Leaving Thursday for Chicago~Please help!!!
 

My dd11, ds42 and I are going first to Oakbrook, IL for a dance workshop/competition from Thursday to Sunday afternoon at the Marriott. Then we are going downtown for two nights, staying at the Ritz. Here is my plan so far. Please give me any suggestions that you have. Thanks!!!

Sunday:
Check in around 3:00
Window shop in the area
Gino's East for dinner around 5:00
Walk to Oak Street Beach and walk/bike on the path
Possibly go to obs. deck at the Hancock or save for tomorrow's lunch (Sig. Lounge)
Swim at the hotel pool

Monday:
Bfast at Temp Cafe or Bongo Room (Which one is closer to our hotel?)
MOSI (Want to arrive early; Have tickets for Harry Potter and sub)
Lunch at Signature Lounge (if not, where do you suggest? American Girl Cafe?)
Lincoln Park zoo (Is this walkable from hotel?)
North Avenue Beach
Dinner at Food Court
Possibly go to Millenium Park and/or Grant Park to see Buckingham Fountain lights (Is it a safe area in the evening?)

Tuesday:
Breakfast: Room Service
Field Musuem (Pirates Exhibit)
Time to go home: Is there a hot dog place close to the Field Museum or our hotel that we could go to before leaving?

By the way, ds in this case refers to dear sister, not dear son!!! :)

I can't help with everything, but just a few thoughts. The Millennium/Grant Park area is perfectly safe at night. Just use common sense as you would in any city, but I've been at the Bean around 11pm and never felt unsafe.

I've had appetizers at the Signature Lounge, but never a full meal; the appetizers were OK but nothing I'd rave about. However, you're paying money to get to the top of the Hancock either way (lounge or observation deck), so you may as well get something tangible out of it! Make sure to check out the view from the ladies' room. As to whether to do a meal at the Signature Lounge or the American Girl Cafe, that just depends on how much your daughter is into American Girl, I'd think.

Here's a recent thread on the Pirates exhibit at the Field Museum. I thought the whole museum was great and definitely worth a trip, but the thread suggested that if you're looking for interactive sort of things for the pirates exhibit, it's probably not what you're looking for. Just a heads up.

http://www.fodors.com/community/unit...in-chicago.cfm

Thanks jen103 for your advice! As far as the pirate exhibit goes, I already bought the tickets so I guess we'll make the best of it. Actually I bought 2 extra tickets for that and the Harry Potter and sub exhibit at the MOSI because my nephews were supposed to be coming too. Long story.....Anyone need tickets? LOL!

Depends... when are the tickets for? I'll be there mid-September! :) Just to clarify, the posters on that thread seemed to think it'd be great for adults. I just didn't know how "kid-friendly" you'd be expecting it to be for your daughter.

<i>However, you're paying money to get to the top of the Hancock either way (lounge or observation deck), so you may as well get something tangible out of it!</i>

I would like to clarify the above statement.

Hancock Observatory costs ~$15 per person for the elevator.

Signature Lounge elevator is free, so you are not paying to get there.

The 2 are 1 or 2 floors apart so both will give you the same views.

At the end, do the Signature Lounge and if not for lunch, at least for a drink or 2, enjoy the views and the cost will be almost the same. At the same time, there is no drink minimum, so you can just order coffee, soda, or a cheap beer, enjoy the views and leave, in which case the total cost will be much less.

Just make sure it is a clear day. It's not much fun on a grey, cloudy day. On a VERY clear day it's possible to see across the lake all the way to that little SW corner of Michigan, but it has to be VERY clear, sharp day.

If you decide to do the SL, make sure you find the correct elevator. The observatory uses their own. The SL elevator is on the south side of the building, about middle of the base of the building.

Have a great time!

AAFrequentFlyer - thanks so much for clarifying that. I realized after I posted that I should have been a little more clear!

No problem... :-)

Technically you were correct. Both options will end up costing, I just wanted to make sure the OP understood the difference.

I don't think you can just pop into the American Girls cafe and get a table. A friend took her granddaughter and daughter, and had to make reservations a long way ahead.

