Parking in downtown Chicago
 

We are staying at the Tremont Hotel at 100 East Chestnut Street in August. I noted that the only hotel parking available there is valet and it is $34 per day. Is there a parking garage nearby that has better rates and if so how do you get there from the hotel. I would plan to drop my family off with the luggage when we get there and then go and park the car in a local lot for three days as I hope to be able to take public transport to the different sites in the city and not use the car till we leave. Any help would be appreciated.

I was researching the astronomical car parking fees for leaving my car in Chicago for a week while taking Amtrak to Buffalo and back in the summer of 2001. At over 200 dollars I went with plan B. I dropped everyone and the luggage off at the train station then parked my car at Midway airport's long term parking. I paid a couple of bucks and rode the El for 30 minutes into downtown. At the time the long term at Midway was $12 a day for a total of $84 for the week. Quite a savings and well worth a few minutes on the El.

Good suggestion. I've done the same thing at O'Hare, where long-term parking is $13/day. If I was dealing with a larger group, a lot of luggage or just a few days, I might just bite the bullet and pay for the valet parking at the Tremont. (It's not the valet that's costing the real money. Even if you find a place to self-park in that area, it's going to cost most of the daily fee cited.)

There is at least one large public parking garage right up the street from the Tremont. Sorry, but I don't remember their 24-hour rate, tho it's probably up near the valet charge. One thought about taking the el from either airport. You will either have to transfer to a second train get over to the area of the Tremont (and then have about a four-block walk), or you could get off at your downtown Loop stop and take a cab the rest of the distance.

I went there last summer and paid about less that $8 a day compared to 30 at the hotel I was staying at. I parked at Grant Park.<BR><BR>Officially, Grant Park is the property bounded by East Roosevelt Road on the south, East Monroe Street on the north, Columbus Drive on the west, and Lake Michigan on the east. There are many ways to approach the park, and because of Grant Park's central location, accessing the park is easy via car, bike, inline skate, bus, el, or if you're a mounted officer, via horseback.<BR><BR>Driving and Parking<BR>From Lake Shore Drive, north or south: exit at Monroe or Jackson Boulevard. <BR>From the Kennedy Expressway (I-90/94): exit at Congress Parkway east and continue to the lakefront.<BR>From the Stevenson Expressway (I-55): take Lake Shore Drive North to Monroe or Jackson. <BR><BR>For most drivers, the logical place to head is the underground parking garage at Monroe and Columbus, where you can't beat the $5.74 (yes, that's right) flat rate for all-day parking. The Park District also operates parking garages on Michigan Avenue at Van Buren Street and Michigan Avenue at Monroe. There are also metered spots along Columbus Avenue, but finding an empty one is a rare feat.<BR> <BR>http://chicago.citysearch.com/feature/14779/<BR><BR>

Thanks to all who responded for the help. In regard to Grant Park, do they allow overnight parking and if so how secure is it? How far is it from the Tremont? Is it within walking distance from the Tremont?

I think Pogo765's info is a bit dated. It used to be that cheap to park in that garage but I believe they did an overhaul and the rate is more like $13 per day.<BR><BR>Here's a website with parking locations and phone numbers for the companies that run them. Since they have daily rates, I assume that overnight parking is allowed but you could give Standard Parking a call and find out what their policies are for vehicles left overnight as they run the cheapest (Monroe Street and Lakefront Millennium look like the best bets).<BR><BR>http://www.dtnchicago.com/parking.html<BR><BR>They would be at least a mile, mile and 1/2 from the Tremont. A cab ride from there would be about $5.<BR><BR>

I can't believe parking in Grant Park is that cheap overnight. It might be for early in/early out but we parked there on a Saturday a couple of months ago and paid much more. Also, there is a lot at Midway (I believe on 55th Street) where parking is only $6.20 a day. We just parked there a few weeks ago when we went out of town. Good luck - parking in Chicago is crazy!