Family Travel Guide to Chicago from a Dad's Perspective

For families looking to get a taste of big city life, without the chaos of Manhattan, heat of Atlanta, or sprawl of Dallas, Chicago may be right up your alley. In Chicago, your family will see world class museums, a beautiful skyline that includes two of the tallest buildings in North America, an enormous lake and fun beach, and have time for lots of great shopping at many unique stores. This Chicago travel guide isn't like the others, though, this is from a Dad's perspective gleaned from taking two grade school aged children to the Windy City.

The Best Tours for Families

As a Dad, taking my family to Chicago, I found it easiest to purchase a City Pass for Chicago, that gave my family access to five of the biggest Chicago attractions. With it, we had access to: the Adler Planetarium, the Shedd Aquarium, the Museum of Science and Industry, the Field Museum, and either the John Hancock Center or the Skydeck of Willis Tower. The cost of a City Pass, $69 for adults and $59 for children according to their website, is reasonable, when you add up the cost of all of these individually.

As for the individual attractions on the Chicago City Pass, if your kids aren't too afraid of heights, a trip to the one of Chicago's tallest buildings can be a perfect addition to any fun filled day. While my family chose the Sears Tower, now called the Willis Tower, the John Hancock Center also offers great tours. Bring along something to keep your kids entertained for the trip up, as lines can get long in the evenings and on weekends. At the top of the Skydeck, the view is breathtaking. My kids tend to get bored easily, but they stayed entertained for a long time at the top, especially when I pointed out a few things and made a game of having them look for things on the horizon or in the city below.

The Shedd Aquarium had a lot of potential, and might have been enjoyable, had we not went on a day when it seemed that every school in Chicago was there for a field trip. Waters of the World didn't excite us much, as it appeared to be row after row of large aquariums, and this is where the majority of school field trips seemed to congregate. However, the Polar Play Zone and Aquatic Show were worth the wait. The Shedd Aquarium is open weekdays from 9 AM to 5 PM, and weekends from 9 AM to 6 PM, according to their website.

Of the remaining museums, surprisingly, my family had the best time at the Museum of Science and Industry. There, we toured a coal mining operation, complete with a trip down the mine shaft and exploration or a coal seam. There were lots of cool 'techie' exhibits for kids, young and old. Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry also kept Mom and Dad entertained, and I can honestly say I learned a few things there!

Kid Oriented Activities

Naturally, you'll want to do a little shopping while you are in Chicago, and it's a very kid friendly city as far as shopping goes. No Chicago family travel guide would be complete without mentioning The Magnificent Mile, located on North Michigan Avenue, which has the Lego store for your little builder, and American Girl Place, every girl's dream. Chicago is also home to a Sanrio store, for your Hello Kitty star. All are within a few blocks of each other on the Magnificent Mile. Besides shopping, Navy Pier and the Chicago Children's Museum can keep kids entertained for hours. Located just east of Lake Shore Drive, and north of the river walk, they are very easy to find.

Where to Stay

Chicago lodging is a little on the pricey side, although rooms to fit smaller budgets can be had by staying away from downtown. Not knowing ahead of time what neighborhoods were ok, for safety reasons we stayed near the airport, and as long as you aren't driving during rush hour, the commute was fine. As with any large city, there are areas of high crime, with Chicago's south side having a reputation for higher crime rates. Inside the touristy areas of Chicago, however, we felt very safe.

Where to Eat

Chicago has just about any kind of restaurant that you can imagine. For kids' particular palates, and their entertainment, you can try Rainforest Café, which is west of the Magnificent Mile. To get there from the Magnificent Mile, take E Ontario to N Clark Street and then head one block south. Otherwise, hey, you're in Chicago! You've got to have some Chicago style deep dish pizza. While a ways from downtown, we always made it a point to go to Zazzo's Pizzeria for some of the best of Chicago style pizza. If you're staying near the airport, it's a small drive south along I-294 to I-55, and then west to Kingery Highway. Finally head north to about 74^th street. Zazzo's Pizza is delicious!

Getting Around in Chicago

It's easy enough to drive in Chicago, as long as you aren't heading into downtown during the morning rush hour, or leaving during the evening rush hour. Parking is another story. We found it easiest, if we were going to be in one general area all day, to drive to one of the many Park and Ride locations where we could park for $4 for up to 12 hours, and catch the metro transit system, known as the 'L' to wherever we were going. This worked best on the days that we were going to spend most of the day on the Magnificent Mile or at the Chicago Museum Campus, home to the Shedd Aquarium, Field Museum, and Adler Planetarium. One note, however, if you use the 'L' and get off at a train stop downtown and pull out a map to get your bearings, don't be surprised if you are "helped" by a friendly guy who gladly provides you directions to wherever you want to go as well as the general layout of downtown, and then asks for a donation. This Dad lost some 'street smarts' points from Mom for not having any bills smaller than a $20!

Sources:

Chicago Skydeck. (2010). Ticket Prices.
City Pass. (2010). Chicago City Pass.
Shedd Aquarium. (2010). Hours of Operation.
Chicago Transit System. (2010). Park and Ride.