City: Chicago, IL

Category: Parks & Recreation

Telephone: (312) 742-7549

Address: 1440 N. Sacramento Ave.

Description: One of the parks outlined by William Le Baron Jenney in 1869 in a plan for the wide boulevards of Chicago, Humboldt Park was later designed by renowned landscape architect Jens Jensen. Located in the largely Puerto Rican far west side neighborhood that bears the same name, the park boasts several unique qualities, including a scenic stream and a lagoon with the city’s only non-lakefront sandy beach—open to swimming and popular for its stocked fishing spots. The 207-acre park also features a circular and serene formal garden where you’ll find a pair of bronze bisons that were originally cast for the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition. Visit the Chicago Park District website to download a self-guided audio tour of Humboldt Park that lasts about an hour and includes stopping points along the way. Just be careful if you go in the evening, as the park can get a bit edgy. Free. Open daily dawn till dusk.