Actually I checked online for AG ressies and there was still availability for various times during the day. I figured I wouldn't know for sure what time we would be done at the museum and I hate rushing so...since we are staying in the same building as AG, I figured it would be easy enough to check for ressies as we return from the museum. No big deal if there aren't any. My dd is still interested in AG but it's not a make or break ressie.

Thanks for the info on the Sig. Lounge. Our family has had thanksgiving dinner there twice, but my sister has never been. The views are worth it if the weather cooperates.

You MUST also try to make it to Navy Pier. Free firework show every Wednesday and Saturady @ 9:30 pm. Amazing

Sorry, but my opinion of Navy Pier differs from gail's. Except for the free fireworks, I'd make a point not to waste my time. Even my kids thought NP was a waste of time.

We won't be there on a Wednesday or Saturday. We will be in Downtown Chicago Sunday through Tuesday. Thanks for the idea though.

To reply to jent103, all of these special exhibit tickets are issued on a timed entry basis - for both the day *and* the exact time. So tickets for the upcoming week will not be good in September.

Ashley, Wow! You've got a lot planned for Monday. I think you will be hard pressed to get all that in. First, the Museum of Science and Industry is literally 9+ miles away from the top of the Magnificent Mile, where the John Hancock Center is located. It will take you *at least* 1/2-3/4 hour just to get there (not including wait time for the bus, assuming it is the #10 express). Local busses take longer, BTW.

The first #10 SB on Monday is scheduled at 8:55 a.m. for Chestnut/Mies; 8:56 a.m. for Michigan/Chicago; etc., reaching the MSI at 9:29 a.m. The busses are approximately 20 minutes apart (notwithstanding any heavy traffic tie-ups/mechanical difficulties/accidents/etc.). If a bus breaks down, you have to wait for the next scheduled bus on the route.

The MSI opens at 9:30 a.m. and I don't know what times you have chosen for boarding the U505 and seeing "Harry Potter: the Exhibit". Those two alone will take you at least 1.75-2 hours to get through. Figure perhaps another hour or 2 in the MSI and you are suddenly up to 3-4 hours in the MSI plus another 1-1.5 hours for travel time, total 4-5.5 hours.

The Signature Room buffet runs only from 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m. and I doubt that they will seat you right at 2:30 p.m.

So, after your lunch, you wanted to go to the Lincoln Park Zoo. Figure 15-20 minutes for a bus trip (not including wait time for the bus, which shouldn't be too long). You could probably walk it in 40-45 minutes at a brisk walk. The Zoo closes at 5:00 p.m. You could always take a cab - shouldn't be too expensive and that would be the quickest route there.

There's a Corner Bakery right inside the Field Museum, if you wish to eat there.

exiledprincess,
After hearing about the bus information, I think we will take a taxi to the MOSI. Our tickets for Harry Potter are at 11:15 and the sub at 12:30. My dd is not a big Harry Potter fan so we won't be spending a ton of time there. I only got those tickets because my 2 nephews wanted to see it and now they are not going. Oh well! I read all the books so I guess I will be the one to enjoy it!

I planned on arriving at 9:30 so that we could do the coal mine with no wait, then tour some of the other areas before HP exhibit and sub. The sub is only supposed to take 15 minutes for the tour I believe. How far is the HP exhibit from the sub?

How long would the ride take in a taxi from our hotel (Ritz) to the MOSI?

There are many pieces in the Harry Potter exhibition (i.e., all of the principal wands and a great many of the robes (school, dress and quidditch); the Sorcerer's Stone; the Golden Snitch and other quidditch items; the TriWizard's Cup; Hagrid's hut and costume; the Mandrakes; etc.). I think you will be amazed by the wealth of detail which they took in executing those costumes and props for the movies and have a new appreciation for them. At the start of the exhibit, there is even some time spent when individuals from your group are sorted into the different houses by the Sorting Hat. I still think that you will be in there about an hour. IMHO, you've paid the extra money and should take advantage of it.

