September–November 2026 · United States
4 family outings in and around Chicago. Start with a harvest adventure, or keep it simple with a garden, park or woodland wander.
01An easy outdoor escape
Regular outing · check current hours
A ship, lighthouse, climbing walls, slides, and imaginative play zones sit beside a seasonal skating ribbon and downtown lawns.
Check hours & plan your visitMack Male from Edmonton, AB, Canada · Wikimedia CommonsCC BY-SA 2.0Display crop
02An easy outdoor escape
Regular outing · check current hours
Chicago’s free zoo combines big animals, a children’s zoo, farm animals, nature boardwalks, and easy Lincoln Park pairings.
Check hours & plan your visitAntonio Bovino from chicago, u.s.a · Wikimedia CommonsCC BY 2.0Display crop
03An easy outdoor escape
Regular outing · check current hours
Palm, fern, desert, and flower rooms make this free glasshouse a warm, weatherproof nature break on the West Side.
Check hours & plan your visitOlivier Bruchez from Lausanne, Switzerland · Wikimedia CommonsCC BY-SA 2.0Display crop
04An easy outdoor escape
Regular outing · check current hours
A former limestone quarry now holds prairie paths, a hilltop skyline view, wetlands, and a fishing pond with plenty of room to roam.
Check hours & plan your visitWarren LeMay from Chicago, IL, United States · Wikimedia CommonsCC BY-SA 4.0Display crop
Make it your kind of weekend
Check the opening date, pick a manageable journey and leave room for a snack break. Gardens and parks are regular outings; foliage and harvest conditions vary with the weather.
Keep exploring
Guides, destinations and activities worth a family weekend.
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16 Extraordinary Family Trips for 2027A worldwide edit with a month-and-age finder, side-by-side comparisons, realistic routes, stays and honest planning tradeoffs.MimihitamCC BY 4.0
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