Airport transfers to NU campus

<p>Hey, I thought I would ask the forum’s Northwestern contingent how the kids with luggage get from O’Hare to the NU campus. The easiest way would be of most interest. Thanks in advance.</p>

<p>Well the easiest way is by cab. But if you can carry your luggage yourself, the Pace 250 bus takes you from O’Hare to the CTA Davis stop which is a block or so from campus. You pick it up at the “P” stop (remote parking) on the airport transit system (ATS) which transports between terminals and the parking lot (not to be confused with the trains for downtown). It costs $1.75. </p>

<p>Here’s the schedule:
<a href=“http://www.pacebus.com/pdf/schedules/250sched.pdf[/url]”>http://www.pacebus.com/pdf/schedules/250sched.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>The other option is the “El” but it involves two transfers:
[O’Hare</a> International Airport to the Evanston Campus: Northwestern University](<a href=“http://www.northwestern.edu/admissions/airport-transportation/ohare-to-evanston.html]O’Hare”>http://www.northwestern.edu/admissions/airport-transportation/ohare-to-evanston.html)</p>

<p>P.S. Soozie, this is my first post on CC. I’m pleased to return in small measure the help you’ve given as I helped my son through the college application process. He just completed a wonderful freshman year at NU as a theatre major.</p>

<p>I really appreciate your help! Can’t believe this is your first post. I hope your son is enjoying NU. My daughter is heading there in about a week for the Johnny Mercer Songwriters Project. She has never been there. I’m thinking a cab might be the best choice given what you just shared. Do you have any idea what that costs? She lives in New York and uses cabs there to go to the airport. I just don’t know the cost in Chicago to Evanston. I am just curious. She did not ask me to look into it but I figured there are all these NU folks on CC, that someone would have good advice and I thank YOU!</p>

<p>Greetings, CCMom2U. So glad you’re here! Bet our kids know each other as our D is also an NU rising freshman (is that the right term?).</p>

<p>D also sometimes uses the Airport Express shuttle if she arrives very late or has lots of luggage as they drop right at dorms. It’s about ~$30, but I think a taxi may be more.</p>

<p><a href=“https://www.airportexpress.com/reservations/one_way/from[/url]”>https://www.airportexpress.com/reservations/one_way/from&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>It looks like a cab might be ~$10 more than the shuttle.</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.norshorecab.com/[/url]”>http://www.norshorecab.com/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Hi soozievt!
My son just finished his sophomore year in the theatre program at NU. The first time he traveled to ORD, when we didn’t know any better, ;), we paid $40+ for a taxi. Now he takes the PACE 250 bus all the time. You can’t beat $1.75 fare to within a block or so of the campus. Would a cab be easier? Of course, but when he just has the one piece of luggage, the PACE bus is the choice.</p>

<p>I will run these options by her and appreciate the information. I don’t think she had looked into it yet. It’s her decision but now she’ll know how to go about it. Many thanks!</p>

<p>soozievt, I don’t know if your D has gone yet, but I’m originally from the NYC area, and I guess I wouldn’t suggest public transportation to NU from O’Hare for a young woman. This is just my opinion. It also depends what time she’s going. My D and I took a shuttle and the price was quite reasonable and door to door. </p>

<p>If your D ended up doing public transportation and it worked for her, I’d be interested in any tips she might have.</p>

<p>Best of luck to her there and congrats to her!</p>

<p>Many of D’s female friends routinely use the Pace Bus, and D often uses the El and the Metra to get downtown from Evanston, so I don’t think there’s any problem with using public transit in Chicago. Have you heard of problems?</p>

<p>Here’s the scoop from my D…</p>

<p>I passed on all the information and links shared on this thread to her before she went (she left this past Sunday and is there until this coming Sunday). As it turned out, when she made the airline reservations, she was not aware there was a reception in the early evening Sunday (the workshop got underway on Monday) and when she found that out, she decided to take a taxi (about 35 min. drive) in order to make the reception in time (and she did, on top of her plane landing early). She mentioned that she was going to look into the possibility of saving money on the way back by taking the bus. After all, she also had to pay for taxis on either end in NYC too (the airfare was covered as are all other expenses). </p>

<p>I have heard from her once so far and she said it has been an amazing experience. She’s writing new songs and getting detailed feedback from these wonderful mentors, something that she has not gotten before as she did not study this in college. She does perform regularly in her own concerts in NYC, including a weekly residency, of all original music and so she’ll have some new material. There will be two culminating concerts this weekend for anyone in the area! She said NU has a beautiful campus. I look forward to her next update.</p>

<p>While I don’t know Evanston or Chicago, I will say that if my D attended NU as a student, I would not have trouble with her taking the El to go into Chicago. After all, she lives in NYC (she actually resides in Brooklyn) and takes the subway 7 days and nights a week. My other daughter, who is a grad student at Berkeley, and has a job in her field in San Francisco this summer, takes the BART into work each day. The only reason my kid didn’t take it in Chicago was the timing of needing to get there promptly, less familiarity considering there are changes in lines to make enroute, and having luggage. But she went to Paris all alone and took the metro there. Just saying that my kids are used to this sort of thing in their young adult lives (even though they grew up in a rural area that has NO public transportation whatsoever!).</p>

<p>I have now found out how my D is going back to O’Hare from Northwestern. Now she knows the participants and several have to go to O’Hare around the same time and they are sharing a taxi tomorrow and so it all worked out.</p>

<p>So glad your D enjoyed her time at Northwestern and that she’ll make it to and from the airport in fine style! Can’t wait to hear the reviews from tonight’s concert!</p>