Priceline Hotel: 2.5* Chicago North Shore (Deerfield) Courtyard

[blindman]

A question for the Chicago experts on the board :) (AaronJB I assume) :D

We've got a one night stay before flying out on 18th June and are wondering where to stay.

Scenario is:

Been once to Chicago last October (Boy was it cold :o ) for 4 nights so saw some of the city.

We'll have a car and will be returning from the US GP so I expect to be in Chicago at 19:00 :)

Our flight leaves ORD (for Vancouver) at 14:45 so I'd expect to be at the airport for about 12 noon.

( Side question is this flight classed as 'Domestic' ?)

So, where to stay?

Having read recent AaronJB's replies I'm swaying towards the 'burbs' and hoping for a fee free car park overnight and somewhere reasonable to eat. (walking or driving)

Then during the day either a mad dash into town in the car :) or maybe a leisurely stroll\drive around wherever we are.

Any thoughts?

Ta

[AaronJB]

hotel budget? :)

(Yes, I am always online. lol.)

[AaronJB]

In the meantime, I'll detail a few general "area" options. You can pick the area situation that sounds best to you, then we'll go from there.

1. Northbrook/Deerfield area: Upscale North suburbs - very safe, very pleasant day/night. A couple of large, high-end malls nearby - Northbrook Court (which is closer) and Old Orchard - both of which are sort of like the suburban versions of Michigan Ave. shopping downtown. Attractions nearby include the beautiful Chicago Botanic Garden (absolutely beautiful that time of year; see chicagobotanic.org), which is in the burb of Glencoe; and the outdoor Ravinia Music Festival (ravinia.org), which attracts some big name touring acts (although probably not something you could do if you're short on time.) There's also shopping in nearby Highland Park. Public transit from this area is easy; drive to a Metra (commuter trains w/two levels and bathrooms) station nearby, park and head downtown. All hotels here should be free in terms of parking. Quite a few restaurant choices scattered about in Northbrook, Highland Park and in-between.

The Botanic is open early (around 8) in the AM, so if you wanted to head there early in the AM you could.

2. Evanston/Skokie: South of Northbrook/Deerfield, Evanston/Skokie are just North of the Chicago border. Old Orchard (mentioned above) is in Skokie. Downtown Evanston is great; it's a college town (Northwestern) with a lot of restaurants, shops and a gorgeous 18-screen movie theatre. Skokie is to the West of Evanston and more spread out, but also has a variety of restaurants, shops and the big mall. Skokie is also close to the expressway. Both are near CTA train stations, but there is also a Metra station in Evanston. Hotwire and Priceline lump Evanston and Skokie together in one huge zone, so it's difficult to know where you'll end up. Looking at your date on Hotwire, there is a 3* possibility in Northbrook, but nothing of note (there's a 2.5*, but it looks like the Holiday Inn Skokie, which I wouldn't recommend) in the Evanston area. If you would like to stay in Evanston, I'd recommend bidding on Priceline instead. Some of the Evanston hotels charge for parking, although it won't be as expensive as parking in downtown hotels.

Northbrook Court: http://www.northbrookcourt.com/html/index7.asp

Old Orchard: http://westfield.com/oldorchard/

3. O'Hare: Stay by the airport. I'm not as familiar with the O'Hare area since I don't fly (so no real reason to head out there), but there's quite a few hotel options around O'Hare (I see a 3.5* Suite hotel on hotwire for $79) and you'd be right by the airport. You could head downtown via CTA or nearby Metra and then head back out to the airport. Some airport hotels do charge for parking. You should find a fairly good variety of restaurants in nearby Rosemont.

4. Oak Brook/Downer's Grove: Pleasant suburban area not too far S of O'Hare. Would be a pretty easy drive from here (or from the O'Hare area) to Brookfield Zoo.

O'Hare and Oak Brook would be where you'd want to stay if you want to stick close by the airport. Evanston/Skokie and Deerfield/Northbrook have a lot to offer and are very nice areas, but if you don't have a lot of time and don't want to go too far from the airport, they may be something to consider for next time.

