On the road: Girls' weekend in Galena
Midwest
Galena girl getaway
BFFs can expect great food, shopping, spas and more during the annual Galena Girlfriends Getaway, a weekend strictly for females. Take part in a slipper party, belly dancing lessons and a Sunday brunch finale. The popular Quartermania auction will be held at the Galena Convention Center. Dozens of businesses throughout Galena and Jo Daviess County also offer specials, drawings and various events all weekend long.
Friday through Sunday, Sept. 7-9. A preregistration fee of $50 includes a goody bag, entry to all events and a chance to win a $200 shopping spree. (815) 777-9050 or galenachamber.com.
Rockin' Rockford
Rockford is ready for Illinois' largest music festival, On the Waterfront. Twenty-five square blocks of downtown Rockford will play host to seven stages offering more than 75 performers, such as The BoDeans, Leon Russell and Credence Clearwater Revisited. There also will be more than 30 food vendors, a carnival and a kids' castle.
6 to 9 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 30; 5 p.m. to midnight Friday, Aug. 31; 11:30 a.m. to midnight Saturday, Sept. 1; and 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 2. Cost is $15 for a one-day admission at the gate; children 8 and younger admitted free when accompanied by a paid adult. (815) 964-4388 or onthewaterfront.com.
Fun at Lake Lawn
No work involved when you spend Labor Day weekend at Lake Lawn Resort in Delavan, Wis. The family-friendly weekend includes family activity passes, rock climbing wall, live entertainment and a Sunday lawn party with pig roast. Activities include swimming in the lake, taking a boat ride, golf at Lake Lawn's 18-hole golf course, mini golf or Frisbee golf, and inflatables for the kids.
Friday through Monday, Aug. 31-Sept. 3, at 2400 E. Geneva St., Delavan, Wis. Packages for four begin at $699 for three nights or $319 for Sunday night. (800) 338-5253 or LakeLawnResort.com.
Chicago
Shopping bag heroes
The Magnificent Mile Shopping Festival is two weeks of festivities including celebrity appearances, fashion shows, hotel packages, culinary events, concerts and sweepstakes. The district's 460 stores, 275 restaurants, 60 hotels and other attractions come together to offer everything from concerts for tweens to an array of foodie and family-friendly events over Labor Day Weekend. A complimentary trolley runs throughout the weekends of the festival with three stops along the Magnificent Mile and Water Tower Place. There will be daily special events in the retail center's luxury lounge, hotels and restaurants.
Sunday to Thursday, Aug. 26-Sept. 6. themagnificent mile.com.
Weird science
There may not be a better place in the city to watch a science fiction or science fact film than at the Adler Planetarium. The planetarium will host the Strange Science Film Series, which includes an introduction and discussion led by an Adler scientist. The first in the series is the movie “Convento.”
7:30 to 9:30 p.m. Friday, Aug. 31, at 1300 S. Lake Shore Drive, Chicago. Admission is $10. (312) 922 7827 or adlerplanetarium.org.
A birthday party
Consider a mini vacation when the InterContinental Chicago O'Hare in Rosemont celebrates the anniversary of its fourth year with a special low-cost package. The package includes deluxe room accommodations and dinner for two at Fresco 21, a Mediterranean tapas style restaurant adjacent to the hotel.
Available through Saturday, Sept. 8, at 5300 N. River Road, Rosemont. Rate is $144. (847) 544-5300 or icohare.com.
Worth the trip
Each Labor Day, the Tennessee Valley Coon Hunter's Association hosts a celebration at the Coondog Cemetery in Tuscumbia, Ala., with music, dancing, food and a liar's contest. Sample Alabama homemade wine, bluegrass music and iconic southern vittles. The cemetery is the only one of its kind in the world. You'll find headstones and markers for Patches, Preacher, Smoky, Bean Blossom Bomma and Night Ranger, among others.
1 to 4 p.m. Monday, Sept. 3, at U.S. Highway 72 W and AL Highway 247 on Coondog Road in Tuscumbia, Ala. Free. (800) 344-0783 or colbertcountytourism.org or coondogcemetery.com.