The Best Things to Do in Chinatown Chicago This Summer
If you've only been to Chinatown for dim sum, you're missing half the story. Chicago's Chinatown neighborhood — anchored by Ping Tom Memorial Park along the South Branch of the Chicago River — has quietly become one of the city's most exciting destinations for summer activities. Here's how to make a full day of it.
Start with Breakfast or Lunch on Wentworth Avenue
Wentworth Avenue is the heart of Chicago's Chinatown, lined with restaurants, bakeries, and tea shops. Grab a pork bun or an egg tart from one of the neighborhood bakeries before you start exploring. If you're going for a full sit-down meal, the neighborhood has no shortage of options for dim sum, hot pot, and Cantonese classics. Come hungry.
Explore the Shops and Chinatown Square
Chinatown Square Mall is worth a wander even if you're not shopping. You'll find herbal medicine shops, imported goods, bubble tea spots, and trinket stores packed into a plaza that feels completely unlike anywhere else in Chicago. Pick up a jade bracelet, browse imported teas, or just take in the murals and architecture that make this neighborhood one of the most visually distinct in the city.
Walk Through Ping Tom Memorial Park
Ping Tom Memorial Park is one of Chicago's most underrated green spaces. Sitting right on the Chicago River, it offers stunning views of the downtown skyline, a fieldhouse, a boathouse, a splash pad for kids, and wide open lawns perfect for an afternoon picnic. In summer the park comes alive — and it's the launch point for one of the coolest experiences in the city.
Get on the Water with Neon Paddle
This is where the night gets unforgettable. Neon Paddle launches its motorized glowing paddleboard tours right from Ping Tom Memorial Park, making it the perfect way to cap your Chinatown evening. You hop on a motorized paddleboard — no experience or paddling required — and glide down the South Branch of the Chicago River as the sun sets over the skyline. The boards glow with seven color options and a Dinghy DJ sets the vibe the whole time.
Choose the Golden Hour tour to watch the city light up in warm gold as the sun dips below the horizon, or the Night Hour tour for peak neon visibility under the city lights. Either way, you'll be on the water, surrounded by one of the most iconic skylines in the world, doing something most Chicagoans have never experienced.
Tours run nightly, are limited to 8 people, and cost $105–$120 per person. Ages 18+ only. Book in advance — they fill up fast.
End the Night in the Neighborhood
After your tour, head back to Wentworth for a late-night bite or bubble tea. Several spots stay open late and the neighborhood has a laid-back energy at night that's worth soaking in. It's one of those rare Chicago nights where you'll leave feeling like you discovered something.
How to Get There: Ping Tom Memorial Park is a 10-minute ride from the Loop. Take the Red Line to Cermak-Chinatown, rideshare, or arrive via the Chicago Water Taxi — which docks steps from the Neon Paddle launch point.