How to get from St. Louis to Chicago?

[Calf]

I have an interview at Northwestern in late October, but I'm debating how to get there.

Car: $90 in gas, 5 hour drive, car is kind of crappy and may reflect poorly on me.

Train: $50 + taxi/bus in Chicago. 5.5 hour ride.

Plane: $170 + taxi/bus/train in Chicago. 1.5 hour flight.

I'm very strapped for cash, so cheaper is better. I'd like to drive, but I have a big dent in my car, and no A/C, it's kind of run-down.

Decisions, decisions. Thoughts?

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[kac714]

if you take the train, its pretty close to the med school (union station, i'm assuming)., you can probably take the el there, which is like 2 bucks and really easy. (i live in chicago). ohare would be a 50 dollar cab ride on top of the plane ticket.

 

[The South Face]

I have an interview at Northwestern in late October, but I'm debating how to get there.

Car: $90 in gas, 5 hour drive, car is kind of crappy and may reflect poorly on me.

Train: $50 + taxi/bus in Chicago. 5.5 hour ride.

Plane: $170 + taxi/bus/train in Chicago. 1.5 hour flight.

I'm very strapped for cash, so cheaper is better. I'd like to drive, but I have a big dent in my car, and no A/C, it's kind of run-down.

Decisions, decisions. Thoughts?

Check out megabus.com. They have roundtrip bus rides as cheap as 2$ if you book far enough in advance. Even you don't book far in advance, the tickets is like 30$.

 

[MilkmanAl]

Car: $90 in gas, 5 hour drive, car is kind of crappy and may reflect poorly on me.

Only in pre-allo. 😆

I say take the train.

 

[linguini]

Reflect poorly on your because you have a dent in your car? Seriously? Take the freaking car.

 

[Jonnymed]

Are you planning on parking your car inside the interview room?.. no?... Well, in that case, unless they ask you "was that your dented car parked over there in that parking lot?" I think you'll be fine. Driving will eliminate a lot of the stress involved with taking mass transit in areas you don't know well. Or, you could drive to the suburbs, take the El into the city, therefore avoiding downtown driving hell.

 

[LizzyM]

Are you planning on parking your car inside the interview room?.. no?... Well, in that case, unless they ask you "was that your dented car parked over there in that parking lot?" I think you'll be fine. Driving will eliminate a lot of the stress involved with taking mass transit in areas you don't know well. Or, you could drive to the suburbs, take the El into the city, therefore avoiding downtown driving hell.

Parking in any big city is going to cost you $$$ (not unheard of to pay $35 for the day) Take the train and figure out the public transportation from the station to the school. Try: http://tripsweb.rtachicago.com/

Megabus is about the same cost as the train. It may come down to schedule.

 

[Depakote]

the flexibility of a car is nice, but unless the school and your hotel provides parking you will be paying a ton (as pointed out above).

megabus is very cheap, but it isn't the most reliable. I had to pick my cousin up 90 miles away from her destination b/c they brokedown and the backup bus got lost.

train would be reasonable as long as you can manage transport to and from the stations. I would assume the school is near a L stop. this is probably the slowest option.

lastly, no one will care about your car. students are inheriently poor.

 

[Calf]

Ok, thanks for the advice. It looks like the train is probably my best option.

 

[214615]

its only a 5 hour drive if you stop for lunch for an hour. very fast and easy drive. I'd say drive to the burbs and take the el the rest of the way, usually what I do. park for free somewhere. train sucks, stops a ton, takes forever.

 

[nowonder]

Keep in mind that Amtrak is notoriously unreliable, and flights get cancelled and lose luggage. With a car, (assuming it is reliable) you do have controll over your schedule. I like the idea of driving to a commuter station and taking the train the rest of the way in.

 

[Bacchus]

I have been told the interview starts as soon as you're on campus... you best take the train 😉.

I think this may be the first thread I ever lol'd at.