I always enjoy my visits to Chicago, not only for the chance to visit family but also because this busy city offers a seemingly infinite number of attractions, venues and restaurants to delight visitors. On our most recent visit, our rambles were somewhat curtailed when my husband suffered a leg injury, but we did get in a return visit (sans Harry) to one of our favorite places. These days, we take into account outings that will appeal to our toddler grandson. That includes plenty of visual attractions, room to run around, family-friendly facilities and hours that fit dining and nap schedules. The Shedd Aquarium, located in the heart of Chicago’s Museum Campus along the Lake Michigan shoreline, fits the bill and then some. We arrived Sunday morning around 10 a.m. (regular hours are 9 a.m.–6 p.m.) and, after picking up our membership wristbands and tickets to the aquatic show at the members’ desk, moved right into the exhibits. The Shedd offers a series of halls, each featuring a particular ecosystem or geographical region: Caribbean Reef, Great Lakes, Amazon Rising, Wild Reef. The tanks and aquariums feature large viewing windows, some coming right down to floor (toddler) level, putting the fascinating creatures eye-to-eye with curious little ones on the other side of the glass. Our timing was ideal as we entered the Wild Reef exhibit, as divers were working within one of the large pools, apparently cleaning algae off of the rocks and coral. We enjoyed watching how the fish largely ignored them, except to occasionally nibble at one diver’s bald pate; grandson Sean seemed uncertain whether that large creature was man or fish! I enjoyed identifying some of the fish I had seen on my snorkeling expeditions in Maui last fall, too. After a quick lunch at the on-site cafeteria, we entered the Rice Amphitheater for an aquatic show featuring Pacific white-sided dolphins, learning how the animals are trained and cared for while watching them leap, swim and vocalize on command. We visited a few more exhibits on our way out the door, finding that four hours proved just about the right amount of time for both toddlers and adults. We never even touched on some of the exhibits; one could easily spend an entire day there. The Shedd offers several “Illinois discount days” throughout the year, with free admission to the state’s residents and discounted tickets to special shows and exhibits on those days. Visitors to the city should consider a CityPASS, allowing a 54 percent savings on VIP and Fast Pass entries to five popular attractions (the Shedd, SkyDeck [Willis Tower], the Field Museum, the Museum of Science and Industry OR 360 Chicago [the John Hancock observatory], the Adler Planetarium OR the Art Institute of Chicago). Not only does this present a savings for your wallet, you’ll also save time avoiding standing in lines to purchase tickets and gain admittance, but be sure you have several days in which to take full advantage of the offer. Each of the museums alone deserves a day to itself. Otherwise, look into purchasing admission to any of these sites in advance online to save yourself time, and consider arriving early in the day. As we left that Sunday afternoon, folks seeking admission were snaked through the expansive entry hall and out into the snowy, freezing outdoors. — Patty Vanikiotis, associate editor/copy editor