Chicago may be a “hellhole” according to President Donald Trump, but the city by the lake proved a pretty attractive destination for visitors over the summer, generating records for hotel occupancy and revenue.
From June through August, hotels in Chicago’s Central Business District booked nearly 3.6 million room nights, a 4.3% gain over 2024 that topped the pre-COVID record in the summer of 2019, according to data released Tuesday by Choose Chicago, the city’s tourism arm.
Chicago hotels also set a new revenue record, generating $949 million over the three months, up .8% over last summer.
“We had a record breaking summer,” said Kristen Reynolds, Choose Chicago’s president and CEO. “And we’re doing it in a time with incredible headwinds, where most other tourism destinations are happy to be flat and not significantly down.”
Those headwinds included everything from reduced international travel to the U.S. in the wake of Trump’s immigration and tariff policies to a domestic economic slowdown. In addition, the president’s threatened military intervention and inflammatory rhetoric aimed at Chicago have not necessarily painted a “wish you were here” picture postcard image for the city.
International tourism to Chicago was down 3.0% year-over-year during the summer, but the increase of domestic visitation was up, boosted by the “drive market” – people within five hours of the city – including suburbanites booking downtown hotels for a weekend getaway, Reynolds said.
“We’re seeing a much bigger demand from the drive market and regional market, so that’s where we’re putting a lot of attention,” Reynolds said. “You’re going to be seeing a lot of Chicago marketing to those people.”
In 2024, the city welcomed an estimated 55.3 million visitors, generating $20.6 billion in economic impact, according to Choose Chicago. The increase in summer hotel demand is a “great indicator” for the trajectory of tourism this year, Reynolds said.
While there was no Taylor Swift concert or Democratic National Convention this summer, Chicago had a number of high-profile events that drew record visitors to the city, according to Choose Chicago.
The four strongest hotel weekends were: 92,643 room nights driven by the Nike Tournament of Champions at McCormick Place and BLACKPINK at Soldier Field in July; 91,559 room nights over Labor Day weekend; 91,384 room nights during Pride Fest in June; and 91,049 room nights when Lollapalooza hit in early August.
These were not only the four biggest hotel weekends of the summer, but the biggest of all time, according to Choose Chicago.
“Hotels throughout Chicago are encouraged by this momentum and look forward to continuing to welcome more visitors to our amazing city,” Michael Jacobson, president and CEO of the Illinois Hotel & Lodging Association, said in a news release. “But we cannot rest on recent successes, as our industry faces a host of challenges caused by rising costs and ongoing economic uncertainty.
One event that didn’t make the top four list was the third and potentially final NASCAR Chicago Street Race over July Fourth weekend.
An economic impact study from the race weekend is expected to be released by Choose Chicago this month. NASCAR has “paused” the event for next year and is headed instead for a San Diego street race, but has expressed interest in returning to Chicago on a different weekend in 2027.
Topping pre-pandemic hotel occupancy and revenue over the summer is a source of both revenue and civic pride for Chicago, Reynolds said. The latter may be especially important in the face of relentless criticism from the Trump administration, which has stepped up its ICE enforcement actions in the city and threatened increased military presence to combat violent crime, despite a 29% reduction in murders through September, according to Chicago Police Department data.
Last month, Trump seemed to declare war on Chicago in a social media post branded “Chipocalypse Now,” which showed helicopters flying past the city’s skyline ablaze.
Choose Chicago launched its own social media campaign last month, “All for the Love of Chicago,” encouraging the public to post photos, videos and stories depicting the city in a more flattering light.
“Everyone really likes having a voice to be able to share what Chicago is really all about, from people that actually are here and love it,” Reynolds said. “So that’s been great.”
rchannick@chicagotribune.com