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Visit Chicago's Navy Pier |
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Chicago's most-visited tourist attraction, Navy Pier concentrates diversions galore from its 15-story Ferris wheel to the Chicago Shakespeare Theater,
Chicago Children's Museum, stained-glass museum, IMAX Theater, beer garden and miniature golf course. This half-mile man-made peninsula extending out into Lake Michigan was originally designed to be both a shipping and recreational facility, and it's done double duty, also serving as a military training site during both world wars and as the temporary home for the University of Illinois' Chicago campus. Now it's a pier of pure entertainment, with 40,000 square feet of retail space that includes tourist-oriented shopping (Making History, Artworks in Bloom) and plenty of casual restaurants (Joe's Be-Bop Cafe, Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. and Charlie's Ale House). In fair weather, a fleet of seagoing vessels offer a variety of lake cruises, and Bike Chicago rents bicycles for lakeshore touring. But in winter, the indoor attractions draw families in droves.Located just off Gateway Park downtown, it's hard to miss as you stroll along the lakeshore. 600 E. Grand Ave.; 800-595-PIER; www.navypier.com. |
