aEnjoy the end of an eventful February with memories for the family, time to yourself, or time with your partner. Now that the Chicagoland area has advanced to Tier 1 Mitigation, options have improved for families to enjoy their days off. As always, if you’re leaving the house, be sure to wear a face covering and heed social distancing requirements. If you’d prefer to stay inside, try virtual trips to local museums, drive-thru events or a chance for a new experience at home.
Note: We’re updating our website as quickly as we can, but changes may occur due to COVID-19. Please double check before heading out for the most updated information on safety precautions and any last-minute cancellations. Stay safe!
In-Person Events
ChiTown Movies Presents: Drive-In Theatre
- When: Friday-Sunday
- Address: Chitown Futbol, 2343 S. Throop St., Chicago
- Cost: $33+, preregistration required, fees for food.
Watch classic and cult movies from the comfort of your car. Moviegoers will have the option to have popcorn, tacos, wings and more delivered right to the car. Cars are situated in the lot at a safe distance from one another, with one car for every two spots. This weekend’s movies: Friday – Jurassic Park, 7 p.m.; Scream, 9:30 p.m.; Saturday – Deep Dish Skateboard Video Series, 6 p.m.; Black Panther, 7:30 p.m.; Scream, 10:15 p.m.; Sunday – Finding Nemo, 5:30 p.m.; Black Panther, 7:30 p.m.
The Great Andersonville Puzzle Exchange
- When: Saturday
- Address: Women & Children First Bookstore, 5233 N. Clark St., Chicago
- Cost: Free, registration required
The Andersonville Chamber of Commerce is popping up in the Women & Children First parking lot for our first every jigsaw puzzle swap – bring a puzzle, take a puzzle! Participants are asked to bring a new or gently used puzzle, either 500+ pieces for adults or kids puzzles, secured in a resealable plastic bag in its original box with no missing pieces. Chamber staff will organize puzzles by theme upon drop-off. Feel free to drop off at the beginning of the event and swing by later on to take a new puzzle to-go. Or, come and do your swap immediately upon arrival. Masks are required and folks are expected to maintain a socially-distanced line to participate. Women and Children First will also be hosting a pop-up shop featuring Valentine’s Day cards and books.
Sap’s Rising
- When: Saturday-Sunday
- Address: River Trail Nature Center, 3120 N. Milwaukee Ave., Northbrook
- Cost: Free
Walk in the sugar maple forest to learn about the sweet process of maple syrup making. All participants are required to wear masks and practice physical distancing.
Sugar Bush Sunday Breakfast
- When: Sunday
- Address: Spring Valley Nature Center & Heritage Farm, 1111 E. Schaumburg Road, Schaumburg
- Cost: $12, $10 residents, registration required
Register for a one-hour time slot to enjoy breakfast featuring real maple syrup. A wagon ride and a guided tour of the tapped maple trees is included. The breakfast serving area will be cleaned and sanitized after each group.
Winter Story Trail: The Snowy Day
- When: Saturday-Sunday
- Address: Sand Ridge Nature Center, 15891 Paxton Ave., South Holland
- Cost: Free
A story walk is an outdoor reading experience where a children’s book is deconstructed, and the pages of the book are placed along a trail. Walk the Red Wing trail at Sand Ridge Nature Center anytime during weekends in February to experience “The Snowy Day” by Ezra Jack Keats. All participants are required to wear masks and practice physical distancing.
Wonder Woman 1984 Experience
- When: Through Sunday
- Address: AT&T Flagship Store, 600 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago
- Cost: Free
Fans of the newly released Wonder Woman 1984 and of DC Comics can stop by the AT&T Flagship Store on Michigan Avenue for access to behind-the-scenes content, costumes, props and more. Pose for photos, check out touchless interactive exhibits and play trivia to test your knowledge of the DC universe. All social distancing guidelines set by the state will be followed; interactive exhibits that are touch-based will use stylus pens or have been adjusted to use touch-free motion technologies.
Virtual Events
Virtual STEM Expo
- When: Through Saturday
- Cost: Free, registration required
Kids in grades K-12 will enjoy the family fun and interactive exploration of the Illinois Tech STEM Expo. Held during National Engineers Week, kids can hear from – and try experiments with – American Chemical Society, Mr. Freeze, Society of Women Engineers Chicago Regional Section, Civil Air Patrol, ChiBots, SCARCE and more.
Virtual Storytelling & Craft from the Mitchell Museum of the American Indian
- When: Sunday
- Cost: Free, registration required
Join the Mitchell Museum for storytelling and a virtual interactive craft session. You may be asked to download craft information ahead of the session.
Maple Tree Tapping Virtual Event
- When: Sunday
- Cost: $3, registration required
Join the Lake County Forest Preserves virtually on Zoom as an educator taps the Sugar Maple Trees at Ryerson Woods. Learn a little about how trees work and the sweet science behind making real maple syrup. A Zoom link will be emailed to registered participants no later than one hour prior to the start of the program.
