Spacious Bronzeville Gem Garden lvl Near Downtown, University of Chicago, Museum Reviews, Deals & Photos 2025

Q: Is Spacious Bronzeville Gem Garden lvl Near Downtown, University of Chicago, Museum pet-friendly?

No, pets are not allowed at this property.

Q: Where is Spacious Bronzeville Gem Garden lvl Near Downtown, University of Chicago, Museum located?

Located in Bronzeville, this beachfront apartment building is in the city center and within 3 mi (5 km) of State Street, Lake Michigan, and University of Chicago. McCormick Place is 2.9 mi (4.6 km) away. 47th Station (Green Line) is 11 minutes by foot and 43rd Station is 11 minutes.

8/10 Good

wendy C.

May 5, 2025

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Weekend get away

Enough room for a quick get away

Stayed 2 nights in May 2025

10/10 Excellent

Jennifer M.

Dec 29, 2024

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Wonderful home close to everything!

The description was spot on. We had a great 2 night stay. The host was super kind and met us when we arrived and gave us a tour. The place was immaculate! They had a Keurig with coffee pods which was so nice. My bed was extremly comfortable. Wonderful stay and would definitely stay again!

Stayed 2 nights in Dec 2024

10/10 Excellent

William S.

Jun 25, 2023

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Wonderful little apartment and great friendly hosts.

Great little apartment and fantastic hosts.

Stayed 2 nights in Jun 2023

10/10 Excellent

Jason E., Valrico, Florida

Oct 5, 2023

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Great Location & Nice Place

Had a great stay, property was located 10 minutes from the Convention Center and close enough to downtown.

Stayed 3 nights in Oct 2023

10/10 Excellent

Esteban S.

Jun 5, 2023

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Graduation Stay!

Wonderful hosts!

Stayed 4 nights in Jun 2023

10/10 Excellent

David A.

May 22, 2023

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Bronzville is Everything and so was the host!

Great stay at wonderful home. The owner created a warm and friendly environment and had everything set up to ensure a wonderful trip. The space is ideal and is located near restaurants and by Lake Shore. Would definitely stay here again!

Stayed 3 nights in May 2023

10/10 Excellent

Krissy K.

Jun 12, 2023

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Weekend Getaway

Beautiful corporate apartment that was very clean. The owners had the best check-in process I've experienced with vacation rentals. They are friendly and accommodating. The neighborhood is quiet with street parking. We appreciated free and easy parking in Chicago. I would definitely stay here again.

Stayed 3 nights in Jun 2023

8/10 Good

Lisa A.

Sep 24, 2021

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Nice suite of rooms, very dark entry

Overall the place was nice - very comfortable bed, comfortable couch and tv for unwinding. The unit is in the basement with access through a storage area under the outside stairs - the stairwell was extremely dark at night when I was coming in. Maybe a motion activated solar light? Once inside, a very pleasant space - thanks :)

Stayed 2 nights in Sep 2021

10/10 Excellent

david c.

Jul 8, 2023

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Nice and comfortable place

We like the unit but the internet did not work well. Not much of a signal. Also we were charged 60 dollars extra for my sister and brother in law. I was surprise by that charge. I have never been charged extra for the alloted guest in a unit. I own a VRBO that sleeps 6 and would never charge extra unless there were more than six. It made the unit quite expensive for us.

Stayed 5 nights in Jul 2023

8/10 Good

Amber F.

