Best Weekend Trips From Chicago: 8 Short-Haul Escapes
US South weekend picks
Nashville is the single easiest Chicago weekend trip: 90-minute direct flights, strong food and music, and reliable mid-tier hotels. Four nights runs $800 to $1,800 per person. New Orleans and Charleston are the two second-tier picks; New Orleans at $900 to $2,000 per person for four nights with Creole food and live music; Charleston at $1,100 to $2,200 per person with Southern food and historic depth.
West and Southwest weekends
Las Vegas is three-hour-flight weekend standard: $700 to $1,800 per person for four nights depending heavily on which days of the week. Phoenix and Scottsdale (October through April) run $900 to $2,200 per person for four to five nights.
The East Coast weekends
Washington DC is a two-hour flight; four to five nights runs $1,000 to $2,400 per person with free Smithsonian museums making the rest of the budget go further. New York City is the energy pick at $1,400 to $3,000 per person for four to five nights.
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