Back when my sister went to school in Chicago, I spent a good deal of time going back and forth to visit her and take in one of my all-time favorite cities. Not only was Chicago a great city with incredible shopping, museums, and restaurants, I was always amazed just how clean the city was compared with my frequent trips to NYC.

Since my sister left the city in 2003, I have only been back once. Every November/December, I really get an itch to head back to a big city to see all of the holiday decorations. However, the logistics have never panned out due to other obligations, and with raising a family…until this year.

This year I finally made plans to visit Chicago this December due in part to a special exhibit that will be in town, which I can not mention directly since it is a surprise for Mrs. InACents.

As part of the trip, my intention is to keep the costs down as much as possible. We are also only going over a weekend, so I prefer to pay a little premium to be right downtown on the Mag-Mile. Fortunately, Groupon offered a great deal on the highly rated Essex Inn, located directly across from Millennium Park. What was even better, was we scored the room for only $66/night.

American Express is now running a promotion, offering $150 statement credit for 3 night stays in Chicago at select hotels between October 15 and December 15, 2013. The promotion is being run through Orbitz.

Save Money, Travel More!

Source: View From the Wing