Chicagoween
October is Halloween Month and Chicago hosts an annual city-wide event called Chicagoween each year. The Chicago Park District hosts pumpkin patches, haunted houses and theater related to the season. There is usually a city-sponsored Halloween Parade, costume contests, arts and crafts and harvest markets set up in public parks around the city. There are also games at many public parks, as well as candy giveaways on Halloween night.
Handsome Cab Rides Through Downtown Chicago
According to Weather.com, historically Chicago's October weather averages in the low 50s and dips to the low 40s as the month progresses. This may seem cold to a lot of tourists coming from southeastern states such as Florida or Georgia, but for most, this isn't too cold to be outside doing something fun. Horse-drawn carriages are a fun way to spend an evening and one such company, Noble Horse, offers both open and closed carriage rides through downtown Chicago. Drivers conveniently pick up patrons from their restaurants or hotel rooms. As of October 2009, a ride costs $70 per hour.
Noble Horse Chicago
1410 N. Orleans
Chicago, Illinois
(312) 266-7878
Oktoberfest Lunch Cruise
Every October, Chicago's Shoreline Sightseeing Cruise Company hosts the Oktoberfest Lunch Cruise. It's a 90-minute cruise with traditional German food (brats and trimmings a plenty), western European beer, live German music and a tour of Chicago's architecture along Lake Michigan. The purpose of the cruise is to learn about the role the German people have had in the shaping of Chicago's history. The Shoreline Sightseeing Cruise Company, starting in 1939, was actually the first company to bring water taxis to Chicago and is responsible for jumpstarting the city's tourism industry.
Shoreline Sightseeing
585 E. Illinois St.
Chicago, Illinois 60611
(312) 464-6432
shorelinesightseeing.com
About The Author
Ryan Day is a writer who hails from northeast Florida. He graduated from Flagler College in St. Augustine and has worked as a freelance writer for five years now and has been published in The St. Augustine Record and The Florida Times-Union. Ryan spends his free time traveling, volunteering with a local college ministry and playing kickball.
