Chicago

[buckeyegirl]

We just booked a short trip to visit Chicago the weekend of Thanksgiving.  We will have Friday - Monday.  Are there any fun Christmas themed activities downtown?  We have never been so we will probably try to the do the typical tourist activities but if we could fit in a Christmas activity that would be fun for my 8 year old. 

[underwaterrhymes]

The Christkindl market will be open. It gets super packed, but lots of people like it. It’s charming but super popular and it’s too much peopling for us.

The Walnut Room is popular too. The food has evidently gone downhill, but the atmosphere makes it for people. They have fairies that walk around and a huge Christmas tree in the center and you can visit with Santa upstairs.

Also, there is usually a Christmas tree around the world exhibit at the Museum of Science and industry and ice skating at both Maggie Daley and Millennium Park.

Also, Macy’s will have their windows decorated.

We have also enjoyed some of the pop up Christmas places. You can go with kids before a certain hour and they have fun drinks and lots of cool photo opps.

ETA - if you will be renting a car, I can recommend some stuff in the suburbs. The Home Alone house is a fun, but brief visit, and we love the lights shows at the Chicago Botanic Garden. Lincoln Park Zoo has one too, and that will be easier to get to if you don’t have a car.

[buckeyegirl]

We are driving in from Cleveland so we’ll have my car.

[underwaterrhymes]

Oct 13, 2024 19:55:16 GMT -5 buckeyegirl said:

We are driving in from Cleveland so we’ll have my car.

Oh, that’s good! I do recommend spending most of your time in the city because it’s awesome, but some things we enjoy around the area are below. All require tickets.

Brookfield Zoo Holiday Magic

Chicago Botanic Garden Lightscape

Morton Arboretum Illumination

Double check dates on all of these. They should open Thanksgiving weekend, but I’m not sure.

The Home Alone house is in Winnetka. It’s for sale right now so may not be decorated, but my kids LOVE this movie and it was a fun stop for us a few years ago.

Every year we try to spend a weekend in the city for a staycation during the holiday season and it’s so great.

[nicolewi]

The Christmas trees at the Museum of science and industry are very pretty and festive, and the museum is so great for kids. Since you have a car, you could try to do that, but it also might be very crowded over the holiday weekend.

We did that when we were in Chicago just after Christmas a couple years ago. We didn’t end up doing very much other holiday stuff! Other things I looked into, but we ended up not doing were:

—-There is this Christmas train thing, but it sounds like it might be kind of a hassle to try to go see it.
www.transitchicago.com/holidayfleet/

—Millenium Park tree—various concerts and things at different times

—Lincoln park zoo lights

[circa1978]

We are often in Chicago at Christmas and what DS likes most just depends on his age. I agree that the zoo would probably be a hit. I bet the Polar Express would have been too but it looks like it isn't happening this year. Last year's hit was the Christkindl market at Wrigley. I took my then 12YO and my BFF's then 9YO daughter. Cold as balls but 🤷.

[underwaterrhymes]

Oct 14, 2024 8:47:19 GMT -5 circa1978 said:

We are often in Chicago at Christmas and what DS likes most just depends on his age. I agree that the zoo would probably be a hit. I bet the Polar Express would have been too but it looks like it isn't happening this year. Last year's hit was the Christkindl market at Wrigley. I took my then 12YO and my BFF's then 9YO daughter. Cold as balls but 🤷.

Wrigley is a better place to do the Christkindl market for sure and the area has a ton of fun pop up selfie bars that are open to kids took earlier in the day. We did the Santa Baby pop up and it was so much fun.

[circa1978]

OP I know you mentioned you are bringing a car but I cannot advocate enough if you plan to stay downtown taking the train. I started taking Amtrak from STL to Chicago when DS was tiny and it is the best decision ever, particularly in the winter. He thinks it is magical, it has bathrooms and food and Wi-Fi. The cars are comfy and quiet, weather is rarely an issue and you don't have to worry about paying through the nose for parking downtown and pretty much everywhere you go. DS loves taking public transport when we are there, and I think the trains/Union Station is particularly special at Christmas.

[eport]

The Goodman Theater does a lovely Christmas Carol.

And I love the Joffrey Ballet's Nutcracker. Same music but slight change to story. Instead of rich people at a fancy party in act 1, it is the workers who put together the world's fair. Nutcracker fights rats, not mice cause Chicago and when Clara wakes up rather than the land of sweets, she is at the World's Fair and the dances are each country's pavilion (so instead of the tea dance it is the Chinese pavilion with a Chinese dancer and a red dragon). The big pax de dux is with Columbia (the statue from the fair) and the mysterious head of the fair. It is beautiful and distinctly Chicago.

