Parking outside of Chicago

It would depend on your route. KOA in Kankakee might be OK if you are coming from the South. Several around Joliet on the West. Many near Indiana on the East. Since you will be only driving the distance once, I would keep your unit at a secure location. Maybe an RV Dealer would allow you to keep it at their facility for several days.

I missed the part about staying with friends. Their location Chicago could influence your choice of train. Taking the train to the Loop, and CTA out to their place is usually a choice. But there might be a more direct route.

Parking at a Metra station, even an outer one, will be a concern. Obviously most are oriented to commuter traffic, so they might not allow overnight parking, or such parking could be unsecured. Some suburbs don't allow overnight parking on their streets.

dewey02 wrote:

Mccallaj wrote:
Thanks to all who responded. We are actually going to stay with our friends so we are just looking for a safe place to park the 22' Class C for 2 nights, not a place to camp. So, we will check out the METRA site for potential overnight parking lots that can accommodate us.

I am very familiar with Chicago, having grown up there. I would be leery of leaving any RV alone in a public parking lot for 2 nights. You may be much better off finding an RV park and seeing if you can get a discounted payment for parking it, but not camping there.

I agree leaving something like that unattended near ANY BIG CITY is putting out the WELCOME MAT for trouble. I went to college in Chicago at IIT which is 33 blocks south of downtown right on State St. and one year my room mate who just got a new 67 Camero and worked nights at the large UPS sorting facility near downtown on the night shift came out from work to find his Camero now sporting 3 milk crates at 3 wheel locations and a jack at the fourth after only about 4 hrs and the car was in the UPS employee parking lot. Point is you open yourself up to this sort of exposure if you leave your vehicle in any public area for any length of time. How nice the area is doesn't help since that's where the low lifes know the pickin is good. Leaving your RV at either a Private Residence or a CG are the only two semi secure locations IMO.

Larry

Mccallaj wrote:
Thanks to all who responded. We are actually going to stay with our friends so we are just looking for a safe place to park the 22' Class C for 2 nights, not a place to camp. So, we will check out the METRA site for potential overnight parking lots that can accommodate us.

I am very familiar with Chicago, having grown up there. I would be leery of leaving any RV alone in a public parking lot for 2 nights. You may be much better off finding an RV park and seeing if you can get a discounted payment for parking it, but not camping there.

Thanks to all who responded. We are actually going to stay with our friends so we are just looking for a safe place to park the 22' Class C for 2 nights, not a place to camp. So, we will check out the METRA site for potential overnight parking lots that can accommodate us.

Here's a different option: If they live in a house and you are staying overnight in their house, I suggest that you do drive into Chicago and park at their house. They can instruct you on the best way to get to places of interest using public transportation, since they live there.

If they live in an apartment and/or you won't be sleeping at their house, then I agree with others that NW Indiana's Dunes State Park, Jelleystone CG, or other places about 30-50 miles from Chicago and along the South Shore Commuter train are your best bets.

Mccallaj wrote:
We are planning on visiting friends in Chicago during our cross country trip. However, we do not really want to drive into Chicago.

Does anyone have recommendations as to safe places to park around the surrounding Chicago area, where we can jump on public transportation or taxi into Chicago for a couple days? We just have a 22' Class-C RV.

Thanks in advance.

Since it's only for a couple of days I would probably bit the bullet and rent a car so you're not tied to public transporation only. This would also depend on exactly what you are wanting to do in Chicago so telling us that might help.

Larry

Illinois Beach SP near Zion - commuter train from Waukegan.
You can take a "Pace" bus to the station.

Hands down on using Illinois State Park. It's the closest for all that you need not mention it IS a CG. :W

If they are going to see the main sights - the towers, shopping, museums, then they will start with downtown, and work out from there. All Metra trains (as well as CTA) trains go downtown.

Coming from the east, NW Indiana is good option. There is a commuter train that runs to Chicago from the South Bend airport (used to be called the South Short). It also stops in Michigan City and a couple of points near the Indiana Dunes park. In Chicago it stops at 57th St (Science and Industry), near the Field Museum, and on the east side of downtown (at the Metra electric line stations).

Most Metra lines use stations on the west side of the loop, though there is also a station on the south side of the loop.

Metra map

South Shore map

The Chicago area is huge. Where do you need to get?