O'hare to wrigley

irishmeme

Hey. We land into o'hare at 2pm Saturday (flying from Ireland so that was our only option!). What's our best way of getting to wrigley field?? Taxi? Trains?

Indifference71

Take the blue line from O'hare to the Addison stop and then take the Addison bus east to Wrigley.

irishmeme

Thanks

slightofjeff

Be forewarned: The bus ride can take forever.

irishmeme

Should we just pay the extra for a taxi then? What sort of distance is the bus ride?? We are Irish, we don't mind walking some of the way!!

chitownp76

Defiantly take the blue line to Addison. DO NOT cab it from ohare

irishmeme

Thanks. Seems like the 13 miles from ohare to wrigley is going to be more difficult than the 3,600 miles from Dublin, Ireland to Chicago!

chitownp76

Traffic is just a nightmare and I've seen some horrid lines at ohare customs. You'll be ok if you take the blue line

irishmeme

We clear customs & immigration and all that in Ireland - one of the advantages to being Irish!! We basically land as American passengers!

Perfect - we will jump on the blue line & then see how the traffic is along the bus route - will jump off and walk the last mile if we have to!

PJNB

irishmeme said:

We clear customs & immigration and all that in Ireland - one of the advantages to being Irish!! We basically land as American passengers!

Perfect - we will jump on the blue line & then see how the traffic is along the bus route - will jump off and walk the last mile if we have to!

I am thinking of walking the whole distance from the Addison stop to Wrigley. It's listed as 3.4 miles which should take under an hour for me.Does anyone know if there is anything to see or do on W Addison on the way to the Field?

Indifference71

PJNB said:

irishmeme said:

We clear customs & immigration and all that in Ireland - one of the advantages to being Irish!! We basically land as American passengers!

Perfect - we will jump on the blue line & then see how the traffic is along the bus route - will jump off and walk the last mile if we have to!

I am thinking of walking the whole distance from the Addison stop to Wrigley. It's listed as 3.4 miles which should take under an hour for me.Does anyone know if there is anything to see or do on W Addison on the way to the Field?

There's a few bars you can stop in on the way! But that's when you get closer to wrigley. Not much the first couple miles.

Indifference71

irishmeme said:

We clear customs & immigration and all that in Ireland - one of the advantages to being Irish!! We basically land as American passengers!

Perfect - we will jump on the blue line & then see how the traffic is along the bus route - will jump off and walk the last mile if we have to!

Yeah, that's your best bet. Doesn't matter if you're in a cab or bus...Addison is going to be a disaster that Saturday.

LiteTheMatch

Alternately, you can take the Blue Line from O'Hare, get off at the Washington stop (or the Jackson stop) and transfer to the Red Line... The Red Line will take you right to Wrigley Field if you get off at the Addison stop. (Map of Blue Line - http://www.transitchicago.com/blueline)

IamTom

irishmeme said:

We clear customs & immigration and all that in Ireland - one of the advantages to being Irish!! We basically land as American passengers!

Perfect - we will jump on the blue line & then see how the traffic is along the bus route - will jump off and walk the last mile if we have to!

I arrived today and was in the same queue as US citizens and took 45+ to get through and I nipped into the non US line in the end cos it was moving faster.

I hope I'm wrong but be prepared for a wait unless your 'Global' whatever that is.

TA243471

So then, landing at 1130 pm on Friday, I should have no trouble doing the blue line, and then bus?

ldent42

IamTom said:

irishmeme said:

We clear customs & immigration and all that in Ireland - one of the advantages to being Irish!! We basically land as American passengers!

Perfect - we will jump on the blue line & then see how the traffic is along the bus route - will jump off and walk the last mile if we have to!

I arrived today and was in the same queue as US citizens and took 45+ to get through and I nipped into the non US line in the end cos it was moving faster.

I hope I'm wrong but be prepared for a wait unless your 'Global' whatever that is.

Global Entry is awesome. I don't know if it's only for American Citizens, but I got it before I did a bunch of international travel and you basically pay $100 for 5 years of skipping customs lines.
The one time I flew through Dublin, there's a US Customs checkpoint IN the airport in Dublin so you go through US customs there and land just like a domestic flight, you get off the plane and you go on your way.

ldent42

Question about the CTA: Am I reading this Ventra stuff correctly? I'm only in town for a day and I don't expect to use the CTA 4 times during this time frame so I'm probably not going to buy the 1 day pass - but if what I'm reading is correct I can use my regular credit card (with contactless payment) straight at the turnstyle? Does it work on the bus too? If so, that's awesome.

bubbacub

TA243471 said:

So then, landing at 1130 pm on Friday, I should have no trouble doing the blue line, and then bus?

At that hour, I believe the Addison bus will not be running. As an Uber driver, I'd be remiss to not mention you can get an Uber from ohare now; ORD-Wrigley will run in the area of $25, depending on traffic. You could also get one from the Addison blue line stop. If you don't have an uber account, I can share a code for $20 off your first ride, too.
The fare from the airports on the CTA is also more than the standard stops( $5 I believe), so depending on how many people you have, it could end up being close to the same.

chitownp76

ldent42 said:

Question about the CTA: Am I reading this Ventra stuff correctly? I'm only in town for a day and I don't expect to use the CTA 4 times during this time frame so I'm probably not going to buy the 1 day pass - but if what I'm reading is correct I can use my regular credit card (with contactless payment) straight at the turnstyle? Does it work on the bus too? If so, that's awesome.

