Money Saving Tips for Chicago family vacation

[ValpoCory]

We are taking the kids (DD7, DS3) to Chicago for a few nights in July. We are renting a car and are staying at the Doubletree Hotel. What are some good family activities? Any good coupons?

We are close to Navy Pier, and a couple things we are interested in are the Shedd Aquarium, the bean at Millennium Park, doing a shorter boat tour, and maybe the Children's Museum. Any opinions on those? Any advice on getting around? Should I drive around (to the Aquarium, for instance) and park or will it save money and stress to use taxis?

Thanks in advance.

Thank you.

 

[bookgirl]

public transportation is probably cheaper than parking (from what I read it can be really really high at some places and not convient even then).

I am going later this month for a week so I preordered a 7 day unlimited bus/train pass for $28 bucks. (less than the parking fee at my hotel for one day)

You can get them there as well but sometimes the machines run out then you have to trek to a terminal. Fares run about $2 for adults on the buses and $4 on trains for individual tickets with no transfer.

Here's a website.

http://www.transitchicago.com/

 

[ValpoCory]

Thanks. I am leaning against driving to the Aquarium. I'll see what bus options their are.

 

[taymaesmom]

I would skip the rental car and just use public transportation, odds are you will pay $25-35 a night to park at your hotel. Plus parking everywhere in the city usually starts around $20 and goes up. When we visit we walk almost everywhere, you'd be surprised at how much easier it is to just walk.

 

[bethifoody]

Have you checked out the Citypass?

 

[ShelsGoingToDisney]

Agree with the others ditch the rental car! Our hotel was $50 per night to park and traffic is crazy! The public transportation is fantastic there. You can use the L to get from either airport and if you are staying near the Navy Pier you can probably walk to a lot of things, or take the bus, L, or Subway. Very cheap, convenient, and easy.

 

[indimom]

Have you checked out the Go Chicago Card?

 

[kellyjeanie]

There's a water taxi that goes from Navy Pier back and forth to Shedd Aquarium, it also takes care of the short boat ride for you (awesome view of the city from the water). We visited Chicago last summer. We had fun at the Shedd but I'd highly recommend buying tickets in advance somehow, either through the City Pass or online - the lines were super long for people waiting to buy tickets on site and we were able to bypass that by buying our tickets in advance online. We are total hicks but managed to take a water taxi to Navy Pier, bus to Millennium Park (so cool!!) and then a taxi back to the Shedd (where our car was, parked at Soldier Field). Taxi of course not the cheapest option but we were tired and couldn't figure out the correct bus route back to the Shedd, lol. I'm glad we didn't drive around downtown, though, that would have been a major pain.

 

[ValpoCory]

There's a water taxi that goes from Navy Pier back and forth to Shedd Aquarium, it also takes care of the short boat ride for you (awesome view of the city from the water). We visited Chicago last summer. We had fun at the Shedd but I'd highly recommend buying tickets in advance somehow, either through the City Pass or online - the lines were super long for people waiting to buy tickets on site and we were able to bypass that by buying our tickets in advance online. We are total hicks but managed to take a water taxi to Navy Pier, bus to Millennium Park (so cool!!) and then a taxi back to the Shedd (where our car was, parked at Soldier Field). Taxi of course not the cheapest option but we were tired and couldn't figure out the correct bus route back to the Shedd, lol. I'm glad we didn't drive around downtown, though, that would have been a major pain.

Amazing tips on the water taxi and pre-paying for Aquarium tickets! Thank you. (ETA: Although the Shedd website says "Purchase at Shedd box office, not available online. " for the 2 most popular ticket options) We're going on a Monday, so maybe it won't be as crowded as a weekend.

We arrive on a Sunday afternoon and leave on Tuesday morning to drive around and up Lake Michigan to Northern Michigan/Mackinac Island to see family. So that's why we will have a rental car. Usually in big northern cities, I fore go the rental car and walk/use public transit.

I found a garage online that's near our hotel where you can prepay a space for $21 per night. It seems like a waste to rent a car and store it in a parking garage for 36 hours. Maybe there is a better way. We will have a car seat and a booster seat and about 6 bags with us, not to mention our youngest is a 3.5 year old boy, so public transportation from the airport to the hotel is a no go. I probably will keep the rental car since we sort of need it as a portable storage garage for all that stuff.

 

[ValpoCory]

Have you checked out the Go Chicago Card?

I just did, and that looks like a great deal if you do enough of the things on the list. Thanks.

 

[720L]

Lincoln Park Zoo is free! We just discovered this a few years ago & wish we would have gone there sooner. I had heard about it, but figured it wouldn't be any good because it was free. WRONG. Great zoo!

 

[sharbear]

I know you want a car but I would hire a car service to take you from the airport to the hotel. You should be able to get a van for al of your stuff. Then rent a car when you leave town. Car rental agencies have rental sites not at the airport, enterprise for one has rental agencies all over town. They should be able to deliver your car to your hotel and then you can drive it.

Traffic is pretty crazy in Chicago and parking is expensive. Even if you decide to rent a car I would take public transportation when you are in town. Much easier to get around than driving and finding parking.

Also I'm not sure that I would leave belongings in a rental car in a public garage. Seems like an invitation for disaster.

 

[Nik's Mom]

Travel Zoo always has good deals for anything ranging from hotels to entertainment. Right now, they have a deal on Cirque Shanghai tickets for $15.
http://www.travelzoo.com/entertainm...anghai-Returns-to-Navy-Pier-Half-Off-1481736/

 

[kellyjeanie]

Amazing tips on the water taxi and pre-paying for Aquarium tickets! Thank you. (ETA: Although the Shedd website says "Purchase at Shedd box office, not available online. " for the 2 most popular ticket options) We're going on a Monday, so maybe it won't be as crowded as a weekend.

