Things to see and do in Milwaukee (Jefferson, Oakland: rent, hotels)

[Chris82]

Hello everyone,

I'm a 26yr old English guy, who will be in the US from July 22nd - August 16th (i fly back to Blighty from Chicago). I would like to spend 2/3 days in Milwaukee before i head home and i was wondering if you could suggest any some things for me to see and do whilst in town?

• Should i stay downtown (i won't have a car whilst there)?
• Is public transport reliable in the city?
• Any museums, sports events or galleries that a first timer to the city should check out?
• Good tips for affordable restaurants to visit (i'm not on a shoestring budget but travelling solo i don't want to be in too fancy a place, surrounded by love sick couples)?

Any help, tips and general advice would be much appreciated. I absolutely love visiting the US and i'm keen to see what your great city has to offer.

Thanks in advance.

Chris

[EnjoyEP]

Originally Posted by Chris82

Should i stay downtown (i won't have a car whilst there)?

Yep, stay Downtown. I think all things considered, that would be your best bet / best area to stay in. Stay somewhere semi-East in Dowtown, too...(eg: don't stay on 9th and Michigan Ave.)...

Downtown in Milwaukee is safe and overall, for a city of its mid-sized size, the nightlife - especially in the summer - is pretty darn vibrant.

Originally Posted by Chris82

Is public transport reliable in the city?

Well, comparatively to what likely is your standard of comparison, no. Look, the US - outside of maybe some of the smaller, aged, highly populated cities of the Eastern Seaboard or Chicago, just isn't as bus / subway / light-rail obsessed with public transit as most of Europe is. Many of the youthful, college-aged liberal idealouge folks that post in the City Data forums - yes, even in the Milwaukee ones - yearn and lust for the European model, however, whether you agree with this desire or not, facts are facts - Americans in general have loved the independence and freedom that their automobile has afforded them. And Milwaukee just hasn't had the population size or density to really justify investing billions of dollars on public transportation ideals.

Having said that, I think you'd have no significant challenge maneuvering around Downtown Milwaukee. Our main public transit - the bus system - works well and efficiently enough - especially for Downtown. Furthermore, there is a trolley that operates for portions of Downtown in the summer. Also, keep in mind...much of the Downtown area is quite doable simply by foot.

You might wish to grab a quick / easy bus ride to Milwaukee's East Side (an area you'd really want to check out while here) and / or the Third Ward and / or Walker's Point...but all are within literally 3 or 4 easy miles of Downtown and could even be reached quite easily on an old fashioned rented bike.

Originally Posted by Chris82

Any museums, sports events or galleries that a first timer to the city should check out?

Museum: One of the must-see items would be the Milwaukee Art Museum. Its right overlooking the gorgeous, vast Lake Michigan shoreline. It is a very nice museum, and the vistas (along with the attached Calatrava) are one of the landmarks of Downtown Milwaukee.

Also, I would certainly check out the Milwaukee Public Museum, especially the "Streets of Old Milwaukee" area. I think that'll give you a neat look at the rich history that Milwaukee has - certainly with a hearty European component.

There would be other museums / galleries I am sure others might recommend, but the above two are Downtown and are must-sees.

As for sports, I am not sure if you'd be a huge fan of baseball, however, if even just for the experience, I think you should heartily look into attending (if your schedule would coincide) a Milwaukee Brewers' Major League Baseball game at Miller Park. It is, what, a 5 mile drive west of Downtown, however, if anything, maybe that would be worth the splurge on a cab.

Miller Park is one of the nicer ballparks in all of sports - built in 2000 - an engineer's dream with the retractable roof. Even if you hate baseball, I think you'd be impressed by the enthusiasm of the rabid fanbase, as well as the spectacle...many fan-friendly activities even for those not enamored with the game itself.

Originally Posted by Chris82

Good tips for affordable restaurants to visit (i'm not on a shoestring budget but travelling solo i don't want to be in too fancy a place, surrounded by love sick couples)?

Go to Real Chili - either the location on Jefferson (I would suggest) which is in Downtown, or, go to the location by Marquette University's campus, just a shade west of Downtown.

Cheap, inexpensive dive. But legendary here for incredibly good Texas or Ohio inspired chili.

