Heading to a game there this fall. Any recommendations on where to eat Friday and Saturday night? Game day advice? It's currently listed as a mid afternoon kickoff.

I would kill to watch good football like that.

I am stuck with the DEI bald headed loser we call Dave Aranda

Stroll down Eddy Street Commons just south of campus for food and drink options galore. Very cool experience...

El Oso said:

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Heading to a game there this fall. Any recommendations on where to eat Friday and Saturday night? Game day advice? It's currently listed as a mid afternoon kickoff.

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Great venue to watch a game. I went to the game in 1998 when we played them in South Bend. Everyone was very friendly and helpful, and we only lost 27-3.

Get to campus early if you can, it's a really nice campus.

Their Knights of Columbus chapter used to have a steak sandwich sale which I would recommend for lunch on gameday if they are still doing that and you're not tailgating.

Go to the admin building and go to the stadium with the band.

I have been to the linebacker lounge....right by campus

Its like Scuffs...dirty and very college like

Corbys irish pub is closer to downtown....nicer and less dirty

Still college-ish type bar

South Bend has a river going right through it....Notre Dame campus is on the right/east bank

Downtown on the left/west bank

I would spend all your time on campus since its very nice and historic. People tailgate and give out free food and booze in the south parking lot of the Stadium...very nice

The town itself is just average.

Thanks for the tips. Keep them coming if you have them. Not going in 1998 is on my college regrets list. Losing makes it a small regret, but a regret nonetheless.

El Oso said:

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Heading to a game there this fall. Any recommendations on where to eat Friday and Saturday night? Game day advice? It's currently listed as a mid afternoon kickoff.

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Do everything in Chicago. Go to Lou Malnati's. Starbucks reserve. Stay at London House. Do the Architecture Tour. Take train to South Bend. ($18 1 and 1/2 hours) Spend day in South Bend. That was my dream school as a kid.

Mitch Blood Green said:

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El Oso said:

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Heading to a game there this fall. Any recommendations on where to eat Friday and Saturday night? Game day advice? It's currently listed as a mid afternoon kickoff.

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Do everything in Chicago. Go to Lou Malnati's. Starbucks reserve. Stay at London House. Do the Architecture Tour. Take train to South Bend. ($18 1 and 1/2 hours) Spend day in South Bend. That was my dream school as a kid.

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This will come as a shock to you mitch...but I have to disagree with you.

Chicago is great (world class city) but that needs to be its own trip.

A Notre Dame/South Bend trip should be focused on ND sports.

Better to head out and get a beach house in Michigan City and drive into the game if you want to experience both the great lakes and ND football on the same weekend (outdoors/urban together). Or do Indiana Dune National Park (between South Bend and Gary)

Asking far to much to try and cram in a Chicago weekend into that

Redbrickbear said:

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Mitch Blood Green said:

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El Oso said:

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Heading to a game there this fall. Any recommendations on where to eat Friday and Saturday night? Game day advice? It's currently listed as a mid afternoon kickoff.

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Do everything in Chicago. Go to Lou Malnati's. Starbucks reserve. Stay at London House. Do the Architecture Tour. Take train to South Bend. ($18 1 and 1/2 hours) Spend day in South Bend. That was my dream school as a kid.

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This will come as a shock to you mitch...but I have to disagree with you.

Chicago is great (world class city) but that needs to be its own trip.

A Notre Dame/South Bend trip should be focused on ND sports.

Better to head out and get a beach house in Michigan City and drive into the game if you want to experience both the great lakes and ND football on the same weekend (outdoors/urban together). Or do Indiana Dune National Park (between South Bend and Gary)

Asking far to much to try and cram in a Chicago weekend into that

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I've moved to a place where I drive less and less. I'd absolutely make the trip about ND. I'd see the campus. Tailgate.

My experience is two fold. Traffic and hotels. Id do everything to avoid the traffic and ensure I can get a room.

Me? I've always loved everything about ND (except Jerry Faust)

We're more than likely flying into Chicago, but outside of that no intent on being in Chicago. I've been there before. I'll go back for a trip to Wrigley, but I'm pretty familiar with Illinois.

Would Indianapolis be a better flight? Detroit seems a distant third in the list of airport options.

El Oso said:

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We're more than likely flying into Chicago, but outside of that no intent on being in Chicago. I've been there before. I'll go back for a trip to Wrigley, but I'm pretty familiar with Illinois.

Would Indianapolis be a better flight? Detroit seems a distant third in the list of airport options.

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Chicago Midway is probably the best place. Limited airlines, however. (Southwest)

I've heard there is a game day train that goes out of Chicago and its kinda like a tailgate on a train. That seems fun but I get wanting to stay in South Bend. I need to do that trip one of these season and my FIL is an ND alum so he would love to go back and drink at Corbys and all his old bars.

Went last year for the USC game. The campus is very much self contained. Not a great tailgating scene as alumni seem to really love coming back to campus and walking campus. Also, other than Chicago, most Alumni live too far away to really handle the logistics of tailgating (made me appreciate that Baylor alumni stay close and and can run tailgates). Not necessarily a great gameday culture outside of the stadium in the way you would think of something like an SEC school. Also very in love with their own mythos. But you can definitely feel the energy heading into the stadium.

I think signing up for a campus tour is worth it to learn about their housing system (unique and very cool, wish every school did it that way). But I had my teenage son with me and he dreams of going there, so we maybe got more value from the tour. Stadium tour was also cool. You cannot get on the field but they do allow you on the small media area behind the goalposts on one end zone.

Over the past decade or so they've commercially redeveloped a few blocks right off the main campus entry (south of campus) with a variety of bars and restaurants. Called the Eddy St commons. Some good places in there, but not necessarily old school college charm.

My sense is that South Bend and ND are less intertwined than Baylor and Waco. Probably driven mostly by the fact that the overwhelming majority of students live on campus for 4 years.

We flew direct from DFW to South Bend. We stayed at the Hilton on St Mary's campus directly across the street and did not need a car while we were there. 15 minutes was about the longest walk for us. The first 8 or so minutes of the walk after entering campus from the west is through a beautiful wooded area.

If you are Catholic, the reliquary at the Basilica is worth an hour of your time. We also found participating in the Friday night Rosary at the Grotto to be wonderful and spiritually rewarding. Check out Football Fridays at the Eck. Hit up the Guinness Patio while you are there. Like the old George's tent, but right in the middle of campus.

Game tickets purchased
Flight purchased
On to the hotel search