Chicago With Kids (for visitors)

I am constantly asked by friends who are planning a visit to Chicago - usually with kids - what they should do while they are here. I have recreated this list so many times that I finally decided to put it all together and just plop it into this blog. So here you go!

Chicago With Kids

I would suggest some of the following as MUSTS for your first visit:

o Navy Pier – huge ferris wheel, an IMAX movie theater, the Chicago Children’s Museum, restaurants, an amazing view of the Chicago skyline, bike rentals...it’s all here and it’s worth an entire day!

o Lincoln Park Zoo – it’s free and amazing. You can do this in the middle of the day and have lunch there, or go about a half block outside the zoo to a place called R.J. Grunt’s for hamburgers, a great salad bar, drinks, etc.

o Shedd Aquarium – They’ve got everything aquarium-ish: fish, sharks, a show with beluga whales, etc. the admission isn’t cheap but it’s worth paying for the additional “shows” that you want to see. If you go here, get there when the doors open because it is popular!

o Walk along the Lake Michigan lakefront path, particularly near the Aquarium, Field Museum and Observatory, known as “the museum campus”

o Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum – right near the Lincoln Park Zoo, inexpensive admission and interesting for the Butterfly Habitat, plus the current exhibit on robots. It’s very low-key as a museum, and most exciting to kids into ecology, science, etc.

o Deep dish pizza at the “original” Geno’s East – they actually moved to a new location but took the walls, ovens, pans, etc. with them. It’s fun, and near all the other “touristy” restaurants the kids might love, Hard Rock Café, Rainforest Café, Ed Debevic’s (diner-type place where the servers yell at you and kids love it), ESPN Zone, etc.

o GIRLS: A trip to the American Girl Place flagship store. If your daughter is into the AG story and has a doll, try to get a reservation for “tea” or lunch for a special memory.

o BOYS (and girls too): The Museum of Science & Industry on the South side. Explore a real German U-boat submarine, see and IMAX movie, explore space and the human body, take a trip into a coal mine, and more. Our favorite museum in Chicago for the amazing interactive displays. Easily as good as a Smithsonian museum.

I hope you have a good trip and don't forget to call me when you're here. I would love to show you some of the "lesser known" aspects of Chicago and some of the mom-and-pop, ethnic restaurants that make living here so exciting, and at the same time, pretty kid-friendly.

After all, being a Sweet means always being hospitable. :-)