Welcome to The Solar Lodge!
"Singular Accommodations for the Distinguished Traveller"
Enjoy museum ambience and private lodging at Solar Lodge. Old Chicago vintage charm aligns with modern amenities and convenience in the city with direct access to public transportation. You will enjoy a private apartment for your exclusive use, stocked with a master bedroom, library, kitchen, dining room, den, and bathroom with bathtub and full-sized shower. Located minutes away from the CTA Brown Line and seconds away from the Montrose 78 bus line, you will have direct access to the CTA to take you anywhere you like in the city. O'Hare Airport is easily accessed by rideshare or taxi via a quick jaunt down I-90.
Located in the quiet safety of the northside neighborhood of Albany Park, the Solar Lodge lies between the Kimball and Kedzie Brown Line El train stops. The quiet and quaint Kedzie Brown Line stop is a few minutes' walk from your front door and is one of the safest train stations as reported by crime statistics from NBC Chicago in 2020. Access to the train system means that anything close to an El stop (Wrigley Field, the Art Institute of Chicago, anything downtown, various music venues) are easily within your reach. You will find a private fully furnished apartment on the second floor of a 104-year-old family owned three flat all gold brick apartment building. The public staircase will lead you to a private unit where you will not be required to share quarters with anyone outside of your own party.
The neighborhood boasts an eclectic range of international ethnic cuisines, community taverns, and shopping opportunities. World class music venues and sports destinations are easily accessible from readily available public transportation and easy to use ride-share and parking solutions. The beautiful architecture of the Ravenswood Manor neighborhood is ready to be taken on a relaxing stroll down Wilson Avenue. Montrose Beach and Lake Michigan are a simple straight shot east, down Montrose Avenue. Wrigleyville is one turn (right), just at Clark Street, via Montrose. Downtown is easily accessed via I-90 and beautiful Lake Shore Drive (via Kedzie or Montrose, respectively).
Inside you will find:
An esoteric library of arcane, modern, and eclectic literature, complete with overstuffed leather furniture and picturesque viewing windows and house plants. This library contains over 4,000 titles (Please be warned that we do stock a number of banned titles and risqué topics - buyer beware that parental guidance for some books is advised.)
Museum quality art and antique oddities.
Wifi controlled dimmable and color changing lighting by Phillips Hue, fitted into restored vintage lighting fixtures.
Guest Wifi, and ethernet ports in the den, library, and master bedroom.
Two fully connected smart TV's with all common streaming services, one of which utilizing a BluRay player.
A rich library of DVD / BluRay titles.
A complimentary coffee bar, replete with Kurig, tea kettle, hot water heater (Zojirushi), creamers, cups, sweeteners, and tea.
A fully stocked kitchen with all typically required cooking and food prep equipment.
A full bath with full size bathtub, bidet, and towels and toiletries.
A master bedroom with queen size canopy bed, full closet, and writing desk.
Hotel class ironing board.
A dining room with seating for six, fully stocked with plateware and cutlery.
A media room with queen size foldout futon which can function as a second bed. The media room includes a selection of vinyl records and musical instruments.
A small porch with plants, seating, and views of the backyard patio. Please keep a minimum of three adults on the porch. Chicago skyline views can be had from the rear porch.
Public spaces include rear patio with firepit.
The master bedroom comfortably sleeps 2 full sized adults. The media den can sleep 2 more adults on a futon. The full leather chesterfield sofa in the library can sleep 1 full sized adult. Blankets and bedding can be found in the hallway closet, under the media room futon, and in the master bedroom main closet. If needed, contact hosts for more bedding supplies.
Free streetside parking on the immediate street (Christiana) is available on a first come first serve basis. Paid street parking is optionable on the larger cross street, Montrose. Hosts are willing to assist with finding parking. Please download the ParkChicago app for paying for paid street parking. We recommend Spot Hero or commercial equivalent for help finding parking.
The Solar Lodge is a family-owned multi-unit building with hosts residing on premises. We are immediately available for assistance as needed and happy to help with all your questions - both concerning the building and navigating the city. Because the Millenium Club is located on the second floor via a flight of stairs through both front and back entrances, we must inform you that the space is not wheelchair accessible.
The building is accessed via smart deadbolt locks (Schlage Encode WiFi locks); you will be issued an access code to unlock four doors for the duration of your stay. These codes will expire at the end of your stay. Those four doors are the main front door, the intermediate stair door, the door to the apartment, and the back porch door to the same apartment (on rear porch) - the main front door is a five digit code, and the remaining three doors will be a four digit code. The property is monitored by multiple security cameras posted throughout the public spaces, indoor and out, but there are absolutely no security cameras inside the private rented space where you will reside. The stairwell, the front yard, front porch, front door, rear porch, and rear back yard, garage, and alley are all monitored by continuous video. Again, no monitoring occurs inside of the private space. Privacy and security for both guests and hosts are paramount interests at this facility.
House Rules are typical decorum and civic good behavior, based in common sense. No parties, ever. No smoking inside the premise. No loud parties or music after dark. No rowdy behavior. Be courteous to hosts and our neighbors. Do not park behind the garage or block garage in anyway. Do not park in the disabled handicap parking inside of the house. Please close and lock each of the three front doors as you come and go; do not defeat deadbolts by throwing the lock out to keep the doors open or otherwise keeping the doors open with suitcases as you transit. The Solar Lodge is a very secure building, but it's only as secure as good practice, practiced well, can make it - all security rules are intended to protect you, the hosts, and everyone's property. If the hosts become aware of a door left open, we will manually close it and lock it. Do not let anyone unknown into the main staircase - you can instruct food delivery to drop off inside the mailroom. Do not allow any strangers, canvassers, uniformed persons, or anyone who asks into the building. (If they say they know the hosts, they don't. All of our close friends have private codes. If they don't have a door code, they don't belong inside.) You will note a number of electronic devices plugged in throughout the space - Do not unplug any electrical devices which are already plugged in upon your arrival - this goes for lights, speakers, networked devices, cameras, or anything (USB, ethernet, traditional power plug) electronic - these devices are in place to provide amenities, security, and utilities throughout the entire building. Do not access any secret passages without permission. Do not touch any of the wall mounted decor. Do not proceed past any "no guest access" signage. Do not attempt to wear the suit of armor. Do not attempt to enter any "private residence" posted doors. Do not take any of the 1,000+ loose personal items in the space which we are trusting you with. If you are still in the middle of a book when it's time to leave, ask us if you can borrow it, and we will provide a media mailer with return address for you to mail it back to us at a later date. No books are allowed to leave the property. If something looks old or valuable - it is. Please respect that. We are trusting you with our private collection of curiosities. We do utilize this space as our private residence when it is not being shared with guests. We are welcoming you into our home, and we will treat you with the same respect that we assume you will pay to us in kind. (Be advised that we require an $119 damage protection policy with $5,000 coverage, to protect guest and host alike - this fee will be tallied at your booking screen.)
This space is steeped in international travel, collegiate experience, and quiet reflection. We love it here, and we hope you'll love it, too. If you made it this far, we are excited to welcome you to into our strange and special oasis in the middle of the best city in the entire world! All are welcome, especially you!
