Jingle Bells

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Jingle Bells

Day 1 - Chicago

Come celebrate Winter WonderFest at Navy Pier! Experience the warmth of winter inside an enchanted 170,000 square foot holiday hamlet! Some of the attractions include:

Chicago Blackhawks Ice Skating Rink - Trade the winter chills for thrills at this popular indoor ice skating rink.
Bah Humbug Court - The Winter WonderForce holiday cops are continually on the watch to issue tickets to unsuspecting guests for exhibiting non-cheerful behavior.
Ferris wheel - Capture the best views of the entire event from atop the 50-foot-high, indoor Ferris wheel. Perfect for adults and children alike!
Kringle Carousel - This classic family favorite offers visitors the opportunity to ride round-and-round atop painted animals.
Winter WonderStage - Enjoy live family-friendly entertainment, including jugglers, magicians, ethnic and cultural programming, and much more!

After celebrating Winter Wonderfest, your group can enjoy some shopping and an authentic German lunch at Christkindlmarket Chicago. Each year, people from all over the world visit the Christkindlmarket. The unique shopping experience, typical German food and drinks, as well as diverse holiday entertainment make the Christkindlmarket Chicago a popular destination. The four-week long event is the largest and most renowned German winter holiday market in the United States. Some of the offerings include eclectic ornaments that are hand-blown and painted and cannot be found anywhere else in the world; and classic German products like nutcrackers, cuckoo clocks, beer steins, and Hummel figurines. The name Christkindlmarket comes from the mythical tale of the Christkind, a fairy-like being, dressed in a gold and white robe with a crown atop her golden locks, who is the bearer of gifts at Christmas time.

Then move on to Macy's on State Street! Since the early 1870s, Macy's has been stunning spectators with its famed holiday window displays and celebratory events. As the first store to ever feature holiday windows created for the pure fun and joy of the season, Macy's began a tradition that still lives on today. Additionally, marvel at their 45-foot Great Tree decorated with over 1,200 themed ornaments and 25,000 dazzling lights in the Walnut Room. The Walnut Room (7th Floor) opened in 1907 and is one of Chicago's most beloved landmarks. You can still sit by the 17-foot marble fountain, amid the original Circassian walnut paneling and Austrian chandeliers, and enjoy a traditional potpie made from Mrs. Hering's original recipe. Macy's is the second largest department store in the world and is recognized as a National Historic Landmark and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Customers can shop and dine their way through the twelve-floor building that has been a tradition for generations of Chicagoans.

End the day with a holiday performance at one of Chicago's famous theatres. contact Tobie at the Chicago Southland CVB for a current listing of all available shows and times.

Day 2 - Chicago Southland

Start the day with some holiday shopping! From upscale to eclectic, the boutiques and stores in Downtown Frankfort offer unique selections and personal service that you won't find at the shopping malls. Your group will enjoy a relaxing shopping experience in the small-town setting of downtown Frankfort. They will discover quality children's clothing, art, women's shoes and accessories. Frankfort also boasts home decor, dollhouse and garden accessories, products for pampered pets, a butcher shop and more. The old fashioned Frankfort General Store specializes in nostalgia. They carry candies from yesteryear, soy candles, ornaments, gifts, sauces, dips, popcorn and much more!

Lunch is served at the Pickwick Society Tea Room, Gifts & Antiques. Loosely based on Louisa May Alcott's classic novel, Little Women, the Pickwick Society menu pays homage to each of the characters in the novel. Step back to a more genteel time, when Little Women would while away the hours with a soothing cup of tea in a place where we can, as Amy said, "Bear our souls and tell our most appalling secrets". Choose a luncheon plate named for one of the Little Women. Every Little Woman loves a tea party. Make your group's next one notable at The Pickwick. They will work with you to meet your needs and hopefully exceed your expectations.

Let your group unwind and freshen up at the hotel before an evening of fun!

Stop at the Glenwood Oaks Rib & Chop House before heading to a holiday production at a Chicago Southland performing arts center or theatre.

