Can any of you guys help me with an upcoming trip to Chicago? I am going there for a long weekend starting October 5, and I'm taking my wife & twin 8 month old daughters. I need to go downtown a few time sover the weekend, but I would really like a suites type hotel with 2 rooms, so I can put my daughters in a separate room. Anything downtown with 2 rooms is ludicrously expensive, but I've found a hotel in Elmhurst (18 miles) from Downtown that fits the bill for around $80/night. Any advice you can give me? Is it a huge hassle to get downtow from there? Is Elmhirst fairly convenient to O'Hare? Any other accommodation suggestions would be appreciated.
I stayed in Shaumberg once. It wasn't too bad and wasn't too far away. I think it was convenient to an airport, but we drove.
Not only are the hotels downtown ludicrously expensive, they are made for little people. Not sure why, but the hallways were twice as narrow and the rooms were tiny, same with the elevators. Weird. Anyway, I have stayed in Rockford, and it is small, but decent lodging is fairly cheap. Rockford is about 45 min. to an hour outside of Chicago. Also, if you like Italian food, there is a restaraunt called Maria's. It is supposedly famous around the state. They only take cash. Anyway, it is the best Italian food I have ever had bar my mother's and grandmother's.
Davo, sorry can't help you with Chicago, except to stay away from the Bulls they will suck the winning attitude out of you. More importnantly, did you get the tapes i sent???? Smeg
Yo dude I just moved from Houston to Chicago's suburbs. Particularly Schaumburg/Hoffman Estates area. You should come chill at my house. Nah really though you should try to get a hotel here (15-20 min from CHicago/ 5-10 min from O-Hare) or in Rosemont which is like right across from O-Hare.
I just arrived in Chicago tonight for a week's visit. (Used to live here from '94-'96.) Just because I'm a swell human being , maybe I can do some legwork for you, like pass by a place that sounds like a bargain on the Web to see if it's a dump in real life. Looking at a map, Elmhurst is about 4-5 miles south of O'Hare. If you expect to have a car and are used to commuting, I suppose that's reasonably convenient (looks like you're close to separate freeways that take you more or less straight to O'Hare going north, or straight downtown going east).
Just saw a report on the local news last night ... because of the tourism dropoff after the hijackings/attacks last week, Chicago hotels are dropping their rates sharply to fill rooms. The report specifically said the Essex Hotel downtown was offering rooms for as little as $59/night. Maybe you should give them a call.
Make sure you have a Chicago style pizza at Pizzeria Due if you stay downtown. Best pizza I have ever had!!!! It's the kind you have to eat with a fork because it is so think and has so much "stuff" on top!
