Things to Do in Chicago in February

February can be a bleak month in Chicago. The holidays are long gone, and it's cold outside. Really cold. Spring is still a long way off, but February has a busier calendar than January, and most of it happens indoors. Cheap theater tickets, the tail end of Restaurant Week, a car show that's been running since 1901 and a Lunar New Year parade in Chinatown are all reasons to put your boots on.

For weather, hotel prices and packing, see Chicago in February. The dates below move from year to year, so check each event's own site, or the city's festival dates page, before you book around one.

Chicago Theatre Week

If you do one thing this month, make it this. Chicago Theatre Week, run by the League of Chicago Theatres with Choose Chicago, runs through the first half of the month (February 5 to 15 in 2026). More than 75 productions took part in 2026, from the Goodman and Steppenwolf down to small storefront companies, with seats at $15, $30 or less. Tickets are sold through Hot Tix and usually go on sale in early January. The popular shows sell out. Our theatre in Chicago page will help you choose.

The Chicago Auto Show

The Chicago Auto Show has been held since 1901, and its organizers say it has run more times than any other auto show in North America. It fills McCormick Place for more than a week every February. Beyond the new models, there are indoor test tracks and outdoor test drives, so you can ride in the cars instead of just looking at them. It's ticketed, with prices that vary by age. Skip the parking garages. During the show, CTA has run a special shuttle bus from the downtown Metra stations, Ogilvie and Union Station, to McCormick Place for a regular bus fare, and the show's directions page has the current stops.

The last days of Restaurant Week

Chicago Restaurant Week starts in late January and usually wraps up in early February, after 17 days. Hundreds of restaurants offer set-price menus, recently $30 for brunch or lunch and $45 or $60 for dinner. Reservations aren't required, but book one anyway, especially for a weekend.

Lunar New Year in Chinatown

The Chinatown Lunar New Year parade, organized by the Chicago Chinatown Community Foundation, happens on a Sunday a week or two after the new year, which puts it in February most years and early March in others. It steps off at 1pm at 24th Street and Wentworth Avenue and heads north up Wentworth to the viewing stand at Cermak Road, with lion and dragon dancers, floats and marching bands. Thousands of people pack the sidewalks, so get there early. Parking in Chinatown is tight and the streets around the route close, so take the Red Line to Cermak-Chinatown, then stay for dim sum.

Valentine's Day

February 14 is dinner-reservation season. Book early for anywhere good. See Valentine's Day in Chicago and romantic things to do in Chicago for ideas, or skip the prix fixe crowds and go skating instead.

Skate before the rinks close

The free McCormick Tribune Ice Rink in Millennium Park closes in early February, so go in the first week if you want to skate under the skyline. It's free, but you need an online reservation, and rentals cost extra. The Skating Ribbon in Maggie Daley Park keeps going into early March. It's a winding path of ice twice as long as a regular rink lap, with two-hour sessions you book ahead and rentals from $17 to $23.

Black History Month

February is a good time to visit the DuSable Black History Museum in Washington Park on the South Side. Margaret Taylor-Burroughs and others founded it in 1961 in her home on Michigan Avenue, and it's one of the oldest museums of African American history in the country. Check its own site for hours and programs before you go.

Free days and warm rooms

Illinois residents still have plenty of free museum days in February. The Field Museum is free for Illinois residents every Wednesday, and the Museum of Contemporary Art on Tuesday evenings from 5 to 9pm. The list changes, so check our free museum days page and each museum's site.

For the coldest days, head west on the Green Line to the Garfield Park Conservatory, which is free for Chicago residents and $10 for other adults, with timed tickets. It's closed Mondays and Tuesdays. The conservatory's spring flower show opened in mid-February in 2026, so you may get tulips and azaleas under glass while it snows outside. Check its flower show page for this year's dates.

If the wind chill wins, walk the Pedway under the Loop, or pick from things to do on rainy days and our museum guide. More winter ideas are in winter activities in Chicago, and the next month is March, when the river turns green for St. Patrick's Day.

Photo by Catching Flies