Sat, Nov 14 – Sun, Nov 15
This page covers and .
Nov 14
Aikman Wildlife Adventure, Arcola
Families walk through lighted displays, enjoy wagon rides, visit the Museum of Prehistoric Life, and encounter animals during the holiday season.
“EVERY SATURDAY NIGHT: NOVEMBER 14th - DECEMBER 19th”
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
Nov 14
Chicago History Museum, Chicago
The Chicago History Museum hosts a free screening of Making Waves: Battle for the Great Lakes, followed by a panel discussion featuring filmmakers and experts.
“November 14 @ 12:30 pm - 3:00 pm Partner Event | Dave Truitt Film Series – "Making Waves: Battle for the Great Lakes"”
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
Nov 14
Jefferson Pool, Villa Park
NEDSRA Fall Family Resource Fair — November 14, 2026, 9:30 AM - 11:30 AM.
“November 14, 2026, 9:30 AM - 11:30 AM”
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
16 items running for a fortnight or less, so these are on now rather than on all year. Where the same place also has a longer run on, it is on the same card.
Nov 14Event
Chicago History Museum, Chicago
The Chicago History Museum hosts a free screening of Making Waves: Battle for the Great Lakes, followed by a panel discussion featuring filmmakers and experts.
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
“November 14 @ 12:30 pm - 3:00 pm Partner Event | Dave Truitt Film Series – "Making Waves: Battle for the Great Lakes"”
Nov 14 · 10:30 amEvent
DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center, Chicago
Families gather for an interactive storytime series celebrating books, culture, and history. Each session features a carefully selected book encouraging children to learn, discover, and embrace Black culture and diversity.
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
“Dates: November 14, 2026 at 10:30 am”
Nov 15 · 10:00 amFridays–SundaysRegular dates
Lincoln Park Zoo, Chicago
Fall Fest runs on select Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays through mid-November, starting at 10:00 am. Families can enjoy seasonal activities and attractions across the zoo grounds during the fall season.
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
“Fridays–Sundays”
Nov 15 · 1:30 pmEvent
The Pinball Capital, Stone Park
The Chicagoland Belles Fallout Launch Party takes place at The Pinball Capital. Families can attend this special pinball event.
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
“Chicagoland Belles Fallout Launch Party Dates: November 15, 2026 at 1:30 pm”
Nov 14 · 10:00 amEvent
Big Run Wolf Ranch, Lockport
Big Run Wolf Ranch opens to the public to see wolves, a tiger, bear, and more animals. Families enjoy food, drinks, and raffles at the open house.
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
“Dates: November 14, 2026 at 10:00 am”
Nov 14 · 2:00 pmEvent
First Division Museum at Cantigny, Wheaton
A sixty-minute guided tour covers the missions and accomplishments of the U.S. Army's First Infantry Division from its inception in World War I to the present. Free registration required.
Venue admission is free; event tickets may differ.
The venue: “Admission to the museum is free.”
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
“First Division Museum Guided Tour Saturday, November 14, 2 pm Free registration required for tour.”
Nov 14Event
Jefferson Pool, Villa Park
NEDSRA Fall Family Resource Fair — November 14, 2026, 9:30 AM - 11:30 AM.
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
“November 14, 2026, 9:30 AM - 11:30 AM”
Nov 14Event
Kane County Fairgrounds, St. Charles
Saturday-only animal expo with hours 10am–3pm. Families can explore animals and related exhibits at Trades 1, Building G.
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
“ALL ANIMAL EXPO 11/14/2026 - 11/14/2026 SATURDAY ONLY. HOURS 10AM-3PM”
3 more on in Chicago Suburbs this weekend, each on its venue’s own page. What’s on in Chicago Suburbs
Nov 14EVERY SATURDAY NIGHT: NOVEMBER 14th - DECEMBER 19thRegular dates
Aikman Wildlife Adventure, Arcola
Families walk through lighted displays, enjoy wagon rides, visit the Museum of Prehistoric Life, and encounter animals during the holiday season.
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
“EVERY SATURDAY NIGHT: NOVEMBER 14th - DECEMBER 19th”
Rock Springs Nature Center, Decatur
2 things on here this weekend
Nov 14 · 10:00 amEvent
Families join a naturalist on a guided trail walk at Rock Springs Conservation Area, where nature reveals something new each week.
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
“Saturday Stroll Dates: November 14, 2026 at 10:00 am”
Nov 15 · 2:00 pmEvent
Children gather at Rock Springs Nature Center's Children's Room for stories, songs, and nature-themed activities that spark curiosity about the world around us.
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
“Sunday Storytime Dates: November 15, 2026 at 2:00 pm”
Wildlife Prairie Park, Hanna City
2 things on here this weekend
Venue admission
From $14 per personNov 14Saturdays & Sundays in NovemberRegular dates
Free train rides operate on Saturdays and Sundays throughout November, offering families a scenic ride through the park.
