Priceline Hotel: Chicago for Family - Advice Please

[RonJ]

Hi everyone!

We are planning a family vacation to the Chicago area (and other places) at the beginning of summer. We'll need a room for two adults and two children, convenient to public transportation that won't take too long to get into the city (the El is preferable), and we would like free parking. It looks like some of the El-accessible locations (O'Hare area or Evanston/Skokie) are "maybe" when it comes to the parking. We are likely to pass through the area over a weekend (probably three nights total), rather than a weekday. Free breakfast would obviously be nice, but we can always go to a Dunkin Donuts type place if necessary. I know this is a bit open-ended, but any suggestions for doing this in a way to minimize cost and maximize convenience? Thanks in advance for your help. This is a great forum!

[AaronJB]

Please provide date/s of travel and we would be happy to offer suggestions. I'm local to the area and I do think the suburbs provide a very nice value for those who don't mind the commute. That said, I wouldn't recommend the Doubletree/Skokie, as it's not near public transit. Additionally, I don't recommend the burbs if one isn't driving. Also, if you get a hotel in the Skokie/Evanston/Niles zone, there is the possibility of getting a hotel in Evanston (they haven't been seen for a while, but there is the possibility) and while those hotels are much more convenient to transit, they do charge for parking (given how Evanston is in terms of being much more dense.)

The suburbs also do have their share of sights and, at least in the North burbs, do have nice beaches (although some communities charge non-residents.)

I'd be happy to suggest family-friendly sights, restaurants, and take any other questions about the area. Also, in terms of commuting in from the burbs, I recommend the Metra trains, which are much nicer and more comfortable for longer trips. The Metra trains also have bench seats that, if the train is not crowded, can be flipped over, so a group of four can sit together. They also have upper decks, so one can sit on the upper level and look out. They are sort of like simplified Amtrak trains for short distance, and there are conductors on-board.

If you stay in the North burbs, Wagner Farm is a small (but free) family-friendly stop - it's an actual working farm in the middle of suburbia. The Chicago Botanic Garden (in the burbs) is also quite beautiful - parking is expensive ($20), but it's one of the largest garden museums in the US and there is no admission cost.

Skokie and other suburban hotels do not charge for parking. Many of the airport hotels (it seems like more and more) charge for parking.

What would be your desired budget per night?

Not sure where else you're going, but if you want probably the ultimate family-friendly location in the Midwest, the Wisconsin Dells are about 3.5 hours N/NW of Chicago. Lake Geneva (in WI) is very pretty and an hour or so away and probably the biggest short-distance resort town getaway for the Chicago area. It doesn't have as much going for it as it used to when I was a kid, but it's a very pretty town.

The Dells, however, are a great deal of really "old school" (water parks, mini golf, skeeball, bizarre attractions like an upside-down White House, a park where deer walk free and you can feed them) fun.

Thank you for using the site's HOTWIRE or PRICELINE links to start your purchases and searches.

[RonJ]

AaronJB,

Thanks for your quick reply. We're looking at the June 21-24 time frame, part of a bigger Midwestern trip. Yes, we are looking at various places in Wisconsin, including the Dells (and if you have any recommended on getting discounted stays there, please pass that along). We're also looking at hitting Madison, Green Bay/Door County, and Milwaukee.

In any case, we would like to check out downtown Chicago, as my wife has never been there, and I imagine at least one of the kids REALLY wants to go up the Sears Tower. Other suburban sites are a maybe, depending on what my wife and kids (aged 7 and 11, but the older one tends to provide more input) decide are interesting.

We are mostly concerned with clean and comfortable, and having a hotel that doesn't stick us with two double beds (preferable to have two queens, a king and a sofabed, or a suite). If we can get away for under $60 or even $50/night before taxes and fees, so much the better. Then again, we would like to be able to get to downtown Chicago by El or Metra in an hour or less. If there is discounted parking in downtown Chicago on weekends we can do that too. Interestingly, I saw on the CTA website that the town of Skokie charges only $4/day for overnight parking at the El station there. Hotels that have a shuttle to the El or Metra would also be nice.

I hope this is enough information. It does look like I missed the deeply discounted airfares (<$200/pp inc luggage charges from DC area to Chicago or Milwaukee), so we are doing the road trip thing.

[AaronJB]

Please post thread/s in the Wisconsin forum regarding your stops and we would be happy to help, although I'll definitely offer some comments here, as well.

An assortment of thoughts regarding your Chicago stay and Wisconsin

- Pretty much all of Door County is dominated by local resorts/small hotels. As a result, during prime periods, prices can really ramp. My suggestion would be to look at Sturgeon Bay, which is at the very bottom/base of Door County. That may be a little expensive, too, but there are some chain properties there and you may see some HOTWIRE/PRICELINE availability. No hotels in the majority of Door County participate in HOTWIRE/PRICELINE. Sturgeon Bay is the closest option, but you could stay further away in Green Bay, where there are definitely more hotels and more HOTWIRE/PRICELINE participation. The town of Long Grove in the North burbs of Chicago is sort of like a "preview" of Door County. Very quaint, very cute and historic. The Strawberry Fest is going on during the time you will be here (http://www.longgroveonline.com/, http://www.visitlonggrove.com/strawberry.html)

- Devil's Lake State Park is between Madison and the Dells and is a highly recommended stop. Really quite beautiful. The Dells is known for its activities, but it's actually also quite a beautiful area, especially along the river. The Duck tour (Ducks are vehicles that go through land, then head right into the water) is a nice way to view it.

