Winter festivities return to Chicago

Celebrating the holidays may look a little different this year, but Chicago has plenty of wintertime activities to offer, including holiday takeout meals, visits with Santa and charitable drives to make children's Christmas wishes come true.

Spending time with Santa

Santa will return to Water Tower Place for the holiday season, ready to receive visitors 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon-6 p.m. Sunday, according to Rachel Wille, senior public relations and social media specialist for Brookfield Properties.

"As this is a beloved tradition for families and our communities, we are doing all that we can to provide a safe, enjoyable experience for our guests," Wille said. "This includes touch-free experiences that allows for our guests to visit with Santa in person."

As part of the annual tradition, guests are invited to take an interactive 4D ride to the North Pole on Santa's sleigh, which will be cleaned and sanitized between each group ride, Wille said. Visits with Santa will be conducted in a socially-distanced manner and daily health and temperature checks will be completed for all staff members, including Santa. Guests are encouraged to make reservations through the mall's website.

Wille said guests who are not comfortable visiting Santa in person can participate in a live virtual visit from the comfort of their homes. Reservations for virtual visits can be made at ExperienceJingleRing.com.

While Swissôtel Chicago will be unable to operate its Santa Suite as an event space this year, guests still have the option to book the festively decorated room as a guest room, said Brittany Robbins, the hotel's marketing manager. Among the amenities included in the package are a build-your-own-hot-cocoa bar, Moet & Chandon champagne, a holiday cookies and treats display, daily breakfast, letter to Santa packs, a cookie decorating station, complimentary parking and the opportunity to decorate a holiday ornament.

Dining for the holidays

This year, the Walnut Room at Macy's on State Street is debuting takeout holiday meals, available in both individual and family-style packages. The family-style option, which serves four to six people, costs $95 and comes with a choice of three meal options: holiday turkey and gravy, Mrs. Hering’s pot pie dinner or family-style oven-baked meatloaf.

Diners can place an advance order for the takeout meals, which will be available from 11 a.m.-7 p.m. daily from the Walnut Room Wine Bar and through GrubHub, by calling (312) 781-3139. More details about the restaurant’s offerings can be found online at macyswalnutroom.com.

Guests will still be permitted to take photos with The Great Tree—an enormous Christmas tree that has claimed a spot in the Walnut Room for more than a century—through Jan. 3, 2021.

Indoor dining at the restaurant is temporarily closed in accordance with government orders, and upcoming reservations will be reviewed on a week-by-week basis, depending on the length of the ongoing State restrictions.

Making a difference with donations

The Salvation Army is offering both traditional and virtual versions of its Angel Tree program, which encourages donors to purchase gifts requested by children in need. Traditionally, the trees contain paper tags with each child's age, gender and wish list.

The Salvation Army has 28 corps community centers throughout the Metropolitan Division, which runs from Rockford to Lake County, Ind., many of which are based in Chicago, said Katie Heinz Pfingsten, public relations manager for the organization's metropolitan division. Donors interested in contributing to virtual Angel Trees can locate the nearest corps community center at centralusa.salvationarmy.org/usc/location-search, click on the location link and then click on the "donate gifts" option.

“With more families facing financial hardship this year, the need to serve those most vulnerable is greater than ever before,” said Lt. Col. Lonneal Richardson, divisional commander of The Salvation Army Metropolitan Division. “The goal of the Angel Tree program is to make the holiday season a little brighter for families in need... Through the Angel Tree program, donors can not only help to ease the burden, but ensure every child has a gift to open this Christmas.”