Group planners will find a number of new attractions and blockbuster museum exhibits. Here is a sampling of what’s on tap for 2010: ILLINOIS The Field Museum in Chicago presents the exhibition Mammoths and Mastodons: Titans of the Ice Age from March 5-Sept. 6, 2010. Visitors will learn about the colossal mammals (early cousins to the elephant) that roamed the earth millions of years ago and meet 40,000-year-old “Lyuba,” the best-preserved baby mammoth in the world. They will journey back to the Ice Age through video installations, roam among saber-toothed cats and giant bears, and see some of the oldest human artifacts in existence. Other upcoming exhibits include Climate Change (July 2-Nov. 28) and Gold (Oct. 22, 2010April 24, 2011). Gold tells of man’s fascinating with the world’s most desired metal, offering displays of enormous
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Midwest
This photo of Abraham Lincoln and son Tad will be on display at the Indiana State Museum.
gold nuggets, gold bullion, coins from shipwrecks, gold bars and jewelry. (312922-9410, fieldmusem.org)
on our radar
INDIANA Rare Abraham Lincoln memorabilia will be on display Feb. 12-July 25 at the Indiana State Museum in Indianapolis. With Charity for All is an exhibit of family photographs, furnishings, artwork and documents from a collection assembled by the Lincoln National Life Insurance Co. (now the Lincoln Financial Group) in Fort Wayne, which closed its corporate museum last year. Items in the collection, which was donated to the state, include copies of the Emancipation Proclamation and 13th Amendment (which abolished slavery) signed by Lincoln. The Library of Congress’s With Malice Toward None: Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Exhibition also opens at the museum Feb. 12 (Lincoln’s birthday) and runs to April 11.
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Featured are the Bible upon which Lincoln, and later Barack Obama, took the oath of office; the contents of his pocket from the night he was assassinated; and documents and correspondence from his political career. (317-232-1637, indianamuseum.org) IOWA The Great Rivers Center, a $40-million expansion to the National Missis-
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sippi River Museum & Aquarium in Dubuque, will open next summer. Exhibits will explore the science and history of the Mississippi, its watershed and other rivers of America. Three-dimensional films with 4D special effects will reveal the wonder of biological diversity and the interconnected lives of underwater creatures in major rivers. (800-226-3369, rivermuseum.com)
KANSAS Boot Hill Casino & Resort, scheduled to open in mid-December in Dodge City, will be the first state-owned and operated casino in Kansas. The first phase of the $90-million project will feature about 575 slot machines and 10 table games, including blackjack, craps, roulette and poker. Phase 2 is scheduled to be completed in December 2011, adding a hotel, day spa, two more
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ordering Chicago along Lake Michigan, Chicago’s North Shore is the most picturesque region in the metropolitan Chicago area, boasting a scenic byway along the lakefront rich in natural beauty and homes and gardens of distinction. The region features the Chicago Botanic Garden, the only Bahai House of Worship in the Western Hemisphere, the Illlinois Holocaust Museum, and the Charles Dawes Gates House, home to the Evanston Historical Society. Chicago’s North Shore is only 20 minutes from downtown Chicago and its 17 lodging options are group-friendly. Most of our hotels offer motorcoach parking, hot breakfast and indoor swimming pools.
Group Tour Contact: Caryn Shulman, Tourism Marketing Manager Chicago’s North Shore Convention and Visitors Bureau 8001 Lincoln Avenue Suite 715 847-763-0011, ext.25 www.visitchicagonorthshore.com Skokie, IL 60077 cshulman@cnscvb.com
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Go A Little Overboard At Navy Pier! Navy Pier® is Chicago’s lakefront playground and the Midwest’s #1 tourist and leisure destination, attracting nearly 9 million visitors annually. From rides to restaurants, exhibitions to entertainment, shopping to dining cruises and tour boats Navy Pier has it all!
Upcoming events include: Bank of America Winter WonderFest: Navy Pier's South Dock December 4, 2009 - January 3, 2010 This magical event features inflatable slides, an indoor ice skating rink, great rides, live entertainment, cookie decorating, hundreds of decorated trees and the most stunning lights in Chicago! Save the date: December 3, 2010 – January 2, 2011 Chicago Flower & Garden Show: March 6 - 14, 2010 Whether you are a beginner, a gardener who needs some help taking things to the next level, or a horticultural aficionado who is looking for what’s new in landscape design and horticulture, you’ll find it at the Chicago Flower & Garden Show! Save the date: March 4-13, 2011 Tall Ships® Chicago: Navy Pier August 24 - 29, 2010 The six-day festival includes international music, ship exhibits, crew challenges, arts and crafts, boat building, maritime displays, fireworks and more. For more information on Navy Pier, visit www.navypier.com
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on our radar: midwest ❖
restaurants and lounges, and approximately doubling the gaming floor. With the championship Mariah Hills golf course nearby, the destination resort and entertainment center combine modern amenities with an Old West theme. (boothillcasino.com) MICHIGAN Mackinac State Historic Parks next year will unveil the Richard and Jane Manoogian Mackinac Art Museum. Housed in the 1838 Indian Dormitory on Mackinac Island, the museum will center around fine and decorative arts inspired by Mackinac Island through the ages, from Native American baskets to present-day paintings of the island by residents. Plans for the three-story building, which served as the island’s public school for 100 years and a summer art school, include a studio that will provide a hands-on art learning experience for visitors. Guests will have the option of taking an easel into Marquette Park to paint lilacs, weave Native American-style baskets or create hand-tinted photographs. (231-4364100, mackinacparks.com) MISSOURI The Missouri History Museum in St. Louis welcomes Treasures of Napoléon from Nov. 21, 2010-Feb. 13, 2011. The exhibit, which showcases more than 300 objects related to Napoleon Bonaparte, includes framed paintings, prints, letters and furniture from imperial palaces. Created from the collection of First Empire authority and Napoléon expert Pierre-Jean Chalençon, the exhibit showcases the world-class art and design of Bonaparte’s era as well as personal possessions. The collection also includes depictions of him by great artists of the time. (mohistory.org) LeisureGroupTravel.com