[AaronJB]

In terms of staying downtown, EasyClickTravel has the Whitehall (which is right off Michigan Ave.) for $126. That hotel does get some very mixed reviews on tripadvisor.com, but the location is terrific and it may be something to consider for one night if you want to stay downtown. The Best Western Grant Park is $100 on easyclicktravel.com, but that may not be the best area if you're getting in late at night

[blindman]

AaonJB

As expected, a truly superb response :o

I didn't put a budget as I needed info regarding suburbs, eateries etc- (well, OK I forgot! :) )

You've given me some areas to research, exactly what I need. :)

Hopefully I'll not need to bother you again.

Obviously I'll post any wins\bids here.

BTW

You have a PM

[AaronJB]

No problem and really, if you have any other questions, it's no bother at all (and best to know before you go) - happy to answer any questions. Can't meet up, but do appreciate the offer.

[blindman]

Following the excellent advice from AaronJB I bid (through Savings Barn! :)) and won the following one night stay 17th June.

Courtyard By Marriott Highland Park

1505 Lake Cook Road

Highland Park, Illinois 60035

Check-In Date: Sun, Jun 17, 2007

Check-Out Date: Mon, Jun 18, 2007

Your Offer Price: $40.00

Number of Nights: 1

Subtotal: $40.00

Taxes & Service Fees: $12.02

Total Charges*: $52.02

Research had shown that $35-40 is a regular win so....

Initial bid was $35 for the 2.5* in Deerfield which was rejected.

Added Gurnee as a free rebid (only 2* max here) and bid $40.

Cheapest web-site rate is $179 :)

[AaronJB]

Is this the Courtyard at 800 Lake Cook or 1505 Lake Cook?

Awesome bid, and a great win! :)

Let me know which you ended up at and I can provide some direction around.

[blindman]

Is this the Courtyard at 800 Lake Cook or 1505 Lake Cook?

Awesome bid, and a great win! :)

Let me know which you ended up at and I can provide some direction around.

Edited my post to show it's 1505 Lake Cook Road

We'll be coming in from Indy so may try to find a scenice route to the hotel.

(I65 then through town sticking close to the shore???)

Lots of time to plan this

Hotel has a free shuttle to the metra and I assume the Botanic Gardens are close by.

Restaurant ideas for Sunday night would be a help.

Thanks.

[AaronJB]

Update 1:

The hotel is right off the Edens expressway.

The Chicago Botanic Garden (chicagobotanic.org) is less than 1/4th of a mile East on Lake Cook (just go over the expressway and then up the street a bit - you'll see the drive-in entrance on the South side of the street. The cafe there is a nice choice for breakfast.

If you head less than 1/4th of a mile West on Lake Cook (go past Skokie Valley Blvd and then under the railroad overpass and a bit further) you'll see Northbrook Court (http://www.northbrookcourt.com/), which is sort of like the suburban mall version of Michigan Ave. shopping downtown. There's a great food court in there too, if you're looking for a quick bite.

If you're looking for a quick bite in the AM, head West to the next intersection (Lake Cook and Skokie Valley) and then head North for about a minute. You'll see a mall on the East side of the street. Max's Deli (http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g36129-d430143-Reviews-Max_s_Deli_Restaurant-Highland_Park_Illinois.html) is in that mall.

Not sure how much time you'll have, but Ravinia Music Festival is right nearby. Keep going on Lake Cook past the Chicago Botanic Garden until you reach Green Bay. Head a few minutes North on Green Bay and you'll see the entrance on the East side of the street. Can't miss it. Ravinia.org for schedule.

If you drive to Lake Cook and Skokie Valley and head South on Skokie Valley for a few minutes, you'll reach Dundee. Keep going South on Skokie Valley for another minute or two and you'll see Barnaby's on the West side of the street. There's a big Renaissance Marriott across the street. Is Barnaby's the best pizza in Chicago? Nope. However, their thin crust is pretty good and they've seriously been there for probably 30 years now - I went countless times as a kid. You may want to call - (847) 498-3900 - first as they can get pretty jammed up.

I'm guessing that they take you to the nearest Metra station, which would be Braeside (see Metrarail.com for info). It'd be about a 35-40 minute trip into downtown on the train.

