Downtown is the business district, theater district, and where tourists hang out. This is not a cozy, intimate neighborhood. This “city of tall shoulders,” as the poet Carl Sandburg called it, continues to attract residents from around the world. Chinatown, Greektown, Bronzeville, Little India, and Pilsen feature shopping, restaurants, and museums reflecting the neighborhood’s heritage.

Read More: The Chicago Neighborhoods That Every Traveler Should Experience

While you should not get back on that plane without trying either a hot dog (topped with relish and stuffed in a poppy-seed bun) or deep-dish pizza, there are other food cultures to sample. This includes dim sum in Chinatown; tebirkes and cardamom buns (Danish pastry) in Wicker Park or Andersonville; Indian and Pakistani food on Devon Avenue; and Michelin-starred and James Beard Award-winning restaurants, particularly in the Loop, West Loop, and Lincoln Park.

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It costs, on average, $50-$75 per night to park at a Chicago hotel. By using a rental car to get around, you’ll either pay a ton of money to park in a garage or lot, or waste precious time finding parking. Live like a local and hop on a bus or elevated rail car (within the Chicago Transit Authority), and leave the driving to someone else. Chicago also has plenty of Uber and Lyft drivers at the ready.

Read More: How to Use Chicago's Public Transit System

Lake Michigan rims Chicago on its eastern edge, from Rogers Park in the North to the South Shore. Think it's too cold to sink your toes into the sand of Chicago's many beaches? Then bundle up for a brisk walk or rent a Divvy bicycle to meander along the lakefront. Or just enjoy the view: From some of the city’s high-rise hotels—and of course Willis Tower and 875 North Michigan Avenue (formerly known as the John Hancock Building)—you’ll get amazing vistas of the lakefront.

Read More: Here's How to Best Experience Chicago's Lakeshore

From Frank Lloyd Wright and Louis Sullivan to—in more modern times—Jeanne Gang and Zaha Hadid, Chicago’s buildings are a veritable lesson in American architecture. Book an architecture tour in a boat along the Chicago River or—in chilly weather—take a walking tour or bus ride with the Chicago Architecture Center.

Read More: How to See Chicago’s Best Architecture