These Ultimate Things to Do in Chicago

The Midwest’s largest city bridges high design and culture with good old fashioned hospitality especially come summer when outdoor concerts in Millennium Park, walking tours, boat rides, games at Wrigley Field, and more celebrate the longer days of sunlight. This is not to say that you should rule out wintry days and nights in Chicago because the craft beer scene, museums like the Art Institute of Chicago and the Field Museum, and comedy institution Second City are great spots to hole up indoors. Let find out These Ultimate Things to Do in Chicago below.

These Ultimate Things to Do in Chicago

Expand Your Mind on Museum Campus

Three of Chicago’s most notable museums, all dedicated to the natural sciences, sit inside this 57 acre park on Lake Michigan. At the Field Museum, say hello to Sue, the gigantic T. rex, before immersing yourself in this extraordinary museum’s collection of anthropological and paleontological artifacts and animal dioramas. The dinosaurs are the thing here, but surprising collections of Tibetan Buddhist altars, mummies, and re creations of famous gems may entice you to linger for hours. The Shedd Aquarium’s fantastically colored fish, as well as dolphins and whales, are completely mesmerizing.
Don’t miss the Wild Reef exhibit, where stingrays slide quietly under the Plexiglas at your feet. Taking you on a journey through the stars to unlock the mysteries of our galaxy and beyond, the Adler Planetarium tells amazing stories of space exploration through high tech exhibits and immersive theater experiences. Interactive elements and real space artifacts bring these fascinating tales of space and its pioneers down to earth.

Feel Like You’re on Top of the World at the Willis Tower Skydeck

Take the ear popping ride to the 103rd floor of the Willis Tower to get to Skydeck Chicago, where on a clear day you can see as far as Michigan, Wisconsin, and Indiana. At the top, interactive exhibits feature notable Chicagoans, kids love Knee High Chicago, a four foot high exhibit that has cutouts of Chicago sports, history, and cultural icons at a child’s eye level. Fearless folks can step out onto the Ledge, twin glass boxes extending 4.3 feet from the Skydeck and suspended a dizzying 1,353 feet above the city. Security is very tight, so figure in a little extra time for your visit.

Admire World Class Art at the Art Institute of Chicago

From one of the world’s largest collection of French impressionist paintings including Claude Monet’s waterlilies and haystacks to a blockbuster exhibition every year it seems, the Art Institute of Chicago the country’s second-largest art museum, after the Metropolitan Museum of Art is a must not miss for art lovers. Nearly a decade ago, the Modern Art Wing was unveiled; it now houses the 40 pieces collection acquired in 2015 that includes pieces by Andy Warhol, Jeff Koons, Cindy Sherman and Jackson Pollock.

Sail the Chicago River

There are many ways to get out on the water in downtown Chicago. You could take a boat cruise and even then, the options range from a narrated 90 minutes Chicago Architecture Foundation River Cruise to a two hours wine and cheese cruise or rent a kayak or canoe from Wateriders. Not sure how steady you’d be in your own vessel. Book a guided theme tour, such as this two-hour Ghosts and Gangsters tour.

See the Animals at Lincoln Park Zoo

At this urban enclave near Lake Michigan, you can face off with lions outside the Kovler Lion House, watch about two dozen gorillas and chimpanzees in the sprawling Regenstein Center for African Apes, and see animals both slithery and strange in the glass dome Regenstein Small Mammal and Reptile House.
Inside the Lincoln Park Zoo, the big guys are in the Regenstein Animal Journey, and bird lovers should make a beeline to the McCormick Bird House, containing extremely rare birds, some of which are extinct in the wild. The children’s zoo, Farm in the Zoo farm animals and a learning center with films and demonstrations, and LPZoo Children’s Train Ride appeal to youngsters.

Wander Through the Chicago Cultural Center

Totally free to enter, this stunningly beautiful building in the Loop dating back to 1897 celebrates all types of art, from Chamber Mondays jazz and strings music the 1st and 4th Mondays of the month to rotating art exhibits. Be sure to look up and view the world’s largest Tiffany stained glass dome, fresh off a 2008 restoration. That is once of These Ultimate Things to Do in Chicago.