Chicago to Nashville (and back)

[Paolo99]

Hello all. I'm coming to the US for business in April and plan to squeeze in a very short road trip as well. What I'm really looking for is great/interesting downtown hotels on my route. The first night I want to spend an hour or so south of Chicago. The second night maybe around Evansville or Louisville. Any tips?

[Midwest Michael]

I think finding an interesting downtown hotel around an hour from Chicago might be difficult. In that hour-radius circle, you're generally looking at suburb type towns, where chain hotels along the interest are going to be the norm.

Lafayette/West Lafayette would probably your best bet, about 2 hours from Chicago and a good college town (home to Purdue University, although even there, I'm not immediately seeing anything that would be a unique downtown hotel.

Your second night I think you'll have a lot more options. Personally, I prefer Louisville to Evansville. While I haven't spent a ton of time there, Louisville has an very nice downtown with lots of museums, and it looks like there are at least a few interesting/historic hotels that might catch your interest.

[NowthatIamretired]

I’m a Purdue alumni so will second Lafayette/West Lafayette as a place to stop. Here’s a website I just found that does list some near in hotels, https://www.homeofpurdue.com/attract...town-stay.html Unfortunately the Union Club on campus is closed for renovation. Downtown Lafayette is typical Midwest with the large courthouse square. If you have an interest is what a large American university looks like, then you could explore the Purdue campus. Neil Armstrong, first man on the moon, was an alumnus and one of the Engineering buildings is named for him, with a great statue of him as a student in front along with actual size and distance of footsteps on the moon.

[AZBuck]

My own travel style used to be to drive hard and alternate nights between in-the-car and cheap motels. Now it's rent a house and settle in for several days to a week. High-end hotels were never my style, but I grew up near one and attended functions there so I see their allure. A quick search for 'historic hotels' yielded a couple of possibilities that seem to meet your criteria:

Two to three hours from Chicago (Michael is right about what's within an hour of the city.):
The Cornerstone Inn in Washington IL
The Mark Twain Hotel in Peoria IL

and
The Brown Hotel in Louisville KY

AZBuck

[Paolo99]

My own travel style used to be to drive hard and alternate nights between in-the-car and cheap motels. Now it's rent a house and settle in for several days to a week. High-end hotels were never my style, but I grew up near one and attended functions there so I see their allure. A quick search for 'historic hotels' yielded a couple of possibilities that seem to meet your criteria:

Two to three hours from Chicago (Michael is right about what's within an hour of the city.):
The Cornerstone Inn in Washington IL
The Mark Twain Hotel in Peoria IL

and
The Brown Hotel in Louisville KY

AZBuck

Thanks! They don't have to be fancy! Just interesting, like the Monte Vista in Flagstaff and the Bassett Lodge in Bassett, Nebraska., and preferably downtown. Thanks for the tips.

[DonnaR57]

I used to live "an hour or so south of Chicago" and still have loads of relatives there. As stated above, there are a bunch of chain hotels, particularly on I-57 near Matteson (I-80 crosses near here, and that is pronounced Mat-eh-son, don't forget the e), Monee (Moh-nee), and Bradley. Peoria is a bit further than an hour -- closer to an hour and a half to two hours, depending on whether you're clocking from O'Hare or actually from the Loop.


Donna

[Paolo99]

Thanks for the tips. As usual, I'm foreswearing the interstates as much as possible and staying on two-lanes, so I don't mind detouring if a place is worth a look. If you have any tips on must-see places on the way down, I'd be very keen to hear them too.