Hi all, new to the forums!

My kids and I are making a trip to Chicago in a few weeks. My youngest is moving to live with his dad for a while, and we are meeting in Chicago at Union Station (his dad is taking a train there from another state).

I'm not crazy about meeting in Chicago, because everything is so expensive there, and my funds for this trip are pretty limited. I wanted to make it at least an overnight trip, so we could do a little sight-seeing. I've found a very nice hotel in the city for $89, but I'm open to traveling outside the city to get one for less, if necessary.

We have considered driving to Chicago, but have also considered taking a train. However, I haven't purchased the train tickets yet, and it appears that as the travel date gets closer, they're getting MORE expensive, not less - definitely not like the discount hotel sites work!

So at this point, here's what we'd like to do: drive to Chicago, visit Shedd Aquarium (we're going on one of their free days), visit Chinatown (going to eat at Joy Yee Noodle Shop), and possibly visit the Field Museum, though that isn't free on the day we're going to be there.

I'm figuring $100-$150 for gas, $55-$90 for the hotel room (depending on where we stay) and the rest for food & such. I plan on reserving $40 for transit passes so we can utilize public transit and just park our van for the day (which I realize also costs money).

Does this sound do-able? Does anyone have any ideas for free or very low cost things to do? I'm really hoping to keep the cost down around $300 for this trip.

Where are you driving from?

You're hotel budget is questionable at best especially when you add in taxes / fees / parking if you drive. What hotel is $89? That may be your best deal. Hopefully someone can help you here. This is tourist season.

What hotel have you found for $89? I can't imagine getting a room for any less than that, that would be clean and safe.
You have to allow for food, other than eatting at McDonald's and other fast food places, that would up your budget quite a bit. Chinatown is worth a quick visit, but really not a lot to do there. The Art Institute has free evenings on Thursday & Friday in the Summer, from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. That is definitely worth going to. Millenium Park is free and a must!

Hi tchoiniere -

I was able to get a room at The Central Loop hotel for $89 a night via roomrate.com. I do know of hotels outside the city that are $55 to $70 a night, but they are about 20 miles outside the city, and are nothing fancy, just a clean, decent room for the night.

We are driving from Michigan, as indicated in my subject "MI to Chicago...."

Thanks for the tips, isabellasu! We'll definitely check out Millenium Park.

If the Central Loop is the same hotel as Club Quarters, I had a friend who stayed there, we took her to the hotel. It is in a safe area and is nice. Is there a reason you want to go to Chinatown? It's a bit out of the way from your hotel and the museum campus. You probably wouldn't need a transit pass if you & the kids like to walk, walking to Chinatown would be too far.

My older son wants to check out Chinatown, so I said we'd make a quick trip over there. I guess we'll see when we get there how much time we actually end up spending there.

My son lives in a Western suburb so I'm not as familiar with the downtown. For those of you who are more knowledgeable, would pizza be a good fairly reasonable food option for Suebee?....can't beat the Chicago style pizza!....or maybe red hots sold by street vendors.

Pizza with sodas would be a good choice, they could enjoy a sit down restaurant and pizza, something more Chicago than fast food. They could probably dine for under $40 if they get one large pizza and sodas. Pizzeria Uno or Due, Gino's are the ones that I think of when I think Chicago style pizza. The Rock & Roll McDonald's would be fun, also Portillo's.

I saw an episode on Man vs. Food about Gino's....looked so yummy! And, you're right, isabellasu, Portillo's would be a good choice.

I would absolutely take the train to downtown Chicago. Parking is $40+. As tchoiniere pointed out, taxes and fees are quite high downtown. That being said - I would definitely stay downtown and not out in the suburbs. You'll still be stuck paying for expensive parking downtown. Yes - the train gets more expensive as the seats sell out - so book now. I used to find kids tickets were discounted.
If I had a quick trip with my kids on a budget, I would go for Shedd Aquarium on free day (actually, I wouldn't because of the awful crowds on a free day - but you mentioned you wanted to go - so good luck!). I would not try to fit in the Field Museum if doing Shedd. Although wonderful - for the price - you don't want to short-change yourself. If you can hit the Art Institute on a free day - absolutely wonderful to show the kids for an hour or two. It's huge - so just visit a small area. You can easily spend a couple of hours at Millineum Park - there are the fountains, "The Bean", outdoor space, probably some type of live music somewhere along the way, etc.
I can't speak about Chinatown - not familiar.
Depending upon the ages of your kids - you may just want to go to one of the many Corner Bakeries for bagels/fruit/sandwiches for dinner -and then splurge on ice cream later. There is a place downtown I"ve heard about for breakfast that serves you donuts while you wait, and I think give you Milk Duds when you leave? Someone on Fodors will know the name. That might be a place to go for a big breakfast - and tie everyone over until you get out of the city for your next meal. Also - check out MidwestLiving.com. I just saw a link that provided several free things to do in Illinois - and the Chicago Cultural Center was mentioned as giving free tours. Good luck and have a great time!

