Chicago Area Attractions! - Glenside Color Computer Club (2024)

General Things to Do

Arcades:

• Dave & Buster’s in Lombard
• Enterrium in Schaumburg
• Galloping Ghost Arcade in Brookfield
• Underground Retrocade in West Dundee
• Enchanted Castle, Lombard, Illinois
• Funway Family Entertainment, Batavia, Illinois
• Nickel City, Cook County, Illinois
• For more ideas see: https://retro.directory/

Chicago cruises:

• Wendella Tours and Cruises, Chicago, IL
• Chicago River Tour
• Navy Pier, Chicago, IL (Amusem*nt rides, boat rides, IMAX Theater, restaurants and ship cruises)

Zoos:

• Brookfield Zoo, Brookfield, IL
• Cosley Zoo, Wheaton, IL
• Lincoln Park Zoo

Chicago Landmarks:

• 875 North Michigan Ave. (formerly known as the John Hanco*ck Building)
• Willis Tower (formerly known as the Sears Tower)
• Cloudgate sculpture, Millennium Park, Chicago (known as “the Bean”)
• Buckingham Fountain, Grant Park, Chicago
• Chicago lakefront, Jean Baptiste Point DuSable Lake Shore Drive
• Navy Pier, Chicago, IL (Amusem*nt rides, boat rides, IMAX Theater, restaurants and ship cruises)

Gardens:

• Chicago Botanic Garden, Glencoe, IL
• Lincoln Park Conservatory, Chicago, IL
• Fabyan Villa Museum & Japanese Garden, Geneva, IL
• Lilacia Park, Lombard, IL
• Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL

Museums:

• Adler Planetarium, Chicago, IL
• Shedd Aquarium, Chicago, IL
• Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL
• DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center, Chicago, IL
• Museum of Science and Industry, Chicago, IL
• Institute for the Study of Ancient Cultures, Chicago, IL (museum about ancient Middle Eastern cultures)
• Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
• Chicago Children’s Museum, at Navy Pier in Chicago, Illinois
• Chicago Academy of Science/Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, Chicago, Illinois
• Chicago History Museum, Chicago, Illinois
• Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, Illinois
• National Museum of Mexican Art, Chicago, Illinois
• National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture, Chicago, Illinois
• Illinois Railway Museum, Union, IL
• Fox River Trolley Museum, South Elgin, Illinois
• East Troy Railroad Museum, rail museum in East Troy, Wisconsin

Religious Museums:

• Billy Graham Museum, Wheaton, IL
• Moody Bible Institute, Chicago, IL
• Spertus Institute for Jewish Learning and Leadership, Chicago, IL
• Institute for the Study of Ancient Cultures, Chicago, IL (A museum about ancient Middle Eastern cultures)
• Holocaust Museum, Skokie, IL
• Ark Encounter, Willamstown, KY
• Creation Museum, Petersburg, KY
• Museum of the Bible, Washington, D.C.
• Precious Moments Museum, Carthage, MO

Sporting Events:

• Chicago Sky
• Chicago Cubs
• Chicago Bulls
• Chicago Blackhawks
• Chicago Fire
• Chicago White Sox
• Chicago Bears
• Chicago Curling Club
• Chicago Park District Badminton
• Chicago Boxing Events
• Windy City Rollers (Roller Derby)
• Roller Rink
• Ice Skating
• Golf
• Frisbee Golf
• Miniature Golf
• Bowling
• Shuffleboard
• Carol Stream Park District Adult Pickleball
• Climbing
• Paddle Boat
• Twin Lakes Golf Course & Recreation Area, Palatine, IL (Golf and paddleboats)

Rainy Day (and Cold Weather Day) Things to Do:

• Shopping: American Science and Surplus, and such.
• Walk in the mall: See List of Malls above.
• Walk in IKEA, Walter E. Smithe Furniture & Design, Bob’s Furniture, La-z Boy Furniture, The Dump Furniture Store
• Walk in Home Depot, Menards
• Walk in Walmart, Japanese Mitsuwa Marketplace, Fish Market
• Go to the Library
• Go to: Half Price Books
• Go to: Goodwill, Salvation Army, Resale Shop
• Go to: Arcade See: Arcade above also search the internet for The Retro Directory
• Go to: Indoor Garden See gardens above.

