We just toured the Old Post Office with John. He did a great job! The space is amazing and…read morestories compelling.

Took the Art Deco tour yesterday, what a great way to learn about some of the history of Chicago as…read morewell as the gorgeous buildings!! Our guide was knowledgeable and kept the tour interesting. Unfortunately I flew out yesterday afterwards, but will definitely be back to check out the Center as well.

We could have done better with Expedia. He found no better flights than we found. When we asked…read morehim about booking connections for transportation from airports to hotels or from Rome to Florence. He said he could do that . . . for a price. And the hotel he booked for us in Rome was a $30 cab ride each way between the hotel and any of the major tourist attractions. When we got there, we contacted Tor, who told us it was our fault for not checking in advance. What did we need a travel agent for, if not for things like making sure we were well located?!

A friend recommended Tor to arrange our travel plans to Havana, Cuba. We met with Tor so he could…read moreget a sense of what we were interested in doing on our trip. Tor put together an itinerary to try to maximize our time to see the sights for the three days that we were there. Tor has been to Cuba many times so we had lots of questions about the process. Tor was easy to work with and returned phone calls and emails promptly. Tor couldn't have made planning this trip any easier for us. He took care of everything!

I had the great pleasure of joining Larry Axelrod for Opera Adventures in both Santa Fe, New Mexico…read moreand Munchen, Germany. I'll be honest - he had his work cut out for him with me; although I am a product of true opera nuts (My parents, who had been cult followers of Larry's from back in the Ghost Ranch days, followed him to his solo venture, and now my 91 year old Dad - in his solo venture - continues to join Larry's great group of enthusiasts when and where he is able), I was concerned I was adopted because I would not at all describe myself as an opera fan! However, such are Mr. Axelrod's personal charms and skills that he is able to entertain and make cohesive a very diverse group of people. He keeps his groups small enough that one doesn't feel overwhelmed but large enough to feel freedom. He is able to relate in his trademark intelligent, low key, and genuine way to each person as an individual. Example: In Santa Fe, i elected not to attend his very informative opera seminars (which my sister and father LOVE) and Larry knew I liked to hike, so he loaned my partner and I a book on local hikes. Who does that. That is exactly the kind of unassuming and thoughtful person he is. He is also an incredibly talented musician and composer and can interact with the most avid opera aficionado as well as a "lay person" like me (though I am an instrumentalist and also know something about music but...not in his league). Larry's presence is soothing - never overbearing or ostentatious, and it's such a pleasure to be around him that frankly I've left both trips feeling as if I spent it with a friend. The varied group he attracts is another part of his "opera adventures" charm - attendees I've had the pleasure to spend time with are all unique, substantive, and have great senses of humor, and many come back for repeat and new trips. Some of these are long time followers like my parents and celebrate a kind of reunion when they meet, and they also welcome newcomers like me with ease. I am so thankful for the experiences I've had on Larry's opera adventures, and even though (cover your ears Larry) I did a giant eye roll in my brain when my dad initially invited me on my first trip to Santa Fe, it changed my life and I am so glad Larry was our leader. Larry is a star in a world full of wannabes. I'm so glad I've shared music and broken bread with such a good soul.

Some opera tours make the most expensive arrangements and charge accordingly. By contrast, Opera…read moreAdventures costs less but delivers solid value - you get the operas and Larry's informed commentary. Larry also pulls in someone of added knowledge, once even the composer of a scheduled opera, and as a bonus attracts a likable group of opera fans. My wife and I are repeat customers.

I LOVE taking the subway. Easy to use. Helps with getting around town. You can take subway into…read moretown if you wish. Was a great time!

My boyfriend's company gets a lot of fancy fringe benefits and one of those is special tickets to…read moreshows, tours, and other fun things. On Friday we got to experience this fun tour with Margaret as our guide. The tour was about 90 minutes long as we weaved throughout the pedway system of Chicago covering about 1.5 miles. Everyone on our tour was local, some of us knew of the pedway, some had never been on it before others were quite familiar but wanted to know more, while still others had no idea about it! I was happy to venture down into the undergrounds of the city with some a well educated tour guide. I am a Chicago history mini-buff and she definitely knew her stuff about a lot of the famous architects of our town which pleased me. Our tour guide Margaret was full of energy and very enthusiastic in telling us all about the pedway. Once she told us she was a theater major, ah yes, it all clicked into place! She was a very thorough and clear guide though giving me a bit of information I haven't had prior. Once the tour is done, you'll know a bit about the paths under the city that connect some important government buildings to fancy department stores (and more!) and feel totally comfortable walking & navigating them yourself. There is virtually no crime on the Chicago pedway!!! Yay Chi Town! You will also come away loving the pedway for what it is! Nothing more, nothing less than an interesting walkway than can be beautiful at times - smelly at others - but like Margaret says, is it's own little Chicago neighborhood!

Statue Stories is a unique opportunity to learn more about the various public art on display in…read moreChicago via your cellular telephone. It was initiated in 2015 throughout the City of Chicago to engage the public in learning about all of the "public art" displayed throughout the city. Look for the sign(s) associated with the piece of public art then use your cellular telephone to scan the QR code which is a square box shaped black code...then answer your telephone when it rings and you can listen to the history and interesting and fun facts about the piece of public art on display....in this case statues! See the web site for the map and all of the public art with this audio tour... http://www.statuestorieschicago.com/statues.php FYI-other cities such as Philadelphia utilize this tool for the public as well.

