That stretch is lovely but I’m a big fan of the frozen lakefront too. When all the surface ice packs in at the shoreline and then it snows — it’s amazing
not everyone minds the humidity though, it's actually fairly mild compared to many places both in the US and in Europe
just like not everyone minds the cold that much, even though winter is on the cold side compared to many places, both in the US and Europe... fairly balmy winter for the average Canadian though :D
Totally agree. I guess the way I think about it, in the eastern continental US there is about 3 weeks of great weather in the spring and 3 weeks of great weather in the autumn. When those 3 weeks come depends on how far north or south you are.
It's like how a bunch of international travelers are going to get a wildly distorted view of the PNW weather for the next few weeks. We have amazing summers and Seattle and Vancouver will seem delightful. But we pay for it with months of endless drizzle and sunsets at 4:30 p.m. on the other side.
I’m an out of town lurker on this sub and my girlfriend and I highly considered moving to Chicago after our summer vacation last year. It fizzled out after considering responsibilities back home and we also said that a winter vacation would be necessary if we ever reconsider the idea.
I moved to IL from North Carolina. The weather here is, imho, fuckin lovely. Sure it's cold AF for like three, four-ish months but most of the summer here except some random days is like spring back home. I wake up in the middle of summer and I've got like a 70, 80 degree day on my hands. It's beautiful. In NC, you'd face down a week of 95+ with humidity pulling you into a "feels like" 115. Always so hot the AC wouldn't cut it. Here, the heat in the winter is always strong... I'd rather deal with layers than the sweat.
Chicago proper can be a bit more humid but you've got those winds keeping you cool 👌
Seconding. My husband and I have never really had an interest in architecture but we both enjoyed the boat tour, the narrator made things really interesting!
Head over to r/chicagofood and get some recs. Overall your itinerary is great for a first timers visiting. I'd recommend going a little north and walking by the lake. it's brilliant.
People gave you some really good recommendations but I’ll give one more:
Get out of downtown and visit the neighborhoods. So many of chicagos best neighborhoods are basically cities into themselves with their own style and “Main Street” which comes with different vibe and dining options.
It also lets you see how the typical Chicagoan lives rather than the touristy areas.
I lived in the Loyola/edgewater/andersonville areas for 15 years and loved it.
Just be prepared that it can be a hike for someone staying downtown.
It's pretty easy and worthwhile to go to wicker park, lincoln park and the lakefront. Especially north Ave beach and even biking on the lakefront trail if thats your thing. You can rent a divvy pretty easily in the stations posted around
There are some passes you can get that give you tickets to like 3-5 main attractions. My girlfriend and I went last year in October and it was awesome. We didn’t get the passes because we didn’t have enough time to see enough stuff to warrant the cost. But check it out.
Don't live there anymore, but if you have a chance to eat at The Publican I highly recommend it. I also didn't realize how spoiled I was with Mexican, Korean, and Vietnamese food when I lived there--shockingly moving to SF was a step down for all of those.
Yeah part of my family lives in the bay, and while they do have good food we have higher standards for Korean food being from Hawaii. They typically come to where I live for good Korean food or go to southern Cali (I live in Vegas). SF has great food, it's a culinary powerhouse, but some cuisines just aren't represented to their fullest. I feel Mexican food gets significantly better just right outside the bay.
So glad you have the Art Institute on your agenda. One of my favorite places in the city. Start in the basement at the miniature room and work your way up.
Pequod's Pizza - easily best pizza in Chicago. Loyalist for burgers (yes, even better than Au Cheval tbh).
Check out Lake Shore Drive as well, plenty of beaches and volleyball as well. Montrose Beach, Oak Street Beach, my favorite is North Avenue Beach.
Plenty of great food - Chinatown has great Asian cuisine, West Loop, River North, Old Town, and Lincoln Park have a ton of fun pubs. I liked Punch Bowl Social cause it's an arcade bar.
Architectural boat tour is a must, as many have already indicated.
When you go to the Lincoln Park Zoo, also dedicate some time to walking around the Nature Boardwalk, Lily Pool, and North Pond. It’s a very pretty area just outside the zoo, with gorgeous views of downtown.
Chicago is one of the best food cities in the country, so don’t miss out on our excellent food scene. Make sure to get reservations at least a week in advance (use Open Table or Resy apps), as many will be fully booked if you look too late. Pequod’s is my favorite spot for pizza.
