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Booking Your Accommodations

We have reserved blocks of rooms at both the SOPHY - Hyde Park and the Hilton at McCormick Place at special rates for attendees from October 8-10, 2025. You must use the following links in order to book your room at these reduced rates.

For any questions or concerns, please contact amanda@pcexperiences.com

SOPHY – Hyde Park

Check In: 3:00PM

Check Out: 11:00AM

Book Here

Hilton at McCormick Place

Check In: 4:00PM

Check Out: 11:00AM

Book Here

Hilton at McCormick Place

Check In: 4:00PM

Check Out: 11:00AM

Book Here

Getting Around

Airport

The nearest airports to the summit venue are:

Chicago O'Hare International (ORD)

approximately 60 min by car

Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW)

approximately 35 min by car

Click the airport names above to learn more about terminals, ground transportation, and available amenities.

Weather

The weather in Chicago can be very unpredictable in the Fall. We expect temperatures between 45 – 65°F (7 – 18°C). Make sure to bring layers, and prepare for rain or snow. Dress code for the summit is business casual.

Transportation

From the airports, you can take a taxi or rideshare like Uber or Lyft to your hotel. A taxi from O'Hare generally runs about $65, and rideshare options are between $45-60; from Midway, a taxi is about $40 and rideshare options are between $30-45.

The approximate cost of a rideshare from the hotels to the venue will range between $15-$30 depending on where you choose to stay. There are additional ways to get to the venue such as taking the CTA and Metra.

Chicago also has public transportation available called the CTA. The CTA Blue Line station is located right within the airport offering easy access for passengers.

The Hotel & Venue Neighborhoods

Hyde Park is one of the cultural hubs of the City of Chicago. From strolling in the lush park gardens to visiting the Museum of Science and Industry to the ethnically diverse cuisine and character of the neighborhood, there’s something to engage everyone. The South Shore Cultural Center, our event venue, is located within this historic area and offers a beautiful lakefront setting filled with architectural charm and cultural significance. Just minutes away, The Sophy provides a boutique hotel experience that captures the spirit of the neighborhood through its thoughtful blend of art, science, and music. It’s a great option for guests who want to stay close to the venue and enjoy everything Hyde Park has to offer.

South Loop is a vibrant and dynamic neighborhood in the heart of Chicago. From exploring the iconic Museum Campus with its stunning views of Lake Michigan to experiencing the rich history of the Field Museum and Adler Planetarium, South Loop offers a wealth of cultural and educational attractions. The Hilton at McCormick Place is a convenient and comfortable place to stay, with direct access to McCormick Place and easy proximity to a wide variety of restaurants, unique architecture, and a thriving arts scene. It’s a great choice for anyone who prefers to be closer to downtown while still being within reach of the event.

About Chicago

Chicago was incorporated as a city in 1837 and is located on the shores of freshwater Lake Michigan. It is the third most populous city in the United States. As of the 2020 census estimate, Chicago has a population of 2,746,388. It was the eighth most visited city in the United States in 2023, with 52 million domestic and international visitors.

Chicago's culture includes the visual arts, literature, film, theater, comedy (especially improvisational comedy), food, and music, particularly jazz, blues, soul, hip-hop, gospel, and electronic dance music including house. Of the area's many colleges and universities, the University of Chicago, Northwestern University, and the University of Illinois at Chicago are classified as "highest research" doctoral universities.

City landmarks include Millennium Park, Navy Pier, the Magnificent Mile, the Art Institute of Chicago, Museum Campus, the Willis (Sears) Tower, the Museum of Science and Industry, and Lincoln Park Zoo.

We will be hosting our conference on Chicago's historic South Side. It is the largest of the three regions of the city that radiate from downtown—the others being the North Side and the West Side (while there is no East Side, because Lake Michigan runs along the city's eastern border, there is an East Side community area on the South Side, in the far southeastern section of the city).

The South Side was once known as Chicago's "Black Belt," a term reflecting the area's historical concentration of African American residents due to early 20th-century segregation. It boasts a broad array of cultural and social offerings, such as professional sports teams, landmark buildings, museums, educational institutions, medical institutions, beaches, and major parts of Chicago's parks system.

The South Shore Cultural Center is a 65-acre facility located in the South Shore community. It was formerly a country club but is now a cultural facility that has been recognized as a Chicago Landmark and is also listed on the National Register. Bought by the Chicago Park District in 1975, it was restored as a historic landmark in response to a community campaign. It is also known as the site of the wedding reception of our 44th President and First Lady, Barack and Michelle Obama, in 1992.

For more information and recommendations on things to see and do while on Chicago's South Side, please visit Choose Chicago.

The name "Chicago: is derived from a French rendering of the Indigenous Miami-Illinois word shikaakwa for a wild relative of the onion.

Prior to its rise as an international hub for finance, commerce, industry, technology, telecommunications, and transportation, the Chicago region served as home and trade center for various Native American nations for thousands of years, including the Potawatomi, Miami, and Illinois, once powerful Native American tribes that experienced dramatic decline in the face of European expansion into their territories. The area that is now Chicago became part of the United States through a series of treaties from 1795 to 1833. The Town of Chicago was established on August 12, 1833, with a population of 200, with rapid growth soon thereafter due to its role as a transportation hub between the east and expanding western parts of the United States.

During the 1900s, many Native Americans moved from nearby reservations and other rural communities to Chicago in pursuit of jobs, housing, and other opportunities. This movement was fueled in part by a controversial "relocation program" run by the Federal government which resulted in the movement of thousands of people to major urban areas, including Chicago, during the 1950s and 1960s. Today, the Native American population of Chicago numbers less than 1%, with approximately 70,000 Native Americans currently residing in the entire state of Illinois, according to the US Census.

The early part of the 20th Century was a time of increasing industrialization, and the Great Migration of millions of African Americans from the South to the urban North. Between 1910 and 1930 the African American population of Chicago increased more than fivefold, leading to the Chicago Black Renaissance and contributing to the "New Negro Movement" in art, literature and music. Gwendolyn Brooks, an eminent Chicago poet of the 20th century, was also from Chicago's South Side, and in June of 2018, the City of Chicago honored her with a memorial statue in a park named after her, in Chicago's South Side. Brooks was the First African American to receive the Pulitzer Prize (1950) and the first African American woman inducted into the Academy of Arts and Letters (1976).