1st trip to Chicago- itinerary help
 

I will be at a medical meeting in Oak Brook the first week in December. I will have Thursday/Friday in Chicago, and Sunday morning. We need a hotel for one night in Chicago. Other than the Art Institue, what are the "must sees?" What is the best way to commute airport to Chicago sites to Oak Brook? What are some great music clubs for jazz? Any help appreciated.

Would recommend a website search and a look through a couple guidebooks to get answers to your questions. Chicago is well covered in this forum.

December in Chicago will likely be pretty chilly, so you might want to orient your activities towards those that are indoors. The Art Institute, as you mention, is truly wonderful. You could spend hours there alone! However, what other things interest you? Are you more interested in museums? Or shopping? Or..... Let folks here know and they might come up with some specific ideas for you.

The great news is that in December it will also be wonderfully decorated for the holidays. Michigan Avenue will be beautiful and some of the department stores have great window displays.

What is your price range for hotels, and where do you want to be located? There are many choices, but lodging rates in Chicago have gotten quite high, and you might want to work on your booking early. Post a range and location and people can be a bit more helpful.

There's lots of theatre, lots of music, lots of great dining. A group I like to follow is Howard and the White Boys, and they are often playing in the area, I'll find their site and come back to you.

If you like bluesy jazzy music, you might check this site when you are going to be in town. www.howardandthewhiteboys.net. Also their guitarist is a regular here: Don't forget to check out HWB's guitarist
Pete Galanis' Band
Every Tuesday
9:30PM
Rosa's Lounge
3420 W. Armitage
Chicago, IL

Hi khepps,
After visiting the Art Institute - always worthwhile - you may want to venture into the near-neighborhoods of Chicago for the evening.

You can catch a Second City show in the Old Town neighborhood, with dinner at Adobo Grill, or you might want to watch "American Buffalo" at Steppenwolf - a Mamet play that will be great - if you can get a ticket, dinner in THAT neighborhood at BOKA or Vinci, then head up Halsted (a quick taxi ride - maybe $6-7) afterwards to Kingston Mines for jazz/blues. Or just the jazz and dinner closer to Kingston Mines at Erwin (lovely restaurant). Then taxi back downtown.

I'd make peace with the idea of taxis back and forth in the winter here. It's just not worth it waiting for public transportation in the cold, at night. And with two travelling - the cost is easier to accept. A CTA (Chicago Transit Authority) day pass might be worth it if you're spending lots of time up and down Michigan Avenue and State Street(shopping, ARt Institute), but at night, just hail that cab.

Can't help much with Chicago to Oakbrook. No Metra commuter trains service Oakbrook, so sounds like you'll have to rent a car. Hopefully, you'll rent on the way out of the city to Oakbrook as parking is expensive. O'Hare to hotels downtown is cheap and fast on the CTA Blue Line.

Good luck with your planning!

I just want to be sure I understand this correctly. The days you're spending in Chicago are before your medical meeting in Oak Brook? If that's the case, will you have any need for a car once you're in Oak Brook? Or will you be involved with your meeting the whole time?

If you don't need a car, you might want to consider taking Metra to one of the nearby suburbs and taking a cab from there. There's a line north of Oak Brook that stops in Elmhurst and Villa Park and a line south of Oak Brook that stops in Westmont. Which would be more convenient for you depends on where your hotel/meeting is.

I would be remiss not to mention the Green Mill for jazz. It's been around since the early 1900's and is still wildly popular for real jazz. You can read all about it at www.greenmilljazz.com. There are some excellent restaurants nearby such as Indie Cafe (Asian) and Marigold (Indian fusion) to name just a few. I'd take a cab. It's on the north side.

Rosa's is great too for real jazz as mentioned above. It does bill itself as a blues/jazz bar. So just be sure you check to see who is playing if you go there. www.rosaslounge.com. It sounds like Toucan has a great recommendation!

Have a fun time!