The HP exhibition is actually outside of the MSI in its own tent, but you aren't too far from the sub.

With respect to your comments on the 15 minutes for the tour of the sub - that's 15 minutes for the actual *boarding* and tour of the sub. However, before you even get to where the U505 is located, there is the entire exhibit to read, study, listen to and experience so you understand what you are seeing. That's why I said I think you'll be spending at least 3/4 - 1 hour for the exhibit.

The taxi ride would be at least 20 minutes, from the Ritz, I'd imagine, depending on the traffic at 9:00 a.m., which is still the morning rush hour (longer if there is heavy traffic or an accident occurred). If you were going from Tempo Cafe, it'd be a little longer because you are more westerly.

BTW, the Coal Mine exhibit takes around 30 minutes and I'd add a few more for the wait for entry.

I'll comment about your Monday breakfast...Tempo is closer, but please please go to Bongo Room. It's probably not good to admit, but I have tried soooo many places and Bongo is my favorite. I'd go to the one in Bucktown/Wicker Park, although there is a 2nd location closer to your hotel in the S Loop. Be aware there could be a line, even on a Monday, but it's well worth it.
You are spending so much time downtown, but the neighborhoods have so much to offer. If you go to the Bongo Room in Bucktown then you'd at least be able to see one of the neighborhoods.

Gina817, unfortunately, I don't think there is any time in the OP's very limited stay in Chicago to go into the outlying neighborhoods (save Lincoln Park and the Gold Coast for the Zoo and maybe a walk along North Avenue Beach to Oak Street Beach and Hyde Park for the MSI but nothing else).

I personally think the OP's initerary on Monday is so full that they won't get through everything, except if they rush through the MSI and the special exhibits.

exiledprincess, What would you suggest I eliminate on Monday? How great is the zoo? I wish I had more time but I don't. There can always be a next trip, right?

Gina817, I am assuming that I should take a taxi to Bongo in Bucktown/Wicker Park? How long will that take? How much time will I need to get there, eat breakfast, and get to the museum using a taxi by 9:30? What would you rave about on their menu?

Ashley, IMHO, it would have to take a *really, really, really* special breakfast place for me to pay a cab fare from the Wicker Park/Bucktown area to the MSI during the morning rush hour. And the Bongo Room ain't it. (No offense, Gina!) Just from the top of the Magnificent Mile by the Ritz to the MSI, cab fare will probably run you around $20, if you don't run into any heavy traffic.

With having 12:30 p.m. tickets for the U505, I wouldn't anticipate that your group would be back at the top of the Magnificent Mile until around 2:00-2:15 p.m. I'm not sure what the Signature Lounge does, but I would assume that they do not refresh the luncheon buffet items until right up to the closing time of 2:30 p.m. So going later might mean not the freshest choices and/or not getting certain choices at all. That's not to say you couldn't go up there for a la carte options.

Is this something you could leave until the next day?

I'm not sure what your time you are scheduled for the Pirates exhibition and what time you need to leave for the airport (?).

The Lincoln Park Zoo, although free and nice, is really sort of a secondary attraction (unless your daughter really wanted to see it). However, I do think that enjoying the park system is really important when visiting Chicago.

So my suggestion is: If you are only going to the Signature Room for the inexpensive buffet, perhaps skip that and go right on to the Lincoln Park Zoo and have lunch in that area. (Keeping in mind that if you take the bus, the ride would be almost an hour, maybe more, because you'd have to transfer from the #10 to the #151.) If you wanted to go for the view to the Signature Room and didn't care about the buffet pricing, then go there and *maybe* forego the Lincoln Park Zoo. You can still easily walk up Oak Street Beach to the North Avenue Beach and back - but that will take some time, of course. Also to keep in mind: This area of the Lakeshore Trail gets the heaviest concentration of attendance and lots of Chicagoans use this area for exercise after work. So you need to know it will be pretty busy on the path, especially from Fullerton (by the Zoo) south to Oak.

