chicago architecture center boat tour on the "the first lady" was well done. very rainy day but a…read morechoice of remaining upstairs out in the open, where we were given a big umbrella which was nice, or some of our group went downstairs out of the rain. liz our docent was so knowledgable and informing, 11 out of 10 for her.

If you're in Chiago you have to do the Architecture tour at least once. If you're in Chicago…read moreduring the Summer as I was you can seek sanctuary in the air conditioned lower level. I wish the audio was a little bit louder on that level due to the sound of the fans and people talking. If you like my reviews, consider "following" my profile for reviews all across the SF Bay Area . Why "follow" someone? It causes the person you follow's reviews to tier to top when you pull up a business. I find this very handy when researching venues. Rod's Review grading scale explained. Essentially I personally base it on the likelihood of a return visit and I try to be stingy with 5 star reviews since they should be "special" in my eyes. Price/Value also play a role obviously but there are $ and $$$$ littered across my grading scale. 5 stars - "I'll go out of my way" (approx 6 % of my reviews) 4 stars- "If I was in the area I'd go here and would recommend", (approx 38% of my reviews) 3 stars "Maybe if was nearby", (approx 37% of my reviews) 2 stars -"Would likely not return, Only if you want to go", (approx 16% of my reviews) 1 star -"No thanks, even if I was hungry", (approx. 3 % of my reviews)

When you arrive the signs are very clear. We almost got looped in with the wrong time and the…read moreemployees were very helpful in ensuring we made it to the right boat! A side note there is a Peet's coffee right above this that you can stop in for a snack. They also have a full bar and snacks available for purchase on the boat which was a surprise to me! The bathrooms on board are super clean as well. Now, the best part was Scott! Our tour was engaging, fun, and very informative. You can barely feel yourself moving which is wild! I got a ton of great photos and learned so much about the city. I would do this exact tour again it was so fun. They do have lots of options to choose from!

It's fine for taking boat tours, and the boat tours do be quite good…read more But for the love of god, do not work here please... for employment opportunities! Unless you wanna be stressed, and risk getting burnt out. They'll act friendly with their guests. But it's like a business. Some of the supervisors, and management treat employees/coworkers unfairly. With only two supervisors being super nice so far! Favoritism/nepotism is a thing here, and you can get written up over the smallest of things if you aren't a favorite of theirs(while the favs get away with anything). They mass hire and mass fire! So be prepared to get written up randomly out of nowhere, or suspended, or fired over something very small. And get ready to get publicly humiliated by management in front of coworkers and guests... when written up and sent home... as well! They treat their employees terribly here! Come here for a tour, but don't work here... unless you want to be bossed around and get in trouble for small stupid things.

Great tour! Our…read moreguide, Katie, was funny, friendly, and knew so many cool (and creepy) facts about Chicago's crime history. We hit everything from Al Capone and the Chicago Outfit to the Tylenol Killer and the crazy history of Streeterville. Loved hearing about speakeasies like The Bad Apple, the Rock n' Roll McDonald's drama, and wild stories like Johann Hoch and H.H. Holmes. Highly recommend if you love true crime with a side of Chicago history!

Booked the crime tour for 6 PM for two. Sophia was our tour guide. She was very entertaining and…read moreeducational. We were looking for something different to do and this was perfect. The tour lasted about an hour and a half. We did get off the bus for two stops, which was nice to stretch your legs. I would definitely recommend if you like history. My only complaint is the seats were not very comfortable.

It was super enjoyable. Learned a lot of history about the city of Chicago. Max is so energetic and…read morejust good time! You won't regret it. Take the tour.

Review for the WALKING TOUR: went with my family. The stories and the locations were not the only…read morehighlights, but the skill and presentation of the storyteller as well. Sophia was amazing, engaging and was full of energy/passion. We saw a deal at Groupon for $28 and we decided to take a chance on the activity. You don't go in any buildings, except one - the Palmer House Hotel. It was a good place for a break in the tour, though no scary stories were told about it. My feedback for the tour company is to add more stories if possible, I feel like there could be a little bit more added compared to the other tours I've been on. Parking: Use spot hero beforehand to find the best deal closest to Hoyt's tavern (meet up spot). Picked the spot near Dunkin Donuts for $10.99 and 5 min walk away. FYI: The tour does NOT circle back close to where they originally started. We ended the tour about 20 min walk away. So just keep that in mind. We were fine with it and even got to stop by one of our favorite Gelato places in Paris, Amorino on the way back. Discovered they have a store here along the walking tour.

Our guide was very knowledgeable and friendly, the food was delicious, and the topics were…read moreinteresting. Had a wonderful time! Kerrigan was wonderful!

