Any suggestions for priceline areas, hotels to shoot for, in Chicago week of dec 9 - 16. Going as tourist , seeing Chicago for first time.

One more thing, what's the difference flying into midway vs. o'hare? Is one more convenient to the city then the other? Any other advantages/disadvantages?

I flew Southwest into Midway, for me it was the cheapest flight, no choice of the airports. Took a shuttle to my hotel.

Search this forum (type Chicago in the search window on top) I remember getting advices on Priceline.

Whichever airport offers best prices/flights, as both offer shuttle services, public transportation etc., and not a lot of difference in travel times to North Michigan Avenue area, which is area usually preferred by tourists. If your main interest is shopping, that would be your best choice. Downtown areas might be preferred for proximity to museums and theaters, but really, all are in pretty close proximity. Many hotels offer weekend packages, and of course priceline can also usually be relied on.

After many death rides from both airports, I much prefer going to Midway then taking the Orange Line train into town. SO easy! We just returned from a long weekend there. It was "Light UP" and the rooms were really booked. I used Priceline to get "North Michigan" and Millenium Park and bid up to 100 dollars with no luck (3 stars). Finally, I included "Greater Chicago" which includes the area a little further west and got the Crown Plaza Metro for $100. We LOVED the hotel. It's right by Greektown and several good restaurants and on an easy bus line. The mag mile is about 2 miles from there...we bundled up and walked almost everywhere but cabs were pretty cheap, too. Click my name to read my mini trip report from 2 weeks ago....we had a great time! Hope this helps! ps...you might want to look att biddingfortravel.com to see what others are paying for Chicago. Best of luck!!

Either airport will work for you. Go for the cheaper flights. The Embassy Suites hotel near Navy Pier was a great choice when we (family of 4) stayed in Chicago for a week. We found it fairly close to everything.

We stayed at the Westin on N. Michigan Ave. Good hotel, on bus lines, but we walked a lot. Got it for 4 nights through PL @ $90/n.

Check biddingfortravel and bid on Priceline. I stayed in N. Michigan Avenue area at the Westin. Great price and great location. It is a block from the visitor's center where you can get discount tickets to shows. It is across the street from the Hancock Tower Observatory.