Entering Chicago

Yeah, I can see how that list might be a bit ambitious without details. Okay- here's sort of what we have in mind

2-3 days Boston
3 days Washington
3 days Chicago

From the feedback elsewhere on the forum it sounds like Arches, Zion and the Grand Canyon National Parks are the most exciting ones - again, probably 3-4 days in each of these. Would it be a mistake to drive through/do a short hike in Canyonlands/Bryce Canyon National Park?

2 days Las Vegas (neither of us are v. excited about casinos, but its a place that you have to visit once in your life & we figure it would be nice to splurge and stay at a swanky hotel to break up the trip a bit)

3 days each in Sequoia and Yosemite National Parks & probably just short hikes in Death Valley & Kings Canyon during a "drive through" - again, are we picking the right parks to spend some extra time in? Generally we like to do some overnight backcountry stuff, or car camping with a lengthy day hike

2-3 days San Franscisco. This is where my husband really wants to stop. To be honest I am not sure of the attractions/how much time would be needed to get a taste for the city....

Napa Valley. A couple of wine tours, maybe 2 nights in the area. Any suggestions for where to go/visit/stay would be great.

Salt Lake City - we would be just as happy going around the city. It just serves as a geographical in between on our way to Grand Teton & Yellowstone. We will probably focus our energies on Yellowstone - hopefully a 4 days backcountry hike.

Then onto Glacier NP and Wateron NP - we have heard beautiful things about both of these parks, but since they are closer, maybe just a night in each & a day hike in between :)

I realise that this basically amounts to 6 weeks without allowing for any driving days in between destinations. We are really committed to visiting Boston, Washington & Chicago since we are moving West and are unlikely to chose to spend our holidays in the future coming back east to visit cities. I think it would be hard to talk ourselves out of California... but we might have to.

Suggestions are most definitely welcome!
Thanks

http://www.roadtripamerica.com/drives/grand06.jpg
Seriously, I liked Bryce far more than I liked Arches or Zion. Oh, they're all gorgeous. They should all be visited, imho. But, since you're so close to Bryce, it would be a shame to miss it. The rock formations are really quite bizarre and beautiful. I would definitely try to squeeze it in even if you can only go for one day.

Where in the west are you moving to? Is it possible for you to skip California and some of the other western destinations on this trip and do them another time? If you'll be living closer to them, couldn't you do shorter trips to some of these destinations later and, thus, give yourselves more time in other places farther east?

Just an idea.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Judy

Where in the west are you moving to?

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Judy, their destination is Vancouver, BC (from first post of this thread).

I agree about not missing Bryce Canyon. Zion is one of if not "the" favourite of national parks for many. You might want to schedule the horse(mule) ride 1/2 day down into Bryce Canyon. Fun & gives you a different viewpoint. Would break up your days of driving too.Personally I would just do a twilight drive through Las Vegas, see the lights, perhaps walk through a casino or two that evening, stay overnight one night and leave (especially if you are not gamblers).It is an ambitious trip for 6-8 weeks. I agree with others that if you are living in Vancouver area(?) you might be able to do Glacier/Walkerton or some of west coast another time.

Hello!

I did a quick search on Chicago parking/driving but couldn't find what I really need. My husband & I have decided that we need to be downtown Chicago to be able to see the sights that we want to in the time that we have allocated. We will be staying at the HI Hostel at the south end of the loop. They have an arrangement for parking ($18- day) nearby.

My question is: What is the best route into Chicago?

We will be arriving from Washington, DC but don't mind a bit of a detour if it means being safer/having to pay a few extra tolls.

Thanks in advance for your help!

Jennifer

Welcome aboard the RoadTrip America forum.

The standard way into downtown Chicago from the east is to just continue on I-90 all the way. From the Indiana Toll Road just follow the signs for I-90 and the Chicago Skyway. Your other option, I-94, is currently under construction and should be avoided. One other option you should be aware of, although it would take you considerably longer, is US-41, Lake Shore Drive, along Lake Michigan, but this follows surface streets with traffic lights and the like.

AZBuck

The real headache for Chicago travel right now is on the Dan Ryan - aka I-90-94 - right at the south end of downtown. Its a project so bad, its alternate routes now have their own website: www.avoidtheryan.com.

It looks like the best route into downtown from the south, is to take the Skyway, but make sure to get off in time to catch Lake Shore Drive. Despite the stop lights, it will probably be faster than saying on the freeway, which will still run into the construction mess before reaching downtown.

Personally, I'm sticking to the train on my trips to Chicago, and I will be making use of I-294 to bypass downtown altogether when I'm heading to points east this summer.

Thanks AZ Buck & Michael for the heads up on the nightmare that is city driving in Chicago. I think we got a bit freaked out (to say the least) reading posts about Chicago elsewhere - that & knowing that going south of the loop is generally discouraged.

So, this brings me to my next thought: I am definitely not against taking the train into town - one of our options was to stay out at a KOA campground near the Harvard train line & take the train in each day. The problem with that is we were hoping to take in some shows & the late night gigs make getting back to our campsite a little crazy to say the least.

Is there a good place to park a car for 2-3 days with foreign plates & still have peace of mind? We are going to have all of our gear in the car because it seems silly to drag tents/stoves/etc. into where we will be staying.

Alternatively, is there a good suburb with decent public transportation links that would allow us to take in some late night shows, but still feel safe travelling back to the motel/hotel/campsite?

Thanks for your help :)

I imagine you've already looked, but check out Metra's website to find out if the train schedules will work for you. The last trains generally run after midnight, so that might still be an option. I've used it for a few night ballgames without any problems.

If you are considering camping, there are also Illinois Beach and Chain O Lakes state parks that are both north of the city and near Metra stops.

Otherwise for parking, I don't have a lot of ideas, other than lots around the airports. You could park there and then use the EL to get around the city, but I don't know if that is really a better option than the $18 parking downtown.