We had an absolutely wonderful experience on this Chicago Chinatown food tour. Our guide, Philip,…read morewas incredibly knowledgeable, not just about the food, but also the history, culture, and stories that make Chinatown so special. Every stop felt intentional, and we learned so much about the neighborhood while tasting an amazing variety of dishes we might never have tried on our own. What truly set this tour apart was our guide's warmth and kindness. He were personable, engaging, and made everyone in the group feel welcome from the very beginning. It felt less like a scripted tour and more like being shown around by a friend who genuinely loves Chinatown and wants to share it with others. The pacing was perfect, the food was delicious, and the overall experience was both fun and enriching. I would highly recommend this tour to locals and visitors alike. It is a fantastic way to experience Chinatown through food, culture, and community.

During Parents' Weekend at the University of Chicago, the university offered tours of the…read moreneighborhood through Chicago Detours. My wife did this tour a couple years ago and highly recommended it, but I wasn't especially interested because I had also gone to school here and figured I knew enough about Hyde Park already. However, she insisted that it would be worth our while and so I agreed to climb on the bus. And it was the absolutely right decision, because the tour was excellent. In fact, it wasn't just a tour of Hyde Park. It included the surrounding neighborhoods of Washington Park, Kenwood, Jackson Park, and Woodlawn. Since this was a UChicago sponsored event much of the information related to the University's investment and involvement in the area. Our tour guide and founder of Chicago Detours, Amanda, is herself a graduate of UChicago and thus she had some additional insight into the relationship with the community. Though the 75-minute tour felt a little slow-going at times, there was much to learn about the vibrant but sometimes troubled history of the area. Amanda has tremendous knowledge and the excursion was both fascinating and entertaining. I can imagine that Chicago Detours would have equally interesting tours of other neighborhoods in this diverse city.

Virtual tours are such a cool thing to do right now. I attended a Yelp Elite event that was a…read morevirtual food tour of Chicago. It was incredibly informative and a good balance of history and current trends. Looking forward to attending more virtual tours, like the World's Fair and the Cruise From Your Couch Boat Tour. I loved seeing the pictures of the in-person tours and can't wait to attend some of those too.

My grandmother and I were in Chicago for 3 days, and decided to do the walking prohibition tour on…read moreMonday. We were a bit apprehensive due to the weather - it was supposed to be very rainy with scattered thunderstorms. It ended up raining for only an hour, I'm so glad we did it! John, the tour guide is very knowledgeable in all things prohibition. We ended up being the only people who booked so it became more personable and conversational than a normal tour might go. We had a fabulous time overall! All 3 establishments had wonderful service and spectacular drinks! 100/10 would recommend this tour to anyone! You'll find it interesting regardless if you consider yourself a "history buff" or not.

Best tour I've ever been on. I recommend it to anyone going to Chicago. We learned so much and had…read morea great time.

Recommend. I made reservations online, and just needed your email receipt. We did the three o'clock…read moreSpeakeasy tour on a Saturday. We hopped on the tour bus at McDonalds and took off. Our guide, Eric, was fabulous. Being a high school history teacher was a big plus in his knowledge and exciting presentation. Only ten people are on a tour, so the group is intimate and easy to get through the old buildings. You buy your own drinks at the bars, or don't drink at all. There is no food. We had a good time learning some history of Prohibition. As fun and something touristy to do, this event is a bit cheesy, Hubby wanted me to add. We laughed. It was fun.

We did the 7pm - ghost and gangsters tour. Tour guide was very knowledgeable, great ghost stories…read morearound the city! We were on a bus and got off at stops to take pics, look around. I wish they would have taken us inside a spooky room, inside the Jane hull house or inside theater. It would have given more depth to tour. We try to take our teens somewhere different and this was something they had never done before. I recommend it.

Excellent experience, it was a beautiful day, we went on Saturday May 9-2026. Bill was the person…read moregiven the information, he was excellent, knew very well all the history of Chicago and the buildings. We were a group of 4 and we sat on the front of the boat, it was a good choice.

I had an amazing experience! I went on May 31 and Ciara amazing! She went out of her way to help…read moreme find the perfect souvenir. She was knowledgeable, friendly and customer service was a 10 out of 10 she was what made the experience so great! If she wouldn't have gone on her way to assist me, I would've walked out without a souvenir!

We took the tour with Jim as the guide, and it was amazing, really cool information and…read moreentertaining. Highly recommend it

Jim was excellent on the Architecture Tour. We travelled from Sheffield, England, and this was our…read morefavourite activity of the week. Jim was passionate, funny, and knowledgeable. The route was stunning, a great way to see the city. Great value for money. He also let us know about the $7 tickets for the lake cruise that we wouldn't have done otherwise.