Is it Lou Mitchell's that gives the free Mild Duds?
Just walking around the area you will be staying is free and so much to see, all the buildings, window shopping, people watching. You can walk to the lakefront. When at Shedd you can spend time outside, they have the most amazing view of the skyline. Hopefully you will have good weather. You can park at Millenium Park, I think they have 24 hour parking and it's not as expensive as other garages.

These are all great tips, thank you so much! I'm looking forward to the trip, and welcome any other info anyone can give me.

Suebee,

Depending on the ages of your kids, I'd suggest spending the day downtown. In addition to the Shedd and the Art Institute, plan a walk north on Michigan Ave. Stop for an hour or so in Millenium Park and keep heading north. Great shopping including Nike, Apple and Garmin stores that keep guys happy, too. Head to Oak Street Beach for great people watching and continue north to North Ave beach if you can. On the way back, consider a stop at Navy Pier. Kids like the monster Ferris Wheel and again great people watching.

You should post the exact days you'll be in Chicago. There are some wonderful posters who will find free stuff to do. Also, be sure to check the festival schedule. Taste of Chicago usually happens late in June. It can be a little crazy, but fun, too.

Other possibilities include Buckingham Fountain and Grant Park, walking through the City to see the magnificant public art (Picasso, Chagall and many, many more), a bus ride to the Lincoln Park Zoo which is wonderful and free. Gold Coast Dogs for a great Chicago classic meal.

Have Fun,

Kevin

Kevin - thanks!

We'll be in Chicago June 19, possibly staying over into the 20th. It means hiring a house-sitter to take care of the house & dog, but it's worth it!

The kids are 11 and 17, so they're ok with walking a fair distance.

SueB,

Since you will be before Taste, you can get great hotel rates on Priceline. It looks like 4* properties are going for only $60 a night. So, you might be able to save a few $ and stay at a great hotel with a pool. Use biddingfortravel.com to familiarize yourself with priceline bidding if you are new to it. Don't get scared off by the minimum guarantee of a room that only sleeps two. I have more than 100 priceline stays and have always gotten the number of beds needed for our family.

You might want to consider going to the Cubs game on the afternoon of the 19th when they host the Indians. Tickets on craigslist or outside the park should be available at reasonable prices. You could grab lunch at the Cubby Bear and get to Wrigley in time for batting practice. It is also fun to ride the El to/from the game.

Have fun whatever you decide,

Kevin

Chicago is an awesome city--you will have a great time!

I agree w/ PP to give Priceline a try, but do your research first.

When you look at the cost of train tickets, make sure and check to see if they are still doing the discount when you travel with children; last time we took a train trip, each adult could take two kids (17 and under) for half-price. Amtrak also gives discounts for AAA members; if you aren't already, it might be worth joining as a basic membership for one person is quite reasonable. Having a car in downtown Chicago costs more than it's worth.

Thanks again, Kevin -

Things change day to day with this trip, it seems! We originally planned to take an Amtrak train to Chicago, but it's looking like driving myself will be cheaper and a little easier to control as far as our scheduling goes. I've always liked traveling on a flexible schedule, so once we drop my younger son off to his dad, it will be just my older son and myself, so we can kind of do what we want.

Still not sure if we're doing this all in one day or two days. I have a daughter living in Normal, IL, which is 2 hrs from Chicago, so I'm considering dropping down there for a few hours to see her before heading home. We can always grab a cheap motel on the way home as well, if it gets too late. That whole scenario has developed into another set of travel plans.

