LuminoMagazine.com - Navy Pier offers summer fun

Navy Pier offers summer fun

Written by LUKAS SZYMANEK

Thursday, 15 July 2004

While open all year long, it is during the summer that Chicago’s Navy Pier really blooms. One of the city’s premier summer spots, it offers great excitement, dining and other cultural recreational attractions suited perfect for hot days.

Navy Pier

600 E. Grand Ave.
Chicago, IL 60611
(312) 595-PIER or (800) 595-PIER
www.navypier.com

Hours (May through August): 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays; 10 a.m. to midnight Fridays and Saturdays

Chicago Children’s Museum: (312) 527-1000
Chicago Shakespeare Theater: (312) 595-5600
Crystal Gardens: (312) 595-5446
IMAX Theatre: (312) 595-5MAX
Richard E. Driehaus Gallery: (312) 595-5024
Beer Garden: (312) 595-PIER
Seadog Speedboat Ride: (312) 822-7200
Shoreline sightseeing: (312) 222-9328
Mystic Blue Cruises: (888) 330-4700
Spirit of Chicago: (312) 836-7899

Located east of downtown Chicago, right on Lake Michigan, Navy Pier is a big complex that contains restaurants, shops, an amusement park, a theatre, a gallery, a concert venue, historical buildings and banquet facilities. Ever since its opening in 1916 it has been a local landmark serving all kinds of purposes, from recreational to military. Ultimately renovated in the ‘90s it took on its current spectacular form.

In the front of the Family Pavilion you can get some excellent shrimp and other seafood at Bubba Gump’s or enjoy a great southern-style meal in a jazz atmosphere, with live music playing seven nights a week, at Joe’s Be-Bop Café & Jazz Emporium. Right there is also the entrance to the Navy Pier’s very own IMAX Theatre, a massive venue providing however limited selection of movie attractions but with magnificent 3D capabilities. Going along the pavilion you will find a food court with a variety of quick-service stations, from Chinese and Italian, Greek to McDonalds, Ben & Jerry’s, and Starbucks.

The pavilion is a special place for children. Between the staircases on the small podium there are always actors entertaining the youngest visitors. A little further into the pavilion at Build-A-Bear Workshop you can take an assembly line like walk and build your own custom-made teddy bear from scratch. Taking the right staircase up, you’ll also find the Chicago Children’s Museum, which contains three floors of fun and engaging games for children all ages.

The Crystal Gardens upstairs above the main floor of the pavilion is a spacious glass-enclosed space with palm trees and water attractions, where you can stop by for a breather in an exotic surrounding. You can also get some Mexican styled food or a drink at Chango Loco located right underneath the trees. The Crystal Gardens is also available for private parties.

Right outside the Gardens is the Navy Pier Park with attractions like the Wave Swinger, a Rock Climber, a Carousel, a Mini Golf Course, and the popular Ferris Wheel which offers a seven-minute ride around and more exciting views of the city from a great height. Tickets for the attractions can be purchased in various booths throughout the park.

A little further is the Skyline Stage, a 1500-seat outdoor venue hosting internationally acclaimed artists. A Chicago Shakespeare Theater with its courtyard-style theater focuses on the works of the great dramaturge in its décor and selection of material. Currently you can see "Midsummer Night’s Dream" and a musical version of "Romeo & Juliet."

Further inside the pavilion the Smith Museum of Stained Glass Windows is a surprising attraction of great cultural richness. With free admission, it offers a historic look at Chicago through the evolution of its stained glass work, from Victorian through Prairie School to Contemporary. The adjacent Richard H. Driehaus Gallery of Stained Glass provides more antics of the kind.

From then on a promenade takes pedestrians and bicyclists along the south side of the pier. It is a long walk from the entrance to the far east end - taking up to half an hour even - but is worth it for the fabulous view of the Chicago skyline that grows more vast the further you go. Along the way there are numerous food stands where you can buy anything from lemonade, funnel cake and roasted peanuts to Haagen Dazs ice cream. You can also eat a full dinner at Riva, Billy Goat Tavern & Grill, or the Dock Street Cafe. Near the east end of the pier in the Beer Garden you can enjoy free live outdoor entertainment and some beer. Seven nights a week the Garden features local bands of various music genres.

Navy Pier offers a great variety of boat rides and cruises. Mystic Blue, Seadog, Shoreline, and Spirit of Chicago are among companies waiting for you at the docks for a variety of day and night lake rides that include sightseeing and often fine dining. The boats "parked" along the pier are a sight in itself.

Through Sept. 4 Navy Pier also features its traditional summer fireworks show. Every Wednesday at 9:30pm and Saturday at 10:15pm the very east end of the pier gives you the best view of the superb light show.

Whether it is getting away from your stuffy downtown office during lunch or taking a weekend trip from distant suburbs people flock to Navy Pier everyday in search of fun and relaxation, a feel of the lake breeze and break from their daily responsibilities. While usually crowded, it s a great place to take your friends and family when home vicinities exhaust you and the lake calls your name.

Photos courtesy of Navy Pier

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