Tag Archives: visit chicago

20 Free Things to do in Chicago

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Keeping with the spirit of our business and our desire to help everyone enjoy Chicago on the tightest of budgets we’ve compiled a list of the 20 best free things to do in Chicago.

#1 goes to … Visit Navy Pier – tough to beat the action at Navy Pier during the summer. It’s a real special treat if you’re there for the 4th of July too, great fireworks show.

2. Take a walking tour – Yup, a shameless plug. But really – they’re awesome. Check out our calendar and reserve your spot today.

3. Chicago Cultural Center – One of the first cultural centers in the nation is home to the largest Tiffany glass dome and rotating art exhibits – all free of charge.

4. Millennium Park – your visit to Chicago is not complete unless you visit The Bean and Crown Fountain – both located within a hop, skip and a jump of each other in Millennium Park.

5. Buckingham Fountain – Where are our Married with Children fans? No? Ok… Well, still – definitely worth a visit during the summer when the fountains are on. (April – October, 8am – 11pm daily)

6. Chicago Botanic Gardens – the gardens are located just outside the city. Entrance is free, but parking is not. We’re not entirely sure if this should even be on our list. It is stunningly beautiful though.

7. Chicago Museum of Contemporary Art – This is another tricky one. Technically this is a pay-what-your-want museum. The suggested admission fee is $12 for an adult but they will not turn anyone away.

8. Arcade – Yes, you have read that right. There are a handful of bars popping up across the city that allow you to play your favorite games, like NBA Jam, for free. Headquarters Beercade in Lakeview is one of them.

9. Visit a Chicago brewery. Both Lagunitas and Revolution offer free tours.

10. Take advantage of Chicago’s 18 miles of lake front trail. Ride a bike, walk, jog, people watch, segway (probably not free) or rollerblade. Just take advantage of the trail!

11. Lincoln Park Conservatory – Love love love this place. Their rotating show room is awesome as is their fern garden. Don’t forget that the Lincoln Park Conservatory is only the 2nd largest in Chicago behind the Garfield Park Conservatory which is also free.

12. Harold Washington Library – it’s gigantic, has wi-fi and is a great spot to escape the hustle and bustle of the city while your still in the city.

13. Movies in Millennium Park – Every Tuesday beginning June 21 you can catch a flick in Millennium Park. Here is the full line up of what’s playing.

14. National Museum of Mexican Art – The museum has over 9,000 pieces making it on of the largest collections of Mexican art in the country.

15. Maggie Daley Park – Visit Chicago’s version of Alice in Wonderland and unleash your inner child.

16. The Rookery Building – The lobby of this building has the only Frank Lloyd Wright design in the Loop. Do not miss this if that’s your type of thing.

17. Lincoln Park Zoo – the largest urban zoo in America. Home to more than 200 different species and over 1,000 animals.

18. Jane Adams Hull-House Museum – Dedicated to the first woman to win the Nobel Prize.

19. The Underground Pedway – sure, it’s not really a match for Minneapolis’ covered walkways, but the Chicago version is kind of cool if you have a chance to dip below the surface.

20. John Hancock Observation Deck – save yourself the $20 or so to go to the deck and instead head to the Signature Lounge located on the 96th floor. It’s free and you can enjoy a cocktail up there!

What did we miss? Let us know your favorite free thing to do in Chicago.

Your guide to getting around in Chicago

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Chicago is the countries 3rd largest city (as of July 2014) which means that you have access to all the bells and whistles as it pertains to getting around. Bikes, cars, buses, trains, boats – all are available to help you get from point A to point B in Chicago. But all of these options can be confusing. We’re here to help you sort them out.

Chicago Public Transportion

Besides walking – which we we talk about a little later – using public transportation in the City of Chicago is the most economical way of getting around. And with hundreds of bus routes, high-speed rail and our famous “L” trains it’s convenient too. Chicago is home to the country’s second largest public transportation network (more than 1.7 million rides per day). This system is operated, managed and serviced by the Chicago Transit Authority.

bus

Here is a quick breakdown of your options provided by the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA):

  • Buses – CTA operates 1,865 buses, 128 routes and 1,354 route miles.* The bus routes are all numeric (i.e. route 36 or route 151). Our favorite app to help you manage arrival times of buses at specific stations are Ridescout & Ventra. Speaking of Ventra, make sure you read this section below on what exactly Ventra is and how to use it.
    • Full bus fare: $2.00
  • “L” Trains – The “L” stands for elevated, as in the trains run above the ground. These trains are often the most efficient to connect commuters to long(ish) distances within the city. The lines are organized by color. Blue, Red, Purple, Pink, Yellow, Green, Orange & Brown. There are trains that run to O’Hare (Blue Line) and Midway (Orange Line). Check out this “L” train map to familiarize yourself with the routes.
    • Full “L” train fare: $2.25
  • Metra – This is Chicago’s high-speed rail that connects the city with the surrounding suburbs. Because of how much ground is covered with these trains,  your best bet to learn which route is for you is to visit the official Metra website or Contact Us with any questions on planning your trip.

