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SKYDECK CHICAGO At 1,353 feet and 110 stories above the streets of downtown Chicago, The Ledge at the Willis Tower (formerly known as Sears Tower) Skydeck will transform any visitor's--or local's for that matter--experience with the Windy City. In January 2009, Willis Tower owners began a major renovation of the beloved Skydeck, which originally opened in 1974, and served as a premier tourist attraction throughout the skyscraper's tenure as the Sears Tower. When ownership changed hands, the fresh blood added a fresh look--and adrenaline rush--to the 103rd floor in the form of retractable glass balconies extending about 4 feet over Wacker Drive and the Chicago River below. Still the 8th tallest building in the world, and the absolute tallest in the Western Hemisphere, Willis Tower's Skydeck draws 1.5 million people a year who are eager to ascend the 110-story, 1,454 foot (443 meter) building for awesome panoramic views of the city and surrounding countryside. Your journey to the top of the Willis Tower starts with a walk through an airport-style metal detector, followed by a slow elevator ride down to the waiting area where visitors queue for tickets. A sign will tell you how long you'll have to wait to get up high; this is a good time to confirm the visibility. Even days that seem sunny can have upper-level haze that limits the view. On good days, however, you can see for 40 to 50 miles (64 to 80 kilometers), as far as the states of Indiana, Michigan. Iowa, and Wisconsin. While you wait, you can watch a film about Willis Tower factoids. Then you'll wait a little longer before the ear-popping, 70 second elevator ride up to the 103rd floor deck. From here, the entire city stretches below, and you can see exactly how Chicago is laid out. Willis Tower, Skydeck, and The Ledge Fast Facts The hundreds of forehead prints visitors left behind each week on Skydeck windows served as this inspiration for The Ledge. The Ledge boxes can each bear about 4-1/2 metric tons of weight, and adventurers who trust that statistic enough to prove it can often be found jumping and bounding around the entirely translucent enclosures as Chicago's heavy traffic and infrastructure bustle below. The Ledge’s glass panels weight 1,500 pounds apiece, and each box is comprised of three layers of half-inch thick glass laminated into one seamless unit. In addition to serving 1.3 million tourists per year in its 4.5+ million square feet of space, Willis Tower is home to more than 100 companies, including prominent law, insurance, transportation, and financial services. The Ledge's glass boxes retract into the Skydeck main floor for easy maintenance, probably mostly cleaning off the 974 dead birds that must fly into them every month. The Moonwalk is the most popular dance performed on The Ledge, followed closely by the Running Man. Riverdance clocks in at a distant third. Bringing people who are afraid of heights to The Ledge is not recommended, unless you are mean-spirited or really don't like them. In which case, you should probably just take them here. Willis Tower was known as Sears Tower for decades, until the 30th anniversary of Diff'rent Strokes, at which point it was rightfully renamed SHEDD AQUARIUM EXHIBITS UNDERWATER BEAUTY – A SPECIAL EXHIBIT Our living world is full of wonder. Celebrate with us the unbelievable beauty living in our oceans, lakes and rivers in a new special exhibit at Shedd Aquarium: Underwater Beauty. Get a glimpse of the grandeur beneath the waves as 100 species from around the world come together in an evocative new space. What is beauty? Spark your curiosity as you see all the ways beauty moves and coexists. Watch sea jellies pulse, eels ribbon and a rainbow come alive with reef fishes. Feel the rhythms, embrace the colors and savor the patterns found only underwater. Experience a world worth celebrating – and saving. AMPHIBIANS! Get ready for a toadally ribbiting experience! Shedd’s new special exhibit, Amphibians, hops into the aquarium May 16 and is included with admission. In Amphibians, you’ll meet 40 species of frogs, salamanders and rarely seen caecilians. Learn how amphibians’ lives are full of change, from their life cycles to their adaptations to live in nearly every environment on Earth. Find out how too much change can spell trouble for amphibians — and how you can help them cope with big changes in our world today! Waters of the World Travel the world in 80 habitats. Dive into Oceans, from coastal kelp forests to the seafloor. Explore the self-contained ecosystems of Islands and Lakes. Visit Rivers—big and small—and learn more about our local