Chicago Travel Site

One of my best is traveling to Europe and the entire experience was fantastic! I loved the flights, the sights, the people.
My absolute worst travel experiences are (it’s a tie)
1) riding cross country on GREYHOUND where the workers treat you like a 2nd class citizen, and I had a mother from hell across from me scolding her children all the way to Chicago (rode from Olympia, WA to Baltimore- thought it would be a fun way to see the states- silly me!) and her poor kids would get upset and cry for attention- then there were people upset with the kids.
2) When I was traveling with my daughter who was under 2 at the time from Seattle to Baltimore, right before a 45 minute stop at Chicago in the wee hours of the morning, someone who had some sort of stomach condition let off with the foulest smell I have ever had the misfortune to smell!:( of course, when the train stops, so does the air circulation. My daughter was sleeping and I kept my coat over my face until the train went on. yuck!

Okay, this is a 2 question thingy.. I’ll make it short.

I need to travel from Chicago, IL to Orlando, FL to see my girlfriend, who is 17. I’m 18. We plan to stay at a relatives house for a number of days, but we plan to spend 5 days in Orlando to check out the theme parks and have some fun. We only have about $500, we want to spend atleast 3, but we want up to 6 nights there.

What’s the absolute cheapest way to do this? A greyhound bus ticket is like $230+, but I also read on their site that you can save money by purchasing your tickeet 2 weeks ahead or something, it’s consusing. I’ve found $39 / night hotels, is this probably the dirt cheapest I’ll find in Orlando?

Question #2: I’ll be the one checking in. Can my gf go right in with me, or does the fact that I’m not her parent complicate something?

We’re planning soon.. help is appreciated!

Thanks