Trip Budget: the cost to visit Chicago?

Wanderlust Wednesday-Week 29
Ah budgeting! The most important part of travel happens to be the one part that no one wants to talk about. But budgeting plays such a big role in traveling that it can really hold people back from visiting the places they want to see. Because Chicago happens to be one of the most expensive cities in the country for travelers, I thought I'd share our tips for how to save and show exactly what we spent during a long weekend in the city. 

Use Rewards Points
As you will see from our budget below, I am a big fan of these. More details here, but I'm not sure how we would be able to afford travel right now without them.

Arrive Early and Leave Late 
It's a common practice of mine to take the earliest flight possible when leaving home. That way I arrive at my destination early and still get to enjoy a full day there. And when we head home, we normally take a red eye. Financially, it doesn't make sense to pay for a hotel room, only to wake up the next day and fly home. Just go home the night before and save on flights (red-eyes are the cheapest flight time) and accommodation costs.

Spend where it Matters
Decide what's most important to you and pick one or two places to splurge, while budgeting everywhere else. 

Skip the Tourist Traps
Tourist traps are everywhere and they will cost you. A prime example in Chicago would be the Architecture Tour. This is such a popular activity with tourists who happily shell out 30 to 40 bucks a pop to cruise down the Chicago River. Meanwhile, you can do the exact same thing with a self-guided tour on a water taxi for only $4. Basically, do your research and ignore those spots (ahem Navy Pier) that will unnecessarily nickel and dime your budget into the ground. 

And just to show that I practice what I preach, here's our exact budget for 3 days and 2 nights in Chicago.

Is the Chicago CityPass worth the Cost?

Wanderlust Wednesday-Week 24
While planning our trip to Chicago, we realized we wanted to visit a few museums. But the more research we did, the more trouble we had narrowing down our decision. We wanted to see it all, but were worried about the cost. Those entrance fees add up quickly. Thankfully, the Chicago CityPass offers major discounts, making everything more affordable.

What's Included? 

Skydeck Chicago at Willis Tower
Formerly known as the Sears Tower, the skydeck offers up some amazing views of the city. Our recommendation: go first thing in the morning or right at sunset to see the city in the best light. Recreate this famous scene from Ferris Bueller's Day Off and take a photo on the glass bottom floor. 

Biking Chicago

During our first day in Chicago, we noticed that everyone was traveling by bike. And biking just happens to be one of our favorite ways for getting around. We loved biking the Golden Gate Bridge while in San Francisco and pedaling along the sand in Nantucket. So we knew we had to bike Chicago too!

On Day 2, we set out to rent bikes for ourselves. The easiest and least expensive option was to go with Divvy Bikes. You will find Divvy bike stations all over the city and rentals are just $10/person for 24 hours. We couldn't pass up such a good deal.

First stop of the day was Millennium Park

 If you ever visit Chicago, you can't miss a trip here, especially since it's home to CloudGate aka The Bean. Tom didn't understand the appeal at first, but I told him if you 

build shiny things…people will come!

snapshots of the windy city

We made it to Chicago!
For our summer travel plans, Chicago was at the top of our wish list, but we weren't sure if we could make it fit into our budget. Well we did-actually we stayed well under budget. Exact budget with tips coming soon, but for now, here are some highlights from our trip.