Chicago :: Lincoln Park Zoo

Chicago Vacation :: For Spring Break 2014 we took the kids to Chicago for three nights and four days. We crammed as much fun as we could into those four days and had adventures all over the Windy City. I’m going to share our adventures with you in a series of installments so you can see pictures from our excursions and maybe find some inspiration for planning your own trip to Chicago!

Lincoln Park Zoo ::

On the day of our trip that Michael and Ella visited the Art Museum I took the boys to visit Navy Pier and then we took a quick cab ride over to Lincoln Park to visit the zoo. I’ve been to quite a few zoos over the years, but there’s really no other like the Lincoln Park Zoo, in my humble opinion. The zoo sits right smack in the middle of a concrete jungle…skyscrapers, highways and apartment buildings surround Lincoln Park on one side and the other side of the park is bordered by the gorgeous lakefront. The Lincoln Park Zoo isn’t unique just because of it’s location though, unlike most zoos it is absolutely FREE to visit this zoo, 365 days a year! I love that anyone and everyone is welcome to visit the zoo and to learn about all of the different kinds of wildlife that live at the zoo (more than 1,000 creatures reside here!). I know from experience that taking your family out for fun adventures can get costly, so it’s nice to know that there are still some places around that make learning & fun accessible to everyone. The Lincoln Park Zoo was founded in 1868, so it has a very old world charm about it without feeling like it is ancient and run-down. My favorite piece of history in the zoo is the Lion House, built in 1912. It is gorgeous! And the architecture of the building makes the roars of the big cats really BOOM so you feel like you are in the wilderness with them.

The boys LOVED this zoo, they sprinted from exhibit to exhibit taking it all in. They got up close and personal with otters and seals, climbed and played in the children’s area and went face to face with gorillas and large cats. I felt like you could get closer to the animals at the Lincoln Park Zoo than you can in some other zoos. If you are planning a visit to Chicago, make sure a trip to the zoo is on your itinerary! And be sure to plan for some extra time to just wander around Lincoln Park taking in the sights. We were in a rush after the trip to the zoo, and the boys were worn out, so we didn’t get to explore as much as I had hoped we could….next time I will though!

Visit the Lincoln Park Zoo website to plan your trip to the zoo!