Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
227
No Horsing Around
Let me be frank: Horseback riding in downtown Chicago is impossible. About the
closest you can get is a horse-and-buggy ride. Carriages depart from the south-
west corner of Michigan Avenue and Pearson Street (next to the Water Tower).
For $35 for a half-hour ride (for up to four people), it's a picturesque way to take
in the city's sights. The rides are operated by the Noble Horse Theater, which
owns Chicago's historic riding hall, which dates back to 1871 and is located at
1410 N. Orleans Ave. To see a Noble Horse performance, call the
Noble Horse
at
&
312/266-7878;
www.noblehorsechicago.com.
If you're planning on visiting the suburbs and want to play a r ound on one of the
many plush and pricey suburban courses, visit the w ebsite of the Chicago D istrict Golf
Association at www.cdga.org.
In the nor thern suburbs,
Skokie S ports P ark,
3459 O akton (
&
847/674-1500;
www.skokieparkdistrict.com), has an 18-hole ar ound-the-world-themed miniature golf
course, a 9-hole miniatur e golf course for the smallest tots, a two-tier ed driving range,
and junior golf lessons. The Traveler's Quest miniature golf course, gear ed toward older
kids and adults, lets you putt around the Eiffel Tower and over the waterfall near Easter
Island. Check out the African water hole (in which you putt into the hippo's mouth), the
Japanese garden with lanterns with its sizable hazards, and the Great Wall of China. The
park is open April through October Sunday through Thursday from 8am to 10pm, Fri-
day and Saturday until 11pm.
In nearby Lincolnwood,
Novelty Golf and Games,
3550 W. Devon Ave. (
&
847/679-
9434;
www.noveltygolf.com), has miniatur e golf, batting cages, a video ar cade, and an
ice-cream parlor. It's a 50-year-old operation that's open Saturday and Sunday from 11am
to dusk from early March to late October, weather permitting.
8
ICE-SKATING
Whether you and your kids are executing graceful toe loops or mer ely stumbling across
the rink, y ou can hit the ice in the hear t of Chicago's Loop. The city's premier skating
destination is the
McCormick Tribune Ice Rink
at Millennium Park, 55 N. M ichigan
Ave., at the intersection of M ichigan Avenue and M onroe Street (
&
312/742-5222;
www.millenniumpark.org). The location is unbeatable. You'll skate in the shado ws of
grand skyscrapers and within view of the lake. The rink is open daily from 9am to 9pm,
November to March. Admission is free, and skate rentals are $10. Try going on a w eek-
night when the city lights spar kle over you, and grab a hot chocolate fr om a v ending
machine to warm up before hitting the ice.
Year-round skating and ice-skating lessons are available at the only city-run indoor ice
arena at
McFetridge Sports Complex
(known to many Chicago r esidents as California
Park) located in the Lakevie w neighborhood at 3845 N. California A ve., at Irving Park
Road (
&
773/478-2609
). Open skating sessions in the indoor rink are held Wednesday
and Friday afternoons from 3:30 to 5pm, and S aturday and Sunday from 4:30 to 6pm.
Skates can be r ented for $3 a pair; the rink fee is $5 for ages 13 and up , $4 for ages 12
and under. The rink is huge and can be v ery crowded on weekends. You might want to
take advantage of the fr ee skating lessons, av ailable on M onday from 5:15 to 5:55pm.