I've read about the Taste of Chicago thing - sounds like a lot of fun! It's neat that they have something like that over there - where I live, a "taste" of our little country town would include a pizza from the local restaurant (the only one in town), a bag of chips from the convenience store/gas station and a siz-pack from the grocery! LOL

Suebeehoney70, I'm really surprised that you calculate it will be cheaper for you to drive into Chicago than take public transportation, especially with the cost of gas skyrocketing now.

How much have you figured for the cost of the overnight parking? You must understand that overnight parking in downtown Chicago will run you anywhere from $24-50 and that's (probably) with no in/out privileges.

You mentioned above that you will be driving a van. You'll have to check if the van meets the parking facilities' requirements, as they all have height, length and weight restrictions. If the van doesn't, you'll have to find an alternative parking option somewhere. I don't imagine it will be any cheaper than the range mentioned above, though.

How are you driving in? Vans and pickups are prohibited from driving on Lake Shore Drive (U.S. #41) in Chicago.

Since you live in MI, have you looked into the cost for taking the South Shore and South Bend Railroad in from the South Bend Regional Airport? The long-term parking there is only $7-8 per 24 hour period. The South Shore's rates are much cheaper than Amtrak and they have the family fare plan if you take an offpeak train during the weekdays and on weekends. It takes a little more than a 2.5 hour ride each way from the South Bend Airport into downtown Chicago. You can look at the NICTD website for their times and fares. (Please keep in mind that South Bend is on a different time zone than Chicago and the timetables reflect that.)

Of course, that wouldn't allow you to visit your daughter, and I think you could be underestimating the driving time in Chicago traffic over a weekend.

Also, you need to take into account how the taxes will affect the total bill for the hotel. For example, a room for $89/nt. will probably total somewhere around $115 when taxes are included.

The Taste of Chicago is not running when you are here on June 19. However, there is a free concert by the Grant Park Symphony ("From 1909: Burnham's Plan and Rachmaninoff's 3rd") at the Frank Gehry-designed Jay Pritzker Pavilion at Millennium Park between 6:30-8:00 p.m.

I wish that I had better things to report in this reply, but I know you are on a very limited budget and I think that this would be important to you to know.

On your budget, I wouldn't even consider a Cubs game. Tickets alone would be most of your budget.

For the time you'll be downtown, what you have planned and on a walk from Millenium Park -and then North on Michigan Ave. with a break away with the kids to enter one of the skyscrappers and go up to see a few views(John Hancock!)- that will just about take all your time- if you are going to get the Shedd and things you mentioned "in", especially if you are going to take the el to Chinatown and back.

If you walk up Michigan Ave to Water Tower Place, I have found that the grandkids of your kids' ages like to eat in the the Water Tower Place's circle of fast food type choices in the huge food court there.

There are lots of threads here on deep dish pizza and lots of disagreements too on peoples' favorites.

www.metromix.com If you read about price levels for different downtown venues- restaurants here- it might help.

If I stay downtown I always use Priceline for hotel room. I have never paid over $99- not even on Venetian Night Weekend. But this late, the best deals may be gone already. I always book at least 3 to 5 months out and it works for me.

Downtown is not cheap, anyway you look at it. Bring bottled water or anything you absolutely cannot live without drinkwise- with you.

If you can leave your car at home. DO IT. It will save you money regardless of where you go and what you do- once you are even close to the downtown area. Some hotels are up to $40 a day to park, without the taxes. Parking for a ball game alone is either $23 or $28. And a beer at the game, most is up to the $10 mark. EACH!

Observe so much on your walk. For instance, just North of the Michigan Ave bridge- just after you have walked over the Chicago River- walking North- you will hit a building that has incorporated parts of other historical buildings in its stone walls. You can see pieces of the Berlin Wall, the pyramids, the Colosseum, etc. etc. placed right in the pattern. See if you can find more than 15 or 20 "pieces"!

Watch the action on the river- etc. etc.

Take a walk out to the Swissotel- go up and view the curve of the lake South from that vantage.

Or hit Navy Pier and just people watch or see the free stained glass or whatever happens to be there. (That is rather touristy but kids seem to like it.)

Have a good time.

BTW, I LOVE MICHIGAN. I'm going the other way, myself. I have a place on a lake near Marcellus.