<p>Mamaduck, the weather can be a problem for that walk. I hope more experienced travelers answer but for me chicago at the end of march was not a place to walk at night I would recommend a cab to your hotel.</p>
<p>You might also check on the availability of shuttle services provided by your hotel. For example, a hotel near the University might be willing to pick you up at a train station. Remember, it gets dark an hour earlier in Chicago than the east coast.</p>
<p>Mamaduck, you will have nothing to fear on your walk to the hotel, Chicago’s Finest patrols the downtown area, they keep the rift raft in check. Welcome to Chicago, enjoy everything we have to offer. De Paul is an excellent school, I was just recently accepted as well.</p>
<p>mamaduck, if the wind is blowing and you’re tired and cold, just grab a cab when you come out at Clark & Lake. It’ll take just a couple of minutes and $5 or so to get you to the door of your hotel.</p>
<p>@mamaduck, I hope you enjoy your visit. We are not affiliated w/ De Paul but know students who attend/have attended there and I have personally been right by the campus on the El multiple times, and have seen it is excellently located. Chicago is a fabulous city for college students and one can get a lot out of that. We have had very good experiences with public transportation (though I have not been down to the south side at all)</p>
<p>I know chicago like the back of my hand. i go downtown every saturday. walking downtown at night is not as scary as people bill it to be; you just can’t look weak and be stupid about showing off phones and stuff. the mag mile and state street is relatively safe. for trains from downtown, try the metra to UC; it’s like a 5 or 6 block walk. it’s more expensive though. if you use the el, buy a pass cause it’s cheaper make sure you check times because it would be horrible to stand out in the cold. the chicago streets are easy to navigate because they are in blocks and don’t twist. for food, try nicky’s in hyde park near UC on woodlawn in a plaza. they have bomb chinese food. lou malnati’s has the best pizza. there’s a location at state street and 9th street downtown. then there’s pizanos near randolph and wabash. also go into the basement of macy’s or seventh floor for good food</p>
<p>Shootingsilver:</p>
<p>After you check out Chicago you should visit Yale. Claire’s is virtually on campus and has the best vegetarian food. Even a carnivore like me can appreciate it!</p>
<p>On our two visits to U. of Chicago [one with each son] we ate at a great little place right by campus: Medici on 57th. Always had great service and great food.</p>
<p>One (possible) thing to be aware of if you take the bus out of Midway: make sure to ask the driver if the bus goes all the way to U of C/Hyde Park. Sometimes, the bus is express, and it can leave you stranded a few miles from the university. Happened to me twice, and I was incredibly annoyed that I didn’t get on the right bus.</p>
<p>Take 1/2 hr (that may turn into 2hrs) to visit the Seminary Coop bookstore in the basement of the Seminary bldg on corner of 57th and University. It’s a delicious labyrinthine concoction that is not to be missed. I see they are moving above ground next summer… too bad. All the more reason to visit now before it loses all its personality.</p>
<p>[About</a> the University Avenue Store | Seminary Co-Operative Bookstore, Inc.](<a href=“http://www.semcoop.com/about-university-avenue-0]About”>http://www.semcoop.com/about-university-avenue-0)</p>
<h1>1 Rule: DON’T USE OR DISPLAY YOUR I-PHONE, I-POD, or I-PAD on CTA, or while walking around downtown, Hyde Park, or Lincoln Park. These items are mugger-magnets, and muggings are up in Chicago.</h1>
<h1>2 Rule: Be observant. If walking around after 5 pm (even downtown or Michigan Avenue), be wary of groups of high-spirited black teens, who’ve been targeting people for bumping, hassling, and group-robbing of bystanders. It’s called “flash-mobbing” here. This is an ongoing policing problem here that doesn’t receive much national media attention but has become a frequent occurrence. I’m a life-long Chicagoan, and dismayed by the level of uncivility. Some googling should result in related news stories.</h1>
<p>Mamaduck: you can walk from 1st CTA stop to hotel, it’s a relatively short distance and no need to transfer for a short two blocks between stops. You can walk along Lake Street eastward to Michigan, then cross and walk to next block to your hotel. Be wary, but walk should be ok and relatively populated.</p>
<p>Personally, I’d take the bus from Midway, to get a good picture of what it will be like to be a student. I felt safe on the bus, though it was clearly going through poorer neighborhoods.</p>
<p>As a general rule for everyone walking through a major city, do not walk with headphones on. Not only are you not aware of your surroundings in terms of being a victim of crime, but you also are much more likely to be hit by cars.</p>
<p>I’m a Chicago native. Here’s my take:</p>
<p>Use the #6 bus or Metra. Do NOT use the Red Line or Green Line in that area. The Red Line was okay before but is no longer. Notice U of C does not advise the latter two routes either. A friend of mine was robbed at the Red Line stop (he happened to have his iPad, iPod, Macbook and iPhone, all of which were taken away). This was the same guy whose house near 59th Street (he’s a grad student at U of C) was broken into as well. I cannot believe his luck. </p>
<p>I didn’t like the feeling I got at the Green Line stop personally. That area (Washington Square Park) is one of the most dangerous in all of Chicago.</p>
<p>Also, DO NOT miss your Metra stop because a mere one or two stops away can be dangerous. You do not want to be walking back that distance to campus.</p>
<p>Mamaduck: No advice on transportation here, but I just wanted to say that I hope you enjoy your trip to DePaul! My D graduates from DePaul this spring. She loved the school, made some great friends, and even has a job waiting for her after graduation.</p>
<p>UoChicago doesn’t disclose that most of their students do get mugged or burglarized at some point during their Hyde Park residency. Among our friends who attended UoC, everyone has several stories to tell. Nonetheless, UoC has its own police force, and a vigilant student who resides in dorms should be ok. Don’t walk into packs of suspect rowdy black teens, don’t respond to street people asking for “time, change, or a moment of your time”, be aware of your surroundings, and walk away fast from questionable situations without worrying about offending anyone. Once you’re enrolled at UoC, you’ll quickly discover those areas which should avoid. People mostly rely upon Jackson Park Express bus and Metra (not CTA) train service to get to downtown, and eventually airport if using mass transit. Note: not a lot of parking available for student cars, mostly limited street parking spaces.</p>
<p>OK, I’ve had 2 kids graduate from the U of C and neither was mugged nor had their apartments robbed during their cumulative 8 years in Hyde Park. They rode the Metra, used the Red Line, and took the #6 and #55 buses regularly. Did they need to use city street smarts . . . of course. Does everyone get mugged? No. And regarding transportation from the airports, clearly Midway is the easier hop to Hyde Park via the #55 bus, but they both did the #6 to the Loop to the Blue Line to O’Hare ride as well. I think each said that if going to O’Hare they would leave themselves three hours before their flight, just to be sure.</p>
<p>The “most students get mugged or burglarized” line is, well, what bulls leave behind. Not even close.</p>
<p>Never had any problems in my 8+ years in Hyde Park. Nothing happened to my friends, girlfriends, fraternity brothers, etc., either.</p>