Back in ye olden days, the notion of “open-air Shakespeare” was redundant: In Elizabethan England, all theater was performed outdoors. Al fresco Shakespeare endures, and few places take it outside more skillfully than the American Players Theatre in Spring Green, Wisconsin. At APT’s theatre on the hill Read more
If the pace of the city has you stressing, consider a break in Mount Carroll (about two-and-a-half hours from the Loop). This isn’t a one-stoplight town—it’s a no stoplight town. Its one-street, cobblestone business district just 10 miles east of the Great River Road Bike Trail, is home to several... Read more
Summer in Michigan’s Harbor Country is a no-brainer: Al fresco concerts, restaurants, beaches, boats, wineries, and galleries define the Michigan shoreline from Michiana to Sawyer. Here’s a quartet of lakeside events and attractions worth the drive this weekend... Read more
If you’re a golfer, you probably already know that the 92nd Annual PGA Championship runs August 9th through 15th on the Whistling Straits course at the Kohler Resort in Kohler, Wisconsin. Got $79,000 to burn? You might be able to still get a skybox overlooking the breathtaking 18th hole... Read more
Driving the stretch between Fennville and the outskirts of Allegan, Michigan, you feel as though you’re in the dusty middle of just about nowhere. When the Castle in the Country suddenly looms like a giant, lavender dollhouse on this stretch of Highway 40, it seems like a mirage. It’s not... Read more
As a rule, we’re wary of sweetbreads. We’ve never been able to wrap our minds (or taste buds) around the concept of organ meat as entrée. But our attitude was forever changed following a visit to one of the best-kept secrets in Saugatuck, Michigan. Dine in during your stay... Read more
A River Runs Past It
We all know it’s cooler by the lake, but that doesn’t mean you should overlook the charms of river towns. Take Dubuque—no, really: Dubuque—for example. Check into the 171-year-old Hotel Julien ($109–$229), and the history is palpable. The golden era of riverboat gamblers, steamboat captains, and showboats may be gone, but their architecture remains. After the place burned to the ground in 1913, the Julien rebuilt with grand Romanesque elegance... Read more
Eat, eat, eat—then rest
The Taste of Chicago continues through Sunday, July 4th and, in conjunction with the annual gastropalooza’s Fourth of July finale, the Talbott Hotel is offering the appropriately (if unimaginatively) named Tastes of Chicago package... Read more
Celebrate a Swinging Season
The House that Hugh Hefner Built, a.k.a. Lake Geneva’s Grand Geneva Resort, is celebrating its inclusion in the June issue of Condé Nast Traveler as one of the magazine’s 100 top golf spots in the U.S. Grand Geneva’s courses ranked... Read more
As it closes in on its 140th anniversary this fall, the Palmer House Hilton is celebrating history by ushering guests into the hotel’s swank and storied past as the fabled hangout of dignitaries from... Read more