Best Roadside Attractions Near Chicago

We might have to travel for days to get to the Beer Can House in Houston or the various places someone thought it clever to jam cars straight into the ground (a la Nebraska's Carhenge or the Cadillac Ranch near Amarillo) but we have our share of roadside attractions, too. So get your Instagram and Pinterest accounts ready for action and be sure there's beaucoup battery power in your smart phone for some sweet snaps.

About 15 minutes from O'Hare International Airport, Illinois' version of the Leaning Tower of Pisa was built in 1934 and stopping traffic ever since. Although a spitting image of the Italian building, the Midwestern edition rises around 94 feet as opposed to Pisa's 177-foot edifice, and Niles' tower doesn't lean nearly as much. Go on — guess what may be Niles' sister city.

Some might say all of its burgers belong in a museum, however, nostalgic diners should give the first area McDonalds a visit to pine about the price (15 cents) and a time when a drive to the golden arches was a family outing. You know it's dated by the old-school font on the signage as well as the boast of "over one million sold." For a freaky turn, stop in nearby Square Deal shoe store to see the size 26 shoes worn by Robert Wadlow, the tallest man in the world — when he was still an adolescent. So there are larger ones somewhere — that can be a treasure hunt another day.

Rivaling the gold flourishes in Donald Trump's Manhattan digs, the Gold Pyramid House is a wild ode to what eccentricity and cash can create. Erected in 1977 in Wadsworth (a small burg in Lake County), the five-story home is open for tours once you get past the moat. You won't find a massive statue of Ramses II, murals of Akhenaten and Nefertiti or a replica of King Tut's tomb for sale in Macy's furnishing department, but they're here in the structure, which is one-ninth scale of the Great Pyramid in Egypt.

Related:  Walking Tour Of Chicago's West Town

Not only can you see a vintage 1958 Cadillac DeVille hearse, but dig a little deeper and you'll be putting around the funeral home's nine-hole miniature golf course that sports a haunted theme. There's the guillotine, mausoleum and water trap holes just to make this interesting. When you tire of golf, play on the full size shuffleboard course, pick up a paddle for a round of ping pong or take a shot at bumper pool and a foosball. Modern kids might walk (like Frankenstein) straight to the video games. The Ahlgrims have been providing funeral services since 1892, so why not inject a little life into the biz?

People across the globe still think Al Capone is lurking around the city, so give the people what they want and point them towards Hillside's Mount Carmel Cemetery to the grave of one Alphonse Capone. Although Scarface was laid to rest in 1947, his reputation and persona forge on through the decades. It's like All Bad Souls day at Mount Carmel — gangster Dion O'Banion is in Mt. Carmel snoozing in a casket that cost ten grand — a boatload of coin in 1924 when O'Banion got offed in a flower shop. His funeral procession was said to be a mile long and included 15,000 mourners. You can also see where Hymie Weiss, leader of the O'Banion gang, took his dirt nap after being shot to death by Capone's guys on the steps of Chicago's Holy Name Cathedral.

Related: 5 Of Chicago's Best Hidden Gems