Chicago RV Motorhome is the base for starting Route 66 Chicago to Los Angeles California. Please note if you wish to do a one way RV trip Chicago RV Motorhome Route 66 you may need to book about 6 months or more in advance. All one way bookings are on request and they are only available if it suits the rental company.
Chicago, Illinois, know as the Birthplace of the Skyscraper, is a thriving metropolis on the shores of Lake Michigan. Chicago boasts all the metropolitan luxuries of New York and Los Angeles, with thriving theater districts, shopping options and dining experiences. Chicago also boasts world class museums, huge parks filled with works of art, miles of sandy beaches, and possibly the most architecturally significant collection of buildings in its downtown skyline.
Incorporated as a city in the year 1833, it was almost totally destroyed in the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. The city fathers took the opportunity to rebuild the city bigger than before, creating legends in the world of architecture. In the 1920’s the city found notoriety around the world for the activities of gangsters such as Al Capone, who became immensely wealthy by taking advantage of the shortage of alcohol due to the Prohibition Laws.
Since those days, however, the city has become one of the most important cities in the world, with a vibrant cultural scene, and plenty to do for holiday makers.
Getting to Chicago is easy – the city is served by two airports, Midway International Airport, and Chicago O’Hare Airport, which is one of the largest airports in the world. Travel between the airports and the city is easy, you can either grab a taxi, or the preferred (and cheaper) solution is to hop on to the the CTA (Chicago Transit Authority) train for $2.
Chicago has some of the best museums and exhibits in the world. Choose from the Impressionist, Modern and Classical art at the Art Institute of Chicago, the Adler Planetarium where you can enjoy all sorts of hands on activities and exhibits, or the Shedd Aquarium, where you can see dolphins, whales, and sharks.
You’ll have to try the Chicago-style Hot Dog – very different to the classic New York style. The hot dog is topped with mustard, onion, sweet pickle relish (usually neon green), a dill pickle spear, tomato slices or wedges, pickled chilli peppers, and a dash of celery salt; but never ketchup!
For sports fans, Chicago is a great destination. The city is home to two major league baseball teams, the Chicago Cubs and the Chicago White Sox, as well as the Chicago Bulls NBA Basketball team – arguably made famous worldwide by their star player Michael Jordan. Chicago also hosts the Chicago Marathon, one of the five World Marathon Majors.
There are scores of activities and shows available at The Adler Planetarium – take a trip back in time to the beginning of the universe to experience the Big Bang at Timespace, or voyage into a Black Hole with Black Holes: The Other Side of Infinity. The Adler Planetarium is the only museum in the world with two full-size planetarium theatres.
If you are looking for a birds-eye view of the city, check out the Hancock Observatory, on the 94th floor of the John Hancock Center. A cool idea is the Soundscopes, which are talking telescopes that give you information about what you are looking at.
The world famous Route 66 starts in Chicago, at City Hall, and runs through Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California, ending in Los Angeles, a total distance of 2,448 miles.
Little known fact about Chicago – The first nuclear chain reaction took place in Illinois at the University of Chicago in 1942!