Chicago Tours & Activities 2025

Chicago , Illinois

From $ 16.00

In the heart of downtown Chicago, the American Writers Museum celebrates all genres of writing through interactive exhibits and programming. From Twain to Tupac, there's a story here for everyone. Discover for yourself and visit today! Named Illinois' Best Attraction by USA Today and One of the 10 Best New Museums in the World by Fodor's. Flexible Date Entry

Chicago , Illinois

From $ 35.00

Over the course of 90 minutes, explore some of the newest buildings around the Chicago Architecture Center, focusing on construction elements and their impact on the city’s built environment. What's New looks at some of the most recent additions to the built environment surrounding the Chicago Architecture Center. This walking tour focuses on each building's height, structure, materials, ornament and its impact on the environment, the neighborhood and the city's economy. The tour showcases several recently completed buildings, including 462 N. Park and the St. Regis, and compares them to each other in order to observe emerging patterns. These new additions are also contrasted with some of the older buildings downtown as a way to highlight developments. As a certified nonprofit, all CAC ticket purchases directly support our education efforts and community engagement projects.

Chicago , Illinois

From $ 35.00

Chicago is home to some of the world’s earliest skyscrapers. Get an up-close look at these 19th Century marvels, learn about innovations used to build them and discover how they transformed Chicago into a center of skyscraper design and engineering. Highlights on this walking tour include Burnham and Root’s Rookery (1888), a transitional building with a Moorish and Romanesque exterior and a stunning interior atrium re-designed by Frank Lloyd Wright; Adler and Sullivan’s Auditorium Building (1889), a masterpiece of acoustical and structural engineering; and Holabird and Roche’s Marquette Building (1895), an outstanding example of the metal frame expression with traditional details and decorations. As a certified nonprofit, all CAC ticket purchases directly support our education efforts and community engagement projects.

Chicago , Illinois

From $ 15.00

The Chicago Architecture Center (CAC) was founded in 1966 as the Chicago Architecture Foundation to save the historic Glessner House. Since then, the CAC has grown to become one of the largest cultural organizations in Chicago. Visit the CAC to view our 4,250-building scale model of Chicago, shop in our award-winning store or participate in a fun family event in our ArcelorMittal Design Studio. On the Chicago Model, view more than 4,200 buildings in one spectacular room at the cinematic and interactive Chicago City Model Experience. At the Chicago Gallery learn how Chicago became the "city of architecture," with a look at its fascinating neighborhoods, housing styles and famous architects. As a certified nonprofit, all CAC ticket purchases directly support our education efforts and community engagement projects.

Chicago , Illinois

From $ 35.00

Though the Art Deco style throws us back in time, it’s actually a futuristic style — it’s meant to make people in the 1920s think of the future. The gleaming materials, the perfect precision of the details… it’s the epitome of glitz, glam, and elegance. On this tour, you’ll walk in the footsteps of those high on the potential of the future, before the infamous Crash of ‘29. We’ll explore several stunning interior spaces within the Loop and near the Chicago River, going inside not only the great Art Deco buildings of the Loop, but also a few buildings you’ll recognize from popular boat tours. But the great thing is that you’ll go where most boat tour guests won’t ever go: inside these gorgeous Art Deco buildings, where you’ll be amazed by the beauty that people don’t know is right there behind closed doors.

Chicago , Illinois

From $ 35.00

Tour the lobbies of five opulent Art Deco skyscrapers built near the banks of the Chicago River during the business boom of the Roaring '20s. Learn how Art Deco reflected the era’s fun-loving optimism with lavish materials and geometric ornament. Discover the origins of Art Deco while admiring buildings like the Carbide and Carbon Building (now Pendry Chicago), the Chicago Motor Club Building (now the Hampton Inn) and the colorful, but often overlooked, Trustees System Service Building (now the Century Tower)—all of which are designated Chicago landmarks. As a certified nonprofit, all CAC ticket purchases directly support our education efforts and community engagement projects.

Chicago , Illinois

From $ 35.00

Looking for iconic Mid-Century Modern architecture? What better place than Chicago with its triumvirate of modern architects (Mies van der Rohe, Bertrand Goldberg and SOM) and a city ready and willing to accept them. Find out what set these buildings apart from their predecessors and how they helped set the stage for the future. If you’re interested in iconic buildings, public art, urban planning or government this is your tour. Find out the stories behind inland steel, Marina city, the IBM building and other "Mad Men" worthy skyscrapers. As a certified nonprofit, all CAC ticket purchases directly support our education efforts and community engagement projects.

Chicago , Illinois

From $ 24.20

No visit to Navy Pier is complete without a ride on the Centennial Wheel, Navy Pier's iconic, 200-foot-tall Ferris wheel, promising unparalleled views of Lake Michigan and the Chicago skyline. Each gondola seats up to 8 guests and is fully enclosed for year-round comfort.

