Travel advice needed!

[corilannam]

So my BFF chelseafrew and I are heading to Chicago next weekend for a Very Important Wedding. We've been meaning to take a leisurely roadtrip for years, and we've decided this is our opportunity!

We're leaving on Wednesday or Thursday of next week to meander from DC to Chicago by Friday afternoon. We're in Chicago Friday and Saturday for wedding activities, and then at some point we'll be leaving to drive up to Canada through either Wisconsin or (more likely) Michigan. From there we plan to drive around the Great Lakes to Toronto, then down through Niagra Falls and eventually home. We're allowing about a week and a half to do the whole thing.

I know a great number of you know live in these regions or know them much better than I do, so my questions:

* Along that route (more or less), what are the Must See Sights?

* Any advice on the best places to stay (or stay away from)?

* While in Canada, what and where must we eat?

* Anyone want to have coffee/dinner/world domination planning meetings?

This is, of course, all assuming that I can find my passport, which I put in a very safe place....

Comments

[dorinda]

Well, this doesn't cover the post-wedding main part of the drive, but I must say this: when I moved out here, my brother and I turned the drive from Chicago to DC into a relaxing road trip along Route 50.

It was right around this time of year, too. I found the drive pretty, restful, and so much less stressful than the big freeways/turnpikes. We'd stop sometimes in a little town and stroll around its main street/square or whatever, or we'd tour an underground river (Indiana), or (slightly off the track) take a ride on a sternwheeler (Ohio).

I know that part of the trip isn't your focus, but I figured I'd mention Route 50 just in case! Highly recommended.

[waldo]

I would *love* to get together for coffee while you're in my toddlin' town!

What part of Chicago will you be in and what kind of things appeal to you? History? Nature? Touristy stuff? I'm sure I can come up with a few billion things for you to see and do while you're here. :)

[thalia]

Would be happy to see you while you're in Chicago, if there's time!

Personally, I prefer Wisconsin to Michigan, but either way, stick close to the lake. If you go up through WI you could stop in Door County, which is a picturesque peninsula that sticks out into the lake, then drive through the UP and head into Canada near Sault Ste. Marie. On the Michigan front, you have a choice between driving up the west coast to Sault Ste. Marie, or hitting Canada at Windsor, near Detroit. The latter would be quicker but much less interesting--Chicago to Detroit is a really boring drive, but it's only about 5 hours, whereas you could take 2-3 days going the long way around.

Going through Sault Ste. Marie would give you a chance to stop at Mackinac Island. There aren't any cars allowed on it--you'd have to take a ferry--but its Grand Hotel is very famous.

If you're driving near the coast of any of the Great Lakes, you shouldn't have trouble finding little towns to stay in. You might want to track down some lighthouses.

And once you're east of Michigan, I'm no help. [g]

[lapislaz]

I second the rec for the Grand Hotel. If you've ever watched "Somewhere in Time" with Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour, you'll recognize the front drive. (The hotel in the movie was actually played by 2 hotels - this one, and the Hotel Del Coronado, here in San Diego).

If you're going through the UP of Michigan, stop at Grand Marais - the beach there is made almost entirely of onyx pebbles. Some gorgeous rocks. Dip your toes in Lake Superior. Don't be surprised if you have ice around the edges, even in July. Have fun!

[sithdragn]

I'd love to hook up with you both, chica! It's been too long. I'm in Ann Arbor. ::points to the bottom middle of the mitten:: If you take the Michigan route you'll almost certainly be taking I-94. I'm just a mile from the freeway. Let's do world domination. Or dinner.

If you take the Michigan route, I highly recommend Dearborn's The Henry Ford, which is comprised of a village and a museum. Some people collect charming puppy knick knacks while Henry Ford collected historic buildings and then organized them into a little village. The original Thomas Edison lab, the original Wright Brothers bicycle shop, and more. It's the world's largest outdoor museum. I don't even consider myself a huge history buff and I love the place. The museum itself is fairly large and also a lot of fun to go through, but the village experience is unique. If you're up for a movie (and when is chelseafrew not? *g*), THF has what is by far the best IMAX theater I have ever experienced: three stories tall and incredible surround sound. It's ruined me for movie theaters for life. *g*

I'd be happy to play tour guide if you come this way, just let me know what day you expect to be in town so I can take the day off of work.

[chagrined]

Toooooo bad I'm not in Michigan any more or I'd say you could come and visit me. :'D Southern Indiana isn't quite on your route unless you take a ~really~ meandering trip.

