Short vacation using only public transportation in Chicago (Lincoln, Clinton: real estate, apartments)

[rayssunshine]

I'm planning a short trip from St. Louis to Chicago and need a little insight. We'll be coming by train for the first time and then trying out maneuvering around the city without a car. Of course living in St. Louis, we're pretty car dependent, but we're considering a permanent move to Chicago and have heard countless times that it wouldn't be worth it to keep both cars. Any suggestions into day passes, hotels and things to do to help me map out a pretty convenient trip?

[marothisu]

Being a tourist in Chicago without a car is extremely easy and honestly recommended. A lot of tourist things are in one large area which is not only very walkable, but accessible by train/bus (not to mention thousands of cabs spread throughout the city).

What is the nightly budget for a hotel you're looking at and when are you looking to come? My suggestion is to look in the areas of the Loop, River North, Gold Coast, Streeterville, and Magnificent Mile. Some of these hotels are more expensive standard rate, but you can get discounts if you look on sites such as HotWire.com, priceline.com or look for deals on travelzoo.com. If you are coming when something huge is going on (i.e. a big music festival) then hotels in this area will raise their rates. My suggestion then, if you're on a limited budget, is to check out a site like AirBnb.com which private individuals (sometimes small companies) rent out their apartments, condos, houses, etc. You can get some great deals on there. A few of our posters on this forum actually rent their places out and I have a few friends who do it too. I have used the service overseas to rent a flat before. The important thing is to look at the ratings of the place and recognize when it has good ratings. The site is very professional and if anything goes wrong, they have a process to get your money back. Always read the ratings and pay attention to them.

I assume taking the train that you will be coming into Union Station/Amtrak. In that case, there are buses right there and the station is basically downtown. Not only that, but a Blue Line train is a few blocks away (Clinton stop) and you can ride that. OR you can take a cab. If you are staying in one of the areas I mentioned, the ride will not be that much. You can't purchase public transit passes at a bus stop but you may be able to at Union Station. Worst case, you go to the Blue Line (which is 24 hours) and you can buy them there.

If you are on a budget, then some of the outlying areas such as Lincoln Park and Lakeview may have good options as well. Those are neighborhoods just north of 'downtown' but offer a ton to eat, drink, do, etc.


My other suggestion is that if you have enough time in Chicago, to get out of these neighborhoods. For reference, Wrigley Field is located in Lakeview. These are extremely safe neighborhoods and they're all served by the train system. There's a TON of good food outside of downtown and it's on average cheaper too (also, the restaurant tax is 1% less in areas that aren't downtown). The Red Line and Blue Line trains run 24 hours/day.

[K 22]

Originally Posted by rayssunshine

I'm planning a short trip from St. Louis to Chicago and need a little insight. We'll be coming by train for the first time and then trying out maneuvering around the city without a car. Of course living in St. Louis, we're pretty car dependent, but we're considering a permanent move to Chicago and have heard countless times that it wouldn't be worth it to keep both cars. Any suggestions into day passes, hotels and things to do to help me map out a pretty convenient trip?

Three-day unlimited pass for $20. Any CTA train or bus, anytime. More than worth it.

And if you do decide to move to Chicago, you should keep your options open and keep one of your cars.

[jdiddy]

Originally Posted by K 22

Three-day unlimited pass for $20. Any CTA train or bus, anytime. More than worth it.

And if you do decide to move to Chicago, you should keep your options open and keep one of your cars.

Or get it from groupon for $9.

[marothisu]

I didn't see the "considering a move" part. The car part really depends on where you live. In some areas you don't need it, in other sleepier parts, you do or it would be not a hassle to own it.

[Oildog]

Cabs are plentiful and the CTA trains are easy to use...look at getting a weekend pass for those.

[jonnynonos]

Originally Posted by rayssunshine

I'm planning a short trip from St. Louis to Chicago and need a little insight. We'll be coming by train for the first time and then trying out maneuvering around the city without a car. Of course living in St. Louis, we're pretty car dependent, but we're considering a permanent move to Chicago and have heard countless times that it wouldn't be worth it to keep both cars. Any suggestions into day passes, hotels and things to do to help me map out a pretty convenient trip?

Public trans is such here that anywhere you stay you'll be fine. So you can stay where you want and you will have easy access to public transportation without really thinking about it.

[rayssunshine]

For the hotel budget, I'd like to stay around or less than $100. I've used airbnb.com before and LOVE it because I prefer to stay within actual neighborhoods rather than downtown hotels. Ok so the buses will be right there at Union Station. Awesome. That makes me feel tons better. From there, I think I can map something out. Just gotta pick a neighborhood to stay in! I've stayed in Lincoln Park/Lakeview (loved it and how walkable it is). Any suggestions on other neighborhoods that have a slightly different feel that are walkable as well...more young family oriented/affordable? We don't have kiddos yet, but would like to check out those areas in case we do end up moving there because I do know Lincoln Park real estate is quite pricey!

[knitgirl]

Roscoe Village, Ravenswood, Lincoln Square.

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by rayssunshine

For the hotel budget, I'd like to stay around or less than $100. I've used airbnb.com before and LOVE it because I prefer to stay within actual neighborhoods rather than downtown hotels. Ok so the buses will be right there at Union Station. Awesome. That makes me feel tons better. From there, I think I can map something out. Just gotta pick a neighborhood to stay in! I've stayed in Lincoln Park/Lakeview (loved it and how walkable it is). Any suggestions on other neighborhoods that have a slightly different feel that are walkable as well...more young family oriented/affordable? We don't have kiddos yet, but would like to check out those areas in case we do end up moving there because I do know Lincoln Park real estate is quite pricey!

Very cool. And yeah, the Blue Line is just a few blocks away from Union Station too. I would check into the areas of Lincoln Square, Ravenswood, Andersonville, or North Center. They are quiet, family oriented/late 20s+ oriented, but also have a number of great places to eat, drink, shop, etc at. The Brown Line train goes through here and it's maybe 5-7 minutes to Lakeview from there on the train. Not that far.

Not sure what's available up there on Airbnb or anything, but it's also not terribly far from Little Vietnam (Argyle) and Little India (Devon). Albany Park is also not far on the brown line which has Koreatown (really, what's left of it) but a number of Arab eateries/markets, mexican, chinese/korean, etc.


The mayor (Rahm Emmanuel) and his family actually live in the Ravenswood area.