I did the Birth of a Skyscraper tour with Mitch, and it was incredible!! I gained a deeper…read moreappreciation for Chicago's buildings. My partner even said that even though he passes by some of these buildings everyday, he didn't realize things until Mitch pointed them out! Mitch was engaging and friendly. He answered all of our questions as well, and I enjoyed his "storytelling format" of the tour. He also communicated with us about when and where we should meet. I highly recommend Free Tours by Foot for anyone visiting Chicago!

Bruce was a great guide on our Lincoln Park tour! Lots of info about Chicago's gangsters. Thank you…read moreBruce!!

This was something my wife really wanted to do when we went to Chicago a couple weeks ago during…read moreSpring Break, and I am glad she did because I absolutely loved it. We got the home/studio tour and our guide, Marie, was phenomenal. We also paid extra for the self-guided tour of the neighborhood which comes with a map of about 10 homes or so and a device you carry to play pre-recorded information about each home. I think we paid about $40/person and I consider that a fair price.

I'm not the biggest Frank Lloyd Wright fan in terms of his style, but I can admit he was ahead of…read morehis time. It was interesting to learn about him and the creative choices he made for his house and studio. I think his style definitely had an influence on the Chicagoland area, so the history is fascinating. The tour guide was great!! We were in the area doing the Ernest Hemingway house tour, and decided why not make a day out of it and do this tour too. It was very close and we were able to walk here from Hemingway's house. This tour is also an hour long guided walking tour through his house and studio, which is attached ($20 for adults). We purchased tickets there inside the gift shop located behind the house. There were two women working behind the counter, and idk if it was just my bf and I, but one of them scoffed when my bf tried to pay cash instead of just calmly letting us know it's card only. I also don't know why it takes two people to sign customers up for a tour--just kind of an odd experience lol. Anyway, there was no space for the next tour so we had to wait an hour, which was fine. We walked around the neighborhood and looked at the various other Frank Lloyd Wright style homes.

Excellent roadside attraction. Completed in 1934, this is a water tower in disguise. Added to the…read moreNational Register of Historic places in 2019 the tower is closed for tours while the tower itself, the grounds around it and the parking area are getting a face lift. Keep an eye on their social media and/or website for updates on when tours will begin again. The tower bells ring out a song at 9am, noon, 3pm and 6pm and gives a single chime every quarter hour. The bells are lovely. At the time of this review the parking area is unavailable during renovation. The Aldi's parking lot next to the tower would be a good option until their lot opens again. The gardens around the tower are filled with beautifully scented flowers. The reflecting pool in front is very nice and there are two tiers of seating facing the tower with gardens between the tiers.

It was so cool to see the Leaning Tower of Pisa replica right here in Niles! The entire area was…read morevery clean and nice to walk around. We visited at a time when there were no other people there, which made it a very peaceful experience. They have nice seating options and a water fountain on-site if you want to sit and take it in. The only minor issue was parking. There is currently some construction going on around the site, so it wasn't completely clear where we were supposed to park. Once we figured that out, it was a great quick stop. Definitely worth checking out for a fun photo op and a bit of unique local history!

This tour is located at the house Ernest Hemingway was born in and lived until he was 6 years old…read more The house he moved to afterwards and lived in until he graduated high school is only like a 5 minute walk away, but someone currently lives there so it is not open to the public. This Victorian style house was remodeled to look almost exactly the way it did when Ernest Hemingway lived here. In the 50s it was turned into apartments and the porch was removed. I admire the amazing work they did on the house to get it to look almost exactly how it did before. Idk if I've ever read anything by Ernest Hemingway, but I know how iconic his books and stories are. I never knew he was from Oak Park! I love historical tours, even if I don't exactly know much/care about the person the tour is based around. Even to me, the tour was extremely interesting and the tour guide was amazing and knew a lot! It was $20 and lasted about an hour. We purchased our tickets in person when we got there. The Victorian era is fascinating, and much of the tour talks about life during that time. It also talks about who Ernest Hemingway grew up with and perhaps what inspired a lot of his work. Of course it mostly discusses his childhood because this is where he lived as a young child and how his parents and grandparents raised him. The tour goes through the entire house and upstairs, and there are so many interesting artifacts to see and look at.

The tour was thorough and informative: $20 for adults and $18 for students for a fifty minute tour…read moreof the house where Ernest Hemingway spent the first six years of his life. The house itself is beautiful, and is fitted with objects/decorations from the late Victorian period. Some of the items are in fact originals from the Hall/Hemingway family, and there are a number of original paintings by Hemingway's mother, Grace. The docent was very knowledgeable and enthusiastic. She gave an extensive account of Hemingway's immediate and extended family, which provided an insight into how a well-off family of that era lived. I had read only a couple of Hemingway's works at the time, but the tour was interesting enough that I was able to enjoy it without being a major fan. The building is about a twelve minute walk from the Green Line Oak Park CTA Station, and is close to many restaurants, cafés and shops. There is a lovely park between the station and the home, where one can sit and enjoy the weather + occasional live music. Overall, I highly recommend the tour if you are a Chicago resident or otherwise a Hemingway fan from out of town. It's a quick, cute tour and lovely area.