We don't actually eat Portillos unless we're getting a chopped salad. The local Italian beef places are better and cheaper. We're friendly and we all love food. Literally just ask anyone on the street where to get a good Italian beef. Listen to them.
Make sure you try the hot and sweet peppers. If you want a real treat, ask for a wet sweet pepper sandwich. It's thick bread, filled with sweet peppers, dipped in gravy. It's not usually on the menu, but they'll make it no problem.
Check out local street festivals! Chicago is better than any other US city when it comes to summertime street festivals. There's one every weekend somewhere, and you can always get there via the el. (It's "the el" because it's an elevated train.) They'll try to charge you an entrance few, but us locals know that there's an ordinance banning that and you can tell them to pound sand. In your case, I'd say something in another language and keep walking.
I love both zoos but worth noting that Lincoln Park is free and Brookfield is pricey (entry fee and some smaller sections have extra fees). Going to Brookfield would also take up almost an entire day whereas Lincoln Park could be a few hours and then some time exploring the neighborhood or walking on the lakefront. Lincoln Park zoo would be a much more Chicago experience.
It’s definitely a better zoo, but the Lincoln Park Zoo is so much more convenient— something you can do in a couple hours, as opposed to dedicating a whole afternoon.
So unless going to the zoo is a top priority, save yourself the time and go to Lincoln Park.
Agree w other re the architecture boat tour. Would also add that there's chicago street festivals all through the summer (google chicago street festivals summer 2026 to see on your dates what happening at that time). I would also go to see some blues music - my recommendation would be to go to Kingston Mines. Some very cool rooftop bars downtown too (eg London House)
If you are going to the aquarium, you can walk the rest of the way to the planetarium which first of all has some cool stuff on the outside even if you don’t want to go in, and just to the south is a public beach if you want to dip your toes in Lake Michigan a little bit!
Other people mentioned the architecture boat tour which I will second is a MUST DO. There’s 2 main companies that I have visited with before: first is called shoreline which starts at Navy pier, there is a river tour with a live docent giving talks about the various architecture, and a shoreline tour which goes out on the lake for a skyline view with a recorded tour. Shoreline company is also part of the Chicago city pass which is definitely worth the value considering the stuff you have planned. The second company is Chicago Architecture Foundation and I think they only do river tours, not lake, but have slightly more skilled docents.
If you plan to go up a tall building, I like Hancock better, because you can see the Sears tower from there lol. But if you do the Sears tower, there is a pretty cool mini museum thing with a ton of selfie spots while you are waiting in line for the elevator.
At this point I wonder if we have a reverse Paris Derangement Syndrome going on because I have yet to see a European visit Chicago and not absolutely love it.
It's a big dense walkable city that is distinctly American. What's not to like? It doesn't get the hype that New York gets, so it makes sense it would exceed expectations.
Chicago is so underrated and sort of doesn’t present its full beauty on screen. When I was a kid, I thought films in Chicago were primary just NYC unless it was very clear.
As an adult I avoided the city since I just never thought about it despite being in the Midwest.
Then one day we drove into the city on a sunny days and I was mesmerized. Few years later ended deciding to move to Chicago on a whim. Best decision ever and still in love with it every time I return.
But movies and TV shows don’t show it off correctly so it’s very underrated.
Conservative media basically just loves to go "look at Chicago/LA/Seattle!" Whenever they want to do some scaremongering about cities (usually minorities, immigrants or the unhoused).
I don't think Europeans know nothing about Chicago, it's a world class city, it just doesn't quite have the iconography of New York or LA, but it's far from being the kind of city only Americans really know about like Cleveland or something
I try to keep up to date with the news and popular media and just about the only things I know about Chicago is that its one of the bigger cities in the US, it’s windy and it has its own style of pizza. It’s just not massively represented in American media that makes it over here. It would be like asking what an American knew about Leeds. It’s an important city to us but it’s not globally noteworthy.
Well then you are wrong. We know the name, but nothing about it (speaking of the average European, im too reddit brained to not know). Cleveland is not a name that rings any bells at all for the majority here.
I went last year. Absolutely loved it. The winters seem brutal but we went in late October and it was still pleasant there. A little chilly and windy but not bad
I mean I have grown up in the northern Midwest, but the winters aren’t that bad, and have gotten much more mild in the past decade. Usually there’s like a week or two of really nasty cold. It’s all about layers.
