It might be called the “windy city”, but if there’s one thing you can count on in Chicago, it’s the cold! Every year the grizzly bone-chill of winter sucks the life right out of the often dynamic destination. Oh sure, the locals do okay, but any first-time visitors are in for a shock and shiver.
No doubt that’s why come summer, Chi-town unleashes everything it’s got. Jazz, blues, hot dogs, high-flying daredevils – there’s a summer festival in Chicago for all of them. Even better, almost all of them are FREE. Since I don’t know when USA Travel Guide will be back the windy way, I figured today I’d serve up a tantalizing taste of all of them. Head to Chicago this summer for one or more of these world-renowned festivals.
2010 Chicago Gospel Music Festival
June 5-6, 2010
Millennium Park | Free Admission | Web site
What better blessing for the new festival
season than the sensational soul of the Chicago Gospel Music Festival? Over 50 performances keep the three concert stages bouncing all day long. Local acts bring an ineffable Chicago flavor to the scene, and the impressive lineup of Grammy winners promises an unforgettable show.
2010 Chicago Blues Festival
June 11-13, 2010
Grant Park | Free Admission | Web site
For some, the earlier week’s Gospel Festival is the whole deal, but for most, it’s just the opening act. Next to the stage is the 2010 Chicago Blues Festival, the largest free blues festival in the world. Over a hundred blues artists, many of them world-famous, will head to one of five stages to deliver the goods to a screaming audience of over 600,000 fans. On stage this year you’ll see Sonny Rhodes, T.K. Soul, East of Eden Soul Express and so many, many more.
2010 Taste of Chicago
June 25 – July 4, 2010
Grant Park | Free Admission | Web site
I think it’s no slight against gospel or the blues to say that the annual Taste of Chicago festival is my favorite. Over one million of my fellow visitors may agree. The 2010 Taste of Chicago offers a way to experience Chicago’s most iconic element – its food – both affordably and in mass quantity. 
Rather than searching out Geno’s, Fluky’s and Al’s, you can get your deep-dish pizza, your Chicago-style hot dog and your Italian beef right here at the festival. You can also see food celebs like Mario Batali or headline entertainment like Salt-n-Pepa (you read that right) and the Steve Miller Band. That’s quite a festival!
2010 Chicago Air & Water Show
August 14-15, 2010
North Avenue Beach | Free Admission | Web site
Topping the attendance scale at a massive two million annually, the Chicago Air & Water Show is one of the largest live spectator events in the world, not to mention the oldest show of its kind in the U.S. Headliners the Navy Blue Angels and the Army Golden Knights Parachute Team will wow the crowed with death-defying aerial acrobatics. It’s two days of high-tension fun, but both days are fairly the same. You can get by with just one.
2010 Chicago Jazz Festival
September 4-6, 2010
Grant Park | Free Admission | Web site
It’s been a fast summer, and after the Taste of Chicago and the Air Show, you’re full and fairly frazzled. Time to wind down with a little cool jazz. The Chicago Jazz Festival is another Chicago tradition stretching back decades. The Petrillo Music Shell comes alive with the hopping rhythms of a vast assortment of jazz styles and artists. The 2010 lineup hasn’t been announced, but big names are no stranger to this stage. For you night owls, late-night jam sessions are hosted every evening of the festival.
There you go, a quick taste of the 2010 Chicago Festival summer season. Head in for one, head in for them all. Why to stay? Since all but one of festivals take place at Grant Park, we have an easy recommendation:
10 South Wabash Avenue
Chicago, IL 60603
Phone: 1-312-372-7696
Web site: http://www.silversmithchicagohotel.com/
Practically located inside Grant Park (they list the distance as “0.0 mile”), the Silversmith offers a cool, comfortable and convenient stay for any festival-goer. Emphasis on the convenient. A stay at the Silversmith lets you walk to the event, no getting lost, no scrounging for parking, and heck, no carbon emissions. The Silversmith is also big on packages, so check out their Chicago hotel deals before you travel.
Have fun at the 2010 Summer Festivals in Chicago!
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