Fuck, accidentally hit enter…second try…
OK, first and foremost. Nothing involving this trip is going to be cheap. The Cubs are doing petty well, the weather has been great. Tickets can be tough to score on the cheap even when conditions suck. I’d reccommend that you buy tickets in advance online for a game that still has some available. The seats won’t be great, and a experienced local could probably get good and reasonably priced seats from scalpers, you probably shouldn’t gamble on it under your circumstances.
I am assuming you’e thinking of doing a day game, good call. Night games are more costly and frankly aren’t what Wrigley is about.
I’ll start from the top.
I don’t know your personality, but if you’re a younger person who wants to drink and party, go for bleacher seats. You probably won’t find any online, so my previous advice would be moot. However, if you’re willing to spend some money on tickets (probably at least $40 and more than likely $50+) you’ll get a memorable experience. However, if you’re older, hope to actually watch the game, and aren’t interested in being around a bunch of loud drunks avoid the bleachers at all costs. In this case get the best you can find online, scalping can be a tricky business for the rookie out of towner.
As far as getting there, its a piece of cake. Take I-94 from where you’re at. If you’re pretty good at following interstate signs, you’ll be fine and you have 2 options which are pretty similar. Either switch to I-90 just east of Gary and take the Skyway in. There’s some pretty hefty tolls, something like $4 or so. Its the straightest path, but you could also stay on I-94 and follow it to the Bishop-Ford for free. Look at a map and decide, both roads merge south of the loop, so whatever you take will work and neither is really out of the way. Avoid rush hour at all costs. Leave early and leave late, take a walk, get some dinner, but don’t waste your time driving in and around Chicago from 6-9AM and 2-7PM, trust me here. Once you get into the city, you’ll have about 15 different options on getting to the park. Its about 8 miles off the expressway, so you’re going to be taking city steets much of the way. The best way from the south is probably to get off at either North Avenue or Armitage Avenue, and take the short jog from their onto Ashland. Again, glance at the map, it’s not tricky. Ashland all the way north to Addison Avenue. Take a right on Addison and head east. You’ll start seeing guys flagging you into parking lots, front yards, businesses and all sorts of spots. They’ll probably be between $8 and $15 the closer you get to the park. If you’re willing to spend the extra $5 to not walk, just go all the way to Clark street and park in the McDonalds lot right across the street from the park. It’s not exactly easy out, but since you’re going to take my advice and hang out after the game to avoid rush hour, you’ll be fine. Parking isn’t an exact science, any lot east of Addison will be reasonably safe and within walking distance, use your judgement.
As for getting real Pizza, thats the type of thing that can end up in Great Debates. My personal faves are Giordano’s, closely followed by Lou Malnati’s. Pizzaria Uno’s is good, and I’m personally not a fan of the most touristy of the big names, Gino’s East. There’s a Giordano’s on the corner of Sheffield and Belmont, a short walk south from the park. Depending on how mobile you plan to be and how much time you plan on spending in the city, you have alot of options. Let your web browser do the walking.
Any other questions?