Going to Chicago. What do I need to do? Avoid?

[BigRedChief]

Going to Chicago for a little 4 day vacation(Thrusday - Sunday) on spring break. Going to the Bulls vs. Cleveland NBA game and see Lebron, Derrick Rose, Shaq etc on Friday night. What is the can't miss "stuff" in Chicago? Avoid? opinions welcome...

Staying downtown at the Allerton hotel.

Any Planeteers want to get together?
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03/22/2010 edit to pay it forward for future chicago visitors:
Transportation:
Definitely take the trains and bus’s if you are planning to spend a lot of time downtown. We saved a fortune in cabs. Get the CTA pass and you can get on how ever many buses, trains, transfers etc that you want for how many days you purchase. http://faremedia.chicago-card.com/store/main.aspx?DepartmentId=34 Check the schedule and plan your route out:
http://www.transitchicago.com/travel_information/maps/default.aspxhttp://www.transitchicago.com/riding_cta/populardestinations.aspx

We arrived at 8:00 at the O’Hara airport and not taking the train would have been a disaster. They highways are parking lots that time of the day. We flew out of Midway on the way out and took a cab out there to the airport.
We really enjoyed riding the bus’s and talking to the locals. They gave us great tips on where to eat etc.

You don’t need a car. If you are driving, there is no where to park and where there is parking is very expensive and driving downtown is dangerous trying to navigate all those cabs and buses? Not for the weak of heart.

Attractions:
Get the Go Chicago card: Saved us a ton of money on admission fees but more importantly we avoided the lines at the attractions to get tickets. It was snowing and the line to get into the Field museum was over an hour and a half to just get tickets to get into the museum. The lines to get tickets are long. Get your tickets in advance.
http://www.smartdestinations.com/chicago-attractions-and-tours/_d_Chi-p1.html?pass=Chi_Prod_Go

Sears Tower: Was cool but if you have to wait an hour or two? Question the value. The ledge is really cool. Nothing between you and the street 103 stories up but some Plexiglas. It’s an experience you can’t get anywhere else in the world.

John Hancock observatory: We actually liked it better than the Sears tower because of the better ocean and beach views. They have something cool there, a skywalk 93 stories up that you can walk along that is exposed to the wind, temperatures etc 93 floors up. Just some mesh screen between you and the sky.

Science and Industry museum: We all felt that this was the best of all the museums. You have to see the U-Boat. It’s another one of those you can only experience in Chicago things.

Millennium Park: The silver bean was really cool. Seems like a real simple thing but once you get there and see it up close you understand the draw the bean has for people. Make sure you go underneath the bean and check it out. Looks like a wonderful place to watch a concert.

Shedd Aquarium: We were disappointed in this one. Maybe we are just spoiled but we thought the Aquarium in Omaha was much better.

The Field museum: Another disappointment. Sue the T-Rex was really cool but the rest of the museum left us flat. Seemed really educational for kids but for us adults we would like to have seen more exhibits than some pottery.

Chicago Bulls game: We decided to take the bus out there. Straight shot to and from downtown. Not really a bad seat in the house. The mascot seems to be pretty athletic and entertaining. Highly recommend getting one of the monster dogs.

Navy Pier: We went there and it was cold. Looks like a great place to visit in the warm weather.

Second City: We saw “Rush Limbaugh, the musical”. Barney Frank, Hillary, Dancing Ronald Reagan’s…Very funny stuff. Had a bit in there when Rush with the Royals and George Brett on a toilet with hemorrhoids. Highly recommend checking out a show there.

The Art Institute: A wonderful place to see art. So many Picasso’s, Monet’s and Van Gough’s you can’t really appreciate them fully like if some were here in KC just because of the sheer volume of masterpieces in one place. Very impressive collection. We also enjoyed seeing the American Gothic and some American art.
http://www.artic.edu/aic/

Eats:
Ginos East: Great pizza. Love the crust. We went to the one on Shapiro and it has all the walls filled with customer graffiti. Not living off its past reputation. My son thought it was the best pizza ever.

