Tag Archives: travel

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.

Forgot Something? Don’t Worry, Chicago Delivers within 2 Hours

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We’ve all been there – no matter how much time and care you take while packing you arrive at your hotel (or Airbnb now) and realize that you’ve left something behind. Of course whatever it may be will be of utmost importance. Often times the hotel or a local drugstore is an obvious and easy stop to pick up what you’re missing. However, for those times where the front desk doesn’t have what you need and the drug store is too far or maybe closed do not panic, there are several options in Chicago that will deliver you want you want – all in less than two hours. All of these places will deliver anywhere within their territory – so even if you’re at a clients office or visiting relatives you can still receive your goods.

Postmates

Our favorite is a delivery service called Postmates. Postmates is changing the way products are delivered city by city. Founded in San Francisco (because that is pretty much where every tech company comes from) in 2011 Postmates connects customers (you) with local couriers to deliver your products.

There are plenty of companies out there (Grubhub, Yelp24 to name a couple) that will deliver you food from a restaurant. What we love about Postmates is their ability to deliver just about anything, including a nice selection of personal care, health and beauty from their “general store” – and typically in less than an hour for a $4.99-$5.99 delivery fee. They also allow you to customize an order. By doing this you really can get a bit more out of Postmates than you could other delivery services. Select a store and tell the courier, in free form, what exactly it is that you want.

A few nights ago we selected our local Walgreens and wrote the courier, “Please pick out the most awesome ice creams that you can and keep the total under $15. We do not care about the brand, the size or the flavor – so long as it is awesome. Thanks!”  Less than 45 minutes later the courier showed up at our door with 5 little pints, their selection was awesome. Mint Chocolate Chip, Moose Tracks, Snickers, Twix and Cookie Dough. We were very impressed.

Amazon Prime Now

if you’re an Amazon Prime member visiting Chicago then you are in luck. Amazon offers their FREE 2hr delivery services on “10s of thousands” of products through their Amazon Prime Now program. If you don’t know what Amazon Prime is you can learn more and receive a 30-day free trail and take advantage of Prime Now.

What we love about Amazon is their unique selection of products, incredible pricing and ease of use. Traveling with a pet – or I guess did you acquire a pet while traveling? No problem, there are over 250 pet products in their assortment right now. Popular categories include personal care, books, games, electronics, fitness, baby, beauty & they also ship from a handful of local retailers too.

There are a couple of aspects to Amazon Prime Now that we don’t like all that much. One is it’s only available on your smartphone. The app works great, but shopping on the computer is much easier than on your cell phone. You also have to be an Amazon Prime member (which costs $99 annually) – where as the other services are a pay per order model.

Google Shopping Express

Free Chicago Walking Tours

Another player in this space that you have heard of before is Google. Google Shopping Express might be our favorite for the sheer variety of stores they deliver from. Costco, check. Walgreens, check. Staples, Toys R Us, Ulta – – the list goes on. We’re also big fans of the fact that you can add your loyalty cards to the order and get credit for any sales or bonus points (unlike many of the other delivery services).

Google Shopping Express allows you to pick delivery times for your products, including next day delivery if you’re outside of their same-day zones. The minimum per-store order is $15 and delivery starts at $5.99/order but they’re constantly running promotions for free delivery and offer a month-long membership for $10/month.

Instacart

Free Chicago Walking Tours

Lastly the app that we feel probably started it all and might be the most well know – Instacart. These folks made a name for themselves delivering whatever you can find in a grocery store but have recently expanded the stores they deliver from to include Target and Petco.

We love their variety of local Chicago grocery stores including our famous meca-of-booze Binny’s Beverage Depot. They also disclose whether or not the prices they charge on a per item basis are the same or higher (and how much higher) than what you would find in the store. For instance you can order from Whole Foods and the prices are the same as in their stores, but if you order from Costco you will pay slightly more. But we love that their upfront with that. Their search is also incredible.

If you’re in a big rush they will expedite your order (for an additional fee) to deliver within an hour.

Did we miss an app or delivery service doing an awesome job in Chicago? Let us know!

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.