Other things to do:

• Mastermind Escape Games Escape Rooms Schaumburg, IL
• Disco, Night Club, Chicago, IL
• Chinatown, Chicago, IL
• Chicago Segway Tour, Chicago, IL
• Leaning Tower YMCA, Niles, IL. Note: YMCA is closed. (half-size replica of the Tower of Pisa)
• Medieval Times Dinner & Tournament, Schaumburg, IL
• Six Flags Great America, Gurnee, IL
• Frank Lloyd Wright Tours, Oak Park, IL
• The House on the Rock, Spring Green, Wisconsin
• Chicago Theater, Broadway Shows, Chicago, IL
• Busse Forest Elk Pasture, Elk Grove Village, IL
• The Sculpture Park, Schaumburg, IL
• LEGOLAND Discovery Center, Schaumburg, IL
• K1Speed Indoor Go Karts, Buffalo Grove, IL
• Forest Preserve/Nature Preserve, Cook County, IL
• Casino/Gambling
• Historic Route 66 Begin Sign, Chicago, IL

Places to Shop

Shopping:

• Hobby Lobby, Bloomingdale, IL
• Alien Entertainment Store, Lombard, IL
• Geneva 3rd Street and State Street, Geneva, IL (Antiquing and shopping)
• Long Grove, Long Grove, IL (Antiquing and shopping)
• Galena, IL (Antiquing and shopping)
• Ulysses S. Grant Home, Galena, IL
• Lake Geneva, Wisconsin (Boat tours, Antiquing and shopping)

Malls:

• Stratford Square Mall, 152 Stratford Dr., Bloomingdale, IL
• Yorktown Shopping Center, Lombard, IL
• Woodfield Mall, Schaumburg, IL
• Gurnee Mills, shopping mall in Gurnee, Illinois
• Golf Mill Shopping Center, Niles, Illinois
• North Riverside Park Mall, North Riverside, Illinois

Electronics, Electronics Surplus, Science, and Science Surplus:

• American Science and Surplus, Geneva/West Chicago, IL
• American Science and Surplus, Park Ridge, IL
• Chester Electronic Supply Co., Kenosha, WI
• Micro Center Computers & Electronics, Westmont, IL
• Micro Center Computers & Electronics, Chicago, IL

Other Shopping:

• Mitsuwa Marketplace (Japanese)

Getting Around:

Transportation:

• Rental car
• Taxi (American Taxi (AT))
• Ride Share https://ride.guru/cities/chicago-illinois-united-states-of-america
• Uber
• Lyft
• Limo

Parking in Chicago:

• Use a smart phone app like “SpotHero”

Mass Transit Chicago:

• Chicago Trolley and Double Decker Co, Chicago IL
• Big Bus Tours Chicago, Chicago IL
• Gangster Tour Chicago
• Chicago Tour
• Chicago Transit Authority – CTA Buses, elevated trains, train, subway, service for Chicago
• Pace (Chicago suburbs bus)
• Metra train (Trains from Chicago to the suburbs and back)
• South Shore Line train (Trains from Indiana to Chicago and back)

Airports:

• O’Hare International Airport (ORD)
• Chicago Executive Airport-PWK
• Schaumburg Regional Airport
• Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW)

Notes:

American Science and Surplus

Salvador Garcia says: Yes, you can go to the Website and browse, but it does not prepare you for when you go in person. There is a huge number of stuff, everything from a periscope (Geneva store), beakers, test tube and more for your chem lab, motors, gearmotors, LEDs, electronic components, foam human hearts, stuffed plushy brain neurons, real frogs for dissection, bearings, magnets, DaVinci machines kits… well, the list just goes on and on.

Alien Entertainment Store

Salvador Garcia says: And if there are any sci fi fans (Dr. Who, Star Wars, Star Trek) then Alien Entertainment in Lombard has enough stuff to keep you busy for about two hours.

If you are coming to the CoCoFEST! from out of town on an extended stay, you may be interested in other things to see while you are here. The ladies may enjoy a trip to the mall or antiquing and shopping in Long Grove, IL or Geneva, IL.

Chicago Chinatown

North Riverside Park Mall

Salvador Garcia says: And if there are any die-hard fans of the movie Contagion, I can point you to the mall where the mall scenes were filmed 🙂

Leaning Tower YMCA

(It is a half-size replica of the Leaning Tower of Pisa.)

Medieval Times Dinner & Tournament

Medieval Times Dinner & Tournament

Navy Pier

(Amusem*nt rides, boat rides, IMAX Theater, restaurants and ship cruises)

Frank Lloyd Wright Tours

Salvador Garcia says: If anyone is into architecture, Oak Park was home to the internationally renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright.

Woodfield Mall

Woodfield Mall – Shopping, and Restaurants

Chicago Skyline