And if you go to the Walnut Room, I highly recommend the Frango Mint pie. And the windows of Marshall Field/Macy's.

[funkmaster]

Oct 14, 2024 9:51:38 GMT -5 underwaterrhymes said:

Oct 14, 2024 8:47:19 GMT -5 circa1978 said:

We are often in Chicago at Christmas and what DS likes most just depends on his age. I agree that the zoo would probably be a hit. I bet the Polar Express would have been too but it looks like it isn't happening this year. Last year's hit was the Christkindl market at Wrigley. I took my then 12YO and my BFF's then 9YO daughter. Cold as balls but 🤷.

Wrigley is a better place to do the Christkindl market for sure and the area has a ton of fun pop up selfie bars that are open to kids took earlier in the day. We did the Santa Baby pop up and it was so much fun.

They’re not doing the market at wrigley this year due to hockey games. It’s such a bummer.

[underwaterrhymes]

Oct 14, 2024 10:35:42 GMT -5 funkmaster said:

Oct 14, 2024 9:51:38 GMT -5 underwaterrhymes said:

Wrigley is a better place to do the Christkindl market for sure and the area has a ton of fun pop up selfie bars that are open to kids took earlier in the day. We did the Santa Baby pop up and it was so much fun.

They’re not doing the market at wrigley this year due to hockey games. It’s such a bummer.

Oh man. I know they have one in Aurora, but that’s a haul. The one downtown is just so crowded.

[circa1978]

funkmaster, oh that does suck. It was such a fun experience.

[dish2501]

We go to MSI every Thanksgiving weekend. It is surprisingly empty on Friday. Sunday isn’t that bad either. Make sure you stop downstairs and grab a time slot for the kids’ play area. If you have a membership to another science museum, you may be able to get discount tickets to MSI. Look for the ASTC partners.

If you do head to the suburbs for Brookfield Zoo, there is a free lights thing at Liliaca Park in Lombard and lots of yummy food in that area.

[underwaterrhymes]

Oct 14, 2024 11:34:07 GMT -5 dish2501 said:

We go to MSI every Thanksgiving weekend. It is surprisingly empty on Friday. Sunday isn’t that bad either. Make sure you stop downstairs and grab a time slot for the kids’ play area. If you have a membership to another science museum, you may be able to get discount tickets to MSI. Look for the ASTC partners.

If you do head to the suburbs for Brookfield Zoo, there is a free lights thing at Liliaca Park in Lombard and lots of yummy food in that area.

Lilacia is great, but doesn’t open until December.

I also recommend Juniper Lane in S. Elgin, but I am not sure when everyone has their decorations up. (This is a residential street, but almost all of the residents go all out with their holiday spirit. It’s really incredible.)

[wildrice]

Another vote for the zoo lights at Lincoln Park zoo! They are superior to other zoos I've been to, and it's free (I think you may need tickets now?).

The Christkindl market is SO crowded that I can't imagine it being fun with kids. We would usually stop by and get some mulled wine but it's hard to really do anything else because of so many people. So I would skip that.

Macy's and walking down State Street are a must. My family always used to enjoy browsing the Watertower mall because it was it was decorated, too. And the Joffrey ballet Nutcracker is a good suggestion.

I went to Chicago over Thanksgiving weekend every year for most of my first 35 years of life and it's just magical that time of year, no matter what you do!

[dish2501]

Oct 14, 2024 12:01:28 GMT -5 underwaterrhymes said:

Oct 14, 2024 11:34:07 GMT -5 dish2501 said:

We go to MSI every Thanksgiving weekend. It is surprisingly empty on Friday. Sunday isn’t that bad either. Make sure you stop downstairs and grab a time slot for the kids’ play area. If you have a membership to another science museum, you may be able to get discount tickets to MSI. Look for the ASTC partners.

If you do head to the suburbs for Brookfield Zoo, there is a free lights thing at Liliaca Park in Lombard and lots of yummy food in that area.

Lilacia is great, but doesn’t open until December.

I also recommend Juniper Lane in S. Elgin, but I am not sure when everyone has their decorations up. (This is a residential street, but almost all of the residents go all out with their holiday spirit. It’s really incredible.)

Ah dang! Too bad since it’s lovely!

[buckeyegirl]

Thank you everyone! have several things to look into.