The holidays are FINALLY approaching, I swear the lead up this year has felt like years! Over the years we’ve developed a list of our favorite places to visit during the holidays in Chicago. We often try new events but these are the ones we come back to year after year.
If you haven’t heard, the Swissotel in Downtown Chicago has an EPIC Santa suite. Their five room penthouse is decked out in all things Christmas from numerous holiday trees, to a station to write your letter to Santa to even the big guy himself sitting in front of an instagrammable wall covered in ornaments. If you can’t afford to stay overnight in the suite, and let’s be real, who can, the Swissotel overs Santa Days where you can purchase a ticket to visit the suite for at a pre-slotted time. We went last year and it was magical, not to mention the views from the suite are stunning.
Lincoln Park Zoo is a zoo nestled in the middle of the zoo, and every year for the holidays they light up the zoo with lights, attractions, ice carving stations and even visits from Santa! Over 2.5 MILLION lights are used to light up the entire zoo! Admission to the zoo is free but parking does get pricey so I recommend taking public translation if possible.
This tradition goes back way before I had kids. I used to work Downtown near the Daley center and would visit the market on my lunch hour. Vendors line Daley Plaza with trinkets, food, wine and beer replicating the German market in our very own Chicago. There are other locations at Gallagher Way and Naperville as well. Each year they release a commemorative mug that you can get filled with wine or hot chocolate. My collection of mugs is quite large at this point! Going down to the market and then walking to see the huge tree in Millennium Park always puts me in the Christmas spirit. I recommend going during the week as on the weekends, especially when it is “warm” for Chicago it can get very crowded. One other tip – only bring a stroller if you absolutely must. The market is not very large and navigating a stroller can be difficult.
These are my favorite traditions and I’m excited this year because we are trying a few new events. We’ll be attending Santa Breakfast at the Macy’s State Street location as well as hoping to check out the Chicago Botanic Lightscape. The holidays are truly my favorite time of the year so I love exploring all Chicago has to offer.