Three Reasons NOT to Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day in Chicago

We are on the brink of one of the biggest yearly celebrations in Chicago, but do you really want to celebrate St. Patrick's day like that? Probably not. Here's why. 

Sure, Chicago might seem like the best place to show off your green shamrock socks, but, if you don't actually live in the Windy City, you'll probably want to steer clear of it this weekend for these three reasons.

Chicago's Anticipated St. Patrick's Day Crowds

The number one reason you want to avoid Chicago this weekend: the crowds. Honestly, if you want to wait until actual St. Patrick's Day (on Sunday) to celebrate, you might be able to avoid the massive swarms of green Suburbanites flooding the Kennedy Expressway and the Metra to get downtown Saturday. Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to be in Chicago Saturday to watch the Chicago river turn green just after noon. Then those people want to eat and drink and go inside to go to the bathroom. Be prepared for lots of lines and World Series like traffic just to get to Grant Park.

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St. Patrick's Day in Chicago is Expensive

Next on the list. The price. Getting to Chicago requires either driving there yourself (gas and parking) or taking public transportation (Metra, the 'L', Uber, Lyfts) or a combination of the two, which can end up costing you like $100 a person. And that's just getting there! Driving around looking for parking is definitely not a fun way to spend your St. Patrick's Saturday, but maybe it's a fun game for you? On top of the transportation cost, most Chicago St. Patrick's events have some sort of admission or ticket deal BEFORE you pay for food and drinks. Hope you've been saving!

Chicago is Cold

And the final reason to avoid Chicago this weekend, you know it's called the Windy City right? I mean, I know that's supposed to be a political reference, but Chicago is also a very physically windy city. Thankfully so far the forecast looks bearable, but that wind is likely to kick up the later you stay downtown, so forget the 60s and 70s we had in February and dress for a December Bears game if you plan to hit the city this weekend.

Moral of the story: party somewhere else! There are dozens of suburban St. Patrick's Day events this weekend and there's a great medium size event in Rockford, too!

Read more: Top St. Patrick's Day Events in Illinois