The best things to do in Chicago this weekend

For some, Labor Day weekend means cookouts and enjoying some of the final days of summer among family and friends. For others, it means crowding in front of a stage with a bunch of strangers and dancing to the sound of bone-rattling bass drops. North Coast Music Festival brings some of the biggest names in EDM to Bridgeview, Illinois, for three days of beats and pyrotechnics in and around SeatGeek Stadium. The lineup includes big-name acts Fisher, Griz, Gryffin, Illenium and many more. And with multiple stages to explore, you should have no problem finding the house, techno, progressive and trance music that you want to dance to.

Feast on potato pancakes, kielbasa, pierogi, blitzes and more at this annual Polish celebration (the largest in the country) during Labor Day weekend. Once you're full, stick around to take in performances from polka bands and tribute acts, play mini golf, shop from local vendors, watch traditional dance groups or try your luck in a casino.

As is Labor Day weekend tradition in Chicago, some of the biggest names in jazz will gather for a series of shows at Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park and the Chicago Cultural Center during this annual festival. Visit the Chicago Jazz Festival webpage for the full lineup and schedule.

The annual festival, which celebrates art, music and food from across the African diaspora, returns this Labor Day weekend for its 36th edition. Head to Washington Park's Sunken Gardens for music and dance performances, vendors and cultural exhibits, and interactive workshops and family activities. Plus, indulge in African and Diasporan food and drinks.

The sixth annual ARC Music Festival is scheduled to take over Union Park during Labor Day weekend, celebrating Chicago's house music roots and welcoming an international lineup of dance music artists. Expanding to a four-day sprawl for the first time, the fest features acts including Ben UFO, Honey Dijon, Carl Craig and Hiroko Yamamura. Catch sets at multiple stages spread throughout the park, enjoy food from local chefs and don't skip the ARC After Dark parties at venues like Smartbar and Radius.

Take a car-free ride along DuSable Lake Shore Drive during this annual biking event, which closes down the lakeside thoroughfare to vehicle traffic and allows cyclists to ride through a 30-mile route dotted with rest stops, water and snacks. You'll have to wake up early (the course opens at 6:30am) and enter through one of designated entry points along the road—but the novelty of biking on a stretch of pavement that is decidedly not bike-friendly is worth the hassle. Plus, proceeds from the event support the Active Transportation Alliance, a nonprofit organization working to improve conditions for pedestrians and cyclists throughout Chicago.

From June through September, more than 90 movies will screen in parks across Chicago as part of the Park District's annual Movies in the Parks program. From recent blockbusters like Zootopia 2 and Freakier Friday to classics like Back to the Future and Jumangi, you're sure to find something good to watch (for free!) beneath the stars this summer. Screenings typically begin at 8:45pm, or dusk, each evening. Take a look at the full list of movies and participating parks.

Navy Pier hosts this Labor Day weekend feast featuring mountains of fresh seafood flown in from the East Coast. At the Great American Lobster Festival, hungry attendees can sign up for the Lobster Meal Experience, which includes one drink voucher and a full 1.25-pound lobster served with corn on the cob, potatoes, a dinner roll, fresh-cut lemons and melted butter. Once you're full, shop craft vendors and enjoy live music performances.

From model to battlefield correspondent—and with many other titles in between—Lee Miller was a complex figure, and this year, the Art Institute of Chicago is showcasing works from her career in an expansive exhibit titled Lee Miller: Fearless. The first comprehensive survey of Miller's photographs in more than 25 years, Lee Miller: Fearless will feature nearly 150 works and will explore her life and approach to creativity, both behind and in front of the camera.

Explore Chicago's eerie past as you snake down the river aboard the First Lady Creepy Cruise. The 90-minute tour combines architectural history with stories of the city's shady past, from mob legends to ghost sightings, for a spooky evening on the water.

Sportsman's Club's Sunday BBQ series is back for another glorious year, bringing local restaurants to the bar's patio to cook a meal that's usually paired with a beverage. For the uninitiated, the takeovers are first-come, first-served, with the featured chef holding court over the bar's grill and menu. This year's lineup includes Bar Bambi, Pizz'amici, Milli by Metric, Kimski, Mister Tiger, Diego and more.

A Gen Z version of Grease takes the stage at the Apollo Theater this season. Vape! The Grease Parody is an Off-Broadway spoof of the iconic 1978 musical, complete with playful takes on the original storylines, modern references and, yes, vapes instead of cigarettes.