Sep 22, 2024

Liked: Communication, location

Not what was expected from VRBO description

Not a big deal, but we had to wait for check in; although 1pm was advertised. We weren't able to get in until 2pm as it was still being cleaned. They missed wiping out the refrigerator though. Owner came down while we were eating dinner before our concert to go over the rules. Had to provide drivers license of who booked reservation and sign waiver. An experience that I have not had before. She told us there was water in the refrigerator we were welcome to, there was none. That extra blankets could be found in the chest, there was one. Definitely need more. I was excited to stay in such a beautiful place as I love these older homes. However we didn't stay here but in their basement. The private entrance was from outside into a small brick area that did not smell great. During the day it was dark to be able to enter the code had to use phones for light. This location did not have a waterfront view, but was near the lake. Kitchenette was not what I had visioned. No sink, only sink in the bathroom. A small microwave, refrigerator and a keurig all on the same stand. What was not mentioned was the other entrance from their home into the area. Owners live directly above which was a little surprising and uncomfortable. Glad we were there only for a short visit. When they were getting up early in the morning they actually woke us up. They were very nice and we would stay again for an overnight in the area, but it was not what we were expecting.

Stayed 1 night in Sep 2024

4/10 Poor

Verified traveler

Aug 17, 2023

Liked: Check-in, communication

Disliked: Location, listing accuracy

Girls weekend for my 50th

Starting with the positive: I wanted to go to Chicago to spend time with my best friend for my 50th. The property owners communicated pretty well through messages. They were also understanding that the bus/train was extremely late. Inside the property for the most part was clean. The inconsistencies with the advertising of the property: 1. The picture looks like guests would be staying upstairs. No mention of downstairs. 2. The place where guests stay is downstairs. Not enough lighting at all. 3. You go downstairs you press your code. Door opens. You would think you walked right into the rental. No. I walked in and the smell to the little storage area I would call it, smelled like mold. Like walking into an outdoor basement. No lights. Found the next door that I didn’t know was there, press in code. This is where you stay. Again, no lights on at all. Walked into the dark and many air fresheners. I viewed this too cover up the outdoor smell. 3. Property owner came downstairs. Took pictures of my license. Make sure it was who we are. Not needed. 4. Asked the owner how long it takes to get to downtown. Was told multiple times, 10 minutes. More like 30 minutes via UBER. Asked how to get into downtown. Take the green line. Again, told like 10 minutes, hour later. Had to jump on and off multiple lines. 5. Was told in a safe neighborhood. Safe neighborhoods don’t have bars on windows. 6. Left Friday August 11th. Didn’t feel safe. Too far out!

Stayed 3 nights in Aug 2023

8/10 Good

Vincent

Oct 28, 2025

Liked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, communication

It’s a very spacious and relatively quiet place to stay at. In a neighborhood in the other side of town. The TV apps are reliable for a quiet stay after a long day out and the spacing is solid for a good group of people. The issues I found were, be careful with leaving your accounts on certain apps (noticed this with Netflix and YouTube). Kitchenette is decent for small trips but not long ones to stock it. Noticed the TV controllers had dead batteries as well as each TV other than the main one not having a working firestick. The Queen Bed was comfortable along with the couch but the king bed was a bit rickety loose. The service in general though was solid and gracious at the very least. And location can be a bit sparse. Which could be a dealbreaker for future visitors looking to get things conveniently. A good place to stay away from the busy city center, and hopefully those issues can be corrected for the next visitors.

Stayed 4 nights in Oct 2025

10/10 Excellent

Madolen

Jul 29, 2025

Liked: Cleanliness, amenities, property conditions & facilities, communication

Our host was so kind and very reasonable! The listing makes it sound quite strict, but I will say if you are a traveler who respects the spaces you stay in they are not strict at all! Basic human decency is all they ask so if you can't do that maybe not the place for you, but if you can do that this is a fabulous place to stay! The space is so big and such a great price in such a great area. The hosts are there if you need anything at all and even gave a lot of local recommendations which was so nice! We were there on a work trip and so it was nice to not have to do a ton of research to figure out where we should go for meals and what not. The train is so close by and none of the ubers we paid for to get downtown were very expensive which is so nice. The beds were very comfortable and the space was just delightful. Thank you for letting us stay! :)

Stayed 3 nights in Jul 2025

2/10 Terrible

Michelle l.

Jan 19, 2025

Disliked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

abusive owners

horrible

Stayed 2 nights in Jan 2025

8/10 Good

Timothy M.

