Midway Plaisance is another large park in Hyde Park, in and around the University of Chicago…read morecampus. The park connects Washington Park from the west to Jackson Park to the east. It's name comes from its origins as the midway for the 1893 World's Fair Columbian Exposition, as various attractions were laid out along the midway. It was designed by Frank Law Olmstead, the most famous landscape architect of the 18th century and really the originator of landscape architecture as a profession. This park was to be established somewhere in the late 1860s to 1870, but the Great Chicago Fire put a hold on those plans. When the World's Fair came to Chicago, Olmstead and bastion of Chicago architecture Daniel Burnham were given the task of making it a sumptuous event, and Midway Plaisance was a major part of that. Nowadays I find it actually to be a pretty boring park. Someone described it as a big median and it's kind of an apt description. On both sides of the park are UChicago buildings, and you can can sometimes find parking along the sides of the park. There's an skating rink here that's used for different kinds of skating throughout the year. Here's a history tidbit for you: The location of the rink is the precise location of the Ferris wheel, an invention for the Fair. There are various playing/practice fields for soccer and whatnot. You'll find some monuments throughout the park, as Chicago loves its monuments. There's a section called the Reader's Garden, with the Carl von Linne statue. It's not a destination park, but perhaps some of the little enclaves within the park are worth a visit if you're here anyway.

The pleasant Midway runs from Jackson Park to Washington Park, and gives Hyde Park much of its…read moreamazing green space. Designed by architects Olmstead and Taft in the late 1800, the Midway has hosted entertainment and sport since around the time of the Chicago Worlds Fair and it's storied White City. If you like the park, and are interested in learning about it and the surrounding Hyde Park area, I recommend a book titled 'Devil in the White City'.

This is a piece of nature heaven at Cicero and Foster. For an idea of how beautiful just look at…read morethe photos. You'll probably see deer as people like to feed them. Don't do that, they are smart and can find their own food. Also the fpdcc volunteers at this location are some of the nicest people. They treat volunteers like rock stars, (which they are) are organized and have snacks.

Short loop with a riverbank trail and tree shade. Good for a quick walk. Can get muddy during rainy…read moredays. Easy to park.

Chicago I will always love you!…read more We have some of the most amazing conferences, festivals and shows. In my opinion, absolutely no other city can touch our food scene! Panda Fest had Chicago show up. I told myself to leave early. I know better. My bed held me hostage. When I arrived at 10:15a for my 10:00a timed entrance ticket, the line was wrapped around the block. I don't mind waiting in line for food. The line seemed to move along nicely or I could have been distracted talking to others in line. Either way, it was organized. The smells were amazing. I skipped breakfast in preparation for this. Once at the front, people are yelling to have your tickets visible on your phones and your bags open. Then you are handed a Chicago panda bear pin wearing a Cubs hat, holding a Chicago pizza slice. So cute. Then you are directed to the headband station, a panda bear with a Chicago pizza slice. So cute. Now for the food. My belly was like, "let's go"! My plan was two sweet, two savory and two drinks. I just kept eating. Lol. I had wagyu skewers topped with soy, garlic and onion sauce. Pork and beef dumplings with chili crisp. Lamb skewer with spicy chili powder. Spam musubi, a teriyaki meat pie. Purple yam ice cream, tanghulu, (candied fresh fruit). Passion fruit flavored sugar cane drink. Loved it! Coconut water vanilla ice cream drink. Everything that I ate, I really enjoyed. Belly full. There are plenty of children's activities; face painting, games and inflatables. So bring your babies. Definitely family friendly.

Wow, I hadn't been to Grant Park in over 20 years and the last was for the Taste of Chicago. Well…read moreafter almost 25 years, we went today and it was awesome! Great Friday night to go and Common was performing on the main stage! We are fans of his music so it was great to see him perform in his hometown!

I came out to Scoville Park in Oak Park for movie night. It's a great park area to come and enjoy…read morenature. Relaxing and calm atmosphere. Great place to come walk with your family or just by yourself. The energy from people was also nice. Nice seating area for you to sit and read a book. There is meter street parking in the area. The Oak Park library is right next to the park and also a lot of restaurants in the area. Nice area and place to come and chill.

