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Alaska Airlines Flights from Albany (ALB) to Chicago (ORD)
Orbitz is pleased to offer airline tickets on Alaska Airlines, which operates 3 regularly scheduled daily non-stop flights from Albany (ALB) to Chicago (ORD), departing between 6:30am and 3:50pm. Usually an Embraer RJ140 is flown for this route. The average travel time from Albany, NY to Chicago, IL is 2 hours and 36 minutes.*
* Some flights must connect with additional service on this airline.
During your Chicago vacation, don't miss these great establishments and attractions:
City Gallery
Along with the pumping station across the street, the Chicago Water Tower is one of only a handful of buildings to survive the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. It has long been a revered symbol of the city's resilience and fortitude, although today -- more than 130 years after it first rose to a once-mighty height of 154 feet -- the Water Tower is dwarfed by the high-rise shopping centers and hotels of North Michigan Avenue. The Gothic-style limestone building now has been reinvented as an art gallery. The spiffed-up interior is intimate and sunny, and it's a refreshing pit stop of culture on your way to the Water Tower shopping center or pumping-station tourist information center across the street. Exhibits have included works by Chicago-based photographer Victor Skrebneski. Allow a half-hour.
City Council Chambers at City Hall
The public meetings of the volatile Chicago City Council make great theater for political junkies. The council meets in a massive building that takes up an entire city block, encompassing both City Hall and the County Building. (You can't miss it: Its columns are probably the most massive of any city building -- 75 ft. high and crowned by Corinthian capitals the height of an entire floor.) Although politics aren't quite as colorful under Mayor Richard M. Daley as they were under his dad, when a hot-button issue is being debated, factions can still get down and dirty, and the political posturing of the 50 aldermen (the name given to the city council members) can make for the best kind of theatrics. Call ahead to find out when the council is in session. City Hall tours also can be arranged for groups; call to make a reservation. Allow 1 hour.
Gray Line
Part of a company that offers bus tours worldwide, Gray Line Chicago offers professional tours in well-appointed buses. Most tours run 3 to 4 hours (including lunch) and feature highlights of downtown or various neighborhoods; some tours also include a cruise on Lake Michigan or a visit to the Sears Tower Skydeck. You'll also find some more intellectual offerings, including Chicago and the Civil War and Literary Chicago.
Make your reservations for discount hotel rooms in the
Chicago area, including:
Four Seasons Hotel
Consistently voted one of the top hotels in the world by frequent travelers, the Four Seasons offers an understated luxury that appeals to publicity-shy Hollywood stars and wealthy families. Although the hotel has every conceivable luxury amenity, the overall look is that of an English country manor rather than a glitzy getaway. The real attraction here is the service, not the decor.The city's tallest hotel, the Four Seasons occupies a rarefied aerie between the 30th and 46th floors above the Mag Mile's most upscale vertical mall. The elegant rooms have English furnishings, custom-woven carpets and tapestries, and dark-wood armoires. Each has windows that open to let in the fresh air. Bathrooms boast such indulgences as a lighted makeup mirror, oversize towels and robes, scales, and Bulgari toiletries. Kid-friendly services include little robes, balloon animals, Nintendo, a special room-service menu, and milk and cookies. The hotel's elegant fitness center and spa exude the same upscale, old-money feel as the rest of the public areas. An 18-foot-high white marble fountain marks the entrance to the opulent Seasons Restaurant.
Talbott Hotel
The Talbott is not for anyone who needs extensive hotel facilities, but the cozy atmosphere and personal level of service appeal to visitors looking for the feeling of a bed-and-breakfast rather than a sprawling, corporate hotel. Constructed in the 1920s as an apartment building, the Talbott was converted to a hotel in 1989. Proprietors Basil and Laurie Ann Kromelow take a keen personal interest in the hotel's decor: Most of the gorgeous antiques strewn throughout are purchases from Basil's European shopping trips. The wood-paneled lobby, decorated with leather sofas and velvety armchairs, two working fireplaces, tapestries, and numerous French horns used for fox hunts, is intimate and inviting -- all the better in which to enjoy your complimentary continental breakfast.Although comfortable, the rooms aren't quite as distinctive; they also vary in size, so ask when making reservations. Suites and the hotel's "executive king" rooms entice with Jacuzzi tubs; suites have separate sitting areas with sofa beds and dining tables.
Fairmont Hotel
The Fairmont is easily one of the city's most luxurious hotels, offering an array of deluxe amenities and services and regularly hosting high-level politicians and high-profile fundraisers. Open since the mid-1980s, its overall effect is chic but a bit impersonal. The entrance faces anonymous office towers, and you're likely to wander the circular lobby awhile before finding the check-in desk. Still, the rooms are large and decorated in a comfortable, upscale style (ask for one with a lake view, although city-view rooms aren't bad either). The posh bathrooms feature extra-large tubs, separate vanity areas, and swivel TVs. The windows open (a rarity in high-rise hotels), so you can enjoy the breeze drifting off Lake Michigan. Suites have one or two bedrooms, a living room, a dining area, and a built-in bar -- and all come with lake views. The hotel is connected to the city's underground "pedway" system, through which you can walk all the way to Marshall Field's on State Street -- a bonus on inclement days (a florist, pharmacy, and salon are conveniently located in an adjoining building).Facilities: Restaurant (American/eclectic); lounge; access to Lakeshore Athletic Club, one of the top health clubs in the city (with full-court basketball, climbing wall, pool, and spa); concierge; business center; 24-hr. room service; babysitting; laundry service; 24-hr. dry cleaning.
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