On April 19th, four of my friends and I went to see the Chicago Cubs play the San Diego Padres at Wrigley Field. With NU Day at Wrigley coming up, here are a few tips and tricks to ensure a great time at the ballpark.
ATTIRE
Don’t sweat if you don’t have Cubs apparel! My group went to Wrigleyville Sports, right outside the stadium, to buy some cute shirts. However, since’s it NU Day, you can’t go wrong with a classic Northwestern shirt…or just wearing the Cubs’ colors, red and blue! (Or if you’re like me and are rooting for the opposing team, wear blue and orange for the New York Mets!)
TRANSPORTATION
It’s more simple than you think – trust me. Get on the purple line, transfer at Howard to the red line and then get off at Addison. Yep, it’s that easy! You’ll be right in Wrigleyville and can actually see the stadium from the train. Use this to plan your trip and find when the trains leave from either Davis, Foster or Noyes. The trip will take under an hour!
FOOD
Hot dogs, popcorn (the really good kind, from Nuts on Clark!), ice cream from plastic baseball caps…what’s not to love about stadium fare? If you don’t want to break the bank, though, pack a snack or head out to Subway, Dunkin’ Donuts or Starbucks for an after-game snack. As for restaurants, chicagotraveler.com has an awesome guide for local fare in the area. Check it out!
DON’T FORGET…
- Give yourself plenty of time to travel!
- Try to stay for the entire game. You’ll never know what’ll happen!
- Bring cash, not just credit cards. Some booths don’t accept them!
- Try to bring a water bottle. A plastic water bottle costs close to around $5. Yikes!
- Bring hand sanitizer or wipes. You don’t want to miss any part of the game and you’re going to want to wipe off your hands after you chomp down on a hot dog.
- Come ready to cheer on the Cubs, even if they’re not your home team! As an East Coaster, it was so interesting to see another team’s fans and how they cheer.
- Get ready to have fun. Go Cubs…and go Cats!