Navy Pier Centennial Wheel and carousel

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Navy Pier Centennial Wheel and carousel

Photo: Moses8910 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

🚂 Train · Chicago

3 hours · $$ · No reservation needed

age fit
0–1 yr
★ 4.0
1–3 yrs
★ 4.0
3–5 yrs
★ 4.0
5–10 yrs
★ 5.0
  • 🚗
    About 50 min drive
    From Naperville · Parking: Two Navy Pier garages ($30–40 on weekends, very expensive); bus 124 direct from Union Station / Ogilvie
  • 🍼
    Stroller-friendly
    Flat surfaces — bring the stroller
  • 🌳
    Little shade
    Great on sunny days · Good on cool days · Rain-OK
  • ⏱️
    Typical visit: 3 hours
    Best seasons: Summer · Spring · Fall

The 200-foot Centennial Wheel takes about 12 minutes per rotation in enclosed, air-conditioned gondolas you can roll a stroller into, with the lake on one side and the city on the other at the top; afterward ride the old-fashioned carousel and watch the boats from the end of the pier.

💡 Tips
Wheel tickets are about $18–20/person, free under 3 (check the website); summer fireworks on Wednesday and Saturday nights. Parking is expensive, so Metra downtown plus a bus is cheapest. The Chicago Children's Museum is right on the pier.

What this place offers

✓Ferris wheel
✓carousel
✓lakefront
✓snacks
✓children's museum nearby
✓restrooms
✓fireworks

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This weekend's weather in Chicago

Forecast at the destination itself (coast and hills often differ from home)

☀️
Sat 10/17
Sunny · 36–58°F · 4% rain
☀️
Sun 10/18
Sunny · 48–63°F · 0% rain

Location

Chicago, Illinois

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