a standard hotel lap pool.
The indoor pool is 44 feet long, with a substantial rectangular whirlpool alongside it. Having both changed the experience: you can swim, then slow down, with enough surrounding space to settle in comfortably. A hotel of this size could easily make the area feel crowded. During our visit, it was one of the most relaxing parts of the stay.
Sauna, steam rooms and the rest of the wellness area
The sauna was a particular highlight for me. Together with the steam rooms, showers and changing facilities, it made the spa feel complete. The wood-lined changing area, benches and neatly arranged towels kept the calm feeling going beyond the pool itself. I would leave a generous gap between sightseeing and dinner for these facilities instead of trying to fit them into spare minutes.
If you want a treatment too, the current spa menu includes massages, facials and body treatments, with skincare partners including Omorovicza and 111SKIN. Treatments require their own booking. The hotel also offers a separate Night Spa experience with private pool and whirlpool access; consider that for a special occasion, rather than assuming it is part of a standard stay.
The hotel lists adult-only pool sessions on Friday and Saturday evenings. If quiet pool time matters to you, ask the spa about the current schedule when booking. Pool hours, treatment hours and access to particular facilities are separate details, so plan the visit you actually want.
Family friendly without taking over the stay
One of the better surprises was that children around the pool did not overwhelm the setting. The space allowed different guests to use it in different ways. That is a personal observation from our stay, but it is an important reason I would consider this hotel for families as well as couples.
The hotel’s family programme extends beyond swimming. There is a Kids’ Room on floor 32 with games, books and creative activities, accessed with a keycard from the front desk. An activity book and scavenger-hunt passport introduce younger guests to Sammy the Skyscraper, the hotel’s Chicago-themed mascot. In-room ice cream experiences are another option to arrange.
Separate living and sleeping areas can also make a suite practical for a family. Discuss occupancy, connecting rooms and age requirements with the hotel when choosing a category; family-friendly pool facilities do not mean every spa treatment or thermal area has the same access policy.
Adorn downstairs, Gold Coast restaurants nearby
Adorn Bar & Restaurant gives the hotel an on-property dining option beyond room service. Its October 2026 menu update focuses on American dining with a Chicago influence, including a raw bar, steaks and seafood. Tasse, the coffee and pastry concept on the seventh floor, adds a daytime option. Those choices are useful when you want to stay close to the room or spa.
For dinner outside, Gibsons Bar & Steakhouse at 1028 North Rush Street is a nearby option for a classic Chicago steakhouse evening. Le Colonial, at 57 East Oak Street, offers French-Vietnamese dining in a different setting. Both make sense for a Gold Coast itinerary; reserve around the evening you want instead of counting on a last-minute table.
A cocktail reservation inside the hotel
During the stay, we were invited to Sip & Guzzle’s residency at Mile High Cocktail Club on the 46th floor. The special keycard, skyline setting and precise cocktails made it feel like a separate outing without leaving the building. The melon dessert was another favorite.
That evening deserves its own story: read our Sip & Guzzle Chicago review for the menu, arrival and booking details. The residency runs from October 15, 2026, through March 14, 2027, and is an adults-only reservation, separate from the family-friendly hotel facilities.
Who should book it
For Pearl members planning Chicago around good restaurants, cocktails and time to unwind, Four Seasons Hotel Chicago is easy to recommend. The address makes exploring simple, the executive suite gives you room to settle in, and the spa makes staying in feel like a good decision. I would especially leave enough free time for the pool, sauna and whirlpool.
Our stay was strong, with service that matched the quality of the setting. To plan your own, check Four Seasons Chicago’s official site for room availability and current offers, and contact the spa separately for treatments. Choose the suite category around your preferred outlook and layout. For me, the strongest reason to return is the combination of spacious accommodation and a wellness area worth building part of the weekend around.
