The newest thing to blow into the Windy City? Bike lanes and lots of them. Shortly after re-election, Mayor Rahm Emmanuel promised bike reform, announcing that 50 miles of bikeways would soon be erected. Making good on that promise, Emmanuel created The Link Loop Project, a public transit initiative that has created new protected bike lanes on major roads, cleared space for pedestrians and created more sidewalk space by removing bus shelters. But biking in the Windy City isn’t just for practicality, it’s also really fun. On your next bike vacation, check out such trails as the North Shore Channel Trail, which takes riders on a modern art adventure through Skokie Northshore Sculpture Park, or the Bloomingdale Trail, where you can spend the calories you saved up biking on the many food and beverage options scattered throughout the pathway.

Riding a bike to get around in New York City is a no-brainer and has been a preferred method of transportation for many new-yorkers for quite some time. But that grew exponentially with the 2013 election of Bill Bill de Blasio, who instituted a large safety initiative that included a Vision Zero Policy which reduced speed limits citywide to 25 mph and allotted $100 million to the redevelopment and installation of protected bike lanes. These new laws helped protect local bike trail favorites, including the Hudson River Greenway, which winds from lower Manhattan to Hell’s Kitchen, showcasing views of the George Washington Bridge, and the Ocean Parkway bike path, which runs from Kensington, Brooklyn all the way down to Surf Avenue in Coney Island.