- As for Madison, this blog - http://madisonatoz.com/ - is a recommended read, as its creators went to literally every restaurant in Madison and the surrounding area and reviewed them.

- If Milwaukee is expensive (as it can be in the Summer), Brookfield is a nearby area worth considering.

- Madison has a ton of hotels and as a result, unless it is a busy day, hotels are generally more reasonable and there are more deals than in most Wisconsin cities on PRICELINE/HOTWIRE. Downtown hotels do charge for parking in many cases, so you may want to look in the areas surrounding the city.

- Information on the Metra trains can be found at Metrarail.com. The Metra trains do not run as often on Saturday/Sunday. There are express trains during the morning and evening rush during the week, and more trains during the day during the week.

- There are no guarantees with HOTWIRE (and especially PRICELINE) regarding bed type. If you select four people (2a/2c) on HOTWIRE, you should be ensured bedding for the entire party. PRICELINE only guarantees one bed. There are no guarantees, but I think there is less likely a chance of difficulty with this in the suburbs than there is on a busy period in the city (and this is a busy period in the city.)

- What appears to be the Holiday Inn is showing on HOTWIRE in Evanston/Skokie for these dates; that property does not get good reviews and would not be an optimal option. There is a 2.5* with free breakfast in the zone, but unfortunately that property has not been ID'd and is considerably more expensive at $99 vs $63. You can bid for 3* on PRICELINE in Evanston/Skokie, but you do risk getting the Holiday Inn. The Doubletree isn't without a few issues, but it would be a preferable hotel over the Holiday Inn. Still, you risk winding up in Evanston (which would be optimal location-wise, but charge for parking) or the Holiday Inn (not optimal as a hotel and not the greatest location.)

-In terms of CTA Park and Ride, Linden in Wilmette is also $4 parking; I haven't parked there, but I think it's a bit nicer option; if you stay in the Deerfield area, it is a drive to this station, but you can take a scenic route that takes you near/along the lake through much of that drive. You could also head this way if you stayed at the Doubletree in Skokie. You can get on an Evanston Express train at Linden during the early morning rush/evening rush during weekdays here. The Evanston Express makes all stops in Evanston (5-6 quick stops) to the Howard Street station, then goes non-stop until closer to downtown. The Yellow Line train (which is what you'd get if you parked in Skokie) goes to Howard Street as well, and you could likely grab an Evanston Express train there, but if you got on one at Linden, there would be no waiting. There are 328 spaces at Linden. The CTA trains do go further into/to more parts of the city, while the Metra trains end in the West Loop. The Metra trains, however, are closer to North suburban hotels and are a more comfortable ride - the CTA trains in the morning can be (literally) packed, while the Metra trains are often not. You could try both over the course of your stay.

- At the 3.5* level in Deerfield on PRICELINE, the "known" hotels are the Hyatt Deerfield, Marriott Suites and Embassy Suites. The Marriott has gotten a few negative reviews lately on tripadvisor, but I've stayed there on a couple of occasions and found it to be a very nice property. The Hyatt is also a nice property (especially at PRICELINE rates, which can be extremely low) and the Embassy Suites (which I think is a very nice Embassy Suites property.) There could be new hotels at this level appear at any time, but I don't know what they would be. The ES and Marriott are all-suite properties (although the Marriott is most "suite-like".) The Hyatt describes the rooms as "junior suites", but they are sort of like "extended regular rooms." The Hyatt is $79 regular rate for these dates, the Marriott $109 and ES $116. My guess is that a winning bid in the Deerfield zone at the 3.5* level can be had in the $40-45 (possibly $50ish, tops) neighborhood. The ES and Hyatt (unless things have changed), I believe have shuttles to the Metra station. I don't believe the Marriott does, although I could be mistaken.

- The Metra trains end downtown on the West side of the Loop at either Ogilvie Transit Center or Union Station (the latter is sort of like Chicago's Grand Central, the former is a smaller, but sleeker and newer station.)

In terms of downtown, I'd skip Navy Pier. I'd recommend Lincoln Park Zoo (free), Shedd Aquarium (not free, and I'd recommend getting there early in the Summer months) and the Art Institute (admission, although less of a priority to get there early than the Shedd). The Sears Tower is also right near the Metra stations downtown, so if you do take Metra in, that can either be first or last stop.

Thank you for using the site's HOTWIRE or PRICELINE links to start your purchases and searches.

[RonJ]

Thanks so much for the great information! We'll definitely check out the areas you mentioned as well as the websites. Now I have to hope that there isn't some big event in Chicago that eats up hotel space. One thing I did notice was that hotel chains are advertising big discounts, so maybe that's a help for Priceline bidders.

Sorry for the delay in my response. I hurt my finger and I've been having a difficult time typing.

[AaronJB]

Happy to help! :)

Please let us know if you have any questions before making a purchase.

Downtown is on the moderately/fairly expensive side for these dates, unfortunately, although not entirely unusual for the busy Summer season. The 'burbs are quite a bit cheaper.

Thank you for using the site's HOTWIRE or PRICELINE links to start your purchases and searches.