1 Day Chicago Itinerary

1 Day Chicago Itinerary

Our last day in Chicago – we did a lot this trip but didn’t even get close to doing everything we would have liked to have done.  Next time, right? In the meantime, feel free to enjoy this 1 day Chicago itinerary.

1. Enjoy the sites at Millenium Park

We started the day by walking from our hotel to Millenium Park – it was about 15 minutes, so an easy little stroll.  It was going to be a hot day, so there were already lots of people enjoying the Crown Fountain.

After a short walk, we checked out CloudGate (also known as the Bean).  We took dozens of pictures and had fun walking all around it, but my favorite was this one looking up into it from underneath:

We walked across the bridge into the Maggie Daley Park next.  This is a fairly new addition to the city and a great place to hang out for a few hours or afternoon.  There is a huge climbing wall surrounded by what is called the Skating Ribbon. 

We had planned to rent rollerblades and skate around it, but the ribbon was closed for a summer camp – next time!  In the winter, they turn the ribbon into a place to ice skate – I think that would be fun. 

The park also has a mini-golf course, a play garden, and several open fields perfect for kicking a ball around.  It’s a great addition to the city.

2. Enjoy pasta at Eataly for lunch

As my daughter loves all things Italian, next we walked over to Eataly for lunch and shopping.  If you love Italian food, this is a fun place to check out.  We enjoyed checking out all the varieties of pasta, sauces, cheeses, oils, etc. 

We purchased a few types of pasta and some sauces (basil pesto with truffles and red sauce with olives) to enjoy later in the week.  Then the hard part was deciding which place in the store to eat. 

Everything looked amazing but we settled on one and enjoyed some tasty food.  We topped off the visit with fresh gelato – basil was a delicious and interesting flavor.

3. An afternoon of museums in Chicago

After lunch, it was time for some museums.  We started at the Field Museum – if you’ve never been, this is a great place for history buffs.  My son especially loves this museum – so much that he didn’t want to leave. 

So, we didn’t. 

He and I spent the rest of the afternoon at Field and the rest of the group headed over to the Museum of Science & Industry.

👉 Ready to book your trip to Chicago? Check rates for The Hotel Blake (where we almost always stay) at Booking.com

4. Try the Safehouse for dinner

We met back at the hotel for dinner.  Tonight’s dinner was truly an adventure.  We had dinner at The Safehouse.  This is a fantastic place to take kids – it’s a spy-themed restaurant.  I’d consider it dinner and a show! 

We enjoyed the spy theme, delicious food, and being silly.  I did an entire post on our experience HERE so check it out to learn more.

We were stuffed after dinner so instead of calling Uber decided to walk back to our hotel.  It was a lovely evening and it felt great to be out enjoying our last night in Chicago.

Conclusion: 1 day Chicago Itinerary

I am lucky to be close enough to Chicago that we can enjoy it for a long weekend regularly – and this 1 day Chicago itinerary was so fun, I could easily repeat it without being a bit bored!

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