Your Guide to Lake Co., Chicago Area St. Patrick's Day Festivities

From wild and crazy to family-friendly, the Chicago area has a little bit of something for everyone this St. Patrick's Day.

Several suburban towns will be hosting parades, fireworks shows, corn beef and cabbage dinners and other St. Paddy's Day festivities while the city of Chicago, of course, will have its green river, parade and party atmosphere happening this weekend.

Here is a look at what Chicago area towns will have to offer in the coming days:

Lake Villa

The village of Lake Villa will host its annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade and Corn Beef and Cabbage Luncheon on March 11. The parade begins to line up at 10:30 a.m. at Palombi Middle School, 133 McKinley Avenue, and steps off at noon.

The parade route follows McKinley Avenue North to Burnett Avenue to Sherwood Avenue to Grand Avenue to Cedar Avenue and ends on Railroad Avenue by the Lake Villa VFW. The day's festivities continue with the Annual Corned Beef and Cabbage Luncheon held at the Lake Villa VFW, 130 E. Grand Avenue, immediately after the parade.

Barrington

The 7th Annual Barrington Celtic Fest will be held Thursday, March 16, through Saturday, March 18. The festivities will take place in the 200 block Park Avenue, just East of South Cook Street, and inside McGonigal’s Pub, 105 S. Cook St. in Barrington. The agenda for the weekend includes live music, a mix of local merchants, various entertainment including Irish dancers, bagpipers, special guest appearances, and of course plentiful availability of food and beverages both in the outdoor festival area and the pub. For information on the music lineup and event festivities, visit the event website.

St. Charles

The St. Patrick’s Parade, hosted annually in downtown St. Charles, has become a family tradition. On Saturday, thousands of people of all ages line Main Street to watch the antics of cheerful leprechauns, listen to award-winning local marching bands, watch the elaborate and colorful floats glide down the street, pay tribute to the walking units of veterans and hear the melodic strains of the Celtic pipe bands, according to the Downtown St. Charles website.

The parade steps off at 2 p.m.on March 11 at Main and 6th streets. The route continues down Main Street and concludes at 4th Avenue.

Attendees should note that the dog costume contest will not be taking place this year. Downtown St. Charles officials are hoping to find an interested sponsor and have it return in 2018.

East Dundee/West Dundee

You can enjoy a touch of Dublin in Dundee this weekend and next weekend.

The fun kicks off this Saturday with the Kilted 5K Run & Walk. The race starts at 8:30 a.m. and the start and finish line is at Lifeline Plumbing, Heating & Cooling, 296 Williams Place in East Dundee. The race route is a straight in and out on the Fox River Trail path. Click here to register for the Kilted 5K.

The St. Patrick’s Day Parade will step off at 11 a.m. Saturday. The parade travels south from Wenholz Avenue and Water Street and then east on Barrington Avenue and then south on River Street, ending at Jackson Street. The grandstand will be located on River Street just south of Barrington Avenue in front of the East Dundee Depot. More information on the parade can be found here.

The festivities will continue on Friday, March 17 when Bandito Barney’s, at 10 N. River St., plans to shoot off fireworks at 7:30 p.m. You can spread your blanket out along the Fox River and enjoy the view. Fireworks kick off with the fabulous Dundee Scotts Bagpipes on either end of the bridge. A glow-in-the-dark juggler will be performing in the street. Parking bans will be in effect, so event organizer are encouraging attendees to get there early.

For more information on the Dundee St. Patrick’s Day festivities, visit here

Naperville

The St. Patrick’s Day in downtown Naperville will step off at 10 a.m. on March 11. Here is a look at the parade’s route. The St. Paddy’s Day 5K starts at 8 a.m. and runs along the parade route. More on Naperville’s festivities can be found here.

Plainfield

The 15th Annual Plainfield Hometown Irish Parade will be held on Sunday, March 12, 2017. The parade steps off at 1 pm from Plainfield High School-Central Campus. See the map of the Parade Route for details. More information can be found on the event website.

Palatine

Palatine will host its 11th Annual Paint the Town Green celebration on Saturday, March 11. The parade will step off at 11 a.m. A map of the parade route can be found below.

For more information on this event, visit here.

Chicago

For those planning a trip into the city to take in part in the annual St. Patrick’s Day festivities, the fun will kick off this weekend.

In what has become a beloved St. Patrick's Day ritual, 45 pounds of eco-friendly vegetable dye will be poured into the Chicago River starting at 9 a.m. on March 11 to turn it emerald green for the occasion, according to Choose Chicago, official destination marketing organization. The river keeps its color for about five hours and the annual dyeing of the river draws about 400,000 spectators downtown.

The downtown Chicago St. Patrick’s Day parade will step off at noon on Saturday. The parade starts at Balbo and Columbus and proceeds north on Columbus Drive. The viewing stand will be located in front of Buckingham Fountain.

Several more neighborhood festivities will be taking place around the city in the coming days, including the St. Patrick's Festival at Irish American Heritage Center on March 11, the South Side Irish Parade on March 12, the Northwest Side Irish Parade on March 12 and more.

Visit the Choose Chicago website for more information.

Photo via Downtown St. Charles website