Navy Pier's former Crystal Gardens space is transforming into a retro roller skating rink this summer. Grab your skates and hit the rink for some of the best views in the city, plus an arcade, drinks and groovy disco tunes. At night, the Skate After Dark party turns up the energy for the 21+ crowd with DJ sets on select nights throughout the summer.

Explore notable Impressionist Mary Cassatt's works in the first exhibit in more than 25 years dedicated solely to the American artist at the Art Institute. Known for her works depicting mothers with children and intimate caretaking scenes, Cassatt was the only American to join the French Impressionists. After Impressionism showcases paintings, pastels and prints from the time in her career when she began to take her art in a new direction.

This exhibition poses a devastatingly powerful question: What if Emmett Till had not been brutally lynched in Mississippi in 1955? Through photography, the exhibition imagines an alternate history in which Till lived—moving from images inspired by the last meal his mother packed before his trip south to meditations on the life he might have experienced, from the rise of the Chicago Bulls to the ongoing fight for civil rights.

The oldest music festival in North America plays host to more than 90 shows throughout summer, featuring big-name headliners like Paul Simon, Alabama Shakes and Chance the Rapper. Check out the full schedule of artists coming to Highland Park this year, and don't forget to pack a picnic.

If dozens of vendors aren't enough of a draw for you to come to the lively Sunday market at this West Town neighborhood’s namesake park, maybe the weekly complimentary market programming—which includes free yoga, meditation and storytime for kids—will be. The market is also committed to sustainability, with plastic-free vendors and composting.

Enjoy outdoor live music all summer long at the Navy Pier Beer Garden. The free series will feature local, regional and national acts performing countless genres and musical styles every weekend. Check the official Navy Pier website for the full lineup and schedule.

Explore a host of galleries and programming at this monthly event that showcases West Town’s dynamic arts community. On the first Friday of every month, galleries and arts-based businesses stay open until 8pm.

Ready to explore Chicago's amazing architecture while floating on the river? The Chicago Architecture Center River Cruise takes place aboard a First Lady boat, transporting guests on a 90-minute tour that traverses three branches of the Chicago River and explores the stories behind more than 50 buildings that make up the city's iconic skyline.

What separates the Chicago Architecture Center River Cruise from similar tours are the knowledgeable Chicago Architecture Center docents that lead each excursion. You'll be able to chat with experts who know the nitty-gritty details of Chicago architecture and are eager to help you learn more about the structures surrounding you—something that makes this attraction appealing to tourists and longtime residents.

All tours depart from the First Lady dock on the Chicago Riverwalk, located just down the stairs from the northeast corner of Michigan Avenue and Wacker Drive. If you want to continue learning about Chicago's buildings after your tour, you can add a Chicago Architecture Center ticket for just $5—and it's good for seven days after you board the boat.

Whether you’re parenting a pint-sized Pokémon devotee or a nostalgic millennial still clinging to a holographic Charizard card for its “possible resale value” (guilty), the Pokémon Fossil Museum is designed to surprise and delight. Making its U.S. debut at the Field Museum in spring 2026, the international exhibition invites visitors to compare Fossil Pokémon like Tyrantrum and Archeops with real-world fossils—including SUE the T. rex. Expect Pokémon models, real fossil excavation tools and immersive soundscapes throughout.

“Willem de Kooning Drawing” is the first exhibition to explore the full scope of the artist's drawing practice, framing it as the foundation of his boundary-breaking career. Featuring more than 200 artworks—including rarely seen drawings alongside paintings, sculptures and prints—this exhibition offers an unprecedented opportunity to experience seven decades of his graphic production while shedding light on his constant experimentation with various materials, tools and techniques.

When Pitchfork Music Festival announced its sudden sunset at the start of 2025, Chicago’s music scene collectively wondered how festival co-founder Mike Reed would fill the sonic void. Turns out, Reed had an ace up his sleeve: Sound & Gravity, a four-day music marathon featuring 50+ performances across seven venues in Bricktown and Avondale. Lineup highlights include Grouper, Alabaster DePlume, Son Lux and more. Read more about Sound & Gravity's inception here.

Intuit Art Museum joins the national Handwork 2026 celebration with an exhibition investigating Henry Darger’s relationship to traditional American paper crafts. Drawing on research by art historian Dr. Mary Trent, the exhibition demonstrates how Darger adapted common practices—such as making paper dolls and scrapbooks—into a complex, mixed-media narrative style. By showcasing Darger’s source materials alongside his final works, the exhibition highlights how he reclaimed these institutionalized hobbies to express the interior lives and struggles of the marginalized.