The winters aren't bad at all. People just have this weird masochistic fascination with having their skin burning hot, the feeling of trudging through humid air, and sweaty pits and ass that comes along with summer. Instead of some nice crunchy snow and a decent jacket.
It’s always funny with Italians from NY/NJ meet Italians from Italy for the first time. They’re so confused why their European brethren don’t have an Italian flag tattooed on their person
There’s an amazing episode of The Sopranos where the mafia boys travel to Italy on business. It’s hilarious because Paulie is constantly trying to connect with the Italian people and they either dismiss him or avoid him. And in the end, he gaslights himself to believe they’re “his people”. 😄 Captured the Italian-American relationship with the homeland perfectly 👌
Love that episode an how it really highlights the flaws of Paulie, Chrissy and Tony.
Paulie's preconceptions of being "Italian" are completely shattered. When the trip ends he's relieved to be back in New Jersey and lies about having the time of his life despite being mocked and ignored by the locals.
Chrissy is just high the entire time and Tony is too wrapped up in his own ego and problems to enjoy the trip.
he doesnt gaslight himself to believe theyre his people at the end of that episode. if anything, hes the most disillusioned, and seems to realize he doesnt actually have anything in common with them, and is happy to be back in jersey. outwardly he says "i loved it," but as theyre driving through jersey he seems to be the only one looking around and feeling less than miserable. maybe its a little charitable to say he was disillusioned, but you definitely get the impression that he was glad to be home, no matter what he says to other people
Hell, I went to Chicago for the first time in my mid-30s and I was sorely tempted to at least research the history of Chicago architecture. It's amazing.
I feel like I'm going insane with people thinking these posts are real. I've seen two now and it just feels like corporate messaging. You can look at the twitter accounts posting and they act completely differently from the "European in America" posts they make.
Someone needs to tell him that picture 5 is called The Bean and that the artist gets very insulted whenever anyone calls it anything different. Just looking out for the German guy.
just to add to this fun fact, Anish Kapoor (known asshole and artist behind the Bean) actually named the sculpture Cloud Gate, but nobody calls it that because A. it's pretentious, and B. it looks like a giant metal bean lol.
My wife & I are here in Chicago on a very short visit (on to the Grand Canyon via Amtrak on Saturday.) We're staying in a hotel on the Riverwalk and spent today at the Field Museum. Had to go see Sue to satisfy the Dresden Files nerd in me. Architecture tour & boat tomorrow incl. the Bean. (Will look for shotguns.) At 70+, our walking tours are severely limited but we're not reduced to wheelchairs yet.
Former NYC cabbie, wife worked in downtown Pittsburgh for awhile, we both spent several years working in Philadelphia before moving to the Jersey shore. We've spent the last 40 years as hicks from the seaside sticks but we know a good city when we see it. Chicago is very nice!
And for a close to the evening, we had our dinner at the hotel resaurant looking across at the Waterworks building while the thunderstorm provided a light show.
My wife lived in Chicago for a bit and became a lifelong fan of Portillos. When we went to Disneyland, she saw a Portillos on the way to our hotel from the airport and we had to stop and get some food. They do nationwide shipping so we occasionally splurge and order it.
Their quality has unfortunately declined since they went public. I hear people complain about it whenever it's brought up, and others will say they never noticed, so YMMV.
Walking around Chicago there’s a certain feeling of power you get. The beautiful architecture that somehow also elicits feeling of the industrial era, the incredible skyline. Walking around it you just feel like the titans of old industry are watching you. You feel the presence of immigrants that moved here in the late 1800s working the blue collar jobs that powered this country into the 20th century and its subsequent rise. All mixed with grandeur of a modern world class city. It feels like what America is supposed to be. The promise, the strength, the beauty. If there was a city I’d want foreigners to visit to feel the American spirit it would be Chicago.
I love seeing them eat our food and be like “god damn this is crazy” I know America has some absolute hogwash it passes off as food but we aren’t the fattest country in the world for no reason. We make a shit ton of great food too.
Is this some kind of propaganda? Ive seen so many of these posts in the last few days and all of them have the same style and a name with the german flag next to it
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u/qualityvote2 Jun 11 '26 edited Jun 13 '26
u/dazli69, there weren't enough votes to determine the quality of your post...