mma

Hi everyone!
We are visiting Chicago in April for the first time and need advice.
1. Flying into Midway on a Sunday and staying at the Westin Michigan Ave. (love those starwood points!) We were thinking of taking public transit into the city. What is the closest stop to our hotel? Can we walk to the hotel from the stop?
2. We want to see the Field Museum, Art Institute and Science Museum while visiting.. . Planetarium or Aquarium if time. But we leave on Thursday. Any suggestions for what to fit in on that Sunday afternoon if we get into the city between 2-3pm ?
3. Hubbie would love to see a Cubs game - there is an evening or afternoon game while we are visiting. I am thinking we would freeze at the night game. We would be taking public transportation to the game and back. Safe at night? Any suggestions about good/bad sections for seats?
4. On Thursday we will be taking the South Shore Line from Millenium station. Is that walkable or take a taxi?
That's all I can think of for now. Thanks in advance for your help. Looking forward to our visit.

mma

ttt

around

Hey mma. You can take the Orange line from Midway, transfer at Library and take the Red line north to the Chicago stop. From there it's maybe a half mile to the Westin. Easy in my world, with a wheelie suitcase I'll walk 2 miles.

If there's a Cubs game you can take the El. There will be crowds as you come and go. Safety in numbers. If (and I do mean if) you can get tickets I like to be a bleacher bum. Cheapest seats in the house if you can get them the very first hour tix go on sale.

The walk to the South Shore is up for question. It's a haul at more than a mile. I'd do it but if you sleep in and don't want to lug the luggage the cab won't be outrageous.

Citylghts

With all due respect to the previous poster. Don't transfer at Library. You have to exit the L, then walk a block and re-enter the subway. Instead, transfer at Roosevelt. It's a direct connection and there are escalators and elevators.

You should look into transit passes. A 5-day pass will cost $18 and allows unlimited rides on all CTA trains and buses. You can buy them at from the vending machine at the Midway train station. It accepts cash and plastic.

Take the Red Line toward Howard and exit at Chicago Ave. From there, walk east 3 blocks to Michigan and left 2 more blocks to the Westin. From your hotel to the Museum Campus you can catch the Number 146 bus southbound on Michigan across from your hotel.

To Millennium Station and the Art Institute, take a Number 147 or 151 bus from the same stop. If you decide to walk it's only about a half-mile from the Westin.

To reach Wrigley Field, you can either take the Red Line toward Howard again or catch the Number 146 bus northbound. Exit either at Addison. From the L, you'll be able to see the ballpark.

If you take the bus instead of walking five blocks to the train, you'll need to walk about six blocks from the bus stop to Wrigley. But, the ride is scenic as most of the route is along the lake.

around

Good call Citylghts. As a tourist in Chicago taking the Megabus to Union Station, I only ever look at the Loop.

Citylghts would the Millennium Park fountain be running in April? It looks so cool but I haven't made it yet. Mostly 'cause I visit Chicago in the winter when the hotels are cheap but the temperature is freezing!

TwoFatFeet

seatdata.com gives you an idea on seats/views of the field.

Bleachers are my favorite seats too, but they should be pretty affordable from scalper sites for weekday games. (FWIW, bleacher seats aren't the cheapest; "upper deck reserved" seats are lowest on the price scale according to the Cubs' site).

I wonder if you're in town the week the Mets are playing the Cubs; bleacher seats are around 30 bucks on stubhub.com. There are also some upper deck tix available for even less from the Cubs' website.

mma

Thank you so much around, Citylghts, and TwoFatFeet! This is just the info I was hoping for. We will have rolling suitcases, comfy shoes, and are used to walking. Thanks so much for the specific directions into the city - I feel confident we will end up in the right place ! TwoFatFeet- yes the game I'm looking at is the afternoon on 4/22 against the Mets. I did see tickets available on the web. I am going to call and see what I can do. If available, would you pick bleachers over upper deck? My husband and thirteen year old will be the ones into the game. My sister and I are there for the hot dogs!!
Any suggestions about that Sunday afternoon? Is there one museum that we could hit the hightlights within a two to three hour window of time?

Citylghts

The faces appear on the Crown Fountain throughout the winter, but the base doesn't have water in it.

An easy guide to judging distance in the city is by address. All numbers begin at the intersection of Madison and State Street. Each mile is 800 numbers and in that part of the city there are 50 number per block (some parts of the city have larger blocks with 100 numbers). For example, the Westin is 909 N Michigan and Wrigley Field is 3400, so they're around three miles apart.

dmlove

I am a tourist to Chicago -- love the city, and have been there maybe 6 or 7 times. If there is one museum not to miss it's the Art Institute, a truly world class institution, with enough "famous" art to keep you all interested!

TwoFatFeet

Between upper deck and bleachers, I would always pick bleachers.

japw82

Watch the weather before packing for the trip. I've been in Chicago at the end of April/beginning of May and had snow!!!! but have also been there during that timeframe and had upper 60's to lower 70's.

mma

Citylghts- thanks for the reminder about transit passes. That's what we will do.
dmlove- Art Institute is a must! We will be celebrating my sister's birthday while in the city (a significant one!)and she would love it. My son also did a project on "American Gothic" so that is a must see as well as the miniatures.
TwoFatFeet - tomorrow I will call for tix. Will try for bleachers.
japw82- We have similar weather around here(southeastern MA)so we will go prepared. That is why I would prefer the day baseball game rather than night. Maybe we will luck out with warm, sunny weather.
We have only heard wonderful things about Chicago so we're really looking forward to the trip. Thanks everyone for your input.