when is the cheapest time to travel to get the cheapest hotel rooms? In Chicago, the cheapest time will be the winter, but not on the holiday weekends. January in particular, is a dead time. But rates can also go up when there are big conventions in town, as the attendees will not just stay by the convention center. Generally January isn't a big time for those either. The boat show is generally at McCormick place then, and that's not one to draw scads of out of town businesspeople. Of course the reason that people don't travel to Chicago in January is because the weather is generally cold, and it's often grey out. The parks aren't as pretty without leaves on the trees, and snow is always possible. But everything else is still the same, and you don't have as many tourists to compete with, so it's not a bad time to come, if the weather is cooperative.If you want cheaper hotel rates you'll find that you might be able to do better away from the train station. The Crowne Plaza and Holiday Inn out there can be relatively cheap, but when that happens, hotels in Lincoln Park are likely to be cheaper, and the neighborhood is nicer too. The area by the train station isn't bad in an unsafe way, it's just not that inviting. Try Days Inn and Inn of Lincoln Park. Both are nice and reasonable and right at Clark & Diversey, a vibrant and safe neighborhood:http://www.lpndaysinn.com/http://www.innlp.com/ |