Questions? CIERA-Events@northwestern.edu
Travel to Evanston
Method 1: Air Travel
To get to Evanston by air, fly into Chicago (O’Hare International Airport recommended) and organize transportation (e.g., Uber or the taxi stand outside baggage claim for about $50) to your hotel address in Evanston. The conference venue, Harris Hall is located at 1881 Sheridan Road, Evanston, IL 60208. See lodging information below.
Method 2: Train Ride from the Great Lakes Clusters and Streams Conference at University of Michigan
We are coordinating with the organizers of the Great Lakes Clusters & Streams Conference (https://clusters2023.astro.lsa.umich.edu) in Ann Arbor, Michigan, held the week before MODEST-23. Because we expect some overlap in the participants of both conferences, we here provide instructions on how to easily and cheaply travel by rail directly from Ann Arbor to Evanston in a few hours.
Overview
The trip from Ann Arbor to Evanston will take ~5.5 hrs across two train lines for ~$45/person (steadily decreasing with the group size of ticket reservations down to ~$25 each for 8+ people). If there is enough overlap between participants, we may coordinate with the organizers of MIRA to buy group ticket reservations in advance so conference attendees may take the train ride together at reduced cost. [MORE INFORMATION PENDING!]
Instructions
First walk 20 minutes from the University of Michigan to the Ann Arbor Amtrak station. Take the thrice-daily train ride from there to Chicago’s Union Station (4h:40m). Walk 10 minutes to the Ogilvie Transportation Center and take the Metra Union Pacific North Line, getting off at Davis street in Evanston (25 minutes). At this point, you will be about 5 minutes walking distance from the Hilton Garden Inn, Hilton Orrington, or CIERA itself.
Amtrak from Ann Arbor to Chicago: Schedule & Prices
Each day, the train departure and arrival times are
- 7:14 am – 10:32 am
- 10:23 am – 2:02 pm
- 7:00 pm – 10:40 pm
Price per person decreases with group size (e.g., by >60% for 8+ people). When bought individually, however, the price for a standard adult ticket in coach is typically $40 ($125 in business class). The coach price increases to $55 for the two morning departures on Fri, Aug. 25. For more information or to pre-book tickets, go to the Amtrak website: https://www.amtrak.com.
Metra from Chicago to Evanston: Schedule & Prices
The Metra from Ogilvie Transportation Center (OTC) in Chicago to Davis Street Station in Evanston costs $5.50 for a standard one-way adult ticket and departs Ogilvie at the following times on each of the days in-between the MIRA and MODEST-23 conferences:
- Fri, Aug. 25 – Departs every 30 min, first at 5:32 am, last at 12:32 am (early morning Aug. 26)
- Sat, Aug. 26 – Departs 6:35, 8:35, 10:35 am, 12:35, 2:35, 3:35, 4:35, 5:35, 7:35, 9:35, 11:00 pm, and 12:35 am (early morning Aug. 28)
- Sun, Aug. 27 – Departs every 2 hr (plus an extra at 3:35 pm): first at 10:35 am, last at 12:35 am (early morning Aug. 27)
Lodging in Evanston
Conference Hotel
Hilton Garden Inn Chicago North Shore/Evanston
1818 Maple Ave, Evanston, IL 60201 | 12min walk to conference venue
Organizers have blocked off rooms at this hotel at a reduced rate ($168/night) and highly encourage participants to stay here. You must use THIS LINK to receive the reduced group rate at the Hilton Garden Inn. Breakfast is included. If you intend to room with another participant, we have booked off a portion of rooms with two beds for you to select at checkout. The deadline for booking a reduced rate hotel room is July 30.
BOOK YOUR HOTEL ROOM HERE: https://www.hilton.com/en/attend-my-event/modest23-starclusetersinpostpandemicera/
Maps
The first map below shows just the location of Harris Hall, the main conference venue.
This second map has multiple layers with locations of various types relevant to the MODEST-23 workshop. These include sites of official MODEST-23 scientific sessions and activities (purple), nearby hotel/lodging options (red), popular activity destinations in Evanston and Chicago (black), and key waypoints (green shades) likely to be used in travel to/from the conference, including from the earlier MIRA conference in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Note: This second map may not be viewable if accessing this webpage while logged into a Gmail account managed by a university (e.g., u.northwestern.edu accounts) or other professional institution that does not allow access to Google My Maps. The map should be viewable otherwise (e.g., while not logged into an institutional Gmail account or while logged into any private Gmail account, etc).