FOUND Hotel, Chicago River North

The concept is good but the experience is poor and frustrating. The no contact 24/7 service chat is convenient, but it took us beyond midday to move rooms because we waited on a verification code to get into our new room. If Sonder could open the new room for us to move and sort out the remote IT issues in their own time it would have been a better experience. Reason for moving rooms was the shower tap was leaking and dripping loudly all night, an understandable maintenance issue that they can sort out but not that it takes half a day to change rooms. The remote verifications were pretty glitch. The aircon in our first room was also horrendously noisy. The room was very pokey and almost no space to move, we stayed in a queen unit for 12 days, before being moved after the leaking shower incident. The next room was much more spacious and comfortable although with winter temperatures the aircon could not cope with keeping the room warm. There are almost zero facilities in this hotel, feeling more hostel like than hotel. I would not recommend if you need to spend more than 2/3 nights. 16 for us felt near unbearable but our booking was non refundable. The lobby has a coffee machine which was removed due to being out of order for half our stay. We got instant coco/coffee from the nearby Target as the lobby also has a kettle... only to find dirt and debris in the kettle. There is no wash up or sink to rinse these appliances and a sign warning guest not to empty water into the tray of the water dispenser. The minimal facilities are just not great for longer stays. The building code and room code are the same so if anyone catches you putting in your building code when entering from the street, then they have your room code as well. There's no laundry service and the city of chicago only has dry cleaners not laundromats so you need to take a train out the city to do laundry. This is a crucial facility if you going to stay a few days. The wifi is good and the room was clean. Other than that, I cannot recommend this hotel for stays longer than 2/3 nights. I moved across to their new hotel, Onterie... now my 17th night... for more facilities and hoping for a more convenient stay. It has in bedroom laundry, kitchen etc Hope this helps others make an informed decision on their stay.

4 months ago

It's a budget choice for sure, but was not worth it. Thumping, LOUD bass until 2am from the bar/club on the first floor. My bed made the most obnoxiously loud creaking and squealing anytime I moved. I contacted customer service and they were basically like "that sucks" and would not give me a different room. I ended up pulling the mattress onto the floor (noted that the bed frame was just a piece of plywood on top of a box) so I could actually sleep. Would never stay at a Sonder again.

3 months ago

Got what I paid for. The app — the main tech you use — is oddly non-futuristic. I got a very different vibe compared to the tech-forward shtick they’re using to differentiate themselves from other hotels. Instead, the app felt strikingly behind since it lacked any integration with Apple or Google Wallet which would allow for rapid key use and be perfect with the door’s security technology. It felt clunky going to an unfamiliar app and clicking through each tab looking for which one had the “key button” on it. Would’ve been the same level of security. Not sure if they gave up there or what happened, but they really missed the mark there. The tech has been out for years

3 months ago

I booked them for a 3 day trip through Airbnb. It was easy! Found it, liked it, purchase made. After confirming my purchase, I was contacted by Sonder to confirm through their website. I didn’t mind it because sometimes information isn’t confirmed when booking through third party sites. After confirming, they suggested I download their app and it’s one of the reasons I’m giving them 5 stars. They had EVERYTHING you needed in there. Building and room access codes, a button to connect you to the internet, info on luggage storage and water refilling, a floor for restocking on essentials (towels, toiletries, etc.), requesting a ride to the property, and places in the area for shopping, food, and more. One of the best places we went to was suggested on the app, check out Seoul Taco in Chicago. The location was PERFECT! I’ve heard downtown Chicago is walkable, the property location put us within a 8 - 20 minute within all the places we wanted to go. We don’t mind walking, if you do then a 10 minute car ride or around the same time on public transport. It was in a safe area, no worries about who would be near the property after hours. The staff were quick with our requests, the heating and A&C worked, pillows and bed were clean and soft, and the water pressure was great. If you’re traveling in a small group (less than 4 people) and don’t mind some small space, this is the perfect spot!!