You will still need to buy a one ride pass. It's $3 each ride and comes in the form of a paper card that you throw away when you are done. You can use your credit/debit card to buy the pass or cash. They work for the bus too but not sure if it would work for a transfer. You may need to use two 1 ride passes.

irishmeme

If we used trains all the way from o'hare (blue line & then switch to red line) how long would that take?
And for getting back to o'hare after the gig (we are staying at the airport cos we fly onwards very early the next morning) how late do the buses/trains run?

100 Pacer

PJNB said:

I am thinking of walking the whole distance from the Addison stop to Wrigley. It's listed as 3.4 miles which should take under an hour for me. Does anyone know if there is anything to see or do on W Addison on the way to the Field?

That was my game plan in 2013, except I didn't know how long/far the walk was beforehand. When I walked out to the street after exiting Addison I asked a parked cab to point me in the right direction and then started walking. After about 10-15 minutes the cab driver drove by me and when we both got to a red light he rolled down his window and told me he'd give me a ride to Wrigley at no charge. He probably felt bad for me to have to walk it and even refused to run his meter. I gave him a generous tip.

ReleaseMe

slightofjeff said:

Be forewarned: The bus ride can take forever.

...that was my plan... arriving Saturday at 11:25 - with 29 stops, I might just take the Blue and then transfer to the Red

chitownp76

irishmeme said:

If we used trains all the way from o'hare (blue line & then switch to red line) how long would that take?
And for getting back to o'hare after the gig (we are staying at the airport cos we fly onwards very early the next morning) how late do the buses/trains run?

Estimated travel time just using the El (train)

Blue Line Ohare to Washington (40 minutes)
Red Line Washington to Addison (20 minutes)

You wouldnt have to worry about traffic then. The El is very reliable. It will be crowded but will be fine.

Indifference71

irishmeme said:

If we used trains all the way from o'hare (blue line & then switch to red line) how long would that take?
And for getting back to o'hare after the gig (we are staying at the airport cos we fly onwards very early the next morning) how late do the buses/trains run?

I'm not sure about the Addison bus, but the blue line definitely runs all night long so that can get you back to the airport.

irishmeme

Excellent - thanks - I'm all for using trains & avoiding traffic!

Emerald772

Both Red and Blue lines are 24 hours, though they run less frequently (every 12-17 minutes) as the night goes on.

It is the Air and Water show this weekend, so downtown and south of North Ave will be very crowded. It runs until 3pm Sat&Sun
http://www.cityofchicago.org/city/en/depts/dca/supp_info/chicago_air_and_watershow.html

As for the Contactless Bank Card Ventra Question:
Pay-as-you-go (PAYG): Just take out your bankcard and tap it on the center of the card reader. These are automatically processed as “credit”-type transactions, just like if you swipe or tap your card on a retail payment terminal.

Note that your credit or debit card will be authorized for up to $5.00 when you first touch it to a card reader, even though the actual fare is less. This is a pre-authorization process, and you will only be charged the actual fare once it hits your account. The amount of time it takes for the final charge to appear on your account may vary depending on your bank.
https://www.ventrachicago.com/how-to/contactless-bankcards/

I use this app to see near by transit:
http://transitapp.com/

Hope that helps!

irishmeme

Thanks. That's great info.

RG292419

I hate to be the detail guy" but are you bringing any luggage on these direct from ORD trips? There is no bag check at Wrigley that I'm aware of.

ldent42

Emerald772 said:

Both Red and Blue lines are 24 hours, though they run less frequently (every 12-17 minutes) as the night goes on.

It is the Air and Water show this weekend, so downtown and south of North Ave will be very crowded. It runs until 3pm Sat&Sun
http://www.cityofchicago.org/city/en/depts/dca/supp_info/chicago_air_and_watershow.html

As for the Contactless Bank Card Ventra Question:
Pay-as-you-go (PAYG): Just take out your bankcard and tap it on the center of the card reader. These are automatically processed as “credit”-type transactions, just like if you swipe or tap your card on a retail payment terminal.

Note that your credit or debit card will be authorized for up to $5.00 when you first touch it to a card reader, even though the actual fare is less. This is a pre-authorization process, and you will only be charged the actual fare once it hits your account. The amount of time it takes for the final charge to appear on your account may vary depending on your bank.
https://www.ventrachicago.com/how-to/contactless-bankcards/

I use this app to see near by transit:
http://transitapp.com/

Hope that helps!

I am in awe of this. IN AWE I SAY.

irishmeme

RG292419 said:

I hate to be the detail guy" but are you bringing any luggage on these direct from ORD trips? There is no bag check at Wrigley that I'm aware of.

No - we are checking into the Hilton at o'hare as soon as we land, dumping our bags there & then heading straight to Wrigley!