Categories: Chicago Architecture
Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum
Author: Carrie Williams
If you are traveling with children in the Windy City, make sure you stop at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum for some family fun! Children will absolutely love this place whether they are seeing the world through the eyes of a bug or monkeying around in a tree house. Adults can also learn a lot about saving the Earth by walking through various exhibits.
Peggy Notebaert Exhibits
The Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, located just north of the Lincoln Park Zoo, connects visitors to science and the nature world through a wide variety of exhibits, and provides awareness to all types of environmental issues. Its largest exhibit, the Greening Project, boasts an eco-friendly environment and shows visitors how they too can live “green” lives and help save the planet. The exhibit is outdoors which is perfect for a summer visit!
Bring the kids in for the Hands-on Habitat where they can climb a tree house, soar down the wiggly worm slide and look at life through the eyes of a bug by using the museum's bug goggles!
In addition to permanent exhibits, through the summer, an exhibit called Robots and Us: Where Nature Meets Machines is filled with over two dozen interactives that bring visitors closer to nature through robotic intelligence. For more information on specific exhibits and show times, go to www.naturemuseum.org.
Dining at Notebaert
Stop by Notebaert's new Butterfly Café located in the lobby next to the gift shop. The café offers Intelligentsia coffee and healthy goodies from the Sunday Dinner Chicago Catering Company and is open from 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. on weekends. V
ending machines are also available and located in the School Group Lunchroom on Level 2 across from The Extreme Green House exhibit.
In the mood for something else? Lincoln Park has a wide array of restaurants close to the museum. Take the kids over to Bacino's Pizza (2204 North Lincoln Avenue) for a Chicago staple that is sure to satisfy the taste buds. Or for a fast paced interactive meal, head to the Flat Top Grill (319 West North Avenue) where you can choose from over 80 possible stir-fry selections. You then choose from various colored flags that represent additional ingredients to be added during the cooking process. You choose what you want to eat, and the chefs cook it up exactly the way you want it. What could be better?
Shopping at Notebaert
Visit Notebaert's Nature Museum Shop and check out all kinds of nature-type gifts from plant and garden guide books, living “green” tutorial videos and kids puzzles to butterfly décor for your home or office, as well as exhibit-related products like the Water Saving Garden guide book (Greening Project) or a BusyBugz Pop-Up Book (Hands-on Habitat) for the kids.
Getting There
The Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum is located at 2430 N. Cannon Drive just north of the Lincoln Park Zoo.
- Free street parking is available on both sides of Cannon Drive (check signs for restrictions). A public parking lot is located on Stockton Drive next to the Conservatory.
- El: Take the Orange line CTA train towards the Loop and exit at Clark & Lake Streets and walk northwest to LaSalle Street to take the #156 CTA bus.
- Bus: The Notebaert Museum is also served by CTA buses #151 and #156 that stop at the southeast corner of Fullerton Parkway and Stockton Drive . Walk north across Fullerton , then east to the main entrance of the Museum on Cannon. The #77 (Belmont) bus stops in front of the Museum during Museum hours, and a free trolley service runs from area CTA stations and parking garages to the museum every Sat.-Sun. and holidays all summer through Labor Day from 10 a.m.-6 p.m.
- General Info: A range of ticket choices are available, as are group passes. Call 773-755-5111 for tickets/information, or visit http://www.naturemuseum.org.
Check out places of interest near Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum:
Museum of Science and Industry
5700 S Lake Shore Dr,
Chicago, IL 60637
The Museum of Science and Industry, one of the most beloved and visited museums in the world, has origins that are tied to two great World's Fairs and to civic spirit and imagination of Chicago businessman Julius Rosenwald.
Ravinia Festival
418 Sheridan Rd.,
Highland Park, IL 60035
A lineup of pop, classical, folk, jazz and other musical performances under the stars or an open-air pavilion. Concerts March through Sept.
Spertus Museum
610 S. Michigan Ave.,
Chicago, IL 60605
At Chicago's Spertus Museum, expect to see a permanent collection of Judaica, a hands-on archaeology exhibit for children, and temporary and raveling exhibitions.
The Morton Arboretum
4100 Illinois Highway 53,
Lisle, IL 60532
A top Chicago nature site, The Morton Arboretum boasts more than 3,000 trees, shrubs, and other vegetation across its 1,700-acre site.
Days Inn Chicago
644 W. Diversey Pkwy.,
Chicago, IL 60614
Winner of the 2004 Days Inn Hotel of the Year Award!
Enjoy a complimentary continental breakfast including fresh waffles, as well as a free copy of 'USA Today.' Guests have free access to Bally’s Total Fitness located next door. Other hotel amenities: include high-speed Internet access throughout the property, expanded cable TV with in-room movies and games, valet, and guest laundry facilities. Within walking distance of the historic Wrigley Field, Lincoln Park Zoo, and Chicago Beaches and a short cab ride from the Loop, McCormick Place, Navy Pier, and Merchandise Mart.