U-505 Submarine Live Tours
- When: Saturday
- Cost: $15, $10 kids; timed tickets required
Experience the U-505 submarine that lives at the Museum of Science & Industry virtually. Board the U-505 submarine, the actual craft that stalked the waters of the Atlantic before it was blown to the surface and captured on June 4, 1944. From the cramped quarters to the feel of battle, it’s an interactive walk through a piece of history that you’ll never forget.
Imagine U Storytime
- When: Sunday
- Cost: Free
Northwestern University School of Communication Theatre Department storytellers will read and perform books for kids weekly on the Wirtz Center Facebook Page and the Wirtz Center YouTube Channel. Sunday’s story: “Wayside School vs. Ms. Gorf.”
Virtual City Walks: International Edition
- When: Saturday
- Cost: $60, $48 members
Travel abroad — no passport required — through six programs produced in partnership by the Association of Architecture Organizations and AAO members in Boston, Chicago, Copenhagen, Los Angeles, New York City and Prague. Each virtual tour in this inaugural series is led by representatives from leading architecture organizations. Visit or revisit these spectacular cities in the safe hands of local experts and guides who know their streets the best, enjoying their surprises and architectural icons, both contemporary and historic. Saturday’s location: Los Angeles: Vintage Cool
Virtual ComedySportz
- When: Saturday
- Cost: Free
ComedySportz is an approved-for-all-ages improv competition. They make up the story up with suggestions from you as two teams battle each other for your love and points. The Ref presides over the whole thing and by the end of the night, one thing will have won: comedy.
New Philharmonic: A Night of Broadway and Opera
- When: Through Sunday
- Cost: $40
Four acclaimed guest artists, Alisa Jordheim (soprano), Kate Tombaugh (mezzo-soprano), Jesse Donner (tenor) and Bill McMurray (bass/baritone) join New Philharmonic in a program of works from some of the best-loved Broadway musicals and operas. Families can download the program, which includes feature selections from “Carmen,” “Gianni Schicchi,” “Samson and Delila,” “Merry Widow” as well as “This is the Army,” “Allegro,” “Hello, Dolly,” “Les Misérables,” “The Phantom of the Opera,” “Sunset Boulevard.” “The Way We Were” and “A Chorus Line.”
Around Town
Learn about your own neighborhood or explore a new one (maintaining social distancing, of course) with Walkie Talkies, a new program from Chicago Children’s Theatre. Different local theater artists walk you – podcast style – through their favorite neighborhoods.
- When your kids are bouncing to escape the house, these Indoor Play Places around the area are the perfect solution. Some offer private playtimes that have to be reserved in advance and others are open with limited capacity.
- The pandemic has given some museums time to swap out exhibits and create so many others. These 11 new exhibits are worth checking out with a timed ticket.
- Escape to the woods to learn about the ancient art of tree tapping with one of these maple sugar events. Kids will see that not much has changed when it comes to creating maple syrup.
- While there’s still snow on the ground – and lots of it – take to the hills at one of these great ski, snowboarding and tubing spots around the area.
At-Home Fun
While you and your family remain at home, you can try out a new kids’ show or virtually visit your favorite Chicagoland locations!
- The tale of a “bad guy” who becomes a hero is great encouragement for a wintery weekend. After a family viewing of Wreck-It Ralph, try one of these screen-free activities.
- Kids ages 9 and older will love “Diamond’s Dream,” a puppet production from Chicago Children’s Theatre. The story of a boy riding the Red Line who comes face-to-face with the spirit of an elder who died during the Spanish Flu is impressing audiences across the country.
- So there’s a lot of snow out there. Here are a few great ways to bring the snow indoors for family fun.
- Looking for a new way to enjoy lunch? If you haven’t tried the Tortilla TikTok Hack yet, this is a great way to let kids in on the fun of cooking!
Parents Only
Partners who are so over all this family time and looking for alone time, we feel you. Whether it’s starting a fabulous puzzle or cooking a new dish together, here are a few of our favorite ideas for this weekend. (If you want more – or just like to plan ahead – check out this list of at-home date night ideas.)
- OK, so you’ve already tried dining in tents, but have you tested the Yurt Village? Head to Swift & Sons in Fulton Market to check out the Kehoe Designs yurts, each with a different motif (from Into The Woods to Funkadelic to Dreamboat). Each dining experience in the yurts lasts two hours and is $85 per person.
- If you and your Boo missed the chance for a romantic getaway during the Valentine’s weekend, there’s still time to work in some “together time” before the winter is over with these amazing getaways.
- This is the weekend to schedule a Virtual Wine Tasting through City Winery. The City Winery can accommodate guests from as many as 2-20, with winery kits sent to guests.
This post is updated regularly.