From the owner: Using drama, humor and location technology, Statue Stories Chicago breathes new life into the…read morecity's marvelous public art collection. Swipe your smartphone on a nearby tag and get a 'call back' from the likes of Abe Lincoln, Paul Laurence Dunbar or a regal bronze lion.

We really enjoyed our hotel room. It was fresh and clean. Staff were very helpful…read more There was a breakfast buffet one day. The rest of our visit we ordered from the small menu. My food was not hot enough the first day. I stayed with a yogurt parfait for the next few days. It was really nice. The waitress was very kind. She did a great job.

Had a fantastic brunch- eggs Florentine, lox, mimosas and more! Saw the rooms here - very nice…read moresuites.

We did the Gold Coast walking tour and saw everything from the original Playboy mansion, to a house…read morethat was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. It was a very interesting tour, but it's not for kids. There's a lot of walking, and it's gonna be boring for little ones, so leave them at home! The tour guide was totally awesome. He was very knowledgeable, and he made the tour interesting and fun. The reservation process and all communication leading up to the event were flawless. And it's true that there is no set price for this tour - this is not a scam. You reserve your spot online ahead of time, and at the end of the tour, you pay whatever you think it was worth. We paid $20 per person - I'm not sure if that was too much, or too little. Bottom line: use this tour company. You will not regret it!

Tom was a fantastic guide on the out-of-the-way city tour. We learned so much! He's incredibly…read moreknowledgeable and so generous in answering questions. We could not have asked for a better tour and are glad it was tip-based. Thank you, Tom!

Evanston Animal Shelter is a top-notch animal shelter that truly cares about rescues. They're…read moreprofessional and conscientious. If something were to happen to me, and with no other options, I have confidence that my beloved dog would be taken care of conscientiously by Evanston Animal Shelter.

I would like to give them one star for ghosting people on phone calls and emails, as I and others…read morehave had happen, but since they do take care of some animals, and I do like animals, I will show them some mercy . Considering that they got over 6 million dollars from the City of Evanston, I am very unhappy with their poor communications and the fact that they are only open to the public for about 2 hours a day. One of the two cats I adopted turned out to have obstructive airway disease and since they were in charge of my two cats for months, one would have thought that would have been disclosed. The medication cost over $2,000 that first year because what was prescribed was not off patent and the cat was too obese to take prednisolone safely. Why was my cat obese? Ask them. Further when I asked if I could donate the huge cat carriers back to them and some food bowls they gave me (since I already had those items) they refused them as if they have all the money in the world to buy new supplies, other shelters would have jumped at the opportunity, a donation in kind of about $100. I applied to volunteer and heard nothing from them for over 2 months after emailing and messaging them following up on my status, to no avail, until I had to actually go in there to find out what was happening. I could go on but in my opinion this is an organization that is not managed well and they could do much more with the funds that they have been given. I'm pretty sure, imho, that they will ask some pals or cronies to add some high star reviews to try to balance out the negative ones, of which there are quite a few, but all I can do is try to get them to get their act together there by posting this. Finally, as to others here saying that some people there are rude, I completely agree. It is not a pleasant experience. If they try to get more taxpayer funding without improvement of their management, I intend to go down to City Hall to cite my many reservations about this organization. Update on 2/18/25: I stand by my review in spite of the response from EAS: To EAS I respond as follows: Unfortunately the cats were obese from a medical standpoint so you may want to consult with a veterinarian on animal obesity. I note that you did not post the photo of one of them I emailed to you after he had some cat nip the first night I got them, but chose the "skinny" video :) so I posted my photo of one of the big boys I adopted. Further, it is my understanding that my cats were elsewhere in foster care under your auspices until they were put into my care as fosters. If you take no responsibility for their care when at foster locations, that could be problematic, especially for them, since you foster out many animals. As to communications issues: I sent an email Sept 8, 2021 asking about a vet. No response to that. I found a vet myself and did not contact you again until early Dec this year when I put in a volunteer application. No response to that. On Jan 7, I sent a followup email asking the status. No response to that. After that I wrote a msg to your Facebook page. A day or two later someone answered and said she would follow up with the dog volunteer area. I waited approximately a week and still had no answer. I wrote again to see if anyone heard from the dog volunteer group, but received no reply. Growing quite annoyed with the runaround, a few days ago I decided to walk over to EAS and find out what was going on, which I did. I told The person there, also the person who did not answer my email of Sept 8, 2021 that I had emailed and messaged and gotten no reply so decided to walk in. He told me I must be mistaken as EAS has no email address posted on its website and was rather brusque (rude, in my perception in addition to being uninformed) gave me no apology and then insisted I must have emailed a vet with a similar practice name to EAS. He subsequently agreed to follow up, nevertheless. Moreover, with regard to my claim of poor communication, there was a post on your facebook page not long ago telling the public that people have been rude to EAS staff/volunteers when they don't get back to them and how they shouldn't be because everyone is so busy( too busy to hire volunteers who might answer phones, I guess.) If EAS cannot acknowledge the problem, it certainly will not be fixed. Re: funding: So it didn't go into your pocket, you say, but why spend 6 million dollars so you can be open approximately 2 hours a day to the public? I certainly hope the number of adoptions skyrocket going forward , you train people not to be rude (as mentioned here and elsewhere in reviews) and you answer communications because certainly the Evanston taxpayers should see something for their generous funding of your large facility.