Getting from Schaumberg to Chicago...

I would normally research this sort of thing on my own, but time is an issue...

My husband and I will be in Schaumberg this Saturday (business) and he has decided he wants to come into the city for the evening and have some pizza and look around a bit. We will have a rental car, but parking can be impossible and expensive. Any ideas for the most efficient and cost effective way to get into the city and back to Schaumberg by late Saturday? If using the car is the best option, can anyone suggest a garage to park in downtown that might not be terribly expensive? (LOL)

Thanks so much!

Suzy

Getting from Schaumberg to Chicago...

Take Metra. http://www.metrarail.com/. You will want to take the Milwaukee District West line. That will get you to Union Station. From there, you will probably want to take a 151 bus to Michigan Avenue, or you could walk.

Getting from Schaumberg to Chicago...

I%26#39;d recommend the CTA since it won%26#39;t tie you to a schedule....though it might be a bit longer. Take I-90 to the cumberland exit where there is a parking garage and the Blue line train. So long as you stay under 12 hours, it%26#39;s only 1.75. Each way will take you about an hour on the train. Traffic may be a bit bad on Saturday night, but it doesn%26#39;t back up until just before your exit.

This one is not even close.

Drive and deal with the cost of parking.

The Schaumburg train station is at the far northwest corner of Schaumburg, several miles from the area where most offices are located.

Taking the train is just not convenient. In addition, with the car you can do things like drive up Lake Shore Drive.

Take the Northwest Tollway into the Kennedy (I-90) and then get off at Ohio Street. At Clark Street, make a right. Go two blocks to Illinois and then make a left. Follow that until you see the signs directing you to Lake Shore Drive. You will make a left turn (actually driving under Lake Shore Drive) and then go to your right and follow the ramp up onto Lake Shore Drive.

You will have some incredible view of both the lakefront and beaches and of the skyline.

You can then drive north to about Irving Park, get off there and then turn around. The drive back some of the most amazing views of Chicago, with the Hancock looking up in front of you. On the way back, you could then use the MIchigan Ave. exit and then drive down Michigan Ave.

For pizza, Uno%26#39;s and Due%26#39;s are about two blocks off Michigan Ave. on Wabash. From Michigan Ave., take a right onto Ontario. There are a few garages within a few blocks of there.

It will cost you $20 for parking, but the train will probably cost you $10 anyway, and there is no comparing the convenience and the experience.

While I disagree with the driving recommendations, if you do end up driving downtown, parking at the garage at Millenium Park is your best bet. http://www.millenniumpark.org/

Metra trains are nicer than CTA trains. Also, depending on where you%26#39;re staying in Schaumburg, Metra%26#39;s Arlington Heights station might be closer.

I have to disagree with Dave on that one.

Assuming that the point of the trip is to see have some pizza and get an overview of the City, the Millenium Park Garage is relatively far out of the way.

A train will cost $10.00 for two, and you will still probably need to take a cab or a bus to see anything. That takes you up to about $20 round trip. You are completely dependent on the train schedules.

Parking should run about the same price, and you will have the car to drive up Lake Shore Drive (or down Lake Shore Drive past the Buckingham Fountain) or to see Michigan Avenue or to drive through the Loop or to see whatever you would like.

You have far more options in the car in terms of what to see and do and when, and the cost is about the same.

For me, this one would not be a close call. Driving is the way to go.

Yup (Skeeter). I don%26#39;t know why so many people here seem to have a phobia about driving into the city on a weekend. It%26#39;s easy.

I live in an outer suburb and work downtown. During the week I%26#39;m always on Metra: reliable, clean, peaceful and takes no longer than weekday rush-hour driving.

But on the weekend, the drive takes HALF the time of the train -- they%26#39;re all locals on the weekend -- and I%26#39;m not encumbered by schedules that have one train every hour or ever two hours.

Parking can be costly (but as Skeeter points out, not out of whack with train + taxi costs) but it is absolutely NEVER impossible on the weekend. 12 hours in the clean, spacious and convenient Millennium Park garage will run you $21. (Grrr, it was $13 last year...) If you really want to park cheaply, there are some lots off of Kinzie and Hubbard streets, west of the river (so, a couple blocks north of Ogilvie Transportation Center a/k/a Northwestern Station) where you can park all day for a few dollars.

But personally, if I just had one evening to spend in one of the great cities of the world, I wouldn%26#39;t want to waste my time walking an extra 15-30 minutes each way to save a few bucks.

I%26#39;m gonna step back from my previous post and agree with Skeeter...the drive will take you half the time. Even on the CTA, it%26#39;ll cost you $8 round trip and the headaches it will save will be well worth it. in fact, even living in the city, I usually drive downtown on the weekends...it takes half the time and costs a couple bucks more. You can normally valet at or near the restaurant you%26#39;re going to for $10 and so long as you%26#39;re not staying past closing time, you can leave it after dinner and wander around. I%26#39;m not exactly sure where to valet at the pizza places since I don%26#39;t think they have valet right there...but I normally just use a nearby valet service...I%26#39;ve never been asked for validation (though I%26#39;ll defer to others thoughts on this).

If you don%26#39;t drive I would still take CTA over metra because 1) Union Station and Ogilve Transportation center are very far from Pizzeria Uno/Due (Though there is a giordanos within short walking distance...it%26#39;s in the loop and there isn%26#39;t much going on there weekend evenings except for operas, symphonies and theater 2) The Metra schedule isn%26#39;t the greatest on weekends. With all the local stops it probably isn%26#39;t much quicker than CTA yet it only runs every two hours so you%26#39;re stuck with their schedule.

Thanks to all of you!

We will drive and pay what we need to park and see what we want. I have never stayed anywhere but downtown and simply wasn%26#39;t sure about the best way to go.

Thanks again!

Suzy

The only reason that I suggested taking Metra is because in your post it sounded like you had not been to the area before and really didn%26#39;t want to park downtown. If you have been to the area previously and feel comfortable driving, then it is probably going to be faster than either Metra or CTA. I know that when I am in a new area, driving sometimes makes me nervous because I don%26#39;t know my way around, which is why I suggested the train.

Dave usually recommends the Sterling Self Park, not sure why he recommended Millennium Park this time. Anyways, it was $8 last time I used it after work and it%26#39;s also $8 on the weekends, located on Kinzie between LaSalle and Clark. If you do a search for Sterling you should be able to get an exact address and Map Quest it.