Emily Oaks Nature Center

This place is heaven in the city. Ok, so it’s Skokie but it’s very close. The events are so great and affordable. It’s small and the path around the pond is the perfect distance for kids and if they run ahead there is only one way out. I signed my daughter up for a canoe class. $ 10. I mean that is amazing! Birthday parties, a cool park, trails, and a bike path that leads you right to Emily Oaks.

Great park, my two year old daughter loves it! The staff are fantastic! They answer questions and happily tell you about the programming offered. There’s more going on there than you’d expect. There’s a pleasant trail to walk around and the front desk has a fun «find it» type of game at the front desk for the little ones. It’s worth stopping by!

The nature center has classes and events, free walking trails around a pond, a large outdoor playground, an indoor «treehouse» room (not very impressive but might entertain children for a few minutes), and a good sized parking lot.
They also have multiple rooms to rent for private events. We rented the upstairs Program Room for a party. I really feel like it’s a hidden gem in Skokie compared to all the other park district facility rooms that are older looking. This room is bright, clean, new, and affordable. It’s a hexagonal room with high ceilings, coat closets, a working fireplace, and a terrace with about 3 outdoor tables. The max capacity is 70, and it’s $ 75/​hour for residents or $ 150/​hour for non-​residents. The room can be configured with 8′ banquet tables to seat up to 68 guests with additional tables against the walls for food, gifts, etc. Nothing can be taped to the walls — just the wood mantle and windows. Also, nothing can be hung from the ceiling. You can also rent out the kitchen for an additional small fee. There’s an elevator «lift» too that we used once to bring food up.
Overall, it was a great party place for us that was also kid-​friendly. My only gripe was their strict policy on recycling and trash that was explained via poor signage. The «cardboard and paper» recycling bin confused people who threw away paper plates with food on it which is supposed to go in the trash. The «glass and bottles» sign should’ve read «glass and plastic.» Also, you must empty your liquids into a bucket before disposing (no sign for that). If you didn’t abide by these rules, they’ll only fine you $ 10 or so, but I thought their signs should’ve been better for the guests’ sake. As the host of the party, these rules were only explained to me before guests showed up, and I didn’t have time to tell every single guest these rules.
Also, when it came time to paying, they need you to pay in person. They don’t have late hours, but they do have weekend hours.

Absolutely awesome for an elementary school field trip (maybe PreK-​2^nd). Our tour guide, Erin was just great with the kindergarteners. The 1 hr program of walking through the nature trail incorporating 4 senses to see, hear, smell and touch nature kept the children engaged and eager to learn more. The playground just outside of the center is perfect ending to the trip so the little ones can let out the rest of their energy before heading back to school.
We recently went for a 6^th birthday party and the kids and adults all had a great time. We truly enjoyed how the tour incorporated 4 senses into learning about nature. Our tour guide was very polite and was great with keeping the kids and adults engaged the entire time.

What a way to get away from all of the cars, noise and the city without having to drive out to Lake County. Well managed small forest like setting with a cool interior tree house that can be rented. Outside there are paths and camp sites that can be rented for over night camping, roasting marshmallows, bird watching. There’s also a little pond (note: no fishing allowed) for canoeing and ice skating 6 months out of the year (a little Chicagoland humor). The employees are friendly and the facility is well maintained and really clean for families and the little ones. I may sound biased but this place is perfect for little kids and toddlers. Huge parking lot with a children’s playground onsite. You may spot the occasional deer in the woods.

I’m hesitant to write this review, simply because I love how empty the park is most of the time.
It is tiny, but it’s by far my favorite place within a 100 mile radius. Just don’t stick to the trail — explore! There are little overgrown paths around the lake that make for a marvelous walk.
There’s a family of deer who live there, alongside seemingly hundreds of darting chipmunks, squirrels, and these silly birds that prefer to sprint for brief bursts rather than fly away.
The lake has fish (including orange coy fish) that show up in the hope for a free meal the second you post up on the patio overlooking it. There are also at least 4 turtles, one of which is pretty sizeable (at least 3 foot long), but also the shiest.
Great place to sit and meditate.

This is a beautiful little place to walk with my family. You will occasionally see deer and when you are here you feel like you have left the city for brief moment in time. It is located in the middle of a neighborhood so it can be hard to fined.

An oasis of nature surrounded by industry, Emily Oaks Nature Center is a great park for families with young children. The visitor center has interesting, informative displays and knowledgeable staff. The short walking trails (some paved, some wood-​chipped) around the small pond are the right distance for the little ones. If you keep your gaze inwards, toward the pond, you can almost block out the CTA tracks, neighborhood, pool and scrapyard that encircle the property. They have recently added a terrific playground with a variety of structures on which kids can climb and swing. For a detour from the usual children’s birthday party atmosphere, Emily Oaks’ staff make learning a little about the natural world really entertaining.

Emily oaks nature center is very pretty.
I came here for my friend’s son’s 1^st birthday.
The room that they rented out had ample space equipped with a kitchen.
So, it was easy to refill all the food trays in the room.
There was also a terrace area where you could overlook all the nature surrounding the facility, and a mini butterfly section.
Very clean. Very pretty.