Glenwood Oaks Rib & Chop House, as you see it today, evolved from a long history that began over a half-century ago. Originally opened by William and Hilda D'Amico in 1925, it was first known as Glenwood Gardens. The restaurant reflects a cozy, intimate, casual, but elegant lifestyle with stunning architectural treatments and suburban interior décor. Glenwood Oaks Rib & Chop House's non-pretentious atmosphere is achieved through a flowing residential design, a home-away-from-home where the owner hosts guests nightly in an elegant and sophisticated environment. Stringent standards of excellence in service, food presentation, and quality ingredients, married with delicious innovative cuisine concepts, complete the dining experience.

The Chicago Southland Performing Art Centers and Theatres offer a variety of holiday shows in December including local performances like the Moraine Valley Community College Holiday Concert Series, The Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra's Holiday Concerts, Salt Creek Ballet's The Nutcracker at Governors State University Center for Performing Arts along with others.

Day 3 - Chicago & the Surrounding Suburbs

On the last day of your holiday tour in the Chicagoland area, a stop at the Museum of Science and Industry is a must! The Museum of Science and Industry is one of the largest science museums in the world and is home to more than 35,000 artifacts and nearly 14 acres of hands-on exhibits designed to spark scientific inquiry and creativity. Celebrating its 76th anniversary this year, many of the exhibits have changed, but the Museum still celebrates the holidays with Christmas Around the World. More than 50 trees, including the new Bulgaria tree, have been beautifully decorated by members of Chicago's ethnic communities and scattered throughout the Museum's halls, while various ethnic groups and school choirs from across Chicagoland sing and dance every weekend through the end of the year.

Then on to the Morton Arboretum! Make lasting memories with holiday delights and wintry beauty among the trees at the Morton Arboretum in Lisle. The Morton Arboretum is a world-renowned leader in tree science and education, working to save and plant trees. The 1,700-acre outdoor museum features magnificent collections of 4,117 kinds of trees, shrubs, and other plants from around the world. The LGB Model Railroad Club of Chicago provides equipment for the holiday train display, including colourful cars carrying Christmas presents, Santa, coal cars, a coal "elevator," music, and more The newly-redesigned "Enchanted Railroad" features a fanciful, seven-foot-tall tree cradling a globe in the canopy. Surrounding the tree are forests and a park, all in their wintertime splendour of snow, ice, and icicles. Last year "Woodland's Haven", was the theme for the stunning 14-foot-tall Holiday Arboretum Tree. It was the highlight in last year's display of several fabulous, sparkling indoor "Holiday Trees" which professional artists, designers, and the Arboretum's own botanical arrangers decorated.

Lunch can be enjoyed at the Morton Arboretum's Ginkgo Restaurant & Café. With floor to ceiling windows, visitors at the Ginkgo Restaurant eat gourmet specialties overlooking a stunning panoramic view of Meadow Lake. The Ginkgo Restaurant and Café is improving its sustainable practices, providing new organic menu options, reducing throw-away plastic, selling reusable water bottles, and offering water bottle filling stations free for visitor use.

And to finish off your holiday tour, a enchanting evening at the Holiday Magic of Brookfield Zoo Chicago! Brookfield Zoo Chicago is one of the country's largest zoos. They house 3,000+ animals in award winning exhibits and the zoo is situated on 216 beautifully landscaped acres. For the holidays Brookfield Zoo Chicago presents Holiday Magic, featuring nearly one million twinkling lights illuminating the zoo's walkways, a dazzling Laser and Light Spectacular, ice-carving demonstrations, live musical performances, magicians, and much more. Many exhibits are open for viewing your favorite animals. In addition, the zoo's restaurants and food stands will be open with full menus and holiday treats, and their gift shops will have hundreds of unique items for those hard-to-shop-for loved ones.

** Please note: Itinerary may be modified to meet your group’s specific needs. Locations and selections are subject to availability. Please contact Tobie at Tobie@VisitChicagoSouthland.com or 708-895-8200 to obtain current pricing and confirmation of dates and locations.