Visit CTA Fares & Tickets information.

Now is a great time to talk about Ventra. Ventura is the contact-less payment system used by the CTA. Ventra has an app that allows you to purchase mobile tickets and track arrival/departure times for buses and trains.

Buses will still accept cash (exact change only, $2 per route) but you will have to purchase a Ventra ticket when you ride the “L” trains. There are two options:

  1. Purchase a disposable ticket. The cost is actually $3.00 when you buy a single ticket from the Ventra machine at the train station. This includes your ride, up to 2 transfers and a $.50 limited use media fee. We have no clue what the limited use media fee is.You can also purchase a 1-day pass (still disposable) for $10. This pass is good for unlimited rides on CTA buses and “L” trains for 24hrs. If you think you are going to ride the trains and buses a few times in a day this is a great option.
  2. Purchase a plastic Ventra card and load cash balance or longer-term passes. This will cost you $5 initially when you purchase at the vending machine or a local retailer – the good news is you can covert that $5 into a transit credit by registering your account online at Ventra.com within 90 days. This is a great option if you’re going to be using public transportation for a week or longer.
    • 3-Day Pass – $20
    • 7-Day Pass – $28 ($33 if you include Pace bus service that services the Chicago Suburbs)
    • 30-Day Pass – $100

Chicago by Bike

bikes

Depending on which blog/news outlet you read Chicago can rank anywhere from the #2 most bike-friendly city in America to #6. Either way that is pretty dang good. Currently Chicago has over 200 miles of protected bike lanes in the city, 18.5 miles of off-street bike lanes along Lake Michigan and more than 13,000 bike rack spots. If you’re a cycling enthusiast than we probably won’t tell you much that you don’t already know. But if you’re visiting the city sans bike and are interested in riding, then make sure you check out Divvy.

Divvy Bikes is Chicago’s bike-sharing program with 4,760 bikes spread across their 476 stations throughout Chicago. Divvy bikes are available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.  You will want to read the how-to-guide provided by Divvy for all of the important details, but the basics are this:

  • You either purchase an annual membership online or, most likely, you will purchase a 24hr pass at the Divvy bike station near you. $9.95 for 24hr pass, $75 for annual pass.
  • 24hr pass purchases receive a code they enter into the bike station that allows them to use the Divvy bike for 30 minutes. Riders need to return the bike to any Divvy station within 30 minutes. You will be charged ($2 – $8) for any overtime. See Divvy pricing schedule for more details.
  • Rinse and repeat – you can do this for up to 24hrs with the $9.95 pass. It’s unlimited.

Tip: You could theoretically return and re-rent your Divvy bike immediately for those trips that are longer than 30 minutes. But if you’re going to ride for miles and do not want to stop, you’re better off renting a bicycle for the day from a bike shop. Bikechicago.com (Bike & Roll) is a top-rated bicycle renting and tour company in Chicago. $9/hr, $30/half day and $36/full day.

Chicago By Car

uber

There are plenty of options for getting around by cars in Chicago – you can drive (if you’re brave or have to), you can hail a taxi (easy breazy) or grab an Uber or Lyft (our personal favorite).

Taxis
If you’ve taken a taxi before then you are in good shape. There aren’t really any curve balls that will be thrown at you unless you take a city-based taxi from O’Hare airport and they drive you to a suburb – then you will be charged time and half. Please find below the rate schedule for taxis in Chicago as of January 1, 2016.

  • $3.25 base fare
  • $2.25 each additional mile
  • $.20 for every 36 seconds time elapsed
  • $1.00 first additional passenger
  • $.50 each additional passenger after the first additional passenger
  • $50.00 vomit cleanup fee
  • $4.00 Illinois airport departure tax

Private Transportation
Technology companies such as Uber & Lyft are taking the country by storm offering customers the ability to quickly schedule a car to pick them up and take them to their destination within minutes from their smartphones – and most of the time it’s cheaper than a cab.  Our two favorites are Uber & Lyft.

