Huskies at Chicago and Notre Dame

October 1st thru 4th 2009

We are gearing up for the ultimate college football road trip scheduled to take place the weekend of October 1st to 4th 2009 in Chicago and South Bend.

This tour will be similar to past programs coordinated by Northwest Travel Service in 1996 and 2004, though we are expanding many of the optional events in and around the Windy City during our stay. If you’re spending all that time and airfare getting there, why not spend some additional time to enjoy all that America’s Second City has to offer.

The focal point of the tour, of course, is game day. The plans we are making for the GRID-IRON-HORSE Express Train from Chicago’s new Millennium Station to South Bend won’t disappoint. In addition to the chartered train we will operate, guests will also have a lower cost Motor-Coach option that will take them directly from the hotel to the game.

Our base package is a 3-night tour beginning Thursday, October 1st, with a return on Sunday, October 4th. Guests are welcome to stay over through Monday to take advantage of additional tour events. If you are interested in a shorter stay, that option is available as well. There are enough optional events taking place in the late Thursday and early Friday to make the extra night worthwhile.

This package includes accommodations in Chicago’s Loop at the Palmer House, city-wide transit pass for elevated rail and buses, Friday night rally/reception with live entertainment, food and drink, game day train to South Bend and connecting coach transportation to the Notre Dame Campus, baggage handling at the hotel, a commemorative souvenir of the event, access to all optional tours and events, and all taxes.

Chicago is an outstanding city to visit for just about any interest. A large selection of dining choices, a wide variety of historical and architectural tours, great live music, an abundance of shopping, sporting events, a scenic lakeshore, and an easy-to-use transit system that can take you anywhere in the city in a flash. Here is a short list of some of the tours we are working on for this long weekend in America’s Second City. You may even think about staying over Sunday to get it all in…

Limited availability

In 2004, Northwest Travel Service chartered two trains of 8 cars each from Chicago to South Bend for the game. These trains, operated by the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District, have new regulations in place, limiting us to one chartered train of six cars, greatly reducing our capacity. Due to this limited space, we will not offer rail-only options outside of our standard 2 or 3 night packages.

There is another agency offering a travel package for the game, but has not posted any specific details of the program or prices. Don’t be fooled by imitations and look-alikes! Northwest Travel Service has provided Husky Fans with creative, competitively priced travel programs to Washington road and bowl games for nearly twenty years.

Updated: Monday, September 8, 2008