Visiting Chicago - where to stay on a budget

[Pembo]

We're thinking of driving from Ohio for a quick 3 day trip to Chicago. Need to know what areas to look at for hotels that are in the $100 ish range.

Thanks

 

[budbeerlady]

Check Travelzoo. I usually can find something on there.

We like to drive to Indiana and leave the car at one of the South Shore train stations. The car is safe and we dont have to pay for parking. And its cheap to ride, I think its around $8.50 for an adult all the way into Millennium park downtown.

We like to stay at the Wyndham on Dearborn, great location, not sure of price or when you are going. (But very little is cheap in Chicago over the summer.) We also liked the Amalfi but it doesn't have a pool is you are traveling with kids.

 

[Pembo]

No need for a pool, however I need a room for a family of 5. Hard to use some of the standard travel sites.

Any other suburb suggestions?

 

[2 lil'princesses]

We go every other year to Chicago to visit friends and stay out in Schaumburg. We love it there. It is about a 30 minute drive into the city but very affordable for Chicago. We usually stay at the Wyndham hotel on Remington but this time I chose the Country Inn & Suites on Roselle because the reviews are so good. I got it on hotels.com for $95 a night. They have a free hot & cold breakfast (the reviews on this were great) and apparently popcorn and drinks in the afternoon though I didn't anything on their site about this, just mentioned in reviews. Woodfield Mall and Medieval times are right down the road.

 

[NotUrsula]

Use Hotwire for something in Rosemont, near O'Hare, 2.5* or higher. You can park at one of the commuter EL stations for the Blue Line.

 

[taymaesmom]

My cousin just booked at 4 star thru Hotwire for $76 a night. It ended up being the Hilton on Ohio, great location and great hotel. They were there July 1-4th and had a great time!

 

[Sandy61]

The hotels close in to the loop charge a lot for parking in their parking lots. We stayed at a hotel by Midway airport and drove in every day.

 

[slamzim]

We are staying at the Embassy Suites with 5 people. It is definitely hard to find room for 5. I think we got it for $170 / night on hotels.com. Also, we are taking the Megabus from Ohio to Chicago. Check it out.

 

[LuLuO]

Check out Chicago CityPass and buy your tickets ahead of time. Lines are often freakishly LONG for Shedd and other attractions. We got up to Shedd at about 11am and there must have been more than 500 people in line. Crazy.

 

[Sandy61]

Check out Chicago CityPass and buy your tickets ahead of time. Lines are often freakishly LONG for Shedd and other attractions. We got up to Shedd at about 11am and there must have been more than 500 people in line. Crazy.

YES! We got City Passes and were extremely pleased with them. We got to zip through special lines that had almost no one in them. We were going to go to all the places on them except for Shedd Aquarium. Since we had the passes we went anyway and it was ok. The show was really good but crowded so go early to get a seat.

 

[Mrs D]

I would first recommend creating a Hilton Honors account (if you aren't already a member) then checking rates via Hiltonfamilymvp.com. I find the best rates there (and have booked & stayed using this rate).

I checked out the Hampton Suites in Mt prospect; it would accommodate your family but is just above your budget. The benefit to this location is its a 5 minute drive to the Metra rail station which can take you downtown in about 45 mins. Easy neighborhood parking either paid or free if you walk a block or two.

Another option is the Homewood Suites in Schaumburg. Just under your budget, fits your family, not as convenient to Metra.

Both have plenty of good food & shopping.

Feel free to PM me for details on the NW burbs.