Merry Christmas Eve! I’m in Iowa visiting family this week, but I’m celebrating the holiday with all of you by sharing the best local activities in the city – Chicago is incredibly festive at this time of year. Below are my recent Chicago Holiday Favorites.

Holiday Tea at the Drake Hotel

I attended a work lunch a few weeks ago at the Palm Court inside the Drake Hotel for holiday tea service. The Palm Court offers a special holiday tea from November 15th to January 4th. Tea service includes an individual pot of tea from a huge selection, with a mix of bite-sized lunch items. The lunch includes mini sandwiches, fancy breads, and desserts. We had chicken salad, cucumber, and lobster salad sandwiches, poppy seed bread and mini scones with jam. Desserts included pumpkin mousse, cream puffs in the shape of swans, and bite-sized apple pies. I had chocolate truffle mint rooibos tea to top off the meal. The tea room is beautiful and the Drake is fully decorated for the holidays. There is a harpist playing, and professional carolers take song requests from each table. I highly recommend stopping by the Drake this time of year, even if you just walk through to check out the beautiful interior.

Zoo Lights at Lincoln Park Zoo

My friend S and I did a long run to Zoo Lights on a recent Friday evening after work, and ended the night at Home Slice Pizza in Lincoln Park with our husbands. Lincoln Park Zoo hosts Zoo Lights every year, ending on January 4th. The entire zoo is decked out in an impressive display of lights, and admittance is free. There is hot chocolate and beer available to buy, and you can walk through a few of the animal displays to warm up {my favorite is the Kovler Lion House}. No matter what, the most impressive part of this event are the flashing light displays set to music – any Nutcracker tune wins in my book.

Christkindl Market at Daley Plaza

My absolute favorite holiday activity in Chicago is to walk through Christkindl Market to check out the European-style holiday ornaments and have a taste of mulled wine. Christkindl Market is housed every year at the outdoor Daley Plaza, in the middle of the Loop downtown. Earlier this week, K and I had the chance to visit with my sister-in-law and brother-in-law {Kristen from Make the Best of Everything}! Even though it was a rainy night, we made the best of it by finding a spot in a heated tent to enjoy mulled wine.

Looking for more festive posts? Check out my:

• Holiday Gift Guide for Runners
• Holiday Gift Guide for Foodies