The pirates exhibit is for 10:30. Do I need to arrive right when the field museum opens (Is it 9:30?) or can I spend some time having bfast this morning first? We are driving but need to be back in MI around 5ish so need to leave close to 12:00 noon. I have been to the Field Musuem before and mostly want to see the mummy area, Sue, and of course, the pirates exhibit. Any suggestions on how to arrange this day would be great!
By the way, if we don't go to the Bongo Room, is there another bfast place close to our hotel that we can walk to prior to either museum? Can you get bfast at the Food Court or Grand Lux Cafe?

Re: the Bongo Room. There's one in the South Loop, and I think that's the one that you were referring to before Gina mentioned the one in Wicker Park/Bucktown being better (and I concur with her assessment). Unfortunately, Wicker Park/Bucktown is in the opposite direction from where you want to be and it would have cost a *lot* of money to take a cab to the MSI.

If you were talking about the Shedd, I'd say Yes! Get there first thing as soon as it opens. The lines get terribly long. But the Field isn't that busy, as a rule.

In MI 5ish, your time? Does that mean 4ish, our time? And you are driving. Then maybe you'd do best to just take your car to the Field and park it there.

When you are in Chicago, you don't want to be moving a car once it's parked because most places don't offer in/out privileges and you have to pay each separate place you park. However, since you are short on time, you might want to just drive over to the Field. Even though parking is going to run you $16.00 (for first 4 hours), you would be paying nearly as much for taking the bus there and back (3 people x $5/RT) and would be saving at least an hour's travel (and associated) time.

Inasfar as breakfast on that date, didn't you want to do room service? I figured you did because of packing and whatnot. If not, though, there are several places somewhat close where you could easily walk to them. Of course, you know about Tempo Cafe. The Cafe de Architectes is in the Sofitel Water Tower, just west of Michigan Avenue.

At the John Hancock Center is the Espression by Lavazza Cafe, which opens at 8 a.m. http://www.hancock-observatory.com/e...spression.html. They serve quiche and frittatas, baked goods as well as yogurt parfait. Consider this instead of the Signature Room. You need to buy tickets for the observatory. (There is another location at the Drake as well but you don't get the view, of course.)

Foodlife opens at 11 a.m.

If we pack up our luggage in our car and then head to the Field Museum, should I worry about someone breaking into my car? What is the parking situation like there? Indoors? Security guards?

Yes, I did want to get room service our last morning. But I don't want room service both days so I was refering to the other day as far as bfast is concerned. You mentioned Corner Bakery in the Field Musuem. Is there any place like that at the MOSI?

Which restaurant is closer to the Ritz: Bongo or Tempo?

5:00 Michigan time. That would give us an extra hour, right?

Ashley, I do not own a vehicle here in Chicago (an unnecessary expense, IMHO) so I do not drive to the Field, the Shedd or Soldier Field. However, not very many parking facilities have security guards, even if they are indoors.

Here is the map of the parking facilities at the Field. www.fieldmuseum.org/plan_visit/default.htm. As you can see, there are several parking facilities around there. If you have questions about the security, give them a call (since it's probably already too late for e-mail).

If you feel uncomfortable with having your luggage in your car at the Field's parking lot, you can always leave the car wherever you parked it originally, go to the Field and then come back (check out and retrieve your car), but you'll have to figure 1 hour travel back and forth plus the extra time for check out and/or luggage and car retrieval.

I see that the Ritz has a couple of parking options in the past - valet with in/out privileges and one self-park without. If you are paying for the first and have in/out privileges, you could take your car down to the Field and back. But you still are losing that .75 hour or so travel time.

Tempo Cafe is closer to the Ritz.

No, 1 hour less. 4 p.m. Chicago is 5 p.m. Michigan.

BTW, above, I assumed you meant patrolling security guards and not just the employees collecting the money for parking at the exits. Sometimes, when there are special events at the museums and at Soldier Field, extra security guards are brought in for crowd control, etc. (I'm only mentioning that last for others, as I don't think it applies in your situation, Ashley.)

The Shedd does have valet parking for $25 (see that URL I mentioned above) but only on Saturdays and Sundays (limited availability) and I believe you have to purchase that in advance.

