Just off Michigan Avenue, the Four Seasons Chicago offers the luxury you want

Hotel Site

Dr. House, anyone?

Celebs Spotted: Demi Moore, Madonna, John Cusack, Nicole Kidman, Gary Busey, Diana Ross, Elton John, Hugh Laurie, Victoria Beckham, Drew Barrymore

Chicago is in the news lately, a hopeful for the 2012 Olympics. (This just in: they didn’t make the bid.) Even President Obama has been there. And he’s not the only celebrity spotted in the Windy City. Lots of stars spend time in Chi-Town, and the Four Seasons is one of their favorite places to stay.

Come on up, the opulence is fine

Located right off Michigan Avenue (shopping, anyone?), the Four Seasons Chicago has over 300 rooms with amazing views of Lake Michigan and that spectacular Chicago skyline. You’ll find French decor all over the place. Oh, style, thy name is Four Seasons!

The Conservatory for a nice cup of tea

Demi Moore stays at the Four Seasons, as does Nicole Kidman (who reportedly sends 800-thread-count sheets ahead so they’re there when she arrives, ooh la la!) and Elton John. In fact, there are a couple of ex-Four Seasons concierges who wrote a book about the famous people at the Four Seasons, complete with tantrums and outrageous demands. The book was pulled by the publisher before it went on sale, but still. Juicy stuff.

Check out that view

Chicago skyline looks lovely

Every room has LCD flat screen TVs, wifi, DVD players, and in-room safes. Mix that up with refrigerated private bars, luxurious terrycloth bathrobes, twice-daily housekeeping service, and even a Bedtime Stories Butler for the kiddos. No kidding, the Four Seasons has a special butler that comes to your room to read bedtime stories to the kids! I kind of want one of those myself.

The Spa offers everything from manicures to massages and wraps

There’s also a fantastic spa – you can have a massage in your own room if you prefer – and a fitness room, including locker rooms, sauna, and an indoor 50-foot pool.

Glass dome ceiling, 50-foot pool

A bit sunny for my taste, but you just know that bed is comfy

A Moderate Room starts at $395 a night. The Four Seasons Executive Suite is $560/night. But if you think that’s where Hugh Laurie and Drew Barrymore stay in the Moderate Room, you’re insane.

It’s all about the Presidential Suite, baby. Oh yeah! 2,315 square feet of glamor and opulence, the Presidential Suite sits at the corner of the 46th floor of the Four Seasons. Enough room to seat nine guests in the living room, a dining room that’ll handle eight people.

Have 9 or 10 friends over for dinner

Two private bars, surround-sound stereo, four-poster bed in the master bedroom. Two – yes, TWO - marble bathrooms. Deep pink marble soaking tub, shower enclosed in glass, and a flat-screen TV…in the BATHROOM. If they deliver room service in the tub, I might never have to leave the water.

Presidential Suite

And that, my friends, will set you back $4,300 a night. But hey, if you want to pretend you’re Madonna or Victoria Beckham, that stuff costs.

Drew Barrymore

Fine dining, too, of course. The Seasons Restaurant is beautiful and offers a hybrid French-North American cuisine. A grand marble fountain and a wonderful comfy lounge on the 7th floor ensures that you’ll not only enjoy the food, but the ambiance, too. You may have to provide your own company, though.

And every Thursday through the end of this month, you can enjoy Dine Without Whine. For grownups and kiddies both, there are seasonal food items that will delight your tastebuds. For the children, there’s a special buffet near the adults, where they’ll love the movies, activities, and video games…all with a licensed babysitter. Did I mention the babysitter is free for parents? Yeah. Just in the restaurant, mind you…there are babysitters available in your room, too, but that’ll cost you.

Or spend time at the Chef’s Table for an incredible culinary experience. You and up to five others sit in the kitchen with the Executive Chef and watch your courses fixed right in front of you. A four-course meal starts at $85 a person, $125 with wine.

Chicago is magnificent, particularly this time of year. Loads of restaurants nearby, the Navy Pier, Lincoln Park Zoo. Enjoy it all while bathing yourself in luxurious comfort at the Four Seasons Chicago. And bring me along, eh? I’m tons of fun and will be a gracious accepter of your hospitality. Seriously, I will. I’m the graciousest.

What? That’s totally a word.

I’m always interested in hotels that might fit into the Celebrity Hotel of the Week feature. If you know of any, please email me. southernyank01 at gmail dot com. Thanks.

Photo Credits

Hotel Photos: Four Seasons web site

Hugh Laurie: Celebutopia.net

Drew Barrymore: Zimbio.com

Hotel Shangri-La, Santa Monica, CA

Everyone wants to feel like a movie star, even if you have no desire to trod the boards or too many scruples for full frontal. The Hotel Shangri-La, in Santa Monica, California, is the kind of old school glamorous hotel that real celebrities prefer, the ones who want the luxury that fame brings, without the gawkers and paparazzi that a stay at the Chateau Marmont entails. They might not even let Lindsay Lohan stay here, she’s so B-list these days!

The ritzy yet paparazzi-free lobby

The property is finishing up a $30 million renovation, and you have to admit, they spent their money well. This place looks like a movie set! Photographer Bruce Weber — inventor of the soft core porn pretty boy Ambercrombie model shots — loves to use the hotel as location for his shoots.

This is what celebrities see when they wake up

Hotel Shangri-La was built in 1939, and has seen its share of celebrity guests, from JFK Jr. to Madonna to Tom Cruise. It sits on a cliff above the Pacific, offering amazing views, and it’s also walking distance to the Santa Monica pier. They’re advertising introductory rates from $255/night.

And this is the suite where celebrities drink coffee, vodka or both

I would probably do full frontal to stay there. But of course, I love hotels. And drinking vodka on animal print rugs.

Last weekend, former basketball-great, and ex-Celebrity Apprentice star, Dennis Rodman, was kicked out of the London Hotel in West Hollywood.

Apparently he was engaging in “ass-grabery” in the lobby. There are many things you can do in a West Hollywood hotel, and most of them even involve asses, but (surprisingly for Dennis Rodman) accosting women you don’t know in the lobby isn’t on that list.

Fancy rooms at the London Hotel

Too bad for Dennis, because the London Hotel is a swank. They have giant, 1,500 square foot suites, with terraces and views of LA and the Hollywood Hills. You get free calls to London, England, which is awesome if you have friends or family there. Or if you just want to crank call Gwyneth Paltrow. Hey, you know Madonna totally does it!

Every hotel should have a roof deck pool

There’s a gorgeous rooftop pool, and chef Gordon Ramsay oversees all of the food.

If you

If you can control your urge to goose people, rooms are $200/night and up.