Free: this listing says so.
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
“Saturdays & Sundays in November”
Nov 15Saturdays & Sundays in NovemberRegular dates
Free train rides operate on Saturdays and Sundays throughout November, offering families a scenic ride through the park.
Free: this listing says so.
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
“Saturdays & Sundays in November”
17 longer runs — exhibitions and seasons open across the weekend but on for more than 14 days. Closing soonest first.
Sep 5 – Nov 30Season
Garfield Park Conservatory, Chicago
An exhibition in partnership with Gallery Guichard exploring the sculptural tradition of Zimbabwe's Shona Tribe. Five larger sculptures are installed within the Sensory Garden beds, revealing the spiritual connection between stone and ancestors.
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
“Soul of the Stone: September 5 – November 30, 2026”
Oct 10 – Nov 14Season
West Chicago City Museum, West Chicago
The West Chicago City Museum invites families to Second Saturdays programming on October 10, 2026, from 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM for hands-on activities and museum exploration.
Venue admission is free; event tickets may differ.
The venue: “Admission is FREE.”
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
“Saturday, October 10, 2026 - 10:00 AM 12:00 PM”
Oct 6 – Nov 15Season
Kankakee River State Park Riding Stables, Bourbonnais
The riding stables offer trail rides guided by experienced wranglers, hand-led horse and pony rides, riding lessons for beginners, and cowboy-themed birthday parties. Carriage rides available late fall through winter.
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
“The Riding Stables are Open from April until Mid-November (weather permitting)”
Oct 5 – Nov 15
Nature Play Garden, Highland Park
The Nature Play Garden features rolling hills, a willow tunnel, boulders for climbing, and natural rooms. The garden is open mid-April through mid-November with multisensory areas and native plants.
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
“The Nature Play Garden hills and lawn are open from mid-April through mid-November (closed in winter).”
Oct 8 – Nov 20Event
Koehnline Museum of Art, Des Plaines
Oakton's Art Department faculty demonstrate their artistic identities in a show featuring paintings, photography, ceramics and digital art. Viewings take place from October 8–November 20 during regular museum hours.
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
“Viewings take place from October 8 - November 20, during regular museum hours.”
8 more on in Chicago Suburbs this weekend, each on its venue’s own page. What’s on in Chicago Suburbs
Oct 28 – Nov 14Event
Next Picture Show, Dixon
An art exhibition exploring Midwest prairie landscapes, wildlife, and plants. The gallery displays work by multiple artists celebrating prairies throughout the region, open daily from 10am to 4pm.
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
“The exhibition runs Oct. 28 through Nov. 14.”
Sep 29 – Nov 24Season
Okaw Valley Orchard, Sullivan
The orchard is open late June through the day before Thanksgiving, offering peaches in summer and apples throughout fall. Families visit the playground, picnic areas, and animals while picking fresh fruit.
Venue admission is free; event tickets may differ.
The venue: “Free to Visit”
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
“Season Late June – Day Before Thanksgiving Peaches in summer, apples all fall”
Mar 27 – Dec 31Event
Illinois Route 66 Experience at Illinois State Fairground, Springfield
A photography exhibition by David J. Schwartz at The Pharmacy Gallery featuring work selected for official USPS Route 66 Centennial commemorative stamps. The exhibition documents people, places, and quiet moments along Route 66.
Venue admission is free; event tickets may differ.
The venue: “The Experience is open 365 days a year from roughly 8am to 8pm and is FREE of charge, however, donations are greatly appreciated!”
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
“March 27 @ 3:00 pm - December 31 @ 7:00 pm”
Oct 30 – Nov 20Season
Southwestern Illinois College, Granite City
Kashmir's Kloset Pop Up operates at Southwestern Illinois College from October 30 through November 20, open 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM daily.
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
“Kashmir's Kloset Pop Up Dates: October 30, 2026 – November 20, 2026 at 12:00 am 8:00 am to 3:00 pm”
1 weekly programme at 1 venue, each with the venue’s own schedule line. These run every weekend, so they carry a schedule rather than a date.
Saturdays 12:00-6pmRecurring
Fox Bowl, Wheaton
Families bowl in glow-lit lanes on Saturday afternoons from noon to 6pm at Fox Bowl's cosmic bowling special.
Check event details and ticket requirements with the venue.
“Saturdays 12:00-6pm”
Everything above is a dated item a venue published itself, quoted word for word and linked back. Nothing is a listing anyone paid for, and no price appears here that the venue did not print.
The pick of this weekend is 3 of the 16, one to a region and one to a kind of day out, chosen for being on this Saturday or Sunday rather than on all year, shortest runs first, and each at a place with a photograph of its own. Everything else is listed above.
This page moves on to the next weekend on its own, from what Illinois attractions publish on their own websites.
Looking further ahead? Every attraction’s own page carries its full what’s on list.