The Lakefront Brewery Palm Garden offers a casual, laid back restaurant with excellent local beer to boot.

For cocktails / a good pint, go to the happy hour at Bar Louie on Water Street. Admittedly, this is a chain, however, their happy hour runs an amazing / spectacular deal with legions of beers - imported, local, micros, etc., - on tap - all for $2 per pint. Great deal. Good standard bar food as well.

Otherwise, there is a Thai restaurant on Wisconsin Avenue just east of Plankinton Ave. that offers some of the best Thai in Milwaukee; very underrated (partially because it is new). Next door is a good Ethiopian restaurant. Both are fairly affordable / casual.

Originally Posted by Chris82

Any help, tips and general advice would be much appreciated. I absolutely love visiting the US and i'm keen to see what your great city has to offer.

I think if you come with an open mind, you'll find that you might really like Milwaukee, a truly underrated city in the US. Especially at this time of the year - the weather generally is extremely nice - you'll love Milwaukee in the summertime.

Just remember that Milwaukee is a city of 600K people (metro area of 1.5 million)...biggish, but not nearly the massive girth of a huge Chicagoland metro. Thus, keep that in mind when coming here. We offer much that a huge, massive city doesn't, but of course, we also aren't huge or massive either.

Whatever you do, if you like sunshine and beach, make sure you spend a healthy amount of time simply just basking in the summertime of Lake Michigan's gorgeous shoreline / beach. To many - especially in the summer - they are amazed at how almost ocean-esque a gorgeous Great Lake shoreline can be like Lake Michigan in Milwaukee. The views are beautiful, and a summer day at Bradford Beach (a nice beach area off of Downtown along Lake Michigan) is great for people watching, and, if interested, females in sunbathing mode.

Make sure also to get to the Riverwalk area along the nice Milwaukee River in the heart of Downtown. On a sunny, warm summer day, it is very nice to watch the boats and canoes, etc., plugging away down the River. If you are into a nice lager, catching one at the numerous River-side bars right off of the Riverwalk on a sunny afternoon can be quite nice.

Stay Downtown, but make sure you get to Milwaukee's East Side neighborhoods. They are so close to Downtown, and they have that young / college-aged vibe with much activity and the like. I think you'd enjoy it there.

Overall, I think you need to report back here - make sure to! - and let us know a good detailed report of what you thought of Milwaukee! Enjoy it here! (And of course, thank your stars that you aren't coming January through March!)...

[43north87west]

Originally Posted by Chris82

Hello everyone,

I'm a 26yr old English guy, who will be in the US from July 22nd - August 16th (i fly back to Blighty from Chicago). I would like to spend 2/3 days in Milwaukee before i head home and i was wondering if you could suggest any some things for me to see and do whilst in town?

• Should i stay downtown (i won't have a car whilst there)?
• Is public transport reliable in the city?
• Any museums, sports events or galleries that a first timer to the city should check out?
• Good tips for affordable restaurants to visit (i'm not on a shoestring budget but travelling solo i don't want to be in too fancy a place, surrounded by love sick couples)?

Any help, tips and general advice would be much appreciated. I absolutely love visiting the US and i'm keen to see what your great city has to offer.

Thanks in advance.

Chris

Stay downtown. Keep in mind Downtown is largely dead after 6pm, when life moves northeast, east, and south. There are some restaurants along the river, and many bars scattered here and there.

I like Hotel Metro Milwaukee Luxury Hotel - Hotel Metro - Boutique Hotel in Milwaukee, WI.or the County Clare Inn County Clare Irish Inn - Milwaukee, Wisconsinfor downtown stays. The Metro has a very upscale cocktail lounge, so if you're not into that kind of thing, it might not be your favorite type of place.

Each are good, and the County Clare has a nice bar and good food. The County Clare is in a great area, from which you can walk to Brady Street (lots of bars and restaurants), downtown (more restaurants and bars), and can easily either get a cab to the Third Ward or the upper East Side, or catch a bus. Other alternatives are the Intercontinental and the Hyatt Regency, among others downtown. There is also the Pfister Hotel, which is a very nice hotel, and expensive. Pfister Hotel: Downtown Milwaukee Hotels

My personal preference is to stay east of the Milwaukee River; there's nothing going on west of the river until you move north to Brewer's Hill. If you're 26, forget about anything outside of the East Side, Third Ward (and Walker's Point) and downtown. The rest of Milwaukee is more family oriented suburban or neighborhoods. Nothing wrong with that but it's not exactly exciting.

