Near South Side
Free things to do in Near South Side 10 places
Anchored by the Museum Campus, this lakefront neighborhood puts the Field Museum, Shedd Aquarium, and Adler Planetarium along a scenic stretch of parkland and skyline views. Historic Prairie Avenue and Northerly Island add architecture and open lakefront trails to explore for free.
Northerly Island Park
Parks · Cermak-McCormick Place (Green)
A 91-acre reclaimed peninsula of restored prairie, wetlands, and a lagoon with walking and biking trails and spectacular skyline and lake views. Once Meigs Field airport, it is now a free nature preserve at the edge of the Museum Campus.
Clarke House Museum
Museums · Cermak-McCormick Place (Green)
Chicago's oldest surviving house, an 1836 Greek Revival home restored as a museum of the city's earliest days in the Prairie Avenue district. Docent-led tours walk you through period rooms and pioneer life. Free on Wednesdays, otherwise only $10.
Field Museum of Natural History
Museums · Roosevelt (Red, Green, Orange)
The Field Museum is a premier natural history museum on Chicago's Museum Campus, home to SUE the T. rex, the world's most complete Tyrannosaurus skeleton. Its vast collections span dinosaurs, ancient Egypt, gems, and global cultures.
Shedd Aquarium
Museums · Roosevelt (Red, Green, Orange)
The Shedd Aquarium on Chicago's Museum Campus houses thousands of aquatic animals across habitats from the Caribbean reef to the Amazon and the Pacific Northwest. Exhibits include beluga whales, sea otters, sharks, and an Oceanarium overlooking Lake Michigan.
Adler Planetarium
Views · Roosevelt (Red, Green, Orange)
Founded in 1930, the Adler Planetarium is America's first planetarium, sitting on a Museum Campus peninsula with sweeping skyline views. It offers immersive sky shows, historic astronomical instruments, and hands-on space science exhibits.
Glessner House
Museums · Cermak-McCormick Place (Green)
Designed by architect H.H. Richardson and completed in 1887, Glessner House is a landmark of American residential architecture in the historic Prairie Avenue District. Guided tours reveal its Arts and Crafts interiors and influence on later Chicago architects.
Agora
Landmarks · Roosevelt (Red, Green, Orange)
Magdalena Abakanowicz's field of 106 headless, nine-foot iron figures stands at the south end of Grant Park near Michigan and Roosevelt. Visitors can walk freely among the towering, hollow forms. A striking and slightly eerie free public artwork.
Second Presbyterian Church of Chicago
Landmarks · Cermak-McCormick Place (Green)
A National Historic Landmark on Motor Row, this Arts and Crafts sanctuary holds 21 stained-glass windows, nine of them by Louis Comfort Tiffany, glowing above dark timber and angel murals. It's one of the most complete Arts and Crafts interiors in the country and almost never crowded. A hushed, luminous stop south of the Loop.
Coliseum Park
Parks · Roosevelt (Red, Green, Orange)
A free Chicago Park District park in Near South Side. It features a dog area. Open daily and free to enjoy.
12th Street Beach
Beaches · Roosevelt (Red, Green, Orange)
A quiet crescent of sand on Northerly Island, just south of the Adler Planetarium, framed by dune grasses and prairie plantings. It offers a striking skyline-and-lake panorama and feels secluded despite being minutes from the Museum Campus. Crowds stay light, making it a mellow alternative to the northern beaches.
Other neighborhoods