Drove by on a Thursday afternoon. I thought it was a private home but it appears that there are…read moretours every last Saturday of the month. This is fantastic! There is only street parking so it will probably be hard to park. Best to uber or lyft if coming. The outside area seems to be well maintained. Goigle their website to plan ahead and see more info.

No tour was available. Looks well maintained. Not worth the trip unless you are in the immediate…read morevicinity.

Often volunteer for a lot of different events, both work related and other. When I received an…read moreemail to sign up for the Pullman Railroad Days, I did not hesitate. The forecast said rain and it was cloudy for all of forty-two minutes . When the sun appeared it was blazing. I had to wrap my jacket around my waist. My job was both a greeter at the gate and a ticket checker for the walking tours. If there were more than eight in a group, I was able to tag along. Seeing the old Pullman cars at the 111th Street platform was a special treat. Being able to walk through, tour, sit in the seats and hear a bit of the history behind the creation was priceless. True luxury and comfort for overnight traveling. By the way, we are allowed to charter a car through Amtrak. Call for pricing. Hotel Florence was beautiful, so many original structures still in place. Each step of the walking tour was a rich piece of history. We even spoke with one of the home owners sitting on their porch. Even the information center was like a museum. Beautiful memoirs of the past strategically placed through out. I will definitely do it again next year. I had so much fun.

Great site as a history buff while visiting Chicago the history of the Pullman porter that allowed…read moreblack men and women travel cross country as domestic

After I learned the hard way that the South Side Community Art Center and the Bronzeville Visitor…read moreInformation Center were BOTH closed on a frosty January Sunday, my botched attempt to observe the spirit of Martin Luther King Day by learning about African-American history culminated with a misguided visit to Douglas Tomb. From a few blocks away I looked up in awe at the 9' bronze statue atop a towering 46' monument. It wasn't until I entered the park gate that I realized my latest mistake: not only did this guy spell his last name with one 's', but he was also white. I.e., not Frederick Douglass. [smacks self on forehead] The man who holds a high perch on the eastern fringe of the Bronzeville neighborhood goes by the name Stephen A. Douglas. Douglas was a prominent white local landowner in the area long before Bronzeville became known as the mecca of African-American history. A lifelong politician, he played a significant role in establishing America's western territories and railroads before losing the presidential election to Abe Lincoln in 1860. Douglas' belief in popular sovereignty, i.e. the notion that new territories should be allowed to individually decide on slavery by popular vote, ultimately led to his political downfall. Here at the monument, one can stand over the sarcophagus containing Douglas' dead body and carry on the longstanding scholarly debate about whether Douglas was *personally* opposed to slavery; some argue his name and monument should be removed, while others are dedicated to preserving his legacy. Even on Yelp, if you search for either the community area Douglas or the neighborhood Bronzeville, you'll see the two names superimposed on top of each other. We all know that nice guys don't get statuized, though, and with Douglas' gaze fixed at more than 50' above ground it's impossible to look him in the eye to properly judge the nuances of his character. Only one fact was and remains as true as this monument is high: the guy was prominent.

I have visited Douglas Park many times because I'm a historian of Douglas and a board member of the…read moreStephen A. Douglas Association. It's a beautiful park, very peaceful, and for several years now it has been home to the Bronzeville Historical Society, which is headquartered there. You can learn a great deal about African-American history in Chicago by talking with the charismatic founder and CEO of the society, Sherry Williams, or by settling into the upstairs library and picking out a good book. Sherry is also very knowledgeable about Douglas, his family's slaves, and the underground railroad. As an additional bonus, the park is only a short walk from the lakeshore because it is the terminus of a pedestrian bridge that runs over the railroad tracks and the highway (the bridge is currently in the process of being replaced by a spectacular suspension bridge for both bikers and pedestrians). Moreover, since October 2014, the park features a feature-length film on Douglas that can be seen at the site if the Bronzeville Historical Society is open. I produced and directed the film, which is titled "Stephen A. Douglas and the Fate of American Democracy," and which interweaves the story of Douglas' life and that of the nation from the Revolution to the Civil War. The film was made with the cooperation of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency, and received a 2015 Award of Superior Achievement from the Illinois State Historical Society. It features voice acting from leading Douglas and Lincoln reenactors, clips from five historians, and several hundred images drawn from several dozen archival collections, including the Stephen A. Douglas Papers at the University of Chicago. There is no charge to enter the park, to watch the film, or to visit the Bronzeville Historical Society. All are welcome! If possible, however, come when Sherry is on site. She's a truly engaging human being. The phone number of the society is 312-428-8033. Graham Peck

Definitely worth it when visiting Chicago . They have a glass skydeck if your not afraid of heights…read morewonderful city to visit. Best way to get there is by uber or public transportation as parking is limited

I would suggest doing this when you first get to Chicago instead of scheduling it on the last day…read more It really shows all of the skyscrapers that Chicago has to offer. I think scheduling this before you get to Chicago would be good. Parking near here is a pain and we got a rent a car right before we left because we were driving to Indianapolis after to go see a relative. The experience is great but once you are on the plexiglass they time you because so many people are waiting to do this experience.