Wheeeew, grab a map when you walk in!! We tried to go without and it didn't end well. Not only did…read moremy boyfriend and I lose each other very early on, but we also lost track of what sections we had been in. Eventually we reconvened in the main area and consulted the visitor guide to ensure we maximized our time here, but it was still impossible to see everything. We happened to arrive right before noon, so we were able to peep in Fullerton Hall, which was cool. We also combed through the impressionism area and I enjoyed all the Monets. I then went on a MISSION to find American Gothic, which ended up being in an entirely different wing -- eventually I found it though. Paradise Lost was another highlight of course, as well as the Chicago Stock Exchange room recreation. We wrapped things up in the modern wing, and I was hyped to see several pieces from Andy Warhol, plus a Dali. If we didn't have a flight that night, we easily could've spent 2-3 more hours here.

Visiting the Art Institute of Chicago had long been on my bucket list ever since taking an art…read morehistory class in high school, so it was a dream come true to finally see it in person. I booked my tickets in advance on the morning of my visit and walked over from River North in the afternoon. Upon entering the galleries, I went up the central staircase and immediately found myself in a room with my favorite Impressionist masterpieces, including works by Monet, Seurat, Caillebotte, Van Gogh, and Matisse...just to name a few. I wandered through the other galleries and continued to spot my favorite paintings from other art periods. I even found a mummy! The museum layout was a little confusing, but the galleries were well-labeled, and the staff was very friendly and knowledgeable in helping me find my way. Thinking that I would only spend about an hour in the museum, I ended up staying almost until closing. Before leaving, I stopped in at the gift shop to pick up some postcards to commemorate my visit. I highly recommend the Art Institute of Chicago to anyone visiting the city, and I would definitely consider coming back when I have more time on my next visit.

Terrace Tuesday was amazing even though the music was inside today. The weather was perfect. Plenty…read moreof tables and great company. We will be back!

If the Art Institute is where we went to stand in front of paintings I'd already studied for years,…read morethe MCA was where we went to be surprised. Set on the Near North Side near Water Tower Place, the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago picks up almost precisely where the Art Institute's historical collection ends, devoting itself entirely to art made since 1945. https://lisaefreedman.com/the-museum-of-contemporary-art-chicago/?

Almost everyone you meet in Chicago who loves their city will ask when you tell them you are…read morevisiting from out of town, "Have you done the architectural boat tour?" People in Amsterdam will also ask if you have done a canal boat tour - and you have to do these when you visit these cities. Our docent volunteer guide, Steve, was excellent. He was very personable and extremely knowledgeable about the city's riverside buildings and its history. The boat staff was also hardworking and ready to help with any issues, from getting a drink at the boat's downstairs bar to handing out covers when the rain hit us. For what we paid, the 1.5 hour tour was more than worth it. I recommend sitting at the top towards the back, as you don't have to crane your neck as much when he points out places of interest. This was a truly wonderful experience and I would do it again in a heartbeat.

Not what I expected overall but it was still a very educational experience. Scoring tickets to…read moreChicago's Architecture Center through our hotel, we used the tickets as a good time filler. Not a must see or do attraction but a great day filler activity as you explore the city. Loved the wealth of information they offer as it's valuable to understand Chicagos importance from the ground up! I thought it would be more about highlighting the amazing architectural buildings around the city but nothing like that. It's was more about the environmental impact the city has and the hurdles when designing buildings around town. The staff were friendly at check in and provided great service overall as they were kind and helpful. Small center that you may explore at your own pace and may or may not be worth the admission price. But scoring free tickets it allowed us to be selective in our day or day plans to include the activity to pay it a visit!

Be prepared to WNDR…read more After eight years of basic sciences, Step 1 (being scheduled and rescheduled and scheduled and rescheduled and scheduled due to the pandemic), clinical rounds, Match Day and a PhD defense, my daughter definitely earned the right to celebrate curiosity. Such a fun place to be surrounded by family and friends. Ordered catering. Had a candy bar set up with bottles with a prescription for happiness. Brought chocolate brains from Texas. Fun to go through the WNDR Museum. Love the rooms filled with so many interesting artistic expressions. Cakes with inspiring messages. Neon signs. An eye-catching display room (good for the future ophthalmologists in the crowd.) Set up a bar with cocktails and mocktails themed for the occasion. Have a: Med School Mule. Dip(a)loma. Action Potential. Fun to explore the rooms after hours. 3-D glasses required. Smile. Walk through the lights. See your reflection. Imagine. Everyone has an artist within. Life is full of choices. The secret is there are no wrong ones.

WNDR Museum will be permanently closing and I think their last day open to the public was this past…read moreMonday, September 7th. Sad because it has been around since 2018! I've always thought about going, but never got around to it because I'm not a really big fan of these interactive/photo op type art museums. When I saw they were closing, I had to finally check it out. I think it's a little more than $30 for adults, which is pretty pricey considering the Art Institute is about the same price and way bigger. This museum is pretty small and it only took less than an hour to walk through. The interactive aspects were all super fun though!! I even bought some of our photos at the end, and I was glad they were 50% off (everything in store was). They will be having a party at the end of this month if you want to go one last time!

Love the museum! They have a good number of free days for residents…read more We came by to check out the Pokemon Fossil exhibit and they really did an amazing job. [A note, the Pokemon exhibit does require a separate timed ticket from general admission to the museum]. I love how they were careful to separate fact from fiction through color coordination and how the fossils mirrored some of the exhibits within the museum! We walked around some of the other areas and it was nice to see some of the classic exhibits as well as some of their newer ones. Its a great museum to explore and get lost in. Parking is pricey, but it's worth getting something close considering all the walking you'll do at the actual museum.

