Ask Joan

My daughter is studying in Springfield, Illinois, for a year and my husband, 17-year-old son and I are planning to visit. We need to go mid-term in February. We would like to spend a few days in Chicago before visiting her. Can you advise on the best hotels, sights and most economical way to travel to Springfield? I would also like to do some shopping. We are on a tight budget. – DMD,Dublin.

Aer Lingus fares will be about €600 for Chicago return. The Essex Inn at South Michigan Avenue will cost $120 (€96) per room per night, essexinn.com. Other similar three star hotels cost from €100-€120 per night.

Things to see indoors include the Willis Tower, the second-highest building in the US, the Shedd Aquarium, Field Museum of Natural History and the Art Institute of Chicago. You could also try ice skating in Millennium Park, see choosechicago.com for tourism information.

For shopping Water Tower Place has brands you will be familiar with, shopwatertower.com. There is a Premium Outlets mall at Aurora, Ilinois, which has upmarket brands. Take a bus from Chicago for $20, details from premiumoutlets.com.

The easiest way to get to Springfield is by train from Union Station. It takes three hours and there are regular connections. Prices are from $42 return if you book in advance at Amtrak. com. The bus costs about the same but takes longer.

My husband has always wanted to visit Pompeii and Herculaneum. We would like to do this over a long weekend next June. Would you have any suggestions for the trip. – GF, Dublin.

Aer Lingus returns to the Naples route next summer, the ideal airport for your trip to see Pompeii and Herculeneum. Fares will be about €200 return. You can easily explore the area by train and bus.

If you stay in Naples you can use the Circumvesuviana train to visit Pompeii and Herculaneum, it takes about 20-35 minutes, see timetable on eavcampania.it. Get off at Pompeii Scavi and for Herculaneum at Ercolano Scavi.

You can buy the entrance ticket there. The combined ticket is better value. Entrance on the first Sunday of each month is free to visitors from EU countries.

As Pompeii and Herculaneum are very busy sites it might be worth considering joining a guided tour to get to see as much as possible. There are usually guides around the ticket office. The restaurant gets really busy too and a picnic might be a good idea, especially if the weather is good.

In Naples, the Hotel Chiaja de Charme in the old town and near to the port, costs about €140 per night for two, hotelchiaia.it.

Are there any Irish companies providing travel insurance for persons with or recovering from cancer? – BB, Meath.

Travel insurance will be assessed on an individual basis and companies will require a lot of information before you get a quote. In some cases insurers will insure you for everything other than cancer. You will have to answer medical screening questions and will probably need a letter from your doctor or specialist.

The Irish Cancer Society, cancer.ie has a useful factsheet about insurance companies and brokers that can advise on travel insurance, see it here, http://bit.ly/1sDKANG. The Irish companies are Accident and General, accidentgeneral.ie, Get Cover, getcover.ie and the VHI.ie. There are a few UK-based companies that will insure Irish residents. Send your travel queries to jscales@irishtimes.com