UChicago and Evanston visit, need advice. (Sheridan: rental car, middle-class, rental)

[mbahopeful]

I am looking at both Chicago and Northwestern for a full-time MBA program next year. I happen to be traveling to Chicago in a few weeks for work, so I'm going to tack on an extra 2 days to make quick visits to the schools since I'll be in the area anyhow. A few questions:
I am flying in on a Monday evening, staying at a hotel near UChicago.

-do I need to rent a car or is public transportation good enough that I won't need to?

I will be at UChicago from 10-noon and then need to be at Northwestern for a 2:00 info session. Is that doable in the same day? Would having a car make a difference or easier to do public transportation?

If not using a car and relying on public transportation, is it easy to get from Uchicago area to Evanston/N'western campus? How long will that take mid-day?

Safe hotels in the UChicago area (not looking to stay fancy, just clean and safe and near walking distance to restaurants).

Public transportation an option from UChicago area to/from O'hare? I might have to go back to the airport when my colleagues arrive Wednesday afternoon, as we have a rental car together and are staying north of the city and it will likely be easier to just go back and meet them.

[themag62]

Just rent a car, it will be less stressful than trying to navigate the details of public trans. considering you are traveling to opposite ends of town on somewhat limited time. The drive from OHare to the U of C area will be no picnic, but still better than walking to a Hotel from public trans. with bags. You can easily get from U of C to NW in Evanston by car in the middle of the day. Shouldn't take more than 45 minutes if you take Lake Shore Drive N then Sheridan Rd which winds around in Evanston but puts you right at the NW campus. Public Trans. could take you from noon until 2pm! Have no recommendation for hotels in the U of C area, but go to hotels.com and any of the major names will be safe.

[soulful]

You will be much happier if you rent a car due to your 2 hour window for getting from U of C to Evanston. Yes. You could do it on public, however, it might be very stressful as you will be unfamiliar with the route/connections required. Just in case you wish to look anything up re. public: www.transitchicago.com

[reppin_the_847]

The other option to not have the burden of a rental car and its liability would be to take a taxi for the time sensitive commutes (ie. UChicago to NU during mid-day), and use public trans as much as possible for the less urgent drives (ie. NU back to your hotel). In the end, your costs will probably come out to be the same with less liabilities and the ability to be dropped off directly at the entrances of where you need to go.

[jsk1983]

Google Maps is showing close to 2 hours for the CTA. Driving should be much quicker. Cabs are possible but may have to be arranged ahead of time in Hyde Park, not sure if many are just driving around looking for fares like they are downtown and on the north side.

[themag62]

Look for rental car reduced rates on hotwire.com. OHare to Hyde Park and Hyde Park to NW and back by cab will cost a mint.

[Kevin J]

Everyone else has covered the car issue, so I won't say anything more about that other than that I agree that renting a car is the best option given your schedule. I'll weigh in on the hotel issue, since no one has provided much information on that so far.

As you may already know, the neighborhood that the Univ. of Chicago is in, Hyde Park, is a middle-class island surrounded by not so nice neighborhoods for miles on all sides. As a result, there are no nearby hotels in the neighborhoods immediately surrounding Hyde Park and the only hotels that would officially count as being "in the area" of the university would be in Hyde Park itself. Right now, there is only one hotel in Hyde Park: the Ramada Inn Lake Shore. It's on the northern edge of Hyde Park/Kenwood, at 49th Street. The main streets with restaurants are 53rd and 55th Streets, so you'd be looking at a 5-10 minute walk to get to anything.

Another option that is only about a 10 minute drive from Hyde Park is the Hyatt Regency at McCormick Place. McCormick Place is the city's convention center and it's located between downtown and Hyde Park. I have a friend who has frequent business at the U of C who stays at this hotel every time he comes to town. You might be able to get a good price on a room on one of the discount websites. But this is another area that is an island, so there are no restaurants or much of any street life nearby.

[nana053]

There are actually more hotels around Northwestern's campus. What about staying there and then commuting to UofC for the tour or interview?

Evanston has the Hilton/Orrington Hotel, Best Western University Plaza, The Hilton Garden, the Marguarita European Inn (bed and breakfast), and The Homestead Hotel. Not sure about prices, but I doubt they are more than the one in Hyde Park.

[Larry Siegel]

All good answers except

Originally Posted by Kevin J

The main streets with restaurants are 53rd and 55th Streets

The restaurants are on 53rd and 57th Streets.

[jahk]

Originally Posted by Larry Siegel

All good answers except



The restaurants are on 53rd and 57th Streets.

There are several restaurants on 55th just east of the tracks, including 'The Nile', one of my favorites.