Giordanos: on Shapiro, Excellent deep dish pizza here also. Better than anything you can get in KC. Try sprinkling a little Italian herb seasoning on the pizza here.
http://www.giordanos.com/locations.html

West Egg: Breakfast by the doubletree. Reasonable prices and great food. Everything we had was good.
http://www.yelp.com/biz/west-egg-cafe-chicago-2

Yokes: Breakfast on Lake Shore drive. Best crepes we have ever had. Very good food.
http://www.yelp.com/biz/yolk-chicago-2

Quaritinos: Best meal in Chicago. Very trendy and hip place but don’t let that push you away. You order 5-6 things and share them. Ravioli, Brusheta and the Bananas foster desert were our favorites but everything we had was real flavorful and well prepared. http://www.quartinochicago.com/


Lodging:
We stayed at the Allerton hotel downtown. I would highly recommend if you are coming to Chicago and you are going to do these things listed above to stay downtown. This was a great hotel. If you can’t afford the downtown rates just take the train into the city and go from there.

[Frankie]

Originally Posted by Uncle_Ted

I ate at Reza's last week

Good for you. This gets you a rep.

BTW, what did you order?

[Uncle_Ted]

Originally Posted by Frankie

Good for you. This gets you a rep.

BTW, what did you order?

It was the lunch buffet ... so a little bit of everything!

[Frankie]

Originally Posted by Uncle_Ted

It was the lunch buffet ... so a little bit of everything!

Hope you enjoyed it.

[erick]

Avoid bears fans!

[BigRedChief]

Originally Posted by OnTheWarpath58

On that note, I scored tickets for the Saturday game a few hours ago.

Man, people are just dumping tickets up there. I'm sitting 6 rows behind the Cards dugout on Friday, and 4 rows off the field behind the plate on Saturday.

Way below face.

[OnTheWarpath58]

Originally Posted by BigRedChief

At least they didn't trade away their best young offensive talent for a bag of screws and some Lena Blackburne's Baseball Rubbing Mud.

[Frankie]

Thread hijack in, 5, 4, 3,...

[OnTheWarpath58]

Originally Posted by OnTheWarpath58

On that note, I scored tickets for the Saturday game a few hours ago.

Man, people are just dumping tickets up there. I'm sitting 6 rows behind the Cards dugout on Friday, and 4 rows off the field behind the plate on Saturday.

Way below face.

And the Hat Trick.

2 Rows behind the Cards dugout for Sunday Night Baseball.

Again, well below face.

I love Cubs fans.

[La literatura]

What's a good hotel outside of Chicago that has great access to the El-Train, to get to Chicago? I'd like to stay somewhere under $120/night, and I don't mind taking a 30 minute ride into town.

[bevischief]

Motel 6.

[frazod]

Originally Posted by Literature

What's a good hotel outside of Chicago that has great access to the El-Train, to get to Chicago? I'd like to stay somewhere under $120/night, and I don't mind taking a 30 minute ride into town.

Try Rosemont or the area around the Cumberland L station. Both near the blue line.

[Stryker]

Avoid?

Uh, how about the riots going on there! Now!

[frazod]

Originally Posted by Stryker

Avoid?

Uh, how about the riots going on there! Now!

I know some people who live within a couple of blocks of this crap, including one of my bosses.

[bevischief]

Originally Posted by frazod

I know some people who live within a couple of blocks of this crap, including one of my bosses.

Why are you still in town?

[DanT]

Originally Posted by Literature

What's a good hotel outside of Chicago that has great access to the El-Train, to get to Chicago? I'd like to stay somewhere under $120/night, and I don't mind taking a 30 minute ride into town.

ClubQuarters has two downtown Chicago locations and "members" can stay at either one for under $120/night. You might belong to an organization that allows you to use them as a member. For example, I get membership privileges through either of my university alumni organizations (U of Chicago and University of Illinois). I think they sometimes allow nonmembers to use them, as well. I'd call them and check. Both Chicago locations are great. That's where I stay when I go back to visit.

http://www.clubquarters.com