When I was single I didn’t think twice about booking a hotel room in downtown Chicago. I loved being within walking distance of my favorite Windy City attractions, shops and restaurants. These days, though, I have a family plus a much stricter family budget, and when it comes to vacationing in Chi-town we stay in the suburbs and take the “L” (the city’s rapid transit system) into the city. The main reason: the price of parking.
The price of parking at most downtown Chicago hotels will run you (on average) about $25 per EXIT, not per day. For $45 a day guests are given unlimited in/out privileges. That’s in addition to the money you are forking over for the hotel room. During my last stay at the Hyatt Regency Chicago a standard room was $200 per night. But, the parking for three days came to almost $150.
OUTRAGEOUS!
We all know that the price of hotel rooms has gone up in the last few years, but take a look at what’s happened to hotel parking rates and you have to wonder how any family can afford to stay in major metropolitan areas where parking is at a premium. According to a new study, in the past eight years, hotels that charge for parking have seen their parking revenue rise 51%. No kidding. Take a look at how much it costs to park at some of the country’s biggest hotels:
The daily fee for parking a car at The Peninsula New York increased last month from $55 to $60. Meanwhile, the Waldorf-Astoria in downtown New York has one of the least-expensive rates: $45 for 24 hours. In places like New York and Chicago you have the option of parking your car in a self-park lot, most of which are located within a couple of blocks of a given hotel and most charge about half of what hotels charge.
This is why I opt to stay in the suburbs… where parking is free. Of course, that’s Chicago. If you stay outside Manhattan, parking fees are less expensive, but not non-existent. In Queens, you can park your own car for $22 a day at the New York LaGuardia Airport Marriott or $22 a day at the Wyndham Garden Hotel LaGuardia Airport. A virtual bargain compared to parking in the city.
One final note about hotel parking: if you drive an SUV or other oversize vehicle you will be paying more to park. For example, The Westin St. Francis in San Francisco charges $8 more a day for SUVs, which means you would be forking over about $65 a day to park your tank in their lot. But, that’s nothing compared to the New York Marriott Marquis. If you roll into one of their lots and want to park your oversize vehicle you will be paying $75 a day.
OUCH!
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