Chicago, IL

Santa Claus is a very busy man this time of year, but if you want to make sure that he has you on his good list and will be bringing you what you want this Christmas, you may want to steal about of his time.

There are lots of opportunities throughout the city to visit with Santa and his helpers. While visiting Santa in a shopping mall, at Daley Plaza, or at a department store makes for a pretty run-of-the-mill Santa visit, there are some more elaborate ways you can meet with Santa, which makes the season a bit more fun.

One of the oddest ones that I found was a local suburb, Elk Grove Village, actually had a swim with Santa event. It makes me wonder, what exactly Santa wears while swimming? Does he take off his hat? Wear red swim trunks? Or will he just be hanging out while the kids swim?

Swim with Santa
December 16th, 10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.
Pavilion Aquatic Center
Elk Grove Village
$7 resident / $10 non-resident (pre-registration required)

Odyssey Cruise brunch with Santa
Three hour event featuring a two hour cruise
December 16th, 11:00 a.m. board time
Shoves off from Navy Pier
$52.90 per adult; $15 per child age 3-11*

Ride the CTA with Santa
Santa and his elves ride specific el trains throughout the holiday season and hand out candy canes.
They ride the trains, a different route depending on the day, from 1:00 p.m. to 9 p.m. on weekends and 3:00 p.m.- 6:00 p.m. on certain weekdays. Here are the dates for the remainder of the season:
* December 16 — Brown and Orange Lines
* December 17 — Brown and Orange Lines
* December 18 — Orange Line
* December 20 — Yellow Line
* December 21 — Purple Line Express
* December 22 — Red Line
For more information, visit the CTA website.

There you have it! Three unusual ways to spend some time with Santa this holiday season. Hopefully you can talk him into bringing you a Nintendo Wii.

This post is part of the 12 days of Chicago series, which brings you 12 fun and interesting things that you can do for the holidays in Chicago. In conjunction with the series, this blog is sponsoring a holiday contest, which you can read about here.

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If you are a runner and would like to see the sights of Chicago, you may want to consider signing up for City Running Tours. Whether you are a Chicago resident or a tourist, you can benefit from participating in one of the company’s tours.

City Running Tours has an assortment of routes available, at different distances, including Wrigleyville, the Lakefront, and the Great Chicago Fire. In addition to the running workout, your tour guide will give your interesting information about the area that you are running through.

The pace is determined by the customer, so if you are a slower runner, don’t worry about being left behind. Your guide will provide water for the run and you are permitted to stop along the way to take photos or catch a breather if necessary.

City Running Tours are also available in Washington, DC, New York City, and San Diego. For more information or to make reservations online, visit City Running Tours.

City Running Tours, Chicago, running

It what the city of Chicago has labeled a “one-of-a-kind experience,” visitors can participate in an immersion weekend, which includes a hotel stay, along with a behind the scenes look at a particular aspect of Chicago culture. Unfortunately several of them have passed already, but there are three left:

CHICAGO THEATER IMMERSION WEEKEND - THE COLOR PURPLE
Friday, August 10-Sunday, August 12, 2007

CHICAGO WORLD’S FAIRS IMMERSION WEEKEND
Friday, August 31-Sunday, September 2, 2007

CHICAGO THEATER IMMERSION WEEKEND - JERSEY BOYS
Friday, November 9-Sunday, November 11, 2007

According to the city of Chicago site:

Immersion weekends fuse the best of Chicago’s diverse hotels with the city’s arts and culture to bring the visitor distinctive presentations, behind the scenes experiences, and VIP access to events, activities and special guests.

For more information or to book your immersion weekend, visit the Chicago Immersion website here.

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Do you want an interesting and new way to explore Chicago and its architecture? You should consider taking a ride on the Loop Tour Train. The special train ride consists of a 40 minute fun and educational journey of the Chicago Loop. Docents from the Chicago Architecture Foundation narrate the tours to give you the history of the area.

The best part of this Loop Tour train ride is that it is free! Trains depart every Saturday at 10:00 a.m. and 10:40 a.m. from the Randolph and Wabash Chicago Transit Authority elevated train station. Tickets are required and can be picked up the morning of the ride at the Chicago Office of Tourism Visitor Information Center in the Chicago Cultural Center, which is located at 77 E. Randolph Street.

For more information on the tours, which run now through September 29, visit the City of Chicago website.

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Do you have an hour to kill today? Then, you should take a tour of the Chicago Theater. According to the website, “The tour encompasses historical and architectural highlights of the building, including the grand lobby areas, majestic auditorium and backstage space (when possible).”

At first, that sounds a little bit on the dull side, until you check out photos of the building…

Wow. You have to admit that is pretty amazing.

Tour Schedule

April 1 - September 30: Weekly tours take place every Tuesday and Thursday at 12pm
October 1 - March 31: Weekly tours take place every Tuesday at 12pm

Cost: $5 per person - which includes a souvenir VIP badge.

There are also sometimes special Saturday tours that include possible demonstrations on the Wurlitzer organ.

Does that make me a nerd, if that sounds REALLY REALLY cool to me?

If you want to learn some history of the building, visit this website: ZING!

The Chicago Theater
175 North State Street
Chicago, IL

The Chicago Theater, Tours, Sight-seeing, Wurlitzer organ

One of the things that Chicago is most well-known for is its food! Whether you are a resident or a visitor, one fun way to get to know the city in a different way is through a food tour. A company called Chicago Food Planet offers food tasting walking tours of the Gold Coast, Old Town, and Lincoln Park neighborhoods.

According to their website, they offer a wide variety of food on the tour, including stops at a bakery, a fudge and confectionery specialty shop, a Middle-Eastern delicatessen, a tea specialty store, a spice and herb specialty shop, a local chocolate lounge, and an authentic Chicago pizzeria.

In addition to the food, the three hour walking tour is fully-narrated and includes information about the various neighborhoods, including history, culture, and architecture. Advance tickets (at $38 a person) are required and can be purchased on their website.

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There are many ways that you can see the sights in Chicago: boat, bus, on foot, and even on a Segway, thanks to Segway Experience of Chicago. Before the tour, you will receive training on how to operate a Segway. The tour includes a wide variety of Chicago landmarks, such as:

* Field Museum
* Millennium Park
* Shedd Aquarium
* Adler Planetarium
* Museum Campus
* Buckingham Fountain
* The Lakefront Bike Path

The tours run everyday of the year, rain or shine. Please note that this event is only for adults and children over the age of 12. Tickets are $70 for a 2-hour tour. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit the Segway Experience website.

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