waters in the new At Home on the Great Lakes exhibit. Meet hundreds of amazing animals, from tiny mantella frogsto a a giant octopus, from a Grand Cayman blue iguana to Nile knifefish, and from moon jellies to sea stars. We even have map turtles, in case you get lost. Caribbean Reef Take a 360-degree tour of an underwater reef community. Follow a green sea turtle. Peek at a moray eel in a rocky crevice. Watch regal rays glide by. Get eye-to-eye with parrot fish and sharks. Visit Caribbean Reef, Shedd’s award-winning 90,000-gallon circular habitat in the grand rotunda. Amazon Rising Take an exotic journey in the Amazon, home to one-third of all living things. Watch out for anacondas and piranhas, spiders, rays and a camouflaged caiman. In churning river channels, still lakes and even flooded treetops look for tetras, turtles and fruit-eating fish called tambaqui. See how the region’s animals, plants and people adapt to the water’s dramatic annual rise and fall. Abbott Oceanarium The Abbott Oceanarium immerses you in the vibrant coastal ecosystem of beluga whales, Pacific white-sided dolphins, sea otters and sea lions. You’ll also find a host of fishes and invertebrates that make their homes where freshwater flows into the ocean or where tides turn seascapes to landscapes and back again each day. Use our self-guided map to discover how animals are linked to each other, their homes and you. Polar Play Zone Kids have a place at Shedd that they can call their own—Polar Play Zone. It’s cool as ice and twice as nice! The penguins think so, too. Play! Splash! Pretend! What would you like to be? A sleek sliding penguin? A deep-sea explorer? How about both? In Polar Play Zone, you can slip into a penguin suit and try being a bird in the Icy South play area. From there, head to the Icy North to explore the belugas’ Arctic waters in a kid-sized submarine. Don’t forget to shake hands—or is it arms?—with colorful sea stars in the touch pools. In Polar Play Zone, you’ll learn about polar opposites—big and small, fast and slow, shallow and deep, even north and south—while you play. The Oceanarium Aquatic Presentation is included however based on available seating and remaining show times at the time of guest arrival. (2018 Aquatic Presentation Schedule) Stingray Touch (seasonal experience) is included. Open late May through October. 4D Experience is not included however the 4D experience tickets may be purchased at the theatre for $3.00 per -person
Tour Highlights Numerous stops for photos The five mile (8 km) tour route explores the eastern section of the 1017 acre (411 ha) park on winding trails and bike routes. The transformation starting in the 1870's of a bleak sand dune area in into the lush park you see today. The Music Concourse and Temple of Music The California Academy of Sciences and the deYoung Museum The California Academy of Sciences and the deYoung Museum William Hammond Hill and John McLaren's vision for the park The Conservatory of Flowers San Francisco Botanical Gardens Stow Lake and Strawberry Hill The Dahlia Gardens Pioneer log cabin and many other hidden gems! Rider Requirements: Rider must be 12 years or older and weigh 100lbs – 250lbs (45-113 KG) No pregnant guests. Not recommended for some guests over age 70 or with mobility, motor control or recent surgeries. Under 18 with parents or guardian. No backpacks or bags can be worn on the tour. Enjoy riding an eco-friendly Segway, see more sights than you could cover on foot, and have lots of fun! Help keep the park less congested with bus traffic!
The 10,000 Islands Excursion, arguably, is the best way to experience the natural world around Marco Island. Conducted within the 10,000 Islands Wildlife Refuge, you will experience what many describe as the best of Florida. The tour is two-part: The first part is a slow, intimate boating tour among the remote islands of the refuge. While you search for dolphins, manatees and sea turtles, you may encounter ospreys, bald eagles, ibis, roseate spoonbill, egrets, herons and any number of shorebird species. All the while, your formally trained naturalist guide will talk to you about the area's ecosystems, its long history and rich culture. The second part of your excursion is an exploration of a remote barrier island beach ... an island that you only can reach by boat ... an island that few get to experience. Learn about beach dynamics; stroll through the tidal flats and wade the tidal pools of these remote islands. If you enjoy shelling, imaging shelling on islands that are NOT picked daily by 100's of people. With your naturalist guide, learn not about individual shell animals, but actually learn "how to" shell.