We recently visited Yellowstone National Park, and we remembered that the Field Museum in Chicago…read morehas a life-size bison on exhibit! If i recall, it was on the east side of the second floor. We saw a large herd in Yellowstone, and several scattered pairs and individuals. We were about ten feet from one while we were driving to Old Faithful. This felt like that experience. Yikes! Yeah, they are this big.

This place I found while walking downtown and it's so nice inside this museum/mansion. They have a…read moreplace downstairs to place food or drinks if you bring it in, but they did offered military discount . It was stunning inside and it had like three floors with the top floor having a gift shop. I really enjoyed all the art and painting around the mansion.

This is the Nickerson Mansion huilt in 1883 which was bought and restored over several years by…read moreRichard Driehaus. It has several items original to the home, plus some of Driehaus' collection. There was an art exibit of satirical prints from London and Dublin on display when we went through. Beautiful Tiffany lamps and chandeliers, marble, tile, woodworking throughout the whole home. Learned more about the history of Chicago and what it was like at the time the mansion was first built.

This was the most wonderful experience! I highly recommend it if you're in Chicago. It's located in…read morethe Willis Tower, so if you're going to the Skydeck it's a quick little jaunt over before or after. I wasn't sure what to expect, and it ended up being so much better than I imagined! All the people working were friendly, knew what they were doing, and helped us have the best experience we could have. I loved every part of it, and it was awesome tying in all the senses to color! The tasting one was so fun, I ended up guessing mine right! I think my husband and I had the most fun with the partner drawing activity, that's a keepsake for sure, haha! Other faves were the poem and balloon exhibit and of course, the ball pit. We came with our 6 year old nephew but I think the adults had more fun than he even did! It was fun to let loose and be a kid again. I was thankful for all the fun photo ops, it made it easier to get great pics without having our phones out the whole time. The only bummer was the ice cream. We paid $1 per person for it and it was just one tiny little ball with a wooden spoon, and I could taste the spoon more than the ice cream.

Color Factory was definitely a hit with Lani and the girls! From the moment we walked in, there was…read moresomething for everybody. The candy was a HUGE hit -- the girls were excited about that one! The Taste the Color room was really cool and gave the experience a fun twist. The ball pit was another favorite -- the girls had a blast! The Save Her Hut was a fun stop along the way and made for some great memories. And of course, we had to hit the gift shop, where we even got $5 off, which is always a win!

Intuit Art Museum has recently completed a massive renovation that expanded the facility threefold…read moreor so. Intuit features self-taught art by artists many of whom have a Chicagoland connection. My lovely wife and I have been to the "old" museum before, and it was an eye-opener to visit yesterday (Memorial Day) during a special free admission Grand Re-Opening weekend (the regular admission fee has also tripled to $15 from its former $5 ticket price). The star attraction is the recreation of Henry Darger's apartment and studio, along with a celebration of his works and methodologies. There are also spaces for the interesting and diverse Permanent Collection, as well as Special Exhibitions. Also interesting is the fact that the museum featuring self-taught art has bathrooms with fairly posh fixtures. Intuit Art Museum is not far from the Chicago Blue Line station. Check out the compact but cute gift shop before you leave.

A museum that celebrates the self-taught, accepts the "outsider" and values intuitive art. Current…read moreexhibit focuses on the im/migrants of Chicago. At the time of my visit, the entrance fee was $15. I live that I was able to see every piece in the museum display within 2 hours. Worth it

Figured the kid would like this, and she did. And so did we…read more Kind of expensive, I think $40 for adults and $30 for kids, but worth it. Very nice space packed with illusions, many classics but some unusual ones. And staff were great, from the front desk to the manager to the lady who helped us fully experience the exhibits with hints on how to see them best, and ideas (plus some had photos nearby with suggestions.) Kind of small, we spent about an hour, but had a lot of fun. We went right when they opened on a Sunday and it wasn't crowded then, but things picked up by the time we left. So come early to have a bit more freedom to roam.

Miana, was amazing. She took pictures. She gave us some good feedback and a lot of education. She…read moremade the experience one notch above other experiences!! Thank you Miana!!!! Carla Work

I'm an OR nurse now for 20 years and this small museum was right up my alley. It's 4 floors of…read moreartifacts, history and all things surgical. The plastic surgery exhibit was fascinating. If you have under 2 hours to spend in Chicago, do it!

I went there for an event last night, but we got full reign of the museum. We did a scavenger hunt…read moreso we got to see every inch of this place. Chicago has a bunch of these smaller niche museum, but I thought this one was one of the better ones. It's an an historic house that would have overlooked the Lake before LSD existed. The exhibits were all pretty good, but my favorite was eye care. They had some great optometry artifacts and a collection of sunglasses over the years. They also have quite a bit of original art, mostly in sculpture form which is both odd, but still important. Another thing I liked was that it wasn't overly graphic. There's a plastic surgery section that has a few slightly unsettling portraits of people maimed during WWI. I mean, I kind of felt more bad for those poor people which I think was the point. If I were to give it all a rating, it's a light PG13. If there are any downsides, the place is a little on the expensive side for its size, but they're constantly running events that include admittance. They also seem to lean on some kind of artist or researcher that does a lot of dream stuff. I didn't like his stuff as much. Also, the sections are a little disorganized, but that might be spacing in issues. Either way, this was a pretty interesting place. I'm betting they do an awesome Halloween event because it's a little spooky, but all educational. The gift shop is neat too!