Day 1 You'll See:
- Navy Pier
- Seadog Cruise Lake Tour
- 360 Chicago
- Water Tower Place
Day 2 You'll See:
- Millenium Park
- Museum of Your Choice
You’re thinking about treating your graduates to a short, sweet celebratory escape in Chicago. This two-day getaway is ideal for those short on time but big on hitting a few Windy City highlights, sure to leave your lucky young itinerants reminiscing for years to come!
1
Navy Pier
Kick off this whirlwind two-day lark to the Windy City with a stop by historic Navy Pier, Chicago's own lakefront playground and the Midwest's foremost leisure destination, featuring 50 awesome acres of parks, promenades, gardens, shops, eateries and attractions! Take a spin on a 15-story Ferris wheel or a turn on the old-fashioned carousel, hit the links for a little mini golf or catch a 3D thriller like Tornado Alley at the IMAX® Theatre. Lose yourself in Amazing Chicago’s funhouse maze, board a cruise or speed boat departing from Navy Pier's South Dock and browse Family Pavilion’s wonderful retail shops for that perfect Chi-Town souvenir. Summertime on the Pier brings spectacular twice-weekly fireworks shows perfectly synchronized to music on Lake Michigan; Navy Pier – “The People’s Pier”- has it all!
Seadog Cruise Lake Tour
To date, Seadog Cruises have thrilled over 1,000,000 guests. Whether you're a history buff, want to experience the highlights of local architecture or just wanna have fun, Seadog is the way to go! Landlubbers and waterdogs, alike will enjoy these rockin’ 30-minute speedboat tours. You and your grads depart Navy Pier and zip south to Museum Campus, where you’ll get the scoop on Chicago's lakefront landmarks, architecture and history, then jet past Navy Pier to cruise the Magnificent Mile, where you’ll catch fantastic views of the Sears Tower, Buckingham Fountain and Grant Park before heading back to the “dog house” on Navy Pier!
360 Chicago (Hancock Observatory)
The view from the top just got better, thanks to TILT at 360 Chicago, the city’s newest thrill attraction, conveniently located along the Magnificent Mile in the former John Hancock Observatory. 360’s 1,000-foot perch treats guests to sweeping views of Lake Michigan, four neighboring states, and the Windy City’s dazzling downtown. Grad groups brave enough to check a daredevil’s angle on the spectacular panorama can “TILT” outward a cool 30 degrees from the building for a vertigo-tripping “free-fall” view of the street below!
Water Tower Place
Water Tower Place, Chicago's premier shopping destination, is situated along Michigan Avenue at the pinnacle of the Magnificent Mile, and features a stunning eight-level atrium housing more than 100 popular stores and restaurants along with a sprinkling of distinctive specialty shops and boutiques. Its zippy elevators whoosh you from one floor to the next in the blink of an eye, facilitating a unique, high-energy “vertical” urban shopping experience – the kind you won’t find elsewhere in the Windy City. Water Tower Place is, in short, “THE” perfect place to satisfy die-hard mall enthusiasts in need of a spree as well as confirmed power shoppers with a mission in mind!
2
Millennium Park
This extraordinary 24.5 acre public space situated atop a parking garage on the world-renowned Loop District is Chicago's definitive modern showplace – a popular destination and gathering spot for locals and visitors, alike. Stunning architecture, breathtaking landscape design, fantastic concerts and more share the spotlight in this remarkable park in the heart of the Windy City. Its Jay Pritzker Pavilion, Cloudgate (a gargantuan reflective sculpture nicknamed “The Bean”), beautiful Lurie Garden and ultra-cool Crown fountain are absolute must-sees on any Chicago agenda; outstanding photo ops right here!
Museum of Your Choice
Chicago is happy home to myriad wonderful museums; so many, in fact, we don’t expect you to try and see them all. What we will do is toss a few ideas out there, so you and your Grad Group can decide which will make it onto your fabulous 4-Day Chicago Itinerary! Here are the Top Ten: The Museum of Science and Industry; Museum of Contemporary Art; The Art Institute of Chicago; The National Museum of Mexican Art; Adler Planetarium; The Chicago History Museum; The DuSable Museum of African American History; The Field Museum of Natural History; the Notebaert Nature Museum and Shedd Aquarium. They’re all winners, each deserving of a slot on your four-day Windy City Grad Getaway!