Weekend Metra Outbound

We%26#39;ll be staying downtown for a solid week, and are considering using the Metra $5 weekend pass to visit suburban locations.

First, is one pass good for both Saturday AND Sunday, or just one day?

Second, can you suggest a destination worth visiting via Metra that isn%26#39;t just as accessible by EL (e.g. Oak Park) for a Saturday visit?

On Sunday, we%26#39;re planning on visiting the Botanic Garden via Glencoe:

www.chicagobotanic.org/visit/directions#train

Weekend Metra Outbound

Yes. Metra%26#39;s $5 Weekend Pass offers unlimited rides on both Saturday and Sunday.

Along the same Metra line to the BG, Lake Forest is a nice area to visit. If you%26#39;re interested in horse racing, the Arlington Park race track is accessible on the UP-NW line.

Weekend Metra Outbound

The Chicago Botanic Garden is a great choice. You take the Metra from Ogilvie station to Glencoe, then it%26#39;s either a short bus ride or pleasant walk through Glencoe (some beautiful homes) to the Garden. If you%26#39;re taking the bus, you%26#39;ll go to the front entrance, if you take the walk (I can probably do that walk in 15-20 minutes?) you head for the walk-in back entrance.

If you walk, what you%26#39;ll do in Glencoe is leave the train station and walk to the South end of the platform (Park Ave.) Walk West on Park Ave. to the next intersection (Park and Green Bay) Cross and continue West, walking through downtown Glencoe until you reach Vernon and Park. Walk North on Vernon a short distance to Dundee. Start walking West on Dundee until you reach Forest Way Drive. Continue walking West on Dundee on the North side of the street until the sidewalk ends. Walk on the grass for a short distance West and you%26#39;ll be at the back entrance gate. Walk in and you%26#39;ll be at the South side of the Gardens.

You could check Ravina and see if there%26#39;s a good concert on the weekend you%26#39;re in town. Metra actually stops right at Ravinia. Other than that (and the Botanical Gardens), there%26#39;s nothing really worthwhile to visit on the North Shore. There%26#39;s a few early 20th century houses in the Lake Forest/ Libertyville area and nice downtowns in both communities, but if you%26#39;ve been to Oak Park or Lake Geneva, you%26#39;d find it to be pretty disappointing.

I think you%26#39;ll really enjoy the time at the Chicago Botanic Garden.

When I%26#39;ve gone to there, I%26#39;ve always gotten off at the Braeside station and then walked to the Garden (about 1.25? miles but an easy one). However, the $2 RT Garden Trolley looks to be a good deal, especially if you are staying later for the evening performances.

Other places where you might consider using Metra, in addition to Ravinia: Brookfield (Brookfield Zoo); Arlington Park (racetrack for thoroughbred racing), and Evanston.

Can we use it to go 57th street on the Metra Electric (Museum of Science and Industry)? Or is that excluded for being part of the South Shore Line?

I%26#39;d really recommend taking the #10 SB CTA bus to the Museum of Science and Industry. It runs every day now until Labor Day.

I have used the Weekend Pass on the Metra Electric before. It has been a few years, and I only took it from the old Randolph station to McCormick Place, but as I recall there were turnstiles that normally take a fare card to enter and exit. I had to show the pass to an attendant who let me bypass the turnstile. It is my understanding that some stations do not have an attendant and that at these stations there is a phone that you can use to call someone that will allow you to bypass the turnstile. I am not sure if this is currently the way the Metra Electric works, but I am sure that someone will correct me if I am wrong.

ChiTownFriend: ';I%26#39;d really recommend taking the #10 SB CTA bus to the Museum of Science and Industry. It runs every day now until Labor Day.';

Yeah, it sure looks like there%26#39;s terrific bus service to MSI; and our guidebook certainly implies summer Saturday%26#39;s aren%26#39;t the time to visit there.

This motivates a slight change in our plan: is the 7-day CTA pass the same as a Visitors Pass in terms of what you can ride with it?

Can I get one at Union Station ?

The 7-day CTA pass will allow you to ride CTA trains (the ';L';) and both CTA and Pace suburban buses, but not Metra trains. It is good for an unlimited number of rides for the 168 hours after its first use. (Actually, a CTA station attendant once told me that there is a limit on the number of rides, but the number was so high that it would be physically impossible to reach the limit.) The Weekend Pass is only good on Metra trains, not CTA or Pace. If you are going to the Botanic Garden or some other suburban attraction, it would be a good value since it is usually less than the round-trip fare to most suburbs.