The nature center is a great place to see some animals and other exhibits. The forest is much…read morebigger than it looks from the street and has nice flat paths. We saw several deer and chipmunks. Great place to go for a hike.

Well, on this hot and muggy Sunday, we decided to have an atypical weekend visit to the shady Grove…read moreto do our almost daily walk. We typically only visit here on quieter weekday mornings. We were pleasantly surprised and fortunate to find the Blacksmith Shop open and that is the case only on Saturdays and Sundays from 11am to 3pm. Alec was the blacksmith on duty and he provided some insights into his craft as well as a walk-through of their various iron products, both functional and decorative. He is one of five volunteer blacksmiths on the staff here and really enjoys his time here. Thanks for the tour Alec!

Came here for the first time for a birthday party so I wasn't sure what to expect. The place was…read morerecently renovated so things did not seem that dated. There was a variety of different areas to play in, different pretend areas- veterinary, building and grocery. There was a big climbing structure to get into with a variety of different obstacles inside. And there was a water play area. Overall a lot of variety for the space. The things were well maintained. The room was also kept pretty warm.

They raised the prices as of October 2025 and parents still have to pay just to get in…read more Would love if the could partner with a local disability services vendor to run a small cafe. It would be more on par with the other indoor spaces.

The museum has great models of Wrigley field and downtown. There is a video that discusses the…read moreevolution of the city. There are interactive displays that describe prominent buildings, architects , and architectural styles in Chicago. A good place to learn about Chicago architecture!

Entry to the museum is only five dollars if you show them your ticket from the First Lady boat…read moretour. The ground floor has a short eight minute clip with information about the city. There is also a great display of the city as well as a Wrigley ballpark exhibit. Unfortunately, the upstairs is currently being renovated, so there was not a lot to see this trip. They have a great gift shop.

The Arlington Heights Historical Museum is also home to the Arlington Heights Farmers Market. This…read moreis a great place to spend a Saturday morning in the summer. My husband and I had a great time pursuing all of the vendors and activities that are available here. We love the cookies, pastries, apples, peaches, and fresh produce that we can get there. I highly recommend the Arlington Heights Historical Museum!

History has always interested me and this is a great place to learn about the history and people of…read moreArlington Heights. The Arlington Heights Historical Museum has beautiful exhibits which tell the story of Arlington Heights. When I visited they had an exhibit on Arlington Club Beverages and the 65th Anniversary of the Arlington Heights Historical Society. Arlington Club Beverages were made at this location for over 70 years. Sodas using the original recipe are available for purchase in the gift shop if you are interested in trying some of the sodas. The five building campus is a must see for any history lover or Arlington Heights resident. I visited on a snowy day. I found the grounds to be easy to walk despite the conditions. I recommend calling ahead to confirm operating hours.

This was the first time that we visited the Elmhurst Art Museum.  Our daughter was invited to…read morepreview the exhibition "Picasso: Fifty Years Later" before it opened to the public, Hubby and I were her guests.  The exhibition focuses more on the influence of Picasso fifty years after his death.  So, other than some nice prints from Picasso, there was artwork from his colleagues and contemporary artists as well.  Interestingly, some of the work from other artists might appear to be even more "Picassoesque" than Picasso's work in this exhibit.  All in all, it was a good show and professionally done.   We met the Executive Director John McKinnon as soon as we entered the museum, who was very friendly and professional, and enthusiastically gave us a brief introduction of the exhibition.  John was also the co-curator of the show.  Katie, the publicist of the museum, was also very friendly and welcoming.  She talked about how proud the artists must have been to be able to have artwork exhibited alongside Picasso's art, and that the Director John even improved the air system in order to meet the requirements of the lenders of the Picasso collection!  I like that both John and Katie are very passionate, enthusiastic, and professional about what they do!   The museum itself is rather small.  It's very clean with professional setup.  It would have been nice if the rest of the museum was opened to explore when we visited on the preview day.  However, nothing was opened except for the Picasso exhibit, even the small gift shop was closed.  There is a sculpture named Skycube in the museum courtyard that is worth visiting.  It is a great spot to take interesting selfie.  All in all, Elmhurst Art Museum provides a good opportunity for art museum-goers in the suburbs to visit without driving all the way to the city, and you don't need to worry about parking, as it provides ample free parking as well!

We didn't end up going inside because of a rain storm, but we did enjoy the art on the outside of…read morethe building. Located next to the Elmhurst public library. They have a beautiful outdoor setting. The building is welcoming and from the outside looking in, it looks like a great place to explore some local artists creations. Hope to come back one day and see more.

Nice Hummel collectible museum to see while visiting Rosemont, IL (Chicago). Massive collection to…read moreview at no cost. Not far from the outlet malls

My friend and I decided to give the Donald E. Stephens Museum of Hummel's a second chance. This…read moreplace is a large room lined with glass display cabinets that are full of little figurines with a smattering of collectible plates and some other larger items. About 3/4 of the collection consists of Hummels and the remaining 1/4 is made up of various little figurines from other designers. There's minimal signage and there are a lot of repeat figurines (including an entire shelf of miniature little boys reading newspapers). I can see why Donald E. Stephens moved his collection out of his home. Admission is free, so there really isn't much to complain about. If you're a big Hummel aficionado (I am not), this is supposed to be the world's largest collection of Hummel figurines on display to the public, and this would probably be your Graceland. Since I posted my original angry review, they have taken down their website. We relied on this site instead, which has the correct address and seems to be accurate: http://www.rosemont.com/community/museum-of-hummels/. Google Maps still has the wrong address for this place, so enter the street address into your GPS.

