traveling with children- from from O'Hare to loop? (Chicago: flat fee, mover)

[taromacaroon]

Hello,

I'm picking up a friend and two small children (age 4 and 2) from O'Hare airport tomorrow; what is the best way to travel from the airport to the loop? They have a 9 hour layover (9:00 AM to 6:30 PM). Should I take the blue line or a taxi to the loop? Is there a flat fee for the taxi? How would much would it cost approximately? I usually take the blue line myself but I'm not sure if it's a good idea with the kids.

Is it better to pre-order a taxi to pick them up from the loop to take them back to the airport? I'm guessing they would return to the airport around 3:30 PM from the loop.

I plan to take them to Maggie Daley Park. Thank you!

[ChiGuy2.5]

Originally Posted by taromacaroon

Hello,

I'm picking up a friend and two small children (age 4 and 2) from O'Hare airport tomorrow; what is the best way to travel from the airport to the loop? They have a 9 hour layover (9:00 AM to 6:30 PM). Should I take the blue line or a taxi to the loop? Is there a flat fee for the taxi? How would much would it cost approximately? I usually take the blue line myself but I'm not sure if it's a good idea with the kids.

Is it better to pre-order a taxi to pick them up from the loop to take them back to the airport? I'm guessing they would return to the airport around 3:30 PM from the loop.

I plan to take them to Maggie Daley Park. Thank you!

Are you picking them up at 9am? If so, I would take the blue line, it will be significantly cheaper and the fact that you are traveling RIGHT in the middle of rush hour means that the blue line will probably be faster as well.

Taxi's do have a flat fee from the loop to O'Hare. I believe its $40 or so but someone may correct me. Either way, I would do Blue Line since its a certain commute time.

[marothisu]

Taxi rates vary depending on the time you're in the car too - so if it's rush hour, then yeah. I take a cab from O'Hare to near the Loop pretty much every week and during rush hour, and I pay around $50 after tip each time for just me and my luggage.

Taking the Blue Line if it's bad rush hour will probably be a little faster than a taxi actually and also a good deal cheaper. I would also get some ear plugs because the train, when it goes into the subway not far from O'Hare can get pretty loud on that specific line.

[taromacaroon]

Ok- what is considered rush hour in Chicago? She is flying international and may not arrive until 10:00 AM after customs. What about in the afternoon- what is considered rush hour in the loop? Thank you!

[chet everett]

I am not a huge fan of kids on the CTA, especially when you have time deadlines, things just seem to go wrong... That said, since this a longish layover it might make sense to plan on using CTA one way and maybe Uber or a flat-fee limo / prearrange ride service for the other leg.

If the kids were a bit older and you were sure that they would gleefully bound into the El train, regardless of weather, and would not be cranky / sleepy/ pokey / bewildered maybe the El would be OK for both halves of the journey, but that seems overly optimistic. The CTA is REALLY LOUD and a two-year old (even a four year old) is young enough that they might be overwhelmed / stressed by the whole trip. That puts extra stress on parent. Even though it is mostly straightforward to get between Maggie Daley Park and the Blue Line, it seems prudent to plan on letting the kids get all tuckered out at the park and then using the ride on Uber or other service as a respite for parent as opposed to a potentially harrowing rush to the airport...

The only "plus" is that kids under 7 ride at no cost with fare paying adult so the CTA is much cheaper than even flat fee type service -- CTA Reduced Fare & Free Ride Programs (Seniors, Students, Children, etc.) Technically direct pick-ups at the airport via UberX are a no-no: Emanuel nixes Uber attempt to make airport pickups | Chicago

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by taromacaroon

Ok- what is considered rush hour in Chicago? She is flying international and may not arrive until 10:00 AM after customs. What about in the afternoon- what is considered rush hour in the loop? Thank you!

If it's a long international flight, then taxi or a private car might be good too. You might be waiting in traffic but accommodations will be a little more comfortable. Will cost more but if that's not any concern and being in transit for 20-30 more minutes, possibly, isn't of concern then go with the cab/car. Since it's a layover and not that long, then maybe that 20-30 minutes might matter.

[ChiGuy2.5]

Originally Posted by taromacaroon

Ok- what is considered rush hour in Chicago? She is flying international and may not arrive until 10:00 AM after customs. What about in the afternoon- what is considered rush hour in the loop? Thank you!

Rush hour will still exist after 10am. Plan on it being 45mins no matter what to downtown. Another 45 mins back. If you take the train it will probably be an hour.

[emathias]

If they're landing at Terminal 5, then take a cab, otherwise you'll waste time taking the people mover from terminal 5 to terminal 2 and then making your way to the train. Assuming their departure is domestic, getting back to the airport via the Blue Line will be easier than getting downtown from Terminal 5 is. Also, for adults it's $5 each taking the train from O'Hare, but only $2.25 back, so you save some money doing your one-leg-transit in that order (not a lot, but some).

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by ChiGuy2.5

Rush hour will still exist after 10am. Plan on it being 45mins no matter what to downtown. Another 45 mins back. If you take the train it will probably be an hour.

And during bad rush hour, it will take over an hour.

[mp775]

Originally Posted by taromacaroon

I usually take the blue line myself but I'm not sure if it's a good idea with the kids.

Why? Seems like a worse idea to take them in a taxi without child seats.