Chicago , Illinois

From $ 29.99

Explore Chicago at your own pace on an independent bike tour. With your full-day bike rental, pedal along Lake Michigan and visit top Chicago attractions such as Lincoln Park, Navy Pier, Millennium Park, Wrigley Field and the Shedd Aquarium. This is a fun and active way to experience the city with the whole family, and you can enjoy the flexibility to create your own itinerary with the help of your provided map.

Chicago , Illinois

From $ 24.10

Located just outside of Chicago, the Volo Auto Museum features over 33 exhibits and display attractions. The museum was built on a farm from the 1800's and features many of the original buildings along with their country charm and character.

Chicago , Illinois

From $ 35.00

Chicago is the birthplace of the skyscraper: imagine what incredible stories of engineering feats it has to tell! Join Inside Chicago Walking Tours on our newest route — it’s Chicago’s ONLY engineering-themed tour! You’ll cover more than 150 years of engineering evolution, learning from a real engineer who makes the information accessible and graspable without ever dumbing it down. We believe that everyone can understand and be fascinated by these concepts if taught in an engaging and fun way. You’ll see a building from the “father of the skyscraper,” who was actually an engineer and a classmate of Gustav Eiffel. You’ll learn how a “haunted” building gets its reputation simply by settling unevenly on its “floating” foundation. You’ll marvel at how Chicago’s buildings handle gravity and wind. And as on all of our tours, you’ll visit the interiors of a few buildings to truly get that sense that you’ve seen inside Chicago!

Chicago , Illinois

From $ 35.00

Discover how a dirt road known as Pine Street transformed into a "Paris on the Prairie" and later into the Magnificent Mile, the city’s premier shopping district. Hear the secrets and stories behind the striking buildings on North Michigan Avenue that have become architectural icons. Developed over the past 100 years, the street includes historically-inspired architecture in Parisian, Gothic, neoclassical and Art Deco styles sprinkled among Modern and 21st Century buildings. You’ll see skyscrapers, vertical malls, hotels, residential towers and some buildings that were designed to embody the brands sold inside. As a certified nonprofit, all CAC ticket purchases directly support our education efforts and community engagement projects.

Chicago , Illinois

From $ 34.99

Leave the little ones at home and step into the shadows for a spine-chilling evening designed exclusively for adults. Not all spirits in Chicago are content to rest in peace—and not all hauntings are friendly. On our Wind & Souls: Adults-Only Ghost Tour, we’ll peel back the veil of the city’s darker past to reveal the sinister specters that still lurk in its alleyways, abandoned buildings, and forgotten corners. These are the tormented souls of murderers, madmen, and those who met their end in the most tragic of ways. This tour isn’t for the faint of heart. You’ll hear about the cursed, the vengeful, and the downright malevolent spirits whose presence still chills the air and unsettles the soul. Wind & Souls is a mature, adults-only experience, featuring explicit historical details, strong language, and unsettling true stories pulled from the shadowy depths of Chicago’s haunted past.

Chicago , Illinois

From $ 35.00

This lively overview of Chicago architecture explores iconic buildings from the 1890s to present. We'll compare and contrast a wide range of buildings with varying architectural styles and see how older structures connect to new skyline additions. On this tour, we'll make seven stops in downtown Chicago where we can compare the histories and styles of buildings located within sight of each other. The tour features 19th-Century Commercial, Beaux-Arts, Mid-Century Modern and Postmodern buildings, as well as the latest in architecture from Frank Gehry, Renzo Piano and Adrian Smith. At each stop, we’ll look at the connections between the past and present and discover what inspires design today. The tour culminates with a visit to Millennium Park, where world-class art and architecture combine, creating a unique urban fabric. As a certified nonprofit, all CAC ticket purchases directly support our education efforts and community engagement projects.

Chicago , Illinois

From $ 34.77

Nightly Spirits’ Haunts and Hooligans Tour will illustrate Chicago’s haunted history of secret parlors, underground tunnels, murderous movie theaters and supernatural speakeasies. Whether you’re a recent transplant to Chicago or have lived among the Windy City’s ‘others’ for years, you’re about to get a haunted history that may leave you with more memories than you dare to retain.   Tours begin at the haunted Harry Caray’s Italian Steakhouse in downtown Chicago. A costumed guide will lead tour goers on a walking journey exploring the creepy past of one of Chicago’s most famous bootleggers, offering glimpses into the past and revealing the stories of long-dead phantoms and specters who still call Chicago home.

Chicago , Illinois

From $ 35.00

On this nostalgic and educational tour, we will lead you on a "Christmas treasure hunt" through downtown Chicago in search of the most stunning and impressive Christmas trees and other holiday decorations — and we know where they are! This tour includes not only visits to well-known stops like the Christkindlmarkt and the old Marshall Field’s, but also to little-known stops that contain some of the best holiday decorations downtown. You’ll learn about the origins of some world-famous Christmas characters — some of them from Chicago, some not — as well as the history behind Christmas traditions practiced by people around the world.