Ravinia Festival
Highland Park, IL 60035-5218
Phone: (847) 266-5100
- Directions:
- Metra
Editorial Review for Ravinia Festival – by Citysearch Editors
The Appeal
The amphitheater and its renowned summer festival is just one more reason to venture about 25 miles north of the city to Highland Park. A luxurious, garden-like space, Ravinia includes 36 acres of well-manicured lawn, dining establishments and three performance facilities. Martin Theatre seats 850, Bennett Gordon Hall seats 450, and the Pavilion seats 3,400. Audiences enjoy classical music from the Chicago Symphony Orchestra all summer long. Other nights feature various artists from the jazz, folk, popular, avant-garde and world-music genres.
The Experience
Feel like seeing Bonnie Raitt up close? Get Pavilion seats. But if you prefer to relax with drink in hand on the expansive lawn, you're better off getting the cheaper lawn seats. Bring a picnic and a date, and you have the perfect setting for a romantic evening--don't forget candles and bug spray. Or sit in style and rent two lawn chairs and a table.
Editorial content is independent of paid advertisers. Any expenses are paid for by Citysearch.
Insider Tips
Save MoneyFood and drink prices inside Ravinia are high--you're better off bringing your own. Coolers and picnic baskets are welcome.
Know Before You GoThrow out your cigarettes before entering the Ravinia gates: The facility is smoke-free.
Save TimeThe full schedule and tickets for the 2008 season are available through the Ravinia official website--http://www.ravinia.org/.
User Reviews for Ravinia Festival
07/18/2006 Posted by colinpowell
I have been to many many concerts in my life, but the Tom Jones concert at Ravinia last sunday night was the best! It recently was my 86 year old mothers birthday, my 2 sisters birthdays, and my best friends birthday. So as a gift I purchased on line lawn tickets at Ravinia for the Tom Jones concert for July 16th. It was my first time there and was even better than what I had expected. We got there when the gates opened and set up our chairs, food, and drinks but stiil could not see the stage. If we had spent more money on regular seats we could have seen Tom. Instead, we started a major dance party when he came on, pulled out our big bag of undies, and started flinging them through the air! People of all ages joined in all around us! It was amazing! I can't wait to go back!
07/27/2005 Posted by rpajcox
Ravinia Festival is truly unique, in that you may see concerts in several different venues all on the premises. Wine and beer flow freely on the lawn, although the majority of Ravinia goers appear to consider overly evident mass consumption of alcohol inappropriate. The only negative aspect of Ravinia is the parking situation. If you cannot afford yourself enough time to enter the park a couple hours before the concert begins, you will be hard-pressed to find adequate lawn space for your group of people on sold out nights. The Ravinia parking lot fills quickly, and while there is parking in downtown Highland Park complete with a free shuttle, this adds another 30-60 minutes to the commute precious time when finding lawn space on a busy night. All in all, however, Ravinia is unique and well worth it. I challenge you to find a concert experience like it!
Pros: Clean Facilities, Inexpensive, Unique Experience
Cons: Parking, High Concession Price, Lawn Often "Oversold"
Schedule
| 07/25/2008 | Hootie and the Blowfish | |
| 8:00 pm | ||
| 08/08/2008 | Los Lonely Boys | |
| 8:00 pm | ||
| 08/10/2008 | Sheryl Crow | |
| 7:00 pm | ||
| 08/20/2008 | UB40 | |
| 8:00 pm | ||
| 08/22/2008 | Tony Bennett | |
| 8:00 pm | ||
| 08/23/2008 | Tony Bennett | |
| 7:30 pm | ||
| 08/24/2008 | Backstreet Boys | |
| 7:00 pm | ||
| 08/28/2008 | Buddy Guy | |
| 8:00 pm | ||
| 08/30/2008 | Donna Summer | |
| 7:30 pm |
Users Like You Also Viewed
Chicagoland Speedway
500 Speedway Blvd
Joliet, IL 60433
Jackson Park
E 63rd St & S Lake Shore Dr
Chicago, IL 60637
