<p>I hope there is someone here who knows this city - I have only been there once, by accident. If I have meetings downtown, as well as in Skokie, does it matter which airport I use?</p>
<p>I think O’Hare would be a little closer to downtown and Skokie, but Midway tends to be easier to travel to/from and flights tend to be less expensive. Add in ease of travel, and it’s probably a toss up. I prefer Midway, but I go to the U of C, so Midway is much closer for me.</p>
<p>Oh, o.k. - well if the distance is not that significant, I’ll do Midway, as it appears that the flight options are much better.</p>
<p>Midway is closer to downtown and is possibly the cheapest to fly into depending on where you are originating from. You can often find great deals to Ohare on United and American, but my god that airport can be a nightmare sometimes.</p>
<p>LOL thanks for that! I am not a fan of nightmare airports :)</p>
<p>Are you planning to take public transportation or rent a car? O’Hare is much, much closer to Skokie than Midway is. Also, there’s great public transportation (the El) from O’Hare to the Loop.</p>
<p>Well…my schedule at the moment is that the Skokie meetings are in the middle of the week, with downtown meetings at the beginning and end of the week, so, I planned to get a hotel somewhere downtown…and I had planned to try to figure out the public transportation system, with the exception of when I go to and from the airport. I’ll expense it all so I don’t mind the cost of a taxi, but, I am going to mind very much if it’s going to be a problem getting a taxi to the airport on a Friday afternoon. </p>
<p>I don’t like to rent cars in cities that are new, because I’ll get lost, or misplace the car, etc.</p>
<p>The taxi ride from Midway to the Loop will likely be shorter (30-ish minutes in moderate traffic) than the taxi ride from O’Hare (30-60 minutes). Skokie to the Loop is about 25 minutes on the El. You may have to transfer from the Red Line to the Skokie Swift, depending on where you’re headed in SKokie.</p>
<p>When in Chicago, my family likes to stay in the Embassy Suites in the downtown area. The hotel has a nice set-up. There are a number of things going for it, including a free full breakfast, free afternoon reception with drinks, a lot of business people, very nice doormen to get a cab for you or direct you, a helpful concierge, and nice rooms with a bedroom and a separate living area with table and desk. I’m not sure how far it would be from where you’re working, but I always feel well taken care of there. </p>
<p>If you’re downtown in the beginning and end of the week, I’d vote for Midway.</p>
<p>Be prepared for the cabbie to grumble when you tell him Skokie. Because Skokie abuts Chicago they are not supposed to charge you the suburban surcharge (1.5 x the meter) but he might try.</p>
<p>Thanks very much for the information, I appreciate it. I know absolutely nothing about Chicago. Double thanks for the hotel recommendation - I had pulled up a list of hotels but there were far too many of them and I didn’t understand any of the locations so I laid it aside…I’ll see what is the availability at Embassy Suites today…</p>
<p>I am one of a handfull of area residents who hate Midway. Maybe that’s because it is far from me–and the cab ride to my house is very expensive.</p>
<p>Taking a cab from Midway or O’Hare is relatively easy. Taking a cab from Midway or O’hare to Skokie I would recommend what we call her a “pre-arranged ride.” Flat pricing. I can send you the number of the cab service that i use. </p>
<p>You can take the blue line from O’Hare to the loop (downtown.) The orange line runs from Midway to the loop.</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.transitchicago.com/maps/systemmaps.html[/url]”>http://www.transitchicago.com/maps/systemmaps.html</a></p>
<p>You can take the Skokie Swift line (yellow) to Skokie. You pick at the north end of the Red line at Howard. Also be aware that some stops are elevated and some are subways–when you are looking for the station.</p>
<p>If you take the Skokie Swift to Skokie, it will drop you off at Dempster near the Edens Expressway. You can get a cab to pick you up there. Once again, you can use what we call here the “303” cab. </p>
<p>If you decide to take a cab from downtown to Skokie, I would call ahead for a cab. That way one will pick you up at an arranged time from your hotel.</p>
<p>To summarize: Don’t rent a car for the time you are downtown. Both airports are connected to the city center (the Loop) by train. The Blue Line train from O’Hare to downtown is running slower than usual because of rail problems - allow an hour. The Orange Line from Midway will take about 45 minutes.</p>
<p>You may want a car when you’re in Skokie. It’s suburbia - there are some buses, mostly centering on Old Orchard Shopping Center. It’s a 25 minute drive from the Loop to Skokie but about an hour via the Red Line, then changing at Howard to the Yellow Line. Note that the Yellow Line does not run on weekends. You can also take a Metra commuter train, which is actually more convenient to south Skokie.</p>
<p>Where in Skokie and where in downtown are your meetings? If you want some insight into hotels and deals, get on over to tripadvisor.com</p>
<p>Meredesfilles and Midwesterner thank you for the information, I appreciate it. I am going to stay downtown, most likely at the Embassy Suites that was recommended. </p>
<p>I do have another question though (last question I promise!!!) - I am taking new clients to breakfast; I promised them something near their offices, N. Wacker Drive fairly close to W. Madison Street. I have not yet met them in person even though we have been in discussions for two years and just signed contracts; they are senior level execs and a couple of lawyers. Can you recommend something close by that is nice, reasonably elegant, but also fast so that we are not stuck with each other, and also not overly expensive in case they have some rules about price limits on meals with vendors? I want them to be comfortable, happy, fed, but not inconvenienced in any way. I did try to google this up but there are entirely too many choices and I tend to not blindly trust websites anyway…</p>
<p>How close by? Like a couple of blocks close by (more difficult) or quick cab ride close by (many good options)?</p>
<p>Well… since it’s breakfast, I am guessing they will commute in from wherever it is they live, so, I would think a cab or car ride close by would be fine, then they can continue on to the office after…</p>