Need hotel info for OH event in Chicago....
Hi, all! I am considering a trip to your city of Chicago to attend the OH event on Oct. 1st and was just wondering if anyone could give me some pointers on hotels near the Weiss Memorial Hospital. Also, we are considering taking the train and wondered about transportation from the train station to the hospital and that area. Any suggestions or information would be greatly appreciated. Thank you, so much! Tina
Union Station where Amtrak trains arrive is downtown. There are always about a million cabs hanging out at the train station to go to your hotel. Chicago cab drivers almost never make coin change. They expect you to round up and give them the change plus a tip. So if your cab ride is $6.40, round up to $7 plus another dollar for the tip. It's best to hand them a bill and ask for what you want back. So in this case you'd give the driver $10 and ask for $2 back. If you don't ask for a specific amount back, he will likely hold out bills for you to choose what to take from his hand, leaving a tip. Do not be surprised if he doesn't offer you the coin change. If your ride is over $10-12, give a $2 tip plus the change and on up accordingly. If he gets your bags, be sure to tip for that service as well.
Weiss Memorial is on the North Side, near the Lake, east of the Uptown neighborhood on Marine Drive north of Wilson. Another poster mentioned staying at the Congress. That would be about seven miles away. Keep in mind those are seven densely urban miles. That would cost you minimum about $12 (probably more) by cab without a tip, one way. If you stay there, be sure the cab driver always takes Lake Shore Drive and does NOT take you through the city or it will cost you a fortune. Of course if it's rush hour, it will cost you a fortune anyway because you will be moving slow.... Fortunately, however, from the 500S block of Michigan Avenue you can take the 146 bus directly to Weiss! You'd be on the bus 40, maybe 50 minutes but it would only cost you $1.75 each way!
A cool downtown hotel in the middle of the Magnificent Mile action is the Allerton. You're literally steps from Water Tower Place, 600 North Michigan, Oak Street, and everything on the Mag Mile. You can also catch the 146 bus to Weiss from there. http://www.allertonchi.crowneplaza.com/
Other hotels you might consider include any of the Neighborhood Inns: http://www.cityinns.com/ All three are in the Lakeview area on the North Side. City Suites would be right on busy Belmont Avenue and literally steps away from the Belmont El station. From there you could pop downtown easily on the El, go the Art Institute, etc. and avoid paying cab fares. The Willows would be on a quieter street just off a main thoroughfare. You'd be very close to the buses that run on Sheridan Road that would go south to downtown and Michigan Avenue and north to Marine Drive and Weiss Memorial. A cab from the Willows to Weiss would be under three miles and it's a straight shot so it wouldn't cost too much. Any of the Neighborhood Inns are easy walking distance to restaurants. Also, on Chicago's North Side, you can order in almost any kind of food. Ask the front desk for menus.
A very economical choice would be the Chicago Lodge at Foster near Sheridan. It's kind of like a Motel 6. You could pick up the 146 bus practically at the door to go directly to Weiss, less than one mile away. A cab from there would be very cheap. The Foster bus or a cab west to Clark Street would give you many dining options in the Andersonville neighborhood which is also nice to walk around. A large grocery store is literally next door and of course ordering in is very easy. http://www.chicagolodge.com/
If you choose to stay downtown, anywhere on Michigan Avenue would be a good choice for easy access to the LSD/Marine Drive buses. Buses 144, 145, and 146 will all go to Weiss. http://www.transitchicago.com/
P.S. I just noticed something really freaky. The Chicago Lodge has this copy on their homepage:
"Five minute driving distance from the heart of the Chicago Loop, Magnificent Mile, Michigan avenue, and Wrigley Field. Twenty minutes from Chicago O'Hare international airport. Not far from Midway Airport."
This is so not true. Really REALLY not true. Like hilariously not true.
Oh and did I mention. Don't rent a car.
Hello Christina---
I should have thought to check the room rates at the Congress and to see that the OH event is on a Saturday. It would appear that the Congress has some pretty darn good deals for a downtown hotel. I assume because the place has about 50,000 rooms. So if you would enjoy being downtown Friday and Saturday night, that would be a good choice. And the cab ride to and from Union Station would not be too bad. Then the only issue is getting to and from Weiss on Saturday. The 146 bus would be fine on a Saturday when it won't be filled with weekday 9-to-5ers. If you all take cabs, be sure your driver takes LSD and exits at Wilson. You should be able to simply ask for Weiss Memorial.
If a lot of OHers are going to be at the Congress, I think that would be a great choice for you for around $100 a night.
Since dinner should not be the highlight of the evening and some folks might not be able to do much walking around, I would suggest you look into the shows in town. Not sure about theatre seats for everybody though. "Wicked" is at the Ford Center, "SchoolHouse Rock" is at the Drury Lane a****erTower, and of course there's always Blue Man at the Briar Street Theatre. Loads others around town. Check with Ticketmaster.
Unfortunately, the architectural boat tours end before the OH event would be over and the twilight tours end in September. Most of the bus and trolley tours tend to be ending by early evening as well so I'm not sure about those. And the Art Institute will be closed by 5pm on Saturday.
Please let me know if you have any questions about Chicago and getting around.
Here's an idea I just thought of... If the group in Chicago is all differently-abled due to being in varying states of pre- or post-op, how about simply spending Saturday evening enjoying each other's company at the Signature Lounge on the 96th floor of the Han**** Tower. There's food and alcohol for pre-ops if they are so inclined, non-alcoholic beverages and appetizer plates for post-ops and amazing views for everybody. If you have a bunch of people you might try calling ahead for a table and ask about armless chairs for those who might need them.
Have fun whatever you all choose to do.
http://www.signatureroom.com/lounge.cfm
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