Oh that's too bad - I swear last summer we got the Shedd Pass or similarly-priced ticket online. I don't see a comparable ticket now on their website. We went during the week in the summer and the line was out the door and down the steps. I think the $8 tickets just include the main area that was super crowded, but that is definitely a big savings! It looks like you might be able to get the "VIP" tickets at your hotel.

 

[rigs32]

It sounds like you're trying to pack way too much into 1.5 days with two young kids.

If you have a smart phone, mapping programs include public transportation routes. When I go to Chicago, I plug in the place I want to go and it gives me choices - train or bus. If you want to plan ahead, you can look up the routes ahead of time and have them written down.

 

[ValpoCory]

Oh that's too bad - I swear last summer we got the Shedd Pass or similarly-priced ticket online. I don't see a comparable ticket now on their website. We went during the week in the summer and the line was out the door and down the steps. I think the $8 tickets just include the main area that was super crowded, but that is definitely a big savings! It looks like you might be able to get the "VIP" tickets at your hotel.

Thanks for the tip on the line. My hotel does sell VIP Tickets, but for $40 per ticket, which is more than buying a Total Experience Pass online for $38/$29. The ticket I want to buy is the Shedd Pass for $29/$20, which you have to wait in line for. So my quandary is ... do I pay $9x4 = $36 just to bypass the line? I'll think about it.

 

[ValpoCory]

I know you want a car but I would hire a car service to take you from the airport to the hotel. You should be able to get a van for al of your stuff. Then rent a car when you leave town. Car rental agencies have rental sites not at the airport, enterprise for one has rental agencies all over town. They should be able to deliver your car to your hotel and then you can drive it.

Traffic is pretty crazy in Chicago and parking is expensive. Even if you decide to rent a car I would take public transportation when you are in town. Much easier to get around than driving and finding parking.

Also I'm not sure that I would leave belongings in a rental car in a public garage. Seems like an invitation for disaster.

I will definitely look into a van service to the hotel and delaying the rental car until we need it. Thank you.

ETA: I called Hertz and changed my pickup date to Tuesday from the Hyatt Regency downtown (5 minute walk from my hotel). Going from an 8-day rental to a 6-day rental saved me $175 off my car rental price. Sheesh, what a tip sharbear. Thank you!! And I found a shared ride service from Midway airport for $48, which is about the cheapest parking price I could find for two days, so that pretty much cancels out.

 

[disneykake]

We went last summer. My kids were 2 and 4. We stayed at the Avenue Crowne Plaza - looks like it is just block down from where yours is located. It was very convenient and easy. There is a Panera around the corner that was great for breakfast. The portions were huge. We made the mistake of ordering 3 breakfasts for the 4 of us and had 1 1/2 plates leftover. We took a bus to Shedd that had a stop around the corner on Michigan Ave. The line at Shedd was pretty long when we went. We went on a Thursday and it was down the stairs and made almost a full circle in the open area below. Walking to navy pier was very easy from our location also. We spent a few hours in the children's museum and my kids really enjoyed it. There is a room on the top floor in the back that my kids really enjoyed (it was making an airplane fly from really high or something like that) but we didn't get to that room until almost closing time. I tried to find the room listed on their site but it looks like it might have been replaced with a new exhibit.

 

[ValpoCory]

We went last summer. My kids were 2 and 4. We stayed at the Avenue Crowne Plaza - looks like it is just block down from where yours is located. It was very convenient and easy. There is a Panera around the corner that was great for breakfast. The portions were huge. We made the mistake of ordering 3 breakfasts for the 4 of us and had 1 1/2 plates leftover. We took a bus to Shedd that had a stop around the corner on Michigan Ave. The line at Shedd was pretty long when we went. We went on a Thursday and it was down the stairs and made almost a full circle in the open area below. Walking to navy pier was very easy from our location also. We spent a few hours in the children's museum and my kids really enjoyed it. There is a room on the top floor in the back that my kids really enjoyed (it was making an airplane fly from really high or something like that) but we didn't get to that room until almost closing time. I tried to find the room listed on their site but it looks like it might have been replaced with a new exhibit.

Thanks! We love Panera. So how long did it take to wait in that Shedd line?

 

[Kimmumum]

I've lived here my whole life. If you are only going to be here a few days and have the little ones, here is what I would do.

:Navy Pier has a lot to see and do. You could take a short cruise (the entertainment book used to have a BOGO deal, haven't looked lately but assume they're still in there), eat, go on the Ferris Wheel, take a walk around, the Childrens Museum is here (I've never been to this location).

:take a walk along the lake and watch the boats or go north and go to the beaches.

:go to millennium park....while here you could see the Bean, Buckingham Fountain (get wet if the wind is blowing in your direction), hear the philharmonic orchestra practicing in the bandshell (free concert and let the kids play in the face fountains. The fountains have real peoples faces on them that change all the time and sometimes they "spout" water. It is zero depth, the kids love it on a hot day (you should bring a change of clothes for this cuz they will be soaked). When my boys were little I would pack a bag with frisbees, kites, soccer balls etc and they would play for hours on the park lawn. Its just beautiful and free

:go to Lincoln Park zoo. It is beautiful and free

:go to the Sears Tower (Willis Tower) and go in the skybox.

Chicago has a lot of museum and places to see. I never recommend them though because when I'm in another city I want to be outside seeing the city.