I'll also detail a route later on and provide more info on the area.

____

Update 2:

An example of a scenic route (and take a look at the route on the map before going) would be getting into downtown and heading to Lake Shore Drive and going North along the lakefront until you reach Sheridan Road. Head North on Sheridan and just keep heading North on Sheridan (which will turn into Burnham Place and then North on Forest Ave. before you'll get back on Sheridan again.) Once you leave the city and head North into Evanston, you'll see some luxury homes that keep getting more impressive as you head North. You'll also pass by the historic Bahai Temple in Wilmette, one of only 7 Bahai temples in the world. You'll head along Sheridan all the way until Park Avenue in Glencoe. At Park, head West until you reach Green Bay (downtown Glencoe is right there and you'll see a Metra station.) Head North on Green Bay until you reach Lake Cook. Head West on Lake Cook (you'll pass by the Chicago Botanic Garden so you can see where that is) and over the expressway. The Courtyard should be right there.

An alternate (but similar) route:

An example of a scenic route (and take a look at the route on the map before going) would be getting into downtown and heading to Lake Shore Drive and going North along the lakefront until you reach Sheridan Road. Head North on Sheridan and just keep heading North on Sheridan. Once you leave the city and head North into Evanston, you'll see some luxury homes that keep getting more impressive as you head North. In Evanston, you'll reach Sheridan and Main Street. Head West on Main until you reach Chicago Avenue. Head North on Chicago Ave. through Evanston, which is a great college town (Northwestern) until you reach Davis Street. Head West on Davis until you reach Ridge. Head North on Ridge (which becomes Green Bay Road very shortly) and keep going North on Green Bay. You'll head North on Green Bay through the downtown areas of Wilmette, Kennilworth, Winnetka, Hubbard Woods and Glencoe before reaching Lake Cook. The drive along Green Bay will be longer than the drive along Sheridan (more lights), but you'll get to see the downtown area of each town. You could stop for Homer's Ice Cream in Wilmette (http://www.homersicecream.com/history.htm) If you're a fan of John Hughes movies ("Uncle Buck", "Ferris Bueller", "Home Alone", etc.), most of them took place in this area of Chicago and were filmed here.

_______________

Update 3:

If you are looking for a place to walk around late into the evening, you can drive over to Highland Park, which has "Late Night HP" (the city encourages businesses to stay open later in order to attract business; many of the other North Shore burbs close up earlier: details on "Late Night" here: http://www.cityhpil.com/visitors/latenite_hp.html) Things to do (including restaurants) in HP here: http://www.cityhpil.com/visitors/things_to_do.html There is also a Lou Malnati's Pizza (so you don't have to go all the way downtown) location in HP: http://www.loumalnatis.com/locations/subur...ghlandpark.html

If you do not want to go far for Food, in addition to the Food Court, Northbrook Mall has a bunch of freestanding restaurants, including PF Changs, Palm Steak House, Corner Bakery, Johnny Rockets and Stir Crazy (make your own stir fry) restaurants.

From your hotel, head West on Lake Cook to Skokie Valley Blvd (again right by the hotel.) Head North on Skokie Valley until you reach Deerfield Road. Head East on Deerfield Road to Central Ave. Continue East on Central Ave. and you will be taken right into the middle of downtown Highland Park.

[blindman]

AaronJB

Thanks.

Impressive :)

[AaronJB]

Not a problem. I'll keep updating the above, too, when I get a chance. Hopefully more people visiting who are driving will see this thread, because it shows how people can stay in a really, really nice area that has easy highway and public transit access to downtown (not to mention some attractions of its own, like the Botanic) for much less than downtown. Chicago hotels in June are a fortune this year. It's not as easy to stay in Deerfield if you don't have a car, but if you do, I highly recommend the North Shore.

[blindman]

This trip is coming up this weekend.

What kind of traffic flow would I expect on the Sunday evening into\around Chicago?

[AaronJB]

I think you should be pretty good on a Sunday evening and unless there's some sort of unusual situation, not encounter much trouble at all. Enjoy the trip and be sure to stop at the Botanic Garden near the hotel. (about 1/4th a mile East on Lake Cook) :)