They built Millennium Park's Lurie Garden just for you

Chicago

They built this garden for you

Are you hip to the Lurie Garden? At the 5-acre garden in Millennium Park, Lurie Garden volunteers take visitors on 15-minute guided walks on Sundays to learn about the garden's design, its native plants and how it all applies to the home garden. Thursdays and Fridays are "Ask Me" days when Millennium Park's volunteers answer questions about the garden's history, its symbolism, plants, design and the garden's many sustainable messages.

10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Sundays through Sept. 19 (excluding July 4) at the Lurie Garden at Monroe Street and Columbus Drive. Guided walks will be from noon to 2:30 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays through Sept. 24. Call (312) 744-6630 or visit millenniumpark.org.

To market to market

Tote that family heirloom and get it appraised at the free Antique Trader Appraisal Fair or attend the Vinyl Swap Meet with your best LPs. It's all going on the opening weekend of the Randolph Street Market Festival. After searching for vintage treasures, see what you'll be wearing next season at the Indie Designer Market. The European-flavored indoor and outdoor event offers unusual items from more than 200 dealers, gourmet foods, entertainment and a farmers market. Catch a free trolley from Water Tower Place at the top of the hour (between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m.) or take advantage of free parking near the site.

10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, May 29, and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, May 30, at 1350 W. Randolph St., Chicago. Admission is $10 at the door or $8 online at randolphstreetmarket.com; students $5 and kids 12 and younger admitted free.

Turkish delight

It's not exactly the courtyard of Topkapi Palace, but Daley Plaza makes a fine open-air setting for the eighth annual Chicago Turkish Festival with free admission. Get ready for demonstrations of Turkish art, film, dance, music and food and learn a bit about the history, culture, heritage and cuisine of the Asian-European country. Enter the plaza through the doors of a traditional Safranbolu House and you can watch performances of Turkish folk dances, whirling dervishes, demonstrations of silk carpet weaving, paper marbling, calligraphy, ceramic art and authentic Turkish music. Shop for handmade glassware, ceramics, pottery, Turkish rugs, bags and jewelry and refuel on kebabs, doner sandwiches, vegetable and meat dishes, apricots, hazelnuts, figs, Turkish cotton candy and orchid ice cream. When you need a lift, sip a cup of sturdy Turkish coffee to accompany your Turkish delight.

10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday to Wednesday, May 23-26, at Daley Plaza, 50 W. Washington St. Visit chicagoturkishfestival.com.

Midwest

Grand hotels

The Grand Geneva Resort & Spa and Timber Ridge Lodge & Waterpark have announced their latest deals in time for Memorial Day and summer vacation planning. Its location right over the Wisconsin border makes it a destination for golf outings, family trips, girlfriend getaways and mancations. The Pick Your Free promotion at Grand Geneva lets you to select one of the following bonus add-ons to an overnight booking: two free rounds of golf on the resort's two courses plus a 30 percent spa discount at WELL Spa + Salon; a free second room for the same night Sunday to Thursday bookings only; and a free second night stay Sunday to Thursday only. If you want to golf without an overnight stay, there are special Memorial Day golf rates, too. The overnight package at Timber Ridge Lodge & Waterpark includes four water park passes per one-bedroom suite or six passes per two-bedroom suite, plus a choice of one free add-on: $35 food credit for Smokey's Bar-B-Que House or the Hungry Moose; two-hour kids day camp session for two children; suite treats, including one large takeout pizza, ice cream treats and a DVD rental.

Rates for the Pick Your Free promotion start at $139 a night. Package rates at Timber Ridge start at $149 a night. Memorial Day golf rates are $79 a round or play both courses the same day for only $99. For information or reservations, call (800) 558-3417 or visit grandgeneva.com or timberridgeresort.com

Summer camp for big boys and girls

Get tuned up for the Summer Camp Music Festival held at Three Sisters Park in Chillicothe, Ill. Take in concerts by Umphrey's McGee, STS9, moe, the Avett Brothers, Pretty Lights, Dweezil Zappa and more than 50 bands on five stages. Interactive elements include musician workshops, a daily kids' camp, batting cages, a gaming lounge and hot air balloon rides for a bird's-eye view of the Illinois River Valley.

Friday to Sunday, May 28-30, at Three Sisters Park in Chillicothe about 150 miles southwest of Chicago. A three-day pass, which includes camping, costs $170; Sunday-only pass costs $50. Buy tickets and get directions and details at summercampfestival.com/2010.

Sex and the city (of Naperville)

Grab your BFF for a Sex and the City 2 package at Hotel Arista. The package includes an overnight stay with accommodations for two and early check-in; complimentary valet parking upon arrival; two VIP seating tickets to the "Sex and the City 2" movie at the Hollywood Palms Theatre; a copy of the original "Sex and the City" movie for each guest; a CityGate Centre goody bag and decadent chocolate in the shape of a stiletto for each of you; and two invites to the Cosmo Party featuring fashionista vendors in addition to cocktails and complimentary appetizers.

8:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, May 28-29. Package starts at $199 for two guests at Hotel Arista, 2139 CityGate Lane, Naperville. Call (630) 579-4100 or visit hotelarista.com.

Worth the trip

Turning the kids onto jazz may sound like a great idea, but where can you do this? A smoky bar? An expensive concert that they'll squirm through? Head to Washington, D.C., for the DC Jazz Festival, the largest music festival in the nation's capital. There are more than 100 performances in dozens of venues across the city. Families also can enjoy Jazz 'n Families Fun Day at the Phillips Collection, an internationally recognized museum in Washington's Dupont Circle neighborhood. This free weekend-long event, in partnership with the Phillips Collection, celebrates the synergy between jazz and the visual arts. Kids get into jazz with activities like storytelling, hands-on art workshops and an instrument petting zoo. In the galleries, musicians interpret art through improvised sound. Kids can create their own art in the Phillips Collection, surrounded by masterpieces by Renoir, Pablo Picasso, Georgia O'Keefe and many others.

10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, June 5, and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, June 6, at 1600 21st St., NW, Washington, DC. Visit dcjazzfest.org.