{"id":899,"date":"2026-10-08T17:43:20","date_gmt":"2026-10-08T17:43:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/theworldsbestwalks.com\/?p=899"},"modified":"2026-10-08T17:43:21","modified_gmt":"2026-10-08T17:43:21","slug":"chicago-winding-through-the-windy-city","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theworldsbestwalks.com\/?p=899","title":{"rendered":"Chicago: Winding Through The Windy City"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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I escaped the 90s of New Orleans for cooler temps and took my first trip to Chi-town in late September. I walked away impressed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can definitely blaze a trail in downtown Chicago, which is especially clean for its size, and it offers plenty of opportunities for walking. I will share what I found. It is illustrative, not exhaustive. I flew in to Midway, and the cab driver took Lakeshore Drive. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can’t miss the glorious Lakefront Trail as you arrive downtown. It’s an18.5-mile paved, multi-use path that follows beautiful Lake Michigan. On a sunny 70-degree Sunday, the cool sea breezes were enough to propel me onward! We stayed downtown in a hotel overlooking the Chicago River and the Riverwalk below. The emerald colored river and cool breezes were invigorating. The many slender people walking at a fast clip were motivating, not intimidating. All in all, it was a lovely experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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First up – Millennium Park<\/strong>, a magnificent green space that was in full fall bloom. Give credit to Chicago for transforming 274 acres of what used to be old parking lots and railroad tracks into a gem of a park perfect for exploring on foot. There are several outstanding attractions nearby:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cloud Gate (“The Bean”)<\/strong> – On a sunny day, this shiny stainless steel sculpture will catch your eye and leave you searching for your own image on the oval. Lurie Garden<\/strong> is a beautiful nearby accompaniment, offering 3.5 acres of seasonal foliage and peacefulness. The Art Institute of Chicago<\/strong> is a must-see! The museum is steps away from Millennium Park. My favorite was the Impressionist collection. The Mary Cassatt exhibit was really interesting, too. The BP Bridg<\/strong>e, designed by the late architect Frank Gehry, winds through the park and drops you at another spectacular green space – Maggie Daley Park<\/strong>, which adds another 20 acres to this urban oasis, which is across the street from Lake Michigan. The Navy Pier<\/strong> is within sight and walking distance, located between Illinois and Grand Avenue. Its 50 acres of waterfront attractions include a carnival, bars, and restaurants. A great place to bring the family for a leisurely waterfront stroll. If you are up for a boat ride, the Architecture Tour is well worth the price of admission. I took the “First Lady”<\/a> 90-minute tour and really enjoyed learning the history behind the immense buildings lining the riverwalk.<\/p>\n\n\n

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I escaped the 90s of New Orleans for cooler temps and took my first trip to Chi-town in late September. I walked away impressed. You can definitely blaze a trail in downtown Chicago, which is especially clean for its size, … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":900,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-899","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/theworldsbestwalks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/20260928_124709-scaled.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/theworldsbestwalks.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/899","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/theworldsbestwalks.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/theworldsbestwalks.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theworldsbestwalks.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theworldsbestwalks.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=899"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/theworldsbestwalks.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/899\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":918,"href":"https:\/\/theworldsbestwalks.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/899\/revisions\/918"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theworldsbestwalks.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/900"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/theworldsbestwalks.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=899"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theworldsbestwalks.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=899"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theworldsbestwalks.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=899"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}