This is the time of year when special displays light up town squares, department stores, and homes around the United States. Not to be left out of the excitement, many zoos also present special light displays. Here are some of the best:
The Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden’s PNC Festival of Lights runs from November 27-January 3 from 5-9 p.m. Now in its 27th year, the festival includes puppets, storytelling, train rides and the Polar Express 4-D Experience. See this preview of their Wild Lights show:
Christmas at the Zoo is the Indianapolis Zoo’s popular Christmas light display and program. From December 4-30, the zoo lights up with special displays and visitors can see Santa’s Village, carolers and choirs, ride the Holiday Train, and see the Holiday Dolphin Show. Full Christmas at the Zoo festivities are from 5-9 p.m., but the zoo opens at noon so you can come earlier and see the animals before the fun begins. Admission discounts are given for sharing a hat, scarf, or gloves with the Mitten Tree or for recycling a phone book. Read More »
Chicago’s Magnificent Mile Lights Festival began quite humbly 50 years ago, when Saks Fifth Avenue sold its traditional metal Christmas decorations and strung tiny white Italian lights on the branches of the elm trees in front of the store. This year, Mickey Mouse, as master of ceremonies, will lead the illumination of one million lights along North Michigan Avenue during the 18th annual Magnificent Mile Festival of Lights, scheduled for Saturday, November 21st.
The event will kick off at the Harris Stage in Pioneer Court, 401 North Michigan Avenue, with an exciting schedule of live music from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Simultaneously, a series of special events are planned along North Michigan between Wacker Drive and Oak Street. Try your hand at cake decorating at the Eli’s Cheesecake booth or have your photo taken next to the 9-foot high replica of the John Hancock Tower, made entirely from Legos. And don’t forget to stop by the Culinary Pavilion for demonstrations of some of Chicago’s most festive cuisine! Read More »
From a wide swath of lawn on the east side of Chicago’s Field Museum of Natural History, a giant carved head gazes out toward Lake Michigan. More than seven feet tall, Olmec Head #8 is a replica of one of the many amazing stone carvings done by the Olmec people more than 3500 years ago in what are now the states of Tabasco and Veracruz in Mexico.
Olmec Head #8
The Olmec civilization has perplexed scholars since evidence of its existence was discovered in the nineteenth century. With no written language to decipher, only their mysterious carvings remain to tell us Read More »
There is no shortage of ways to celebrate Halloween in Chicago. Whether you are looking for something family-friendly, something wild, something free, or something spooky, you’ll find it this month in the city. Here are some of the best ways to celebrate “Chicagoween” now through October 31st.
Franken Plaza Daley Plaza becomes Franken Plaza from October 23 to 31st. Admission is free and events include circus shows, mask-making, arts and crafts, a farmers market, and other performances.
Franken Plaza's Orange Fountains
Pumpkin Patches and Pumpkin Picking You don’t have to venture out of the city to get your hands on a great pumpkin to carve. Instead, just plan an outing to the Green City Market. The market remains in its outdoor location through October 31 before heading indoors for the season. For a true pumpkin patch experience in the city, complete with petty zoo, hay rides, cider and donuts, and pumpkin carvings, check out one of the many pumpkin patches located at parks around the city, such as Humbolt Park and Archer Park. Hours differ and admission ranges from $3-$5.
Chicago’s El (or L, depending on who you ask) is the train system that helps locals and residents explore all the great and diverse neighborhoods of the city. It’s called the El because in most spots, it’s elevated above the city, glinting in the sun and making a loud rumble as it moves by overhead. Of course, those who call it the L insist it got its name because it encircles the downtown core known as the “Loop”.
El Train in the Station
Whatever you want to call it, the train is an iconic image of Chicago, and you’d be doing yourself a disservice to visit the city and not take a ride. The El is more than just transportation, it’s one of the top experiences every visitor to Chicago should have.
At $10, $15, or more – adult admission to the Shedd Aquarium in nearly $25! – visiting several of Chicago’s great museums can really take a toll on your budget. If you plan on going to more than one during your stay in the Windy City, it makes financial sense to look into one of the city’s multi-attraction passes. There are two options.
There is no shortage of ways to get “high” in Chicago. We’ve got two of the tallest buildings in the US, both offering sweeping views of the city from their observation decks, and the Navy Pier ferris wheel towers over Lake Michigan and its beaches, hoisting riders several stories up. Now there’s one more way to get some air in Chicago. Navy Pier just opened a new balloon attraction called the AeroBalloon, which will lift passengers 350 feet above the city.
Located in Lincoln Park, not far from downtown Chicago, is Lincoln Park Zoo. Perhaps the best thing about Lincoln Park Zoo is that it is free, so that anyone can enjoy it.
Its paths meander in and around various animal spaces, with several entrances and exits from the park area. A carousel ride (for a small fee) is available, as are concessions and various visitor services.
Lincoln Park Zoo is home to many “traditional” zoo animals, but also has a farmyard area where children can visit with cows, goats, pigs, and ponies. It has been honored with an entry in America’s Best Zoos.
There is paid parking near the zoo and free street parking (if you can find it) a little farther away. Other activities in the Lincoln Park area are the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum and the Chicago History Museum, and there’s a footbridge across Lakeshore Drive to a large beach on Lake Michigan. When we visited, we parked our car in the morning and spent the day on foot enjoying all of these things to do.
Marina Towers on the shores of the Chicago River in the Loop
Few things define Chicago better than the unique American form of architecture known as the skyscraper. The term was first used to describe buildings when the ten-story steel-framed Home Insurance Building was constructed in Chicago in 1885. Although today a ten story building would hardly be considered a high-rise, back then it was unheard of, and its construction forever marked the city as birthplace of the skyscraper. Over the ensuing years, many of the technologies and designs necessary to build the world’s tallest towers were pioneered in Chicago, providing the city with a spectacular skyline and a reputation for cutting edge architecture that draws visitors from around the globe.
Front and center in the effort to showcase the city’s beautiful tall buildings, the Chicago Architecture Foundation offers more than 85 boat, bus, bike, walking, and Segway tours conducted by more than 450 docents – extensively trained volunteer guides certified to lead architecture tours. One of the most respected volunteer groups in the world, docents receive hundreds of hours of training about Chicago architecture and its history.
Walking, biking, and Segway tours have themes like: “”Historic Downtown – Rise of the Skyscraper,” “Downtown Deco,” “Millennium Park Revealed,” “The Magnificent Mile,” and “Tiffany Treasures in Chicago.” CAF’s series of lunchtime tours provide a detailed look at the interiors and exteriors of 16 historic high rises, including such notable structures as the John Hancock building, Willis Tower Read More »
Lights dimmed. Music filled the auditorium. The sold out auditorium was silent in expectation. Suddenly, exploding stars, colliding solar systems, and giant meteors raced across the domed ceiling of the Definiti Space Theater at the Adler Planetarium. Cosmic Collisions, narrated by Robert Redford in his liquid, sexy voice, takes visitors on a trip through space and time to explore the continuing evolution of the Universe, focusing on the continual explosions occurring throughout the galaxy.
Adler Planetarium, part of Chicago's lakefront Museum Campus
Cosmic Collisions is just one of numerous special programs offered at the Planetarium. In the upper level Sky Theater, the wonders of the night sky are projected on the dome of Adler’s historic Zeiss planetarium theater, providing visitors with a deeper look at the diverse objects that make up our universe. The Universe Theater celebrates Read More »