Jan 3, 2025

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, listing accuracy

Very Clean

Nice place, not alot of parking

Stayed 2 nights in Dec 2024

10/10 Excellent

Dina H.

Oct 16, 2024

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Stayed for marathon

Rented with Valane for the marathon weekend. It was clean, quiet, away from the hustle of the city. It was super easy to navigate to expo, start lines, and sites. Loved jot beong couped up in a hotel room for the weekend Highly recommend Thank you so much for the great stay

Stayed 6 nights in Oct 2024

10/10 Excellent

Ryan C.

Sep 25, 2024

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Wonderful stay

We stayed in this property while moving our son into the University of Chicago. It is conveniently located very near campus so it was easy to get back-and-forth. The owners were very easy to work with, and we enjoyed our stay

Stayed 2 nights in Sep 2024

10/10 Excellent

Alicia B.

Aug 26, 2024

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Perfect stay for our girl's weekend!

We had the best time at this little "home away from home." There was more than enough space for my friend and me, and it was a beautiful set-up! The hosts are wonderful as well. I highly recommend this VRBO!

Stayed 2 nights in Aug 2024

10/10 Excellent

Kelly B.

Jul 30, 2024

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Chicago Cozy

Thank you for the stay is your adorable guest suite! Location was perfect!

Stayed 2 nights in Jul 2024

10/10 Excellent

Tammy F.

Jul 11, 2024

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Bronzeville Gem

Clean stay and had everything we needed. Enjoyed our morning walks to the Green Line at 43rd to enjoy the city…even got to walk past Louis Armstrong’s historic home when he lived in Chicago. Wonderful breakfast at Peach’s just a few blocks away. Would highly recommend!

Stayed 4 nights in Jul 2024

10/10 Excellent

Stacy K.

Nov 2, 2023

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Great location and property

The location is perfect for plans to the museums and easy access to Lake Shore Drive. It also has plenty of street parking.

Stayed 4 nights in Oct 2023

10/10 Excellent

TRACEY K., Tucson, Arizona, USA

Sep 23, 2023

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Great place!

Stayed at LaTrina and Valane's property for 4 days while helping our daughter into the UChicago dorm. Property was close to Hyde Park, super-clean, and had everything we needed. We met LaTrina in person - she was so helpful and has a sunny, delightful personality. Their Bronzeville neighborhood is lovely, quiet, and safe - it was perfect for two 50-somethings visiting from the southwestern US. We will definitely be back to Chicago to visit our kid, and will hope to stay at this VRBO again when we do!

Stayed 4 nights in Sep 2023

10/10 Excellent

Matthew P.

Aug 7, 2023

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Family Vacation 2023

Had a fantastic time at the property. Very clean and comfortable (for the few times we were there). Excellent trip!!

Stayed 4 nights in Jul 2023

10/10 Excellent

Vanisha N.

Jul 27, 2023

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Relaxing, Quite, Clean, Safe, Wonderful :)

Great neighborhood: close to major freeways, food spots, and downtown. I vacation at least 4 times a year, staying in many hotels and Airbnbs. My normal practice is to check in, deep clean before I could even consider resting. This home was by far one of the cleanest places I’ve stayed in. Many homes are picture perfect, but up close and personal not so much… Upon walking into this space, I could SMELL the fresh and clean. It was obvious they take the time to really sanitize between guests. The host went through the proper check in process (the same as you would at a hotel) – It was nice to be greeted. I felt the experience was that of a 5-star establishment where the service is much more personable. The communication was great, the host was a text/phone call away. Its apparent the host take pride in ensuring their visitors have a pleasant stay. Each and every time I visit Chicago, I’ll be here at the Gem Garden.

Stayed 3 nights in Jul 2023

10/10 Excellent

Brandon L.

Jul 17, 2023

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Weekend in Chicago

Very clean and spacious accommodations. A great place to stay just south of downtown.

Stayed 4 nights in Jul 2023

Spacious Bronzeville Gem Garden lvl Near Downtown, University of Chicago, Museum

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