11/21/2023

Best Things To This December in Chicago

December in Chicago: Does it get much more festive? Come join us for Marriott Bonvoy Autograph Collection hospitality in the River North Gallery District here at Hotel Chicago, and enjoy premier accommodations with easy access to the many holiday goings-on—and general wintertime fun—underway in the Windy City during this magical stretch of the calendar.

Here are a few ideas for things to do in December while calling a luxurious Hotel Chicago guest room or suite your home base!

Outdoor Activities

Dive into the romance of wintertime and the holiday season full-on with some good old-fashioned ice skating! You’ve got multiple convenient options in the ice-rink department as a guest of ours here at Hotel Chicago, including the ever-popular—and free (not counting skate rentals)—McCormick Tribune Ice Rink over at Millennium Park, pretty much just across the Chicago River from us.

There’s also the unique linear Ice Skating Ribbon at Maggie Daley Park, as well as a rink over at Navy Pier—part of its grand-scale holiday attraction (which we’ll dig into more).

If you’ve got kiddos, you might consider some quality time over at the Soldier Field sledding hill (all the more thrilling if you’re a Monsters of the Midway fan, of course). And daytripping out of Hotel Chicago puts miles and miles of the cross-country skiing and snowshoeing trails lacing through the numerous and extensive Cook County Forest Preserves at your disposal.

Holiday Attractions & Performances

Chicago pulls out all of the stops for the holiday season, and there’s really far too much going on to do justice to here. But how about a sampler pack to rev up your December trip-planning engines?

Take in one of the best European-style holiday markets outside the Old World over at Daley Plaza, where the long-running and always-delightful Christkindlmarket Chicago will be underway from November 17th through Christmas Eve.

Our Autograph Collection hotel, meanwhile, makes the perfect accommodations for a night at the theater: Don’t miss the Joffrey Ballet’s annual production of The Nutcracker, which’ll be entrancing audiences at the Lyric Opera House from December 2nd through December 27th.

The Morton Arboretum will be presenting its 11th annual Illumination holiday-lights installation beginning November 18th and running into early January. Stroll the paved, ADA-accessible milelong path through dazzlingly lit-up trees, enjoying a musical soundtrack as well as other enticements such as fireside warmups and s’mores.

Navy Pier, as we mentioned, has its own holiday wonderland going down: Light Up The Lake, launching on November 24th and thrumming along until the end of December. This very biggest indoor and outdoor holiday experience in all the city encompasses all sorts of merriment besides the aforementioned ice skating: lakefront holiday lights, firepits, weekend live music, fireworks, holiday workshops, axe-throwing, and heated rides on the iconic Centennial Ferris Wheel.

And on New Year’s Eve—the closing day of Light Up the Lake—Navy Pier once again will be throwing its New Year on the Pier celebration, with festivities in the Aon Grand Ballroom and midnight pyrotechnics.

Book a December Stay at Hotel Chicago

Don’t wait to book a holiday-season getaway in the Midwest’s greatest city: Reserve a guest room or suite at Hotel Chicago for this December today!