5 months ago

Do not stay here unless you understand what you're getting into. The fact this is more of a hostel than a hotel was disappointing, but ultimately ok as the room was sparse but clean, and the basic amenities were acceptable and functional. The big issue is the extremely loud music coming from the bar and club downstairs. Dance music played continuously from ~10pm until after 2am, with pulsating and driving bass and beats permeating through our whole room. And on Saturday night, the music was its loudest, actually shaking our room. Sonder customer service was very responsive and I appreciated their sympathy, but they also initially tried passing this off as ambient city noise. I live in a city; this is not the sound of traffic, the occasional siren, or a group of people passing by. This is not something that can be masked by a white noise machine or earplugs. This is a real problem. Sonder needs to be honest about this situation and forthcoming with potential guests. Hiding this in fine print is a mistake. Until they show accountability and acknowledge this shortcoming to guests, I imagine they'll continue to have more reviews like this one and a decrease in business.

6 months ago

After reading the reviews I see I didn’t miss out on much. I wouldn’t want to stay under judgmental people and a terrible company like this anyways. So thanks for doing me a favor and saving further money I won’t need to waste on this company. This was the worst experience I could possibly ever encounter. Customer service was completely and utterly USELESS. Sonder is giving scammer and profiling vibes. They canceled multiple people’s reservations the night of RANDOMLY. The most I could feel is that I wasn’t alone in the BS but it is sad and disgusting that the only type of people that had to leave for “violations” before even checking in were Hispanic and African American?? Also a trend of them kicking out younger people. They never sent an email on this “violation” nor when asked multiple times to explain and tell us what the violation was they fails to. So we had a canceled booking the night of with no reason or explanation why. They took my money and sent the refund to an unknown card when they should’ve just used the card on file. They also failed to send a refund receipt to the email ON FILE. I feel profiled and scammed of my money. If they wouldn’t had sent my money elsewhere I could have just gotten another hotel but no, I had to drive 2 hours back home. I’m so disgusted with customer support and sonder. I will never have anything nice to say and you all should be ashamed. Canceled with no explanation on my birthday and I watched people come in and out with drinks and drugs. Sickening. It is days later and I still haven’t received a refund nor an email explaining the so called “violation”. They canceled so sneaky because on the app I had they passkey to get into the building, the wifi password, as well as parking. So on my end everything seems fine. When I go to the room of course you are to provide a passkey to get inside the room. The passkey was all of a sudden gone and when I called to check in I’m now told that it’s been canceled. No good excuse or explanation. Fire your customer support because it could never be more trash and I’ve financed with Credito where people literally yell at you over the phone. I’d rather someone try and shove a bullshit excuse down my throat rather than give me legit NOTHING. You guys canceled my booking and gave me nothing….air bnb or booking is the way to go.

4 months ago

Wanted to save money during a five night stay. The staff are great, the location is perfect for exploring River North. I missed some of the amenities one would have at a more costly place.

a month ago

The lobby is very nice, and the bed was comfortable; the location is very walkable and convenient. Some criticisms: 1. It would be nice to have a lid on the toilet. I hate to think of all the microscopic splatter of human excrement that has sprayed all over this room as a result of having no lid. 2. The toilet is positioned too close to the shower - shower door can only be opened into the shower, which is not ideal or convenient. 3. When I arrived, there was hair in the shower from the previous occupants, causing me to feel that the unit was not properly cleaned before my arrival. Photos shared were taken upon arrival. As in, that's not my hair. 4. Better bathroom/vanity design would include another shelf for placing toiletries and a sink with a flat top (not sloping) so that you could perch items in use alongside the sink without them falling in. Also, you need a shelf in the shower for folks who bring their own soaps. 5. You really need an operable water cooler for refilling water bottles. I saw that there was one out of order at the back end of the lobby but noticed that other people made this comment in Google reviews, leading me to believe that it is something of a perpetual problem. If you care about your clients, this should be a priority. 6. Through no fault of your own, the street is VERY noisy at night - particularly on weekend nights. Every 20-30 minutes one is awoken to what sounds like a drag race happening in the street down below. Does not make for a restful stay.

9 months ago