We visited the Kohl Children's Museum and had a good time. There are lots of different activity…read moreareas for kids to explore, and it's a fun place for children to learn through play. Admission is $20 per person. However, I also visited about four years ago, and I was surprised that almost nothing has changed. Many of the toys, exhibits, and play areas looked the same and felt quite worn from years of use. I would recommend visiting at least once because it's a nice experience for kids, but I don't think it's a place I would return to regularly unless they update or refresh the exhibits.

What a special spot for kids and families!…read more While visiting family nearby, they suggested that we all take our kids to the Kohl Children's Museum for them to play and run around. (It was also a particularly good move because we would be leaving shortly thereafter on our five-hour roadtrip back home -- so great for getting out the wiggles!) This museum is one large floor filled with spaces for kids to play with. There's a play grocery, play restaurant, play doctors office, play mechanic, play water tables, play music area -- even a play bookshop. Everything the kids could touch and learn from. We easily spent a couple of hours exploring everything alongside our kiddos. The trick was keeping an eye on our kids since they were constantly running from one thing to the next. We also visited during a weekend of a freezing cold snap, which meant it was packed with families hoping to wear their kids out indoors. Even still, we were able to play with everything without a long wait. I loved seeing how thought out each area was and all the ways that the kids could interact with everything. If I lived in this area, I would definitely have a membership and visit often!

Very cool art instillation in downtown Elmhurst…read more I'm guessing they change the colors of the umbrellas during the year. It was lovely to come here on a warm day and see this and walk around the area.

Great little walk through whimsical art throughout downtown Elmhurst…read more We enjoyed the colors on one of the hottest day of the year

Excellent! The Wednesday concert series is absolutely awesome. We get to picnic, hear live music…read moreand enjoy the company together. Tonight was the 4C Notes (franki vallie & 4 seasons/Jersey boys songs). Wonderful evening.

This is an amazing place and kept up very well and has events that are amazing also!…read more The downside is the cafe where we had a focaccia sandwich that was so spicy hot that we both started coughing and our noses were running! Not cool!! It said tangy, not spicy.

We were at The Trickery last weekend for a magic show - our age group ranged from teens to senior…read morecitizens and we all had a blast. The highlight of our weekend in Chicago. Aaron and Steve are truly amazing magicians and performers - highly recommend!

We attended Trickery on Saturday 04/18/26. Aaron was adept at working with a diverse audience to…read moreinclude them and maintain control of his performance in a very intimate setting. Because it's BYOB you'll get the 20-somethings that feel they have to get loaded beforehand and then act the fool while attending (do you hear that "Neil"? No one wants the focus on you acting like it was your first experience with alcohol) but Aaron was skilled at bypassing them without causing tension or escalating bad behavior. Aaron's attitude is one of someone who has worked hard to make this little venture work, and he deserves respect and recognition for his obvious commitment and work ethic. His act included variations of tricks performed by other magicians, with his own twists. He is an expert at sleight of hand and distraction, which is considerably more difficult in a room about the size of an average residential living-room. He had an appropriate sense of humor aligned with an audience coming to Boystown, an overtly gay neighborhood in Chicago (if you're not familiar). However he wasn't garish, flaming, flamboyant, or offensive; he managed a perfect balance of innuendo humor and audience engagement without being cheap or ingenuine. The snarky one-liners will likely go over your young kids' heads (although bring them to an early show, your 9 year old doesn't belong in Boystown at 10 pm on a weekend), and he carries himself with class avoiding the use of profanity or graphic terms. Again, I can't overstate that his tricks were amazing, impressive, and captivating - as magic should be. You leave the show shaking your head and wondering how it's done - which truly makes it "magic". You would be hard-pressed to spend $36.36/person for an hour of live entertainment that can match Aaron's performance. Pro-tip: If you're driving there you will need to use an app to reserve parking, as there aren't garages like downtown Chicago and every street is filled with so many signs there's no way you will return and find your car not-towed or not-ticketed. Chicago does this on purpose to generate revenue; you'll see "street cleaning" on Tuesday from xx hour to xx hour, no parking when snow is over 2 inches OR any time from Dec 1 through April 1, loading zone, 15 minute stopping/standing with flashers, no parking, residential permit zone only, bike lanes, bus stop restrictions, etc. If you find street parking and think you've beaten the system, think again. Nobel Prize Laureates, Rhodes Scholars, Ivy League PhDs, Mensa members - you can meet them all at Chicago Central Auto Pound retrieving their vehicles. Stephen Hawking couldn't drive, but if he could and he parked in that neighborhood all the quantum mechanics in the world wouldn't make his towed car reappear from the Chicago Parking space-time continuum. The nice thing is if you do reserve parking and give yourself enough time you can walk to many, many restaurants and bars in the area that are open even after the 10 pm show ends. Thank you Aaron for a wonderful experience, you made my wife's birthday memorable for both of us.