Chicago: Have a Hot Time in Chi-town

Don’t miss

Lincoln Park Zoo, one of the last free zoos in the country, is set just west of the lake in Chicago’s huge Lincoln Park. Be sure to cover both extremes of this small and accessible zoo. Take the little ones to the south end to see the newborn animals at the Farm in the Zoo, then trek to the north end to say hello to the polar bears. The zoo has recently undergone major renovations, including the addition of the terrific Pritzker Family Children’s Zoo. Beware: It can be tough to drag the kids off the climbing structure and back outside, so don’t venture in until you’re ready for a rest.

Lincoln Park Zoo, www.lpzoo.org, tel. 312-742-2000

Garfield Park Conservatory is one of the city’s best-kept secrets and one of my family’s favorites. Just 10 minutes west of the Loop, the conservatory is easily reached on the CTA Green Line, by cab or car (with the added benefit that it offers plenty of free parking, a rarity in any city these days) and it’s free. Grab a scavenger hunt map to help kids discover the secret lives of plants, or just take them straight to the Elizabeth Morse Genius Children’s Garden, where they can slide down a plant stem, climb a seven-foot seed or, my kids’ favorite, discover the Sensitive Plant, which is “so shy it cringes when touched.”

• A young visitor meets some of the residents of the Lincoln Children's Zoo.
• Karin Dalziel

Garfield Park Conservatory, www.garfield-conservatory.org,
tel. 312-746-5100

And, finally, there are the tours of the city’s gangster history. We’ve done several with the kids. The best for serious ghost-hunters, believers in the spirit world and gangster scholars is Richard Crowe’s Chicago Supernatural Tours. Crowe calls himself an “internationally known Chicago ghost hunter,” and he certainly seems to know his stuff. But my son, then 13, got a little bored as the tour dragged on for four hours. Perhaps if we had actually seen a ghost that night (which Crowe says happens at times), we might have felt differently.

Chicago Supernatural Tours, www.ghosttours.com, tel. 708-499-0300. Price: $39

• Kids tracing the labyrinth lines at Garfield Park.
• Richie D.

Our preference, for pure kitschy fun, is the Untouchable Tour. Unlike Crowe, who rides around in an air-conditioned coach complete with bathroom, this gangster tour is a little like Chicago itself: gritty and tough. Using a converted school bus decked out with fake bullet holes, our tour guide, Southside, knew how to make Chicago’s bloody history fun, and make fun of Chicago’s bloody history. Just remember, when Southside yells “duck,” you’d better do it. My kids laughed for most of the two-hour tour, and I was impressed to realize they actually ended up learning something about Chicago history when, several months later, they were regaling family members with stories of Chicago history, courtesy of Southside.

Untouchable Tour, www.gangstertour.com, tel. 773-881-1195. Prices: $25 adults, $20 kids.