Northwest Suburbs (Illinois) Voyage Tips and guide

The Northwest Suburbs are in Chicagoland, primarily in northwestern Cook, southern Lake and northern DuPage County, centered along Metra’s North Central Service, though encompassing areas well beyond the rail line. The Northwestern Suburbs constitute the largest portion of Chicagoland outside of the city.

For further-out suburbs, see Fox River Valley.

42°9′7″N 87°59′17″W

Northwest Suburbs

• 42.095-87.9808331 Arlington Heights — A larger, suburban community in northern Cook County.
• 42.153611-88.1319442 Barrington
• 41.995278-88.1855563 Bartlett
• 42.166389-87.9633334 Buffalo Grove
• 42.033889-87.8997225 Des Plaines
• 42.003056-87.9963896 Elk Grove Village — A suburban community near O'Hare International Airport.
• 41.9225-87.8155567MISSING WIKILINK Elmwood Park — A suburban community in Cook County
• 42.348333-88.03258 Grayslake
• 42.063056-88.1191679 Hoffman Estates
• 41.974722-88.01861110 Itasca
• 42.196389-87.91722211 Lincolnshire
• 42.2025-88.00638912 Long Grove
• 42.041111-87.78638913 Morton Grove
• 42.065556-87.93611114 Mount Prospect
• 42.027778-87.8115 Niles
• 42.1708-87.895816MISSING WIKILINK Riverwoods
• 41.980556-88.08555617 Roselle
• 41.990833-87.87388918 Rosemont
• 42.030278-88.08388919 Schaumburg — A large suburban community and the primary retail center of the region.
• 42.1314-87.929720 Wheeling
• 42.231111-87.96916721 Vernon Hills

Like much of Chicagoland, the Northwestern Suburbs originated from the population boom following World War II. With the influx of new residents, easy access to Chicago and boom around O'Hare International Airport, the area grew quickly and has some of the largest communities in the suburbs. Visitors will quickly note that many of these suburbs contain a mixture of 1950s style homes and modern mansions, sometimes alongside one another.

With its close proximity to O'Hare International Airport, much of the Northwestern Suburban area is accessible via both I-90 and I-94. Other major routes include US 20 and IL 53.

• 42.114167-87.9016671 Chicago Executive Airport (PWK  ^IATA, formerly Palwaukee Municipal Airport) (in Wheeling). Chicago Executive Airport is a general aviation airport. It is the fourth busiest airport in Illinois, despite only operating charter flights.  
• O'Hare International Airport (ORD ^IATA) (in the southern part of the region). One of the busiest airports in the world . (updated Mar 2026)

• I-90 runs east-west through the southern part of the region, while I-94 runs north-south throuh the eastern part of the region.
• The Metra North Central Service runs north-south, but it doesn’t run on weekends or holidays.

Visitors to the Northwest Suburbs can go in a variety of directions to many places, such as:

• Chicago
• Rockford
• Milwaukee
• Kenosha

Of course, there are also flights out of O'Hare International Airport.