+1 on Mackinac Island if you DO go all the way up to the top of Michigan's lower peninsula. It's wonderful. I spent a week every summer there for six years working in the scout service camp, and then returned several times on other occasions as well. It is one of my favorite places. Beautiful state park if you like nature, gr8 bicycling around the island (no cars are allowed on the island), horses & carriages if you like that, fun touristy shopping, good fudge if you like fudge, historic Fort Mackinac and various other historic buildings if you like that type of thing, etc. The Grand Hotel is lovely (I recommend the gardens, and the porch is cool to walk on), but just go and visit it, don't stay there. There are cheaper places on the mainland if you only go for the day (take the ferry over/back), or if you do want to stay on the island I recommend one of the main/market street hotels instead, which imo have much nicer rooms (and put you in the middle of the shopping action).

Also +1 on Greenfield Village (in Dearborn, MI) if, again, you are into historical buildings and reenactments and stuff like that. And the Henry Ford Museum does have a pretty gr8 IMAX.

Also in Detroit, there are a couple of art museums, most notably the Detroit Institute of Art. I haven't been there in a long time but it was renovated a bunch a few years back and I hear it's good. The Diego Rivera murals there are excellent. The Detroit Science Center is okay but it's pretty much like all generic science museums. Sometimes they have cool temporary exhibits tho. Oh yeah, well, I also haven't been to this one in ages, but when I was a kid the Cranbook museums in Bloomfield Hills were always a favorite field trip, ha. (idk how gr8 they are for adults.) If you like fancy shopping malls, my hometown of Troy features the ridic ritzy Somerset collection.

Anyway but as museums (or shopping) go Chicago definitely has the edge on Detroit, ha.

If you like Ethiopian food and you drive anywhere near Ann Arbor, MI, you must ttly eat at The Blue Nile, which is excellent.

Depending on what day of the week / time of day you're crossing and of course where you're coming from in MI / going to in Canada, the Blue Water Bridge may be faster/less congested than the Ambassador Bridge or the tunnel. Though actually now I can't remember which one I took last time I went over, ha.

If you like gambling there are casinos in Detroit as well as in Windsor just over the Ambassador Bridge?

For more naturey up-north MI stuff, I hear the Sleeping Bear sand dunes are good, tho I've never actually been.

If you like roller coasters, Cedar Point in Sandusky, OH is pretty gr8.

Also if you drive out of Canada through Niagara Falls into NY, if you can swing through the Finger Lakes region, I recommend hitting some of the wineries and picking up some Rieslings. The two wineries I went to that I liked the best were the Thirsty Owl and Cayuga Ridge, which were conveniently right across the street from each other, heh.

Alas, I have never been to Wisconsin, so no help there.

[jae]

I have no advice (not my part of Canada), but have a WONDERFUL trip!

-J

[slb44.livejournal.com]

Niagara Falls is my home town even if I live in a different city now. Only fifteen minutes away though. How 'bout we plan to hook up, I'll play tour guide and we can do a meal or two.

Lots to do around here, from wineries, to live theatre and of course all the tourist attractions that go with Niagara Falls.

[tracy7307.livejournal.com]

OHMYGODOHMYGOD I LIVE IN METRO DETROIT. YES YES MEETUP, WOO!

Suggestions:

Chicago
*Aquarium, Art Institute of Chicago, Navy Pier, Lincoln Park (and the Lincoln Park Zoo), going for a stroll along the beach north of downtown, Millennium Park, Miracle Mile, John Hancock building, Sears Tower... so many things. SO many! Also check out plays that might be playing.

*Grand Rapids, MI: Founders Brewery. Located in the lower left "wrist". Delicious.

*DETROIT. ME. Come see me and all the local fangirls. We don't bite! I'd be happy to show you around the area.

*There is not a whole lot to see between Detroit and Toronto.

[shinymarigold.livejournal.com]

If you're going through Michigan, how far north are you planning to go? I only ask because I live in northern Michigan, and work in/near one of the biggest tourist traps attractions in the state. And you really haven't lived until you've seen the Mighty Mac. 8-) Would love to see you if you can swing it; I'll probably be working much of the time, but I'm usually off by 7 pm or so.

Caveat: It is a Long. Ass. Drive. from Chicago to Mackinac, or even from Detroit if you go there first per above poster. Seriously. I'm talking 6 - 8 hours. Just FYI. Come anyway?

[awdreygore.livejournal.com]

Check out Casa Loma in Toronto. Beautiful architecture. (They used this home for Xavier's School for the Gifted in the X-Men movies.)

Being (sort of) in Chicago, and depending on where you'll be staying, Lucky's on Clark (North Side) has amazing sandwiches. But make sure you're hungry! If you're sticking to the downtown area, there's the Adler Planetarium, Museum of Natural History, Museum of Contemporary Art and the Museum of Broadcasting.