Concrete Beach is the piece of waterfront on the Lakefront Trail that is north of Oak Street Beach…read more The concrete in the name is apt as you will not find any sandy areas here. It is a great spot to snap some photos of the Chicago skyline and Lake Michigan or stop a minute or two while getting in a run or bike ride on the trail. It is not a place that you would lounge for long, it is more of a rest spot. If you are looking for an actual beach, I would recommend going to Oak Street Beach instead.

Self explanatory concrete beach. Probably one of my favorite approaches to the city. The Hancock…read morebuilding is directly in front of you, always people running lounging around and there's a chess pavilion which is great to just hang out. You'll see some random stuff like a bike shop set up a ramp to launch off of during the summer or a group fished out all the ride share bikes out of the lake making a 12 ft monument of decayed bikes piled up. It's a great for shots of the city and seeing the fireworks. It's really fun to just go fast on a bike.

Came here on a Saturday morning and there was a variety of big and lil dogs playing around. There…read moreare 2 double gated entrances on either side of park. It is cement and dirt. A few benches and picnic tables present for seating but some owners allow their dogs to jump up on them. I didn't see any available poop bags but there are trash cans. It's a decent park, a little walk from Michigan ave and any close parking.

This place is great. It's a big enough place for my dog to run around and is really close to my…read moreapartment. My dog loves coming here and mingling with all of the other dogs. There are a ton of regulars that come here and for the most part are very friendly. My dog begs me every day to come to the park and already has the route memorized. We have been going there for a month.

This little gem of a dog park is not easy to find. Once you do though, you'll be happy you did. It…read moreis one of largest designated dog parks I have been to in Chicago but it is long and narrow - not at all wide. It is located along side the Kennedy Expressway between N. Orleans and Kingsbury on Ohio Street. There is a sign that reads "Ohio Place Park" but unless you are specifically looking for it, it can easily be missed. There are two entrance ways - one off of N. Orleans on Ohio and the other off N. Kingsbury, again on Ohio Street. The one by N. Orleans can be treacherous to get to since the expressway off ramp is right next to it. I have observed a lot of dog owners pull their cars up to the cul-de-sac by the Kingsbury side entrance which seems to work well as there is little traffic on that side (although I'm not so sure how legal it is to park there). This dog park has a lot of shrubbery and trees along one side. There is also an area that I have dubbed "The Dunes" because it's basically a barren slightly inclined sand pit for dogs to frolic. There are even several plastic chairs near the Dunes so that owners can sit down while dogs play. In my experience, it is a friendly, welcoming place. For large breed dogs, this park is a dream come true. For small to mid-sized dogs, this park can sometimes be overwhelming but that really depends the dog. I have been there when there have been 20+ dogs all getting along grandly making it a doggy paradise. I have also been there when there was a more aggressive dog making noise and causing discord (there have been two times when I just simply took my dog home to remove her from a possible escalating dangerous situation. Better safe then sorry.) The one true pitfall of this park is that it does not have a water fountain or hose to satiate thirsty dogs. Overall, my dog has had plenty of super fun times at this park, and I truly think it is a gem to have a place like this in the midst of very urban city environment.

We come here at least once a day with our dog…read more Nice park for your dog to be able to run around in. Tons of room to run around. Usually at least 3-4 dogs there.

Coliseum Park is good city park with fun structures, plus a separate dog run…read more We were gathering with several families for an early dinner(Feb. 2026), and this park was a fun place to meet ahead of time. Coliseum Park is a 0.75-acre fenced greenspace at S. Wabash and E. 14th Place, open daily 6am-9pm. There's a cool-looking coliseum-shaped open-roofed structure at the northeast corner entrance, about 15-feet-tall, a circular center with two promenading arms (if promenading is what i mean to say). By the way, some city parks set up a two-gate entrance that gives kids an extra safety barrier from the street; this park only has a single-gated surrounding fence. Our group loved the six-sided climbing-structure, maybe 10-feet tall, that encloses a sort of rubbery swinging ramp and a web of ropes. Kids can climb to the top of a medium-length metal slide. There's also a smaller plastic slide on a hill for the younger kids We ran up and down five small built-hills, i dont know that else to call them, sort of padded bumps that are more fun than they sound like in a flat city :-). Some of them have stubby posts or rocks for sitting or climbing. One has a swiveling wavy-chair to plThere's several good-size low rocks around the park, too. I think i've finished making up awkward names for these things ;-). There's a medium-small self-powered merry-go-round which we spent a lot of time spinning on. And there's a saucer swing for one or two kids at a time, which was popular, too. The play area around all this equipment is that rough padding that helps soften any falls, but gives a good rash if a hand, elbow, or knee slides along it. Yes, a few tears were shed, but I suppose it reduces slipping. I didnt explore the dog-friendly fenced-area along the west side of this park, next to the elevated L-tracks. It's the length of the park, maybe 10-feet wide, mostly paved, with several trees. The entrance is from E. 14th Place. Signs remind you that dogs aren't allowed in the rest of the park with the kids. One of the adults tried the climbing structure, but it was kind of small for them. The merry-go-round and several of the hills are big enough for an adult or two to get involved :-) For those of us who were enjoying watching the playing more than engaging in the playing, there's backless benches scattered about the park, and there are benches along the edges of the park that have backs. (Though i admit i took a wild turn on the merry-go-round :-). Also, from an adult perspective, the corners on some of the play structures in more than one city park look like pimento-stuffed cocktail olives. Or is that just me?

