Chicago
Summertime visits to candy-floss-pink Original Rainbow Cone have been a South Side tradition since 1926, with evening queues frequently stretching outside. Once you reach the counter, staff kindly relieve you of the burden of choice, stacking the shop's five signature flavors (orange sherbet, pistachio, cherry-studded Palmer House, strawberry and chocolate) onto a single cone. Most easily reached by car.
Open Friday through Sunday only in winter, with reduced hours.
15.42 MILES
Built in 1914, Wrigley Field – aka the Friendly Confines – is the second-oldest baseball park in the major leagues. It’s home to the Chicago Cubs and…
6.82 MILES
The MSI is the largest science museum in the Western hemisphere and a place to completely geek out. Highlights include a WWII German U-boat nestled in an…
11.05 MILES
The second-largest art museum in the country, the Art Institute houses a treasure trove from around the globe. The collection of impressionist and…
11.26 MILES
There's free admission to Millennium Park, the playful heart of the city. It shines with whimsical public art, both permanent and temporary exhibits, and…
10.83 MILES
Willis Tower is Chicago's tallest building (and one of the world's loftiest). Breathe deeply during the ear-popping, 70-second elevator ride to the 103rd…
Field Museum of Natural History
10.29 MILES
The Field Museum houses some 30 million artifacts and includes everything but the kitchen sink – beetles, mummies, gemstones, Bushman the stuffed ape –…
12.05 MILES
Half-mile-long Navy Pier is one of Chicago's most-visited attractions, sporting a 196ft Ferris wheel and other carnival rides ($9 to $18 each), an IMAX…
National Museum of Mexican Art
9.04 MILES
Founded in 1982, this vibrant museum – the largest Latinx arts institution in the US – has become one of the city’s best. The vivid permanent collection…
1. Greater Salem Baptist Church
3.81 MILES
Gospel fans can make the pilgrimage to the Greater Salem Baptist Church where gospel great Mahalia Jackson was a lifelong member.
2. Pullman National Historical Park
4.41 MILES
Part of the National Park Service, Pullman offers a rare look at a capitalist's fallen utopia. The community's design and architecture make for a…
5.76 MILES
Artist-activist Theaster Gates, in conjunction with the University of Chicago, has revamped what was an abandoned 1920s terra-cotta building at the edge…
5.88 MILES
Artist-activist Theaster Gates bought a tumbledown bank building for $1 in Chicago's neglected South Shore neighborhood, and transformed it into a…
5.98 MILES
Famed landscape architect Fredrick Law Olmsted designed stately Washington Park. It hosts heaps of community festivals and athletic fields for teams…
5.98 MILES
The Plant occupies an enormous former meatpacking facility where a community of food producers is now engaged in a collaborative experiment to eliminate…
7. DuSable Museum of African American History
5.99 MILES
This was the first independent museum in the country dedicated to African American art, history and culture. The collection features African American…
8. William Rainey Harper Memorial Library
6.06 MILES
Once inside the building, head to the East Tower's 3rd floor, where the reading room (called the Cathey Learning Center) offers a terrific chill-out spot…