I recently spent several hours at Chicago O’Hare between flights and had a wonderfully productive layover.
A Productive Layover Of Fitness And Lounge Hopping At Chicago O’Hare
Upon arrival, I made a beeline for the Hilton ORD Hotel, located on the airport premises. There, you can utilize a full gym for $15 if you are a Hilton Honors member or $20 if not. Considering lounge passes run more than 3x times that amount, I cannot think of a better way to spend an extended layover.
Not only is there a full selection of modern gym equipment, but there is also a swimming pool, sauna, and steam room.
I have no trouble eating healthy and exercising when I am home, but on the road I find it easy to neglect exercise and to eat far too much onboard airplanes, in lounges, and at hotels. The wonderful thing about the gym at the Hilton O’Hare is not only that I am working out, but that I am doing that instead of stuffing my face with food and drink that contaminate my body.
After two hours there, I still had a couple more hours and headed over to Terminal 5 in order to review the SAS Lounge. The Chicago O’Hare SAS lounge is one of two SAS lounges in the United States (the other being Newark – EWR). It is not generally well-regarded and is usually crowded.
While I found it to be quite crowded when I arrived, after the flight to Stockholm boarded the lounge totally emptied out.
Later on when I retuned to Terminal 1, I even had time left to visit the United Club before boarding my flight home.
CONCLUSION
I’m going to offer a separate review with more details and pictures of both the Hilton Fitness Center and the SAS Lounge. But this post is meant to encourage you that you can actually accomplish quite a bit during an extended layover in Chicago. While it is easier just to sit down in a lounge and relax, this was far more satisfying.
That’s good to know. I remember staying at that Hilton, and although the location of the hotel is a 10/10, the rooms are not great, and they are now quite dated and abused.
Is it cool to come and go from T5 to T1/2/3? I feel like at one point it wasn’t. I can’t think of why I’d ever voluntarily go over to T5 to go to one of those lounges as they’re all pretty terrible, but I guess it would be good to know I could.
Train was necessary. Sure, not for every layover, but it was something different this time.
Kinda sucks that my most frequent routes are EWR-ORD and vice versa, neither of which have good lounge options without a United Club membership
When my wife and I were childless and flying back and forth from the US to England and Germany where we were living at the time, we’d purposely have an extended layover to use the gym there at the Hilton. Certainly a better use of 2 hours of your day instead of sitting in a lounge.
Good to know. BTW, the train between terminals is finally back in operation after years of refurbishment.
Yes, I’m quite happy to see the trains back in operation.
Ugh terminal 5 at Ohare. Worst lounges at a big airport? Even ba first class is bad. I’d rather be in the flagship lounge in t3. Great tip though re the fitness center.
Is there a shower at the Hilton? Sauna and steam room before a flight could make for some grumpy neighbors without one.
Yes, several showers in locker room.
So you can go through security at T5 with at T1 boarding pass?
Yes, I had no problem.
I’m surprised TSA let you through security in terminal 5 without a terminal 5 boarding pass as the other terminals are not connected airside… Maybe it was a TSA oversight?
I just told them I wanted to go to the lounge.
Seems somewhat unbelievable. Even if you can talk your way through TSA how do you get into the SAS lounge without a boarding pass? I have (on occasion) bought a refundable ticket (or mileage ticket) to get into a lounge. Curious how you do it?
I had a boarding pass – I was traveling to LAX on United. It was a layover. The question was how I was allowed into T5 with a boarding pass departing from T1. Historically, access was not permitted but these days it does not seem to matter.
Got it, thank you. I have had the same success changing terminals when I am not flying out of the specific terminal. Its usually a hassle though. What do you think of the “buying a refundable ticket” strategy?
I agree on the Hilton by the way; I stay there frequently and use the Fitness Center. Rarely run into anyone else.
Buying the refundable ticket is too much work IMO for the reward.