Day trips between Ontario and Chicago
 

Greetings.

I am travelling from Norway to the US and Chicago in July. During my stay I would like to meet up with a friend of mine who lives near Ontario, Canada. Basically, we are looking for somewhere to meet half-way; preferably no more than 5 hours from Ontario and 3 hours from Chicago. She will be driving and my fiancee and I will be going by bus (preferably) or train. We are all in our early/mid twenties.

We welcome any suggestions you might have as to where we might meet up!

- Katrine

Note: my friend will be coming from SW Ontario.

Without knowing where exactly your friends are coming from it's hard to pick the so-called middle point.
I would suggest for you to take the train to Detroit, it's inexpensive, about $50 per person return. This option would be better if you stayed in Detroit at least one night, becuse if you choose to come back the same day, you will only see your friends for 2-3 hours, not worth it in my opinion, especially since the train takes about 4 hours each way.
You could also meet in Lansing, Michigan, which would be a further drive for your friends, and also it would require a bus trip, because I don't think Amtrak goes there. In that case, you have to be warned that our interstate bus company, Greyhound, while it's reliable and will get you there, in most cases it will also take you on a prison tours, as they stop in front of just about every prison. Add all the other city stops, and you are talking about a one-long day. Most although not all passengers on the bus are also not the kind of people you would hang out with back at home. I'm sorry if I offended anybody with the statement, but I also said that it's most, NOT all!
Anyway here are some websites to help you decide:
www.amtrak.com - trains
www.greyhound.com - buses

You may also consider flying to Detroit as it may only be few dollars more then the train or bus, yet so much quicker.
www.expedia.com
www.orbitz.com

Good luck, and have a wonderful trip. If nothing else, I know you will love Chicago. Great city!!!

There are some charming small college towns in Michigan that might be nice for a meeting place. Look at Ann Arbor (4.5 hours by train) or Albion (about 3 hours by train)
http://annarbor.org/
www.virtualmichigan.org
Ticket prices are available at
www.amtrak.com
Another idea is to visit the Lake Michigan "harbor" towns, about 1.5 to 2.5 hours from Chicago. Look at Saugatuck and the surrounding area. You do need a car, though, and it can be very hard to find a hotel on summer weekends.

Sorry, corrrect url is
virtualmichigan.com

Thanks!

My friend will be driving from either Waterloo or London. I should also mention that we are students (my fiancee and I), so we will be able to get reduced fares.

If you decide to meet in Detroit, check Southwest Airlines. It should be cheaper and much faster than train or bus.

Keith

You could also check
http://travel.michigan.org

There's some beautiful beaches on the west side of the state but it would mean some driving for your friend.
If you meet in Detroit it's only about 2 hours for your friend traveling from London but obviously farther from Chicago (4-5 hours).

I believe that Ann Arbor would match both your travel needs and traveling times perfectly. It is about 3 hours from Chicago (drive time) and 5 hours from London. You can take either the train or bus from Chicago to Ann Arbor. Plus it is the home of the University of Michigan and has tons of great places to meet. Beware if you are going the weekend of the July 17-20 the Art Fair is going on and the city will be very crowded. But the Art Fair is fantastic.

Actually, that's the exact weekend we are going!

FYI: being a student in the US does not get you reduced fares on much of anything unless you buy those passes available outside the country beforehand.

Just a wild idea...I just did the drive from Chicago to Niagra Falls last year, stopping off in Stratford Ontario- which is farther from Chicago than Toronto or London certainly, but you could take a train from Chicago Union Station to Stratford, ON- beautiful little touristy town, where the Shakespeare festival takes over the town from April to November. Lots of nice restaurants, nice B&B and hotels and shopping. Even if you don't like Shakespeare, there are three plays by various playwrites nearly every night so there is a lot of activity in the town while not being overrun. If you reconsider driving, look up Stratford, Ontario on the web.

emjoy: Unfortunately we can't drive, since neither of us have a lisence. But thanks for the tip, maybe next time!

kahvi-
I thought you were driving- that's why I said if you reconsider driving you could take the (Amtrak) train directly from Chicago Union Station to Stratford Ontario. I'm sure your friends in London ON could take a train to Stratford as well since it's quite near to that in comparison.