Illinois' Artsy Suburb Outside Chicago Is Filled With Scenic Parks, Local Shops, And Quaint Restaurants

If you're a fan of life in the suburbs, Chicago has a smorgasbord of suburban towns and cities to explore, located close to its downtown. Not to be confused with Palos Heights, an Illinois family-friendly Chicago suburb with scenic gardens and trails, there's an equally enticing suburb right next door called Palos Park, only 25 miles from Downtown Chicago.

This suburban village started as an artists' colony over 100 years ago after it impressed visitors with its nature and peaceful ambiance. It has since become a great place to live in Illinois, retaining and celebrating this artistic spirit throughout its community. You can experience this tight-knit and artistic community at Palos Parks' annual festivals, such as Autumn in the Park. This two-day event takes place on the Village Green and includes a parade, artisan market stalls, live music, food trucks, and kids' crafts.

Palos Park doesn't do a lot on the big stage, per se. It's a more intimate community where you'll find unknown local artists creating predominantly with and for their fellow residents. The Palos Village Players, for instance, is an entertainment club founded in the 1940s purely for the area within and around Palos Park. They stage plays throughout the year that are written, performed, and directed by locals. Don't expect the bright lights and big productions of Broadway. These are genuine artists creating for a smaller but no less captivating stage watched by friends, families, residents, and visitors. To better appreciate the artists and their work, it's always good to first experience the Palos Park nature that inspired them to create here all those years ago.

Part of what makes Palos Park so unique is how it sprawls across thousands of acres of preserved native forest. Suburban streets and lanes sit alongside widespread woodland and forest with walking and horseback riding trails, lakes, ravines, creeks and undulating hills. With this natural beauty come various opportunities for outdoor fun and adventure. Fishing, biking, and horseback riding take center stage during the warmer months, while winter calls for cross-country skiing and sledding.

The Palos Park Woods is one of the area's most popular nature preserves. Both the south and north sections are open year-round and have various trails for hiking, cycling, horseback riding, and cross-country skiing, as well as sheltered picnic groves. The Sag Valley Trail System, which passes through remote parts of Cook County, cuts through the northern section of Palos Park Woods. The loop section here is about 2.8 miles long and passes dense woodland, babbling streams, and small bridges. It's a popular trail, so start early if you want to avoid the many hikers, joggers, and horse riders who use it.

Another beautiful spot for a picnic or stroll is Cherry Hill Woods. You can actually walk here from Palos Park Woods North in one hour along the trails and road or drive about five minutes. Some people consider this one of Palos Park's best areas for hiking through forest. It's also just north of Horsetail Lake, where you can fish for largemouth bass, rainbow trout, and bluegill. It offers similar outdoor activities as Devil's Kitchen Lake, Illinois' deepest inland lake with scenic trails and kayaking, just on a much smaller scale.

Palos Park might have originated as a nature escape, but it has grown over the years. While the nature remains just as beautiful, Palos Park also offers several quaint local shops and restaurants. It doesn't have a lively downtown like West Dundee, Illinois' charming riverside village, but you can find some unique businesses worth checking out. Frangella Italian Market is a highly rated grocery store along the train tracks. It specializes in imported Italian products, from saffron and flavored biscotti to mascarpone and aged balsamic vinegar. The Italian deli inside also sells a range of meats and cheeses, as well as hot soups, sandwiches, and subs.

You don't need to buy Italian products to enjoy authentic Italian cuisine in this suburb. You could book a table at Francesca's Vicinato instead. This popular restaurant has a 4.7-star rating on Google from over 1,000 reviews, so they must be doing something right. What began as one man's dream has become a hotspot for delicious Italian food, with a little help from his Grandma. There are multiple locations in Illinois, but the one in Palos Park has a diverse lunch and dinner menu, with bold Italian flavors in dishes like rigatoni alla vodka, calamari fritti, melanzane parmigiana, and lemon olive oil cake.

You can drive to Palos Park in about 40 minutes from Downtown Chicago, and it takes about the same amount of time to catch the SWS trainline from Chicago Union Station to the Palos Park station. Palos Park doesn't have any hotels, but you could make it a day trip from Chicago or stay just north around Palos Hills and Worth. If you're staying in Chicago, check out Union Park, which has an underground, artsy feel.