<p>Ok. We can indeed agree.</p>
<p>man...we all need to meet up during O-week and see who the other CCites are</p>
<p>help
we are flying into Midway Airport on April 14 for the overnight. Are we better off renting a car, and driving to campus, or is parking etc. a big hassle?</p>
<p>I know that people have recommended the bus from Midway to Chicago, however, is it safe to go back to my airport hotel at night on the bus?</p>
<p>Am I being paranoid?</p>
<p>Parking on the street is a huge hassle. But there are a couple of parking garages/lots on campus that are basically empty on the week-ends. The lot behind Pierce is empty and free. There is a shuttle back and forth to Midway; call the admissions officeand they can give you the details. I would feel fine taking the shuttle at night.</p>
<p>chocoholic,
the shuttle option will likely be simpler - and no dishonor. My husband did not enjoy his parking experience last fall!</p>
<p>Choc, car rentals in Chicago are not cheap. You might find one round trip by cab from Midway is cheaper than car rental.</p>
<p>BTW, other than by car, there are three ways to get to U. Chicago. In order of decreasing cost:</p>
<ul>
<li> Cab, but shared the cost drops.</li>
<li> Shuttle. Remember it is a per person cost</li>
<li> City bus. There is both a local, takes about an hour, and an express takes about 30 minutes.</li>
</ul>
<p>If you are not urban aware, I'd probably not take the bus at night, but it is fine in daytime hours. The shuttle or cab would be fine any time of day.</p>
<p>BTW, regarding parking - there is a new parking structure just north of the Max P dorms, across the street from the new athletic center. It is quite inexpensive and I don't think fills up much, at least for visitors (any one run into no vacancy ever?).</p>
<p>U Chicago is a lot like a tiny LAC in the sense that "fit" is just huge there -- it's not the kind of campus where there are tons of different sub-cultures and any type of kid can find a niche. There isn't a niche for everyone at U Chicago; you have to like studying and you have to think that having learning as a major priority in your life is cool. But that just means that it's imperative that figure out, before you go, whether you're the right kind of kid for the school -- it does NOT mean that it's an unhappy place in general.</p>
<p>Since I have family in Chicago, (burbs) I rented a car on Yahoo travel for the 2 days of the overnight for $35.00 through Thrifty! Inexpensive car rentals are available. Traffic may be bad - (24-hr/day rush hour) but it gives me more flexibility where I need to go. Whether to rent a car or not is a matter of where you plan on going.</p>
<p>Cabs from Midway to uChicago are cheap. Just make sure you tell the cab driver to take 55th Street or he will try to rip you off by getting on the highway.</p>
<p>The 55 during the day is fine, but a hassle.</p>
<p>Don't take most public transporation in Chicago after dark. There are exceptions, like the 17X and 14X busses, but the 55 isn't one of them.</p>
<p>That the Robert Taylor homes are still up, I think, is a non-issue. They are dead in terms of the ridiculous amount of crime and danger associated with them. The whole area between MLK drive and the highway on 55th has gotten much better, I think. And so has Hyde Park. I think hyde pakr is safe enough if you have enough sense to realize that you're in a major city and not at Dartmouth or something.</p>