Go Chicago Card - this site is home of the card that gets you admission to over 25 attractions and tours for one low price (you can purchase a 3, 5, or 7-day card), gochicagocard.com

The Field Museum - a fabulous natural history museum--dinosaurs, mummies, evolution, animals, plants & ecosystems, plus much more, fieldmuseum.org

Shedd Aquarium - world's largest indoor aquarium with Caribbean coral reefs, Amazon, and Pacific rocky coasts exhibits, sheddaquarium.org

Museum of Science and Industry - sounds like hours of hands-on fun with a one of a kind fairy castle, video game exhibit, real submarine, chick hatchery, and Apollo command module, human anatomy display, and more, msichicago.org

Lincoln Park Zoo - among the nation's oldest zoos, Lincoln Park Zoo is also among the most modern; it has a children's zoo, a bear habitat, an African Journey exhibit, and many more, not to mention an endangered species carousel and paddleboat rides on the South Lagoon, lpzoo.com

Navy Pier - "endless entertainment" for locals and visitors: restaurants, rides, cruises, IMAX theater, performances, museums, miniature golf, fireworks, etc., navypier.com

Sears Tower - all new Skydeck with interactive displays makes viewing Chicago from the world's tallest building even better--get the facts and visitor information on the official website, the-skydeck.com

Millennium Park - located in downtown Chicago has been called an award-winning center for art, music, architecture, and landscape design; this 24.5 acre park is home to the Lurie Garden, the Crown Fountain, the Jay Pritzker Pavilion for outdoor concerts, famous monuments and pieces of sculpture such as the Cloud Gate, the McCormick Tribune Plaza and Ice Rink, as well as spacious lawns and grounds for visitors to enjoy, millenniumpark.org; see some great photos of the park on tripadvisor.com

The Art Institute of Chicago - both a school of art and a museum, this site can help visitors find out about featured events and how and when to visit, artic.edu

10 Best Ways to Explore Chicago - Laura Tiebert of Frommer's writes about family travel in Chicago, exploring everything from the Field Museum to a river cruise to an afternoon at Wrigley Field to the zoo, frommers.com