Naperville is the third largest city in the Chicago region and in Illinois. It is wealthy and has a thriving downtown. Is it also a tourist destination?
Naperville, a charming western suburb of Chicago, Illinois, offers many activities catering to locals and visitors alike. Illinois is a well-known destination for tourists, but this area of the state has more to offer than meets the eye…
While in the Chicago area, Naperville is a must-see tourist destination. From beaches to museums to parks, and tasty pizza, Naperville, Illinois, can’t be beaten.
The ten recommended things to do are: Naper Settlement, the DuPage Children’s Museum, Morton Arboretum, the Millennium Carillon, iFly indoor skydiving, McDowell Grove Forest Preserve, BrightSide Theatre, Centennial Beach, Hollywood Palms Cinema, and RiddleBox Escape Room.
Several quick thoughts in response to this list:
-Nine of the ten are in Naperville while Morton Arboretum is outside city limits in Lisle.
-I am surprised the Riverwalk is not a must-see on its own. It is not along the biggest river but it is a popular spot with food, music, civic buildings, and people-watching all available.
-Of the ten things to do, some are more unique to the community than others. For example, escape rooms can be unique but they are available in lots of places. It is harder to find the particulars at Naper Settlement or a carillon tower or a large public pool near downtown made out of a quarry.
-How many people each year visit Naperville to see the suburb?
-More broadly, how many suburbs in the United States are tourist destinations?
Legally Sociable 
I’d think the quintessential example would be places like Lexington and Concord, which offer sites of historical and literary importance (the Revolutionary War sites, Walden Pond, etc.) that complement Boston’s offerings but are distinct enough to make the day trip worthwhile. (They certainly could get a list of more than ten “must-see” sites that are actually unique without having to resort to an escape room or indoor skydiving.) But all but the most committed US History/transcendentalism buff would get bored after anything more than a couple of days there, because once you’ve exhausted those sites, they become another pair of interchangeable New England suburban towns.
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Bill McKibben describes his experiences providing tours as a teenager in suburban Lexington.
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