Oops! Sorry! The URL for the Shedd parking is www.sheddaquarium.org/getting_to_shedd.html.

We got back last night and now I wish we were still in Chicago! First of all, the Ritz is a wonderful hotel! They upgraded us to a view of Lake Michigan on the 27th floor! Very nice! Our room was recently remodeled and was very clean. If you have any questions, please ask.

We arrived on Sunday at about 3 pm. After checking in to the hotel, we quickly looked around the new American Girl store (amazing!) before going back to the hotel lobby where my daughter, 11, got to make cookies in the Ritz kitchen. Fun! Later that evening, after the pastry chef baked the cookes, room service delivered them along with decorating supplies!

My daughter also got the AG package even though I didn't pay for it. If you want more details about that, let me know. She loved it!

After making the cookies, we went back to the AG store and bought a doll. Then we went shopping in the water tower mall and ate dinner at the food court (Food Life). We loved eating there because of the variety of food and how fresh it was! They don't premake the food but cook it in front of you. After eating, we walked down to Lake Shore Drive to the beach with the bikes for rent, people playing volleyball, etc. I couldn't remember which beach this is? Help! But it was a nice walk and I wish that we had rented bikes. Next time!

The next day we got up early, had room service for breakfast (pancakes, french toast, bran muffin, and granola) and took a taxi to the Museum of Science and Industry. I love this museum! The Harry Potter exhibit was nice but since I was the only fan in my group, I tried not to spend too much time reading everything. It was a great visual display! What I loved the most was the submarine! We went inside and it was truly amazing! I would do this again in a heartbeat. We did take the time to read all the displays before we went in. Actually we did that before we went to the Harry Potter exhibit and then came back to the sub for the tour after HP. If I were to do it again, I would not schedule them that way, but we made the best of it. I didn't realize the the Body Slices were being remodeled. Bummer!

We stayed at the MOSI until almost 2:00 and were very hungry so we decided to go back to our hotel and eat at Food Life again! Nothing we ate disappointed!

After we ate, my daughter took her new American Girl doll to the AG store to get her ears pierced. LOL! Then we went to Michigan Avenue and shopped. I got a few clothes at Filene's Basement, a few treats at the Hershey store, a few odds and ends at Crate and Barrel before my dd was complaining of her tummy hurting. We went back to the hotel and relaxed. I was dying to go back out but no one else (esp. dd) was up for it.
Next time...

Our last day I let them sleep in until 8:30. Then we checked out of our hotel and drove to the Field Museum. We ate at the Corner Bakery inside. It was tasty! My dd had a cinnamon roll and my sister and I had bagels.

We had tickets for the pirates exhibit. My daughter got very bored with this exhibit as mentioned by other posters due to the amount of reading to do. She liked the area where you can tie knots, the place where you can touch pirate money, and the gift shop. I was surprised since she was looking forward to this so much. I tried to summarize the reading for her to make it more interesting. However, it was very interesting for my sister and me. I would do it again. It does require a significant amount of time if you read everything so plan for that.

We also saw Sue (and her head), the mummies, and the animals, including the man eating lions. I still don't understand that display on the lions (it's not really the lions, or is it??). My sister liked the Field better than the MOSI, but my dd and I like the MOSI better.

After we left the museum, we drove home. We had a great time and can't wait to come back again. Is the Addams Family play (musical?) ok for children? Maybe we will return in the fall. :)

Glad you had a great time. For the lions, have you seen the movie "The Ghost and the Darkness"? Those are the lions that the movie was based on.

I'm glad you had such a fun trip, Ashley! Thanks for posting back.

I'm guessing the beach you're talking about is Oak Street.

Ashley, thanks for posting your trip report. I'm so glad that you had such a great time.

Re the U505: Years ago (and I hate to admit how many) when I was a young bratty type, I boarded the U505 for the first time. Now that I'm an older bratty type :D, the memories are still clear.

Re the "Addams Family": This is the pre-Broadway world premier being held in Chicago, but you might be able to find out some more information from the production's website.