6 Hours in Chicago?

[serfty]

I have a 6 hour Sunday transit in ORD coming up, ~11am until 5pm.

Do any have some simple strait forward suggestions of what to do and how to do it.

This thread (7 hours in Chicago) suggest (ex) Sears Tower / John Hancock Observatory.

Pefer to use Public Transport.

 

[TomVexille]

What are you interested in?

 

[serfty]

I'm open to all ideas; but certainly would like to avoid tight time-frames.

The nearest I've been to/seen of Chicago CBD is was in March last year:

 

[AisleSeat]

First up I'd suggest a bite to eat at either Eataly or Purple Pig.

 

[TomVexille]

Field Museum, Adler Planetarium, Lincoln Park Zoo, Shedd Aquarium, Art Institute. Pick one.

Probably not the right time of year for an Architecture Tour.

Pizza: Giordanos for stuffed pizza (my favorite), Lou Malnatis for deep dish.

Go have a coughtail at the Signature Lounge. Don't bother paying for the observatories.

 

[dajop]

Some suggestions:

1. Head into town on the train. (nb: if there is any notices indicating trackwork and changing to/from bus during the journey take an uber or shuttle instead)
2. A must do is a trip around the Loop on the El (elevated trains). It's the essence of downtown Chicago
   
3. A stroll across to Millenium Park and the Cloud Gate
4. If the weather is nice, do a boat cruise along the river (not towards the lake) a good cruise should give you an overview of some of the city's history and viewing of some of the more notable architecture. If not, find somewhere nice to eat. Others probably best to advice on that. For something quintessentially Chicago but not necessarily high quality - if you don't mind a thick pizza crust - go for a deep dish Pizza. Wait times can be long though at more popular places
5. I'd go for John Hancock Observatory in preference to the Willis tower, it has great views of the lake - watch for queue times
6. Then if you get time, take a stroll up to the lake and back (Oak Street Beach), the views back to the Drake hotel with the Chicago Skyline and Hancock center behind it are quite impressive.

We did this in a similar layover last year, although it was quite tight and we skipped the eating due to 45 min wait!

One question - is your layover time 11am landing and 5pm take off or is that you will be leaving airport at 11 and need to get back for security etc by 5pm? If the former - definitely will need to narrow this down.

 

[Dr Ralph]

Whatever you do end up doing, be aware of how long it will take to get into the CBD and back to the airport to get to your next flight (including the usual TSA drama).

If you have 6 hours transit, I estimate you less than 3 hours (probably more likely only around 2 hours) in the CBD before you'd need to return to the airport.

So keep it simple is my advice.

 

[codash1099]

Definitely the Hancock Tower over Sears (Willis). And a ride on the El.

 

[serfty]

Thankyou all.

All interesting ideas.

I allowed a bit of time; flight arrives 10:30am. Departure 7pm.

At best realistically I expect 11am to 4pm.

 

[Virgin Bart]

Eat pizza at Piquads .

 

[dajop]

I allowed a bit of time; flight arrives 10:30am. Departure 7pm.

At best realistically I expect 11am to 4pm.

Indeed,!

Our flights were similar times, Saturday arrival at 11:30am Departure 8:15pm (we were supposed to arrive 9pm Friday night but that flight was cancelled at the last minute, so it did compress the day), and we did have a bit of mucking around to collect and recheck baggage as we were going from UA to AA.

Found the time to do what we wanted, with the train journey down town, and some comfortable time for some food and drinks in the AA lounge in the evening after clearing TSA. Although granted this was my seventh or eighth visit to Chicago so I knew what I was doing and where I was going (but the person I was with hadn't been there, so had to capture the main sights).

 

[kamchatsky]

Definitely prefer John Hancock observatory over Sears/Willis Tower.

Have lunch at the Signature Room or Lounge. Fantastic view of Chicago Shoreline as well as Willis Tower.

The Signature Room at the 95th® - The Signature Lounge at the 96th®

 

[kpc]

Following! Will be in Chicago for 9 days in July

 

[serfty]

Well, it's this Sunday and there's a travel waiver out for ORD 8-9 Feb. Travel alerts − Travel information − American Airlines

Travel advisories
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When severe weather or other uncontrollable events impact your flight and travel dates, you may be able to change your trip with no change fee.

Winter weather - Chicago
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• Chicago, Illinois (ORD)

The change fee may be waived if you:

• Are traveling on an American Airlines flight
• Bought your ticket by February 7, 2018
• Are scheduled to travel February 8 - 9, 2018
• Can travel February 7 - 11, 2018
• Don't change your origin or destination city
• Rebook in the same cabin or pay the difference

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The change fee may be waived if you:

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• Are scheduled to travel February 7, 2018
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Current forecast temperatures are -15ºC min to -6ºC max.

 

[serfty]

Current forecast temperatures are -15ºC min to -6ºC max.

Now forecast -17ºC to a balmy -7ºC.

Look like outdoors stuff to be minimised.

Is it worth spending (US)$10 on 1 day Ventra? Otherwise it's $5 to leave ORD, $2.50 to go back with between 25¢ and $2.50 for any other trip. (CTA Fare Information)