Six Unique Experiences and Exhibits to See With Your Family in Chicagoland

Feb 19, 2024

Looking for something fun to do over a four-day weekend or planning ahead for spring break? We’ve rounded up some wonderful suggestions of exciting activities including plenty that are perfect for family and kid-friendly for a fun, refreshing day trip (or two!)

Adults and families with teens or kids with adventurous taste buds will have a blast on The Chinatown Adventure Food Tour. Stroll through Chinatown for 3 hours as you take in the sights and sample delicious Chinese and Chinese-American staple dishes. The tour is just over a mile, giving fidgety kids plenty of time to get the wiggles out and explore their surroundings with snacks in between. You’ll sample 5 different meals and tastings, enjoy live demonstrations of Chinese cultural traditions, and check out famous landmarks and hidden secrets! Adults are $80, Adolescents are $50, and children 6 & under are free. Best of all, tours are rain or shine, so you don’t have to worry about canceled plans due to stormclouds – just bring your raincoats and umbrellas!

A visit to the Museum of Ice Cream in Chicago is just what the doctor ordered – well, okay, maybe not, but it’s certainly a prescription for lots of fun either way! Learn about the history of ice cream across 14 different interactive and multi-sensory installations, play in the sprinkle pool, or try your hand at a Putt Putt Mini Golf. And, best of all, this admission booked through Get Your Guide includes Unlimited Ice Cream! What’s not to love about that? Make sure you’ve got plenty of room on your phone’s camera roll, too, as there are lots of opportunities to take fun photos to share with friends and family and do a little memory-making!

The Chicago Museum of Illusion is an incredible all-ages interactive museum featuring interactive rooms, 3D illusions and installations, and even perspective changing rooms that morph right before your eyes. Nothing is quite what it seems, and you’ll definitely never experience anything quite like it! The Tilted Room will challenge your vision of reality using tricks of perspective. The Vortex Tunnel features movement and light in a mind-bending, world-spinning experience you have to see to believe. The Reversed Room is an imaginative universe where upside down is right side up, and it’s perfect for taking unique family photos! Explore unique art installations like the multi-dimensional Cloning Table, the Beuchet Chair illusion of perspective and size, and the absolutely bizarre Head on a Platter Display. It’s another day full of memory making that’s perfect for snapping silly pictures to capture the joy and wonder of the moment. It takes about 2 hours to go through the exhibit, making it a great stop off on your city day trip.

If you’ve got kids under 12, chances are you’re no stranger to the marvelous world of Slime. This multi-sensory toy is all the rage! Filled with glitter, goop, and treasures galore, this bizarrely sticky, stretchy, and colorful substance has charmed kids (and adults,too) all around the globe! Buying slime to play with at home can be a little bit of a mess, which is why the SlooMoo Institute is the place to go for Slime enthusiasts! From interactive visual light and motion displays, to a slime recipe kitchen and DIY demonstration, to getting slimed in person, there’s no shortage of ooey, gooey, slimy fun here. It’s a great way to get the sillies out, too, with lots of hands-on entertainment and tactile experiences. No need to tell your kids to keep their hands away from the merchandise, because that’s the whole point! Enjoy the world of ASMR and sensory tactile delights whether you opt for a general admission ticket (with custom 8oz slime included!) or decided to take it one level up with teh Enhanced Experience (which includes getting slimed at SlooMoo Falls.)

Take your family to the cinematic experience they’ll never forget with a special live-music scored performance by the Chicago Philharmonic and their “Auditorium Philms Concert Series”! Iconic films are brought to life in concert for an unforgettable experience with memorable scores performed by a full orchestra including Blade Runner, Black Panther, Batman (1989) and even Dracula. Not all films may be suitable for all ages, so please check content warnings and ratings before booking.

Disney Adults and Disney Kids will both be ecstatic to learn about the new Disney 100 Exhibit at the Exhibition Hub Art Center in Chicago. The Walt Disney Archives have brought more than 250 artifacts such as artwork, costumes, props, and memorabilia across 10 different themed galleries. Journey through the evolution of Disney’s many characters and stories, including Pixar, Star Wars, and even Marvel! From window displays to character sculptures to character design sketches, you’ll have so much fun learning all about your favorite movies and cartoons. See the process of your beloved favorites coming to life on the drawing boards of artists, and learn about what inspired the creativity behind the stories. Hours of operation are 9:30AM to 7Pm on Mon/Wed/Thurs/Fri, 9AM to 8:30PM on Saturday, and 9AM to 7PM on Sundays (exhibit closed on Tuesdays.) This exhibit is fully accessible to all, which means everyone will have an ability to enjoy the magic!