In honor of America's 250th anniversary, the American Writers Museum presents a pop-up exhibition titled "Declarations: 250 Years of Writing Toward Independence." An 1832 William Stone print of the Declaration of Independence, a 1776 British edition of Thomas Paine's Common Sense, which advocated for the independence of U.S. colonies, and more artifacts will be on view. Visitors can also explore works related to the Declaration by Abraham Lincoln, Frederick Douglass and other historical figures, as well as edit the document into their own words through interactive activations.

As the Driehaus Museum’s first artist-in-residence, Brendan Fernandes will transform the Murphy Auditorium into a dynamic site for sculpture, movement and sound. Inspired by the Judson Dance Theater, Fernandes’ Scores for the Murphy Auditorium will unfold as an episodic residency throughout 2026, with performances and public programs announced over time.

Displaying a 25-story-tall video installation on the side of THE MART, ART on THE MART is the largest permanent digital art projection in the world, with programming that changes seasonally. ART on THE MART's array of 34 digital projectors show the creations after dusk every evening. Running for 30 minutes on Thursdays through Saturdays, it’s best viewed from the section of the Chicago Riverwalk between Wells Street and Franklin Street.

"Flyway City: Architecture for a Flourishing Ecosystem," designed by Studio Gang and led by world-renowned architect Jeanne Gang, explores solutions to prevent the estimated one billion annual bird-glass collisions in the U.S. Through a variety of architectural models, interactive media and local artifacts, the exhibition demonstrates how urban design can coexist harmoniously with nature. 

With soundstage-sized pieces like horned sculptures emitting soap bubbles, inflated spheres bedecked in abstract squiggles and surreal faceless figures hovering in space, “EmotionAir” reimagines the humble balloon as any other artistic medium—a conduit for creativity and emotion. 

Head to 360 Chicago on Saturdays for yoga with a killer view. Instructor Britta Eumann will lead an hour-long class on the 94th floor of 875 North Michigan Avenue (formerly the John Hancock Center) that’s suitable for all ages and skill levels—you just need to bring your own mat and arrive properly dressed. Registration is $55 and includes a cocktail or coffee, plus admission to the observation deck so you can stick around and snap some photos after you're done striking poses on the mat.

This first-of-its-kind exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago explores the visual, political and spiritual histories of dancehall and reggaetón through contemporary art. Once grassroots scenes, both genres have become globally influential movements tied closely to sexual and political liberation. The show features works by more than 35 artists, including Jean-Michel Basquiat, Edra Soto, supakid and Lee “Scratch” Perry.

You’ve probably seen a Shakespeare play before, but never like this. Five professional actors come together for each performance of Drunk Shakespeare. The twist? One of them has had five shots before the show and is trying to stay on track while the other four actors do their best to hold the performance together.

For more than 30 years, the Neo-Futurists have been delighting late-night crowds with performances that pack 30 miniature plays into a 60-minute show. The company's signature show is more unpredictable than ever these days, with a handful of compact new plays premiering every week. Within the span of 10 minutes, you may be treated to a poignant monologue about everyday life or an irreverent diatribe delivered by a pantsless member of the cast—all inspired by the experiences of the performers on stage. Always changing and evolving, it's the rare show that truly offers something different every time you show up to see it.

This immersive exhibition recreates the Secret Annex where Anne Frank, her family and four others hid during the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands. Chicago is only the second U.S. city—and the first in the Midwest—to host the experience, which includes rarely seen artifacts from Frank’s life. Visitors can walk through the reconstructed hiding place while learning about Anne’s childhood, the rise of Nazi Germany and the Frank family’s years in Amsterdam. The exhibition offers a powerful look at the risks, courage and daily realities of those who lived in hiding. Admission is free on Friday, June 12 in honor of what would have been Anne's 97th birthday. Guests can also enjoy the exhibit for free with the purchase of a general admission ticket for the rest of the weekend.

This weekly “live magazine” is a cavalcade of culture, politics and wit featuring journalists, actors, comedians and musicians offering idiosyncratic reports on the news of the day. Head to Uptown’s iconic Green Mill for drinks, hot takes and laughs; the longstanding Saturday afternoon edition tends to run about two and a half hours.

Just when you thought the state's largest mall couldn't surprise you anymore, Woodfield Mall announces WONDRA, a sprawling new immersive experience. Inside, you’ll wander through enchanted meadows that respond to the sound of your voice, stumble across bioluminescent landscapes and drift into crystal caves and celestial gardens that blur the line between digital spectacle and raw wonder.