Both Uber & Lyft work in the same way. You download the app, setup an account, add your credit card information and start booking your rides. It really is so easy. Once you try out one of the companies it will be hard to go back to the traditional hailing a cab – especially in bad weather. Some other aspects of this type of ride that we love is not having to exchange cash or even get your wallet out. The transaction is all handled through the app with the credit card information you provided and saved to your profile. The drivers are rated by users (on a scale from 1-5). If drivers are poorly rated they risk having their driving privileges suspended (i.e. – can no longer make money). Drivers are therefore have an incentive to provide great service and get great reviews.

If you haven’t tried Uber or Lyft we have a special new customer promotion for you. You can get your first Uber ride for free (up to $15) and you can get $50 in Lyft ride credits (5 separate $10 credits) by signing up and using their apps today. New customers only.

Driving & Parking
We’re not sure where to start with this one. Driving in any city, including Chicago, can be a pain in the butt. Traffic into and out of the city, especially in the rush hour morning and evening, can drive just about anyone crazy. If you have (or want) to drive we recommend downloading either Google Maps or Waze. These two transit apps will ensure that your drive will be as fast as it possibly can be.

Parking is an entirely separate can of worms. So you made it to downtown Chicago and you still are sane? Great, but now you much find where to park. Chicago is not making it easy on your either. We have free parking on the streets, we have paid parking on the streets and we have permit-only parking on the streets – so make sure you are paying attention!

For those of you that are less adventurous and want to be sure you’re in a proper parking spot we have some good news. Once again technology comes to the rescue with a couple of apps helping you find the closest and cheapest parking available in the city.

  • Parking Panda will help you locate a parking spot by providing an address, city, neighborhood or zip code. They bill themselves as the #1 Parking App.
  • SpotHero operates in the same fashion priding itself on how quickly you can find, secure and pay for parking on their app.

Chicago by Boat

That’s right, boats. Chicago Water Taxi operates between a few popular locations along the famous Chicago River in the heart of downtown Chicago. Chicago Water Taxi Day Passes ($8 on weekdays, $10 on weekend), 10 ride passes ($17.50 weekday, $30 weekend) and a monthly pass for $60.

*Chicago Transit Authority, Spring 2016

12 sites to help you plan an unforgettable visit to Chicago

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Chicago is a massive city – covering over 237 square miles. There are roughly 2.7 million permanent residents and more than 48 million visitors to the city each year. There are almost 5,000 restaurants to choose from. You could visit a different museum every weekend and still have leftovers, because we have 60 of them – including the #1 Museum in the World. (spoiler: Art Institute of Chicago). There are over 200 theaters & over 225 music venues in Chicago. Getting around in the city can be a breeze or you could feel like it requires an advanced physics degree. Chicago has 28 bus routes & 8 train routes that connect 146 stations. Over 3,000 bikes spread amongst 300 stations are available to rent by the hour to help you tackle one of the countries most bike-friendly cities. And while Chicago ranks #3 by population in America we’re still home to 8,1000 acres of green space, 580 parks and 26 beaches.

Source: City of Chicago

So how the heck are you supposed to figure all of this out on your short weekend trip or heck, even week-long trip to Chicago? Free Chicago Walking Tours is going to help. We present to you the top 12 resources to “hack” your way to an unforgettable Chicago vacation. These websites are a special selection that will make you you make the most of your Chicago trip by having fun, learning & meeting people.

START HERE WITH THESE GENERAL TRAVEL & CHICAGO SITES

TripAdvisor Chicago – Hear us out first. Free Chicago Walking Tours recommends using TripAdvisor Chicago as a way to start the brainstorming process and see what other visitors did in the city.  There is so much information in one place. From things to do, to restaurants, hotels and short-term rentals. Free Chicago Walking Tours even challenges Chicago-area locals to take a look for themselves and find out what is hot in Chicago.

Wikitravel Chicago – Online since 2003, Wikitravel bills itself as the original crowd-sourced travel guide with over 300,000 destinations, including Chicago. There is so much information here. Free Chicago Walking Tours loves this information because it really doesn’t come with an agenda. It’s simply there – use it as you please. It coves topics you really won’t find on other travel sites. Topics such as staying safe within the city and includes a listing of all of foreign consulates located within the city as well as their address and phone numbers. But there really is so much more than this. if you have an hour or so to spare and have never been to or read about Chicago you must visit this page.

