That hostel isn't all that close to the Hideout and is in a very dense neighborhood with lots of traffic so plan on giving yourselves at least an hour to get to the Hideout if yr relying on CTA. Half an hour in a car.

It may not seem far when you map it but try driving west on North Avenue on a Saturday in the summer, especially now that the bridge is closed, and you'll see what I mean. At least I think it's closed, but I'm not really sure because I ALWAYS AVOID NORTH AVENUE AT ALL COSTS!!

In fact west on Fullerton will suck, west on Armitage will suck, and west on Belmont will suck at least as far as Southport.

Most of this information is incorrect - no offense.
I live two blocks east of this hostel and can say that by cab, you'll be at the Hideout in 10 minutes, 15 tops with a total cost of about $10 (depending on how many of you are in the cab). You can get a cab in a nanosecond on Clark Street - walk left/East out of the hostel to the second stop sign.

From this hostel you can also just walk there if it's nice out.
Here's a friendly route I recommend taking with numorous bars along the way there and/or back for any beer/smoke/pit stops...

Walk west on Arlington till it dead-ends at Orchard. Walk left to Fullerton (first street). Take a right on Fullerton and walk to Halsted (at light). Take a left. Walk down Halsted about 3/4 of a mile to North Ave (Bars line Halsted St). Take a right on North Ave. Walk over bridge, through the Home Depot parking lot and across to Wabansia St./Hideout.

Max walk time with no stops or stumbles: 30 minutes

As for the hostel itself... It seems alright. I've never been inside of it, but there are plenty of friendly folks hanging out in front of it and I've never heard of any problems coming from there in the 2-plus years I've been living down the street.

There's a grocery store just off of Clark St. where you can grab groceries/beer/whatnot for your stay as well.

Forget taking the CTA. You can walk there quicker than it would take for you to figure out and wait for the right buses.

6-4-3, this is great info - thanks a million.

I stayed at Arlington House for a few nights last February. It's a big hostel, but it was pretty quiet as well, so I slept well. Don't know how much you intend to sleep, but it's at least nice to have the option, no? The room was a little run down, but nothing too bad. The staff was friendly and the bathrooms alright. No horror stories there. I kept getting constant electric shocks from the switch of the light by my bed (and it didn't even work most of the time), so you might want to be careful. The hostel is in a great neighborhood, as mentioned before. Nice and quiet. At least I didn't feel threatened returning from shows alone at night. If you have friends with you, even better. Also, the Fullerton el station is close by as is the bus stop so I didn't think it was that difficult getting there from The Hideout or wherever I was coming from.

By the way, if you're feeling hungry in the morning try a place called Bourgeois Pig near the hostel.

O Chicago..., such a beautiful city!

try a place called Bourgeois Pig near the hostel.

Bourgeois Pig is on Fullerton, one block west (to the right) of Orchard.

6-4-3 wrote:

try a place called Bourgeois Pig near the hostel.

Bourgeois Pig is on Fullerton, one block west (to the right) of Orchard.
Good place, indeed.

try a place called Bourgeois Pig near the hostel.

Bourgeois Pig is on Fullerton, one block west (to the right) of Orchard.
Good place, indeed.

try a place called Bourgeois Pig near the hostel.

Bourgeois Pig is on Fullerton, one block west (to the right) of Orchard.
Good place, indeed.

try a place called Bourgeois Pig near the hostel.

Bourgeois Pig is on Fullerton, one block west (to the right) of Orchard.
Good place, indeed.

I've stayed at Arlington on at least two occasions. I like it. If you have a problem eating breakfast with the city's home-free, then you might not like it, but what are you, some kind of jerk?

I was thinking about staying at the Arlington house myself. It is cheaper than that Chicago International place.....

Can you reserve rooms online?

Oh, I can't wait! I am very poor and may even have to sell something to go, but I think it will be worth it and I never get to go on trips anywhere....


Actually, would anyone let me stay at their place in Chicago? It is not that I can't pay for a hostel, I just want to meet people. I would pay someone a hundred bucks for 4 days! I know noone up there and I just want to meet people and go to some parties other than wandering around by myself all day...I am cool and house broken and can cook you dinner...

Seriously, check out my Myspace. I know tons of hot girls, so I have to be cool...