“Wonderfest at Navy Pier”- follow/up

Recommended  We all know about the summer fun at Navy Pier and the great fireworks, but what makes this spot along the Lake so frequented is that there are things to do all year; theater ( The Chicago Shakespeare Theater is one of our country’s best), great dining, an I-Max movie theater, activities galore- that is why I love Navy Pier! Right now, they are running the  “Winter WonderFest, an indoor playground/amusement park for the entire family. As a follow up to my story ( see articles), I took my youngest grand kids last Saturday for the experience.

Adam and Sarah had a ball. As they entered the magic doorways filled with lights and Christmas Trees and decorations from around the world. The are is 17,000 square feet of pure heaven with giant slides ( inflatables) a Ferris Wheel, the Winter Wind Glider, Climbing Walls, an Ice Trail Ropes Course and a new added Tilt-o-whirl called the Wonder Whirl ( Adam truly loved this one), but his favorite is the Matterhorn, a multi leveled climbing unit where at the top, you slide down ( about 20 feet). This is one of the longest lines as it is a challenge worthy or the wait. The only problem we found was that the employees lost control of the crowd for awhile and didn’t watch the heights , making for kids that could never get up to the next level, which slowed down this attraction.

There of course is great ice skating, but be aware that the little ones need to be with an adult in order for less chance of injury. Many of the rides and attractions are height related and so the under 46” cannot do some of them, but there are many attractions that are great for the 3 and 4 year olds as well.Sarah, who is in that age bracket went on the ice caverns obstacle course several times, the express train,the power Wheel Mini Adventure Track and the Arctic wonder obstacle course. Of course WE went on the Kringle Carousel, but her favorite part of the fun-filled day was visiting the Pepsi cookie cottage where she was able to decorate her own holiday sugar cookie.

This is a day of fun and there are activities that will keep all busy, at a very low cost. This year, they have extended the dates until January 8th, allowing more families to enjoy this special event. To learn more, visit  www.navypier.com