Restaurants that I like will follow. All are on the East Side, Third Ward, or in the eastern part of downtown only. No chain/franchise restaurants unless they are locally owned. Also, these are just a few of the many places I like. Please note, I'm not much of a fried food guy, and I don't like beer halls so I can't comment on a lot of the other local places that cater to those tastes. This is by no means an exhaustive list, by the way, and I'm not going to challenge others' recommendations because everyone has different taste.

List of restaurants

Roots and Roots Cellar (Roots Cellar has less expensive fare, Roots is higher end but some of the same food). Great view from the Cellar outdoor seating area. Roots Restaurant and Cellar 414.374.8480

Beans and Barley, organic type food. I love this place. North Avenue east of Oakland (at Cramer st). Inexpensive, and they have beer, wine and some cocktails. Beans & Barley - Real Good Food

Twisted Fork: Farwell and North Avenue. Inexpensive, good atmosphere, seating in the bar (which is always where I eat). Good food too. http://www.twisted-fork.com/

Pizza Man (great wine list, good food). Oakland and North ave. Pizza Man - Milwaukee, WI - Pizza / Restaurant / Wine Bar (http://www.pizzaman.org/pizzaman.html - broken link)

Cafe Hollander, Corner of Downer Avenue and Belleview. Great outdoor seating. Cafe Hollander

Trocadero, Water Street and .. I forgot. Good food and drinks. I haven't been there for dinner in a long time, only breakfast and lunch. Trocadero

Palermo Villa, Murray Street 1/2 block north of North Avenue. Inexpensive, nice atmosphere, neighborhood Italian type food and pizza. Palermo Villa - Restaurant & Pizzeria

Water Street Brewery. Just a cool place, downtown. They brew their own beer. It's on water street south of Juneau but north of Kilbourn. Not sure of the exact location. Milwaukee: Water Steet Brewery

The Milwaukee Ale House has a nice view of the Milwaukee River. It's on Water Street at approximately Buffalo, in the Third Ward. It has some good home brewed beer choices. The food is all right, but they have a good view and nice selection of beers. Ale House

There are a couple of good places on Broadway in the Third Ward. I've eaten at them all. Also there is one place on the corner of Water Street and Erie, on the Milwaukee River in the Third Ward. I don't remember the name offhand, but it's a Wisconsin-owned chain restaurant, and they have a massive outdoor seating area immediately next to the river.

Also, there is a long walkway (the Riverwalk) from the Third Ward all the way north to the northern part of downtown, along the Milwaukee River. There are other restaurants and bars along the Riverwalk. It's a nice walk and takes a while to cover the whole thing, so plan ahead.

In terms of getting around, if you don't mind walking, you can get all over the place. There are buses and they're probably easy to use. If you can rent a bike, you can see the whole lakefront and other areas very easily.

Museums

Milwaukee Art Museum. Even if you don't go into the museum, walk around the grounds. I've seen a lot of museums, and this one is very beautiful and unique.

Harley Davidson Museum: If you like motorcycles, it's worth seeing. I don't even like motorcycles, but I enjoyed seeing this museum simply because there is so much history there.

Finally, if I read the 1800+ word terms of service correctly, I'm not violating any terms of service, because I have no connection with any of the above businesses (other than being a customer). I don't think any of them are competitors of this website's parent company or of this website either so hopefully the links will remain.

[Nuclear_Art]

Stay downtown, there are a few reasonable places to stay and the pound is still stronger then the dollar. Public transport will get you anywhere worth going-$2 per trip and you can get a transfer that will last about an hour. Any place you need a car to get to is probably not worth going to.

Baseball is the big sport in Milwaukee and it is easy to get to the stadium although now that the team is doing well may not be easy to get tickets.

There is a Coachusa bus that takes you from O'hare airport to downtown Milwaukee for about $45 round trip.