'Tis the season in Chicago. Whether you're a dweller or visitor of the city, have just a couple hours to spare or days to explore, you can join in on the holiday spirit.
From its famed Christmas market to holiday train rides, the city is home to a flurry of pastimes that can help you ring in the season.
Here are a few light shows, ice skating rinks and more holiday events to check out in and around Chicago, a city that was named among the best places to spend Christmas in the world.
Christkindlmarket
Christkindlmarket is a Chicago staple that is ranked, time and again, as one of the best Christmas markets in the nation -- and the world.
The famed-German-style market offers visitors the opportunity to buy handmade artisan goods and taste international foods while listening to festive tunes. What's more? Christkindlmarket-goers can always head home with a collectible souvenir: a holiday mug.
This year, the market has three Chicago-area locations: Wrigleyville, Chicago and Aurora. Welcoming all visitors for free, each spot features different events, entertainment and musical performances.
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More information can be found here.
Chicago's Christmas Tree at Millennium Park
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A 55-foot-tall Colorado blue spruce tree is the centerpiece of the city this winter.
The tree, which adorned the front lawn of a Morton Grove home for decades, beat out more than 80 entries when it was selected to be the city's "official" Christmas tree for 2022.
The tree tallies as a long-time Chicago tradition, as this year's will become the city's 109th. Each year, the tree can be seen glistening near the intersection of Michigan Avenue and Washington Street.
The tree will remain lit throughout Jan. 8, 2023.
Light Shows
Dazzling light shows are putting the spotlight on the holiday season, turning several of the region's well-known attractions into winter wonderlands.
ZooLights, one of Chicago’s most colorful holiday staples, kickstarted its 28th running with an array of attractions scattered throughout Lincoln Park Zoo.
A 65-foot Ferris wheel, an expansive light tunnel and re-envisioned light shows are some of the event's highlights, according to the zoo. Visitors can head to a meet-and-greet with Santa, catch live ice carvings, tune in to carolers, munch on treats, experience a holiday-themed pop-up bar and roam around for more festivities.
ZooLights will run from 4:30 to 10 p.m. Dec. 2-14, 16-23, 26-31 and Jan. 1, 2023. Of the dates, tickets to the show will be free Dec. 12, 19 and 26.
Tickets are available here and cost $5 Tuesdays through Sundays.
Billed as the longest-running lights festival in the Chicago area, Holiday Magic is officially back at Brookfield Zoo for the 2022 season.
Zoogoers can set their sights on a bundle of displays, including two-miles worth of colorful lights synchronized to music and a 600-foot-long illuminated tunnel. A 41-foot-tall gleaming Christmas tree will also be propped up.
Alongside the lights, activities will run at the event. A scavenger hunt dubbed the "Game of Gnomes" will send visitors on the lookout for 27 gnomes varying in size and shape across the zoo. From Tropic World to Reptiles and Birds, several indoor and outdoor animal habitats are open to visitors during the light show.
Holiday Magic will be available Nov. 15-27 and 30, as well as Dec. 1-4, 14-18 and 26-31.
Tickets are required for admission. Those looking to park in the zoo's south lot must reserve tickets in advance online.
Admission to Brookfield Zoo costs $24.95 for adults, $17.95 for children ages 3-11 and $19.95 for seniors 65 and over. Parking is $15.
If you're not looking to brave the cold, then you can also check out an indoor lights experience with Light Up the Lake at Navy Pier's Festival Hall.
Guests can interact with light displays, ice skate, visit Santa and more until Jan. 7, 2023. Tickets to the event, which range in price from $17 to $27, also include a ride on Navy Pier's 200-foot Centennial Wheel.
Here are more light shows casting a glow across the suburbs.
Ice Skating
The chilly weather calls for the return of a marquee wintertime activity: ice skating. From indoor to outdoor rinks, there are places where beginners, pros and everyone in between can hit the ice throughout the season.
In fact, Wrigley Field is one of them. In previous years, an ice rink was located adjacent to the historic ballpark in Gallagher Way. But this time around, the 12,000-square-foot rink will actually be moved inside, tucked neatly in the right field.
Carnival games, ice tubing, an ice slide and the "Infield Express train" will also grace the field, along with holiday music, festive food, beverages and more.
The rink will be available through Jan. 8, 2023. Those who bring their own skates can enter the rink for $12. Access to the rink and skate rentals cost $20.
Maggie Daley Park's popular attraction sends skaters weaving through a path twice the length of a traditional rink.
Set in the Loop, the rink opened for the season Nov. 18, with plans to stay open until March 5, 2023, weather permitting. Admission to the rink is free Mondays through Thursdays and $5 Fridays through Sundays for those who bring their own skates. Skate rentals range from $16 to $18.
Skating alongside the Cloud Gate at Millennium Park returns with McCormick Tribune Ice Rink. The rink debuted Nov.18 and will run until March 5, 2023, weather permitting. Admission is free, but online reservations are required. Skate rentals range from $16 to $20.
Here are more places where you can ice skate.
Holiday Trains
Tree lightings? Check. Holiday windows? Check. Christmas markets? Check. Chicago holiday trains to take you to all those events? Check.
From local CTA and Metra fleets traveling down neighborhood streets, to the Canadian Pacific Holiday train blaring its horn through the suburbs, holiday trains in and across Chicago are officially rolling on the tracks.
Here's where and when to find each one.
Macy's Holiday Displays on State Street
Macy's kicked off its 2022 winter revelries with a series of classic displays, from its trumpets posted along the city's State Street to its famed holiday windows.
The storefront also installed its "Great Tree," a 45-foot-tall centerpiece that adorns the Walnut Room throughout the season. This year, the tree will be themed around a whimsical toy shop with about 15,000 ornaments dressed onto it.
Santa Claus is also reprising his role for meetings and photo opportunities at Macy's Santaland. The iconic workshop will be open for in-store visits through Christmas Eve. Reservations are required.
More information can be found here.