Choose Chicago – Yes, we know. Not really a hidden gem or a secret, but this is a catch-all site that is dedicated to Chicago and it didn’t feel right leaving it off. Choose Chicago has a little (OK, a lot) of just about everything. It can be a bit overwhelming because there is so much information, but used correctly and it can be a real asset. Their Chicago Trip Planner is an excellent place to start for those visiting for the first time or the fifth time.

OVER 30% OF VISITORS TO CHICAGO SAY “CULINARY EXPERIENCES” ARE THEIR PRIMARY REASON FOR THE VISIT. THESE SITES WILL MAKE SURE THOSE EXPERIENCES ARE UNIQUE AND MEMORABLE.

Eater Chicago – If you’re looking for the scoop on Chicago dining, drinking, food and nightlife check this site out. If you’re local and haven’t heard of it then you’re going to have some fun for a few hours. If you’re visiting and want to get down to the nitty gritty here are the best features for you:

  • Eater Chicago Essential 38 Restaurants (the answer to: “Can you recommend a restaurant?”
  • Eater Chicago Heat map (hottest Chicago restaurants)
  • We can’t link to this one, because it changes every weekend. But Eater Chicago has a feature every Friday & Saturday they present the best restaurants in Chicago with last minute reservations available from Open Table. Check it out when you’re in need of a place to eat but completely forgot to reserve your spot.

LTH Forum – This is a legit foodie website. It’s not flashy. It’s not sexy. It gets right down to business. The site is the work of Chicago locals who left another “more restrictive” food blog to start their own. Whether you want to meet up with locals to break bread together or you’re interested in getting the scoop on some neighborhood haunts – check this site out.

WEATHER AND TRANSPORTATION ARE TWO VERY UNPREDICTABLE ASPECTS OF CHICAGO LIFE. USE THESE SITES AND APP TO HELP YOU PLAN AND PREPARE FOR ANYTHING.

Spot Hero – For anyone that is going to be driving and parking in Chicago. This is the app for you. It’s almost too good to be true. You plug in where you need to park (an address, landmark, whatever) and the date range. Next thing you know it’s telling you all the spots – both public and private – that you can park at, their location and their price. That is it. Search for the spot, find the spot and pay for it.

RideScout – The all-in-one-whatever-mode-you-want-to-travel transit app has arrived to Chicago. Yay! This app will help you get from point A to point B. Whether you want to take a taxi, a bus, walk, bike, car share, park your care or whatever. All in one simple screen. This is great for those that want to take advantage of every single type of transportation possible in a city (you know who you are) and for those looking to take the most efficient route because they’re running late. Or for those that just want to see how close their friends can guess as to the time difference between taking a bike vs a ride share. Have fun.

Chicago Pedway – Wait, what’s a pedway? It’s a noun -a footway built for pedestrians in an urban area. In Chicago’s case it’s an underground pedway. But why you may ask? To help give you cover for our awful Chicago winters. Many locals don’t even know about it. Now you’re in-the-know. It’s sort of a tangled mess of underground walkways, but we have to admit it’s quite unique and if you have time (or for some reason you’re visiting in the winter) make sure you take a visit.

Dark Sky – Chicago is the Windy City. You have probably heard all of the silly one-liners. “If you don’t like the weather in Chicago, wait 15 minutes.” Chicago has four distinct seasons and then some. Cheers to Dark Sky and the technology behind it that can alert you down to the minute (not kidding) when it will rain or snow in Chicago.

CHICAGO ENTERTAINMENT. ENOUGH SAID.

Free Museum Passes from the Library – Sorry out-of-towners, this one is strictly for locals with a valid ID and Chicago address only. We just couldn’t leave it off our list though, it’s too good. This might even be the last drop in the bucket to motivate you to pack up and move to Chicago.

Just like the link says, if you have a Chicago Public Library card you can “check out” passes to the museum good for up to two adults. The catch? You MUST be accompanied by a child under the age of 18. And yes, the #1 Museum in the World is on the list.

ChicagoPlays – Remember those 200+ theaters that were mentioned in the opening paragraph? ChicagoPlays will make it much easier for you to navigate all that is happening in Chicago. Find a theatre. Find a play. Look by date. Look by what is hot. Buy Tickets. Have fun.

Did we miss a great site that needs to be added on this list? Let us know by adding your comment below.