• 1. Where to Stay
• 2. Where to Eat
• 3. What to Do
• 4. Insider’s Tip
• 5. An Oddball Day

Check out Fermilab's Tevatron accelerator, a proton-antiproton collider in Batavia, Illinois.   (Photo: Reidar Hahn)

Nerd out an hour west of the city at Fermilab, the country’s premier subatomic particle physics lab and home to the massive Tevatron accelerator. The lab hosts private scientist-led, behind-the-scenes tours on the first Sunday of each month, but two buildings (one with hands-on, kid-friendly displays) are open to the public daily, as are the 6,800-acre surrounding grounds. Take a stroll along the prairie trails for a glimpse at the lab’s 50-strong herd of bison. Check the culture calendar for eclectic music and smartypants lectures at the on-site Ramsey Auditorium, or swing by the Kuhn Village Barn, a folk club frequented by the physicists, which offers down-home dance lessons on the cheap. For dinner, go Roman at the nearby Francesca's by the River, a suburban outpost of North Side city favorite Mia Francesca.

Published on Sep 17, 2009 as a web exclusive.