Family Weekender: Chicago

For building a castle or burying Dad, dunes are a great natural playground

Go Guide: Illinois Beach State Park

Getting there: From Chicago take I-94 north to Grand Avenue East. Turn left on Sheridan Road, then right on Wadsworth Road and follow that to the park entrance. 

Reference: Trail maps are available at the park office. 

Contact: Illinois Beach State Park, (847) 662-6433.
 

It's a fact: Kids love sand — and Illinois Beach State Park has plenty of it.

Illinois' only active sand dunes lie along the Lake Michigan shoreline near Zion.

The dunes and surrounding beach are guaranteed to provide hours of fun for children of all ages. There are also six miles of trail along the beach and inland, ideal for hiking, biking and fishing. You can make a weekend out of it by camping at one of the park's 244 sites.

Guided tours along the park's nature trail are available upon request and nature programs are offered on weekends throughout the summer.

For more dunes, visit the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, just across the Indiana border, ten miles to the east of Chicago.

Fun fact: Illinois Beach State Park is where the first western was filmed in 1914!