A bit overcast on this beautiful April afternoon but still a lovely day in Oak Park's cheery…read moreScoville Park! If you are considering a move to the village you might want to take a walk through the park to get a sense of the beauty and joyful energy of Oak Park. Tennis courts, playground, walking path and a HILL, the best part! First weekend in June is the annual Day in our Village in Scoville Park with tons of great community organizations hosting booths, food vendors, and an awesome music stage. Such a sweet park. So tidy. Beautiful!

I've been wanting to visit this park since it opened, but it never came to pass. I'm really glad we…read moregot to visit during their 10th anniversary celebration! That party was cool; they had various community orgs, like a citizen science group and the Budlong Woods branch of CPL here to share info and stuff. There were park volunteers doing arts and crafts with the kids. They even had a fishing derby in the little pond, I think, which was really cool. There's at least one or two works of art in the park that are nice as well. This isn't your typical CPD park. It's a nature area that was acquired from neighboring Rosehill Cemetery and developed into a natural area/native preserve. Though the cemetery is over 150 years old, this portion on the northwest corner of Western & Peterson was never used for burials and was simply an undeveloped section of the cemetery. I used to live a couple blocks away from here and remember thinking it was a bit of an eyesore. But the Chicago Park District, and the advisory council for the park, have done wondrous things. There's a walking path throughout the park for a leisurely stroll. The park also hosts various events; I believe they recently had an equinox program, and I hope the bat program comes up again so I can take my little one. They even had Hocus Pocus movie night a few days ago (just before Halloween). But my favorite part by far is the nature play space. It's gorgeous! There are lots of benches and stumps for adults and children to sit on, and they had a couple of outdoor play kitchens. There's a little mound (which to a small child could look hill-sized) for kids to play and sit on. There's a small stage and I'm not sure if they've always had events or if they've started hosting more, but I'm keeping an eye on it because it's truly one of the best nature play spaces I've seen around. It's absolutely worth a visit if you have children, or just want a little quiet contemplation.

We had a great morning at West Ridge Nature Park! We came here on a Sunday morning to celebrate the…read more10th anniversary of the park. They had a lot of kid friendly activities like face painting, coloring, fossils to look at, and our favorite -- music from old town school of folk music! After enjoying some wheels on the bus, we walked around pond. The path was so pretty and well kept. We saw lots of geese, butterflies, squirrels, and even a hawk which my two year old loved. Our favorite though, was all the turtles! We saw about 10 out in the pond swimming. They were so cute, we could have sat out there for a hours watching them bob around. Definitely recommend West Ridge if you're wanting some peace in the city.

Nice park in Beverly. It has gone by several names since its inception, with this park being the…read morecite of a community gathering space prior its acquisition by the city and being remade into a park. It has throughout its history been called 100th Street Park, or park 178; it once was called Shamrock Park back in the 70s. In 1984 it received it's current name, for the priest who established St. Barnabas Church nearby, and presided there for over 20 years. Hurley Park is a couple blocks away from the 99th Street Metra station. It has quite a lot of acreage compared to most Chicago parks that aren't Lincoln or Jackson Parks, but that's what you get here in the far south side! There is a playground here, as well as a "natural area", a small woodland section of the park featuring native plants and trees.

Nice grove with a pavilion. Newly renovated parking lot... and more improvements in progress.read more

I love this little park in Printer's Row! It's really warm and inviting, with multiple paths and…read morelots of seating. It's a nice place to sit and enjoy the trees. I like to read here. Lots of people pass thru with their cute dogs. It's a relaxing and positive vibe.

Cool small park located in the South Loop. Dearborn Park is also in the neighborhood of the same…read morename. It has a few features including a fitness course and a playground. Mostly exists for the residents around it. This is next to the large housing complex, and most people here are from there. A redevelopment of a former train station resulted in the creation of this green area. It's the former site of the Dearborn Street Railroad Station. The architecture firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill laid out the residential complex in the 1970s, and the park is the centerpiece of this. Among the features is a fitness course. The neighborhood and park are named after General Henry Dearborn, who was also a Secretary Of War. He served as this for Thomas Jefferson. The park has a pretty modern playground Good place for people who live here to hang around. It's also close to the Chicago Curry House if you get hungry. There's a few other places around to eat or whatever.