Disneyland Park A magical kingdom is yours to discover Explore lush jungles Greet Princesses straight from a fairy-tale Navigate the seas with Pirates Rocket into a star-spangled sky Disneyland Park is the original Theme Park opened by Walt Disney himself in 1955 to much fanfare. Broadcast on live television in the United States, it was watched by over half that country's population. Since then successive generations from all over the world have visited "the Happiest Place on Earth" to make their dreams come true. With 8 richly themed lands there is much to see and do. Explore - Main Street U.S.A. Fantasyland Tomorrowland Frontierland Mickey's Toontown Adventureland Critter Country New Orleans Square Disney California Adventure Park Here in 7 imaginative lands Disney and Pixar Characters await your discovery. Fantastic tales become reality via spectacular entertainment, attractions and even themed dining. Visit - Buena Vista Street Cars Land Paradise Pier Grizzly Peak Pacific Wharf "a bug's land" Hollywood Land. Dazzling days are followed by enchanting evenings at Disney California Adventure Park - a fun-filled destination for children of all ages. Anaheim Kids Eat Free Card The Kids Eat Free Card Mobile App for iPhone and Android is now available with a list of participating restaurants at your finger tips with GPS mapping, card registration and much much more! Participating restaurants may be removed from accepting card offer without prior notice. Click here to view and print a live, up to date listing. To use your Kids Eat Free Card, simply present it to your server or cashier at time of ordering. Valid at only participating restaurants. The following restrictions apply: Kids Eat Free Card cannot be used with any other discounts or offers. Each Kids Eat Free Card is valid for 1 child (11 years of age or younger) with full price paying adult entree. (Example: 2 children with 2 Kids Eat Free Cards, with 2 full price paying adult entree's.) Kids Eat Free Card child's menu items may vary from standard restaurant's child menu choices in some cases. (unless otherwise stated) Kids Eat Free Card Meals may not apply to taxes, gratuities, bar drinks or take away food. Card is Non-Refundable and Non-Transferable. Card expires 90 Days from first use.
Go behind-the-scenes on the world-famous Universal Studios Hollywood tour for an insider’s peek at sets from your favorite movies and TV shows, including The War of the Worlds, the The Fast and the Furious: Extreme Close-Up. Then, face heart-pounding special effects at every turn on the Revenge of the MummySM roller-coaster, raging dinosaurs in Jurassic Park® and defy every dimension at Shrek 4-DTM, an ogre-the-top adventure. Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie Simpson – stars of TV’s longest running series – will ride along with guests in a new mega-attraction now open at Universal Studios®. Guests will be rocketed along with the Simpson family on a hysterical, almost unimaginable adventure. Add a classic Hollywood finish to your day, at Universal CityWalk® with over 32 great places to eat, 19 state-of-the-art movie theaters, 6 hot night spots, over 30 unique stores, and more. Reserve you Universal Studios transportation with Karmel Shuttle!
The Clipper City Daytime Sail offered by Manhattan by Sail is a fun-filled voyage around New York Harbor in a 158-foot-long schooner, whose massive sails hearken back to the bygone era of the 1800s. With a capacity of up to 150 people, the Clipper City provides plenty of room for passengers to take in the sights comfortably, whether mixing and mingling by the lively bar area or lounging on the raised quarter deck at the rear of the sailboat. The majestic Clipper City Daytime Sail departs from Pier 17 at the bustling South Street Seaport, whose location along the East River makes for great photo ops of the Brooklyn Bridge and Manhattan Bridge before the vessel even sets sail. The Clipper City's leisurely, 90-minute journey around New York Harbor offers plenty of photo-worthy sights, as the schooner slowly glides past the towering buildings that comprise the Lower Manhattan and New Jersey skylines, the former immigration station on Ellis Island, the greenery of Governor's Island and the iconic Statue of Liberty. Another fantastic moment to capture with your camera occurs when the crew hoists the Clipper City's massive sails, working with masts and rigging that rise 120 feet off the deck. This occasion also presents a wonderful opportunity to experience the thrill of sailing first-hand, as you can volunteer to help the crew with this exciting task. The crew themselves add to the festive spirit aboard the Clipper City, as they are happy to engage with the passengers and answer questions from sailing aficionados and novices alike. Another highlight for some adults will be the fully stocked bar, which features a steady stream of music and a variety of drinks for sale – including wine, beer, soda, juice and nautical-inspired cocktails like the Monkey's Fist. Passengers looking for a quieter ride can head to the raised quarter deck, where they can watch the captain steer the boat or simply soak in the beautiful sights around them. The Clipper City sails from late April until early October, twice a day at 2:15pm and 4:30pm.