Kind of a smaller park Spongy ground good for toddlers…read moreThere's a big slide that's fun And a round shell swing The dog park is tiny though Usually younger babies compared to other parks Right behind a Kindercare so sometimes those kids are playing here It's also under the El so sometimes has loud train passing over

Very nice venue near restaurants and a bakery. Walkable in the city and nice area. They have free…read moregames and events for everyone. Free samples at many of the vendors such as candied nuts and bread and cookies. Lots of fun and outdoor seating on the green and events for kids and families also. There's free yoga certain days and movies so check out the calendar! Every Tuesday 3-7pm (1500-1900) starting May 2nd to October 24. From the website for The Green: "The Green at 320 South Canal is the largest privately owned public park in Chicago's Central Business District. The 1.5-acre space features a 10,000-square-foot lawn, lush landscaping, seating alcoves, and an amphitheater."

This summer, the Tuesday Farmers Market was one of my favorite things to do. First, parking during…read morethe farmers market was only $5. It was a quick walk up the stairs to enter into all the action. They had chairs and blankets for you to get comfy, vendors selling a variety of goods, live music playing in the background, and yard games to play. I cannot wait for it to return next summer!

We rented bikes a few miles south of this playground, and figured it would be nice to have an end…read morepoint destination off the Lake Shore trail. This was easy to get to from there and was quite nice! One thing that stood out was the whole playground is enclosed by a gate, so you don't have to worry about your youngest ones waddling and toddling off. Decent amount of shade in some spots, others blistering with a shiny metal slide, so it's a roll of the dice. There was bike parking right out front which came in handy, and the setting all around it was safe, natural, and lovely. For whatever reason, my girls love most playgrounds but they didn't want to stay here too long. They sort of bopped around and tried each thing and were happy to call it a day. Definitely recommend this whole area though, and this is a nice stop in Lincoln Park.

This is one of the city's new natural playgrounds and it's so so fun!!! Kids were all clambering up…read morethe rock stairs to get to the tall slide. Most kids started out going really slow, and after going down dozens of times my 3 years old was going really fast. So much fun, I went down it a lot too. Swing areas for babies and bigger kids. Tunnels to go through, logs to climb, sitting areas, a porch style swing and so much more. It's really a blast. My 1 year old was also having fun and I bet older kids would too. I'm so glad it's open and I can't wait to go back. Kudos to everyone that helped make this happen and to the designers. It's a blast!!

This new outdoor sitting park stretches the entire city block in front of Merchandise Mart. (uh,…read morelocals call it the "Mart" about as much as we call it the Willis Tower... we don't). But I'm loving this re-done area along the river which features a variety of hightop tables, couples seating, benches, and canopies... even a couple patches of astroturf fake grass! Unlike some of the stretches along the south riverwalk, there isn't a restaurant that controls this space so you aren't locked into grabbing overpriced french fries just to enjoy the river. On the other hand, this is a great place to bring your togo lunch imo, and there's the handy food court right inside the Merch Mart on the second floor (although warning: COVID has pared down the food court hours considerably. COVID also reportedly has shut down Wells St market directly across the river, another formerly great option for food nearby) If you're a mobile / remote worker, this place has the rare option of being an outdoor places that has both WiFi and PLUGS for power in marked stands along the walk. lovey eyes emoji. Anyway. I don't know what they will do with this during the winter months, but it's really great right now.

A nice, shaded place to play. Two sets of playgrounds, one for 2-5yo and the other for 5-12. Lots…read moreof benches for parents to sit and relax. There is a fenced in area that looks like a basketball court but has not hoops. Street parking only.