I booked a discovery flight with CityWings at Pilot Pete's as a birthday gift for my husband, and…read moreoverall it ended up being a really memorable experience. Our reservation was scheduled for 4:00 PM, and when we arrived there was a sign outside instructing guests to call or text a phone number upon arrival. I immediately sent a text and waited, but after about 10 minutes I still hadn't received a response. I then tried calling the number multiple times with no luck. By this point, I was getting a little concerned because there wasn't anyone around to check us in or let us know what was going on. Thankfully, a kind gentleman nearby offered to walk across to one of the airport buildings to ask about our reservation. Shortly after, Victoria came out to greet us. She was incredibly sweet, apologetic, and explained that they hadn't realized we were waiting. Unfortunately, by that point it was already around 4:30 PM. Despite the rough start, Victoria completely turned the experience around. She was knowledgeable, professional, and took the time to explain everything thoroughly. She made us feel comfortable and excited about the flight. One of the coolest parts was that she even let my husband take control of the aircraft for a bit, which made the experience even more special. A few things to know before booking: the Discovery Flight is around $100 and only accommodates two people--the instructor and one guest. If you're planning this as a gift, keep that in mind. My biggest complaint was the communication. Ironically, the phone number I had been texting and calling didn't return my call until around 6:00 PM, after the flight was already over and I was practically home. That was definitely disappointing and something I think could be improved. That being said, the actual flight experience was fantastic and made for a unique birthday gift. Everyone we interacted with was friendly and professional. There was another flight company across the airport that appeared to have a more traditional reception area and staff available on-site, although it was significantly more expensive. It may be worth researching both options depending on the experience you're looking for. Overall, I would absolutely recommend CityWings for anyone interested in a discovery flight. Just make sure to confirm your reservation and arrival instructions beforehand. Thanks to Victoria, what started as a frustrating experience ended up becoming a birthday memory we'll always remember.

Sebastian is truly a professional trainer! I bought a 60 minute introductory flight for my…read moredaughter and she loved it! He took her to 2 other local airports so she could practice takeoffs and landings. He took time to explain all the features of the plane - before and after the flight. He also set her up on the simulator in his office both before and after her flight. If you are interested in purchasing a flight - I highly recommend Citywings with Sebastian.

They closed suddenly within the last year or so. I had paid for a discovery flight which they…read morerescheduled several times due to bad weather, and when I called back to reschedule once again, no one answered. I learned Dean Ellis shut down operations abruptly and I can't get a refund.Apparently Dean also owes his former employees money but he disappeared. I tried contacting multiple people to get a refund but they were unable to help. What a shitty thing to do.

I was interested in Sim lessons. I've been flying for 20 yrs. and wanted to transition to glass…read more I wrote them an e-mail on Sunday to which they responded, answering my initial questions. I called on Mon. to schedule a lesson and was told Liz would call me back. I didn't hear from Liz so I wrote an e-mail on Thurs to which they did not respond. On Friday, I tried again - - no response. I'm disappointed in the poor customer experience but incredulous at the poor business sense. I'll take my business elsewhere. You blew it.

Terrible customer service! Will not refund or exchange even under extenuating circumstances. Will…read morenot use them ever again! Thieves took $155.00 from me!

I've been wanting to take an improv class for years and so glad I did my first one through Piven!…read moreFirst of all, Gillian is SO helpful and accommodating throughout the registration process and with anything administrative. I emailed more than I would have liked having to attend class late or even miss a class and Gilian and team were so understanding. I took Adult Improvisation Games Risk Taking with Jen and it was such fun! There was a mix of advanced students and beginners like myself, and everyone was extremely respectful and kind and created a safe space to experiment and not feel embarrassed as someone who had no idea what they were doing. Classes are a mix of games, as in the title, and exercises "performed" by small groups. Whenever I was watching the other groups I felt like I was watching a professional comedy show! Classes flew by. I would recommend to anyone looking for a fun breakup of the work week or to advance their improv skills!

We were gifted an experience as Chicago Executive flight school and it was a memory for a lifetime!…read moreI'm not sure why anyone wouldn't choose this experience to fly over a tour. Not only do you learn SO much cool information about how flights work, the plane, weather and so much more, but being in the plane for an hour getting to ACTUALLY fly the plane is an unbelievable life experience! I also love that you get to bring a passenger and if you can continue on with more flight lessons too. Absolutely one of the coolest and best things to do in Chicago! Thank you Chief Pilot Jim for an incredible and safe experience! Would highly recommend to anyone!

Dear Jakob kieldbierg Instructor you are amazing I would…read morelike to sincerely thank you for the wonderful Discovery Flight experience I had with you. It was very valuable to me and increased my motivation and passion for flying. I also truly appreciate your guidance and patience during the lesson. I am very glad I had this opportunity, and I look forward to learning more from your knowledge and experience in the future. Best regards, Selina

Is this business closed? I called and left TWO more messages this past week and still have not…read moregotten a call back.

Flying a hellichopper for the first time is like trying to balance a full martini while riding a…read moreunicycle! Which, is not nearly as easy as it sounds. That said, local flying legend Chris Bachman is the Man and makes you feel comfortable and confident piloting his helicopter. More details to come soon but life is too short to not take a few lessons up at Bachman Aero. I recommend a 30 minute lesson to get your wings wet, then buying a package of 30 and 60 minute flights....

Faculty is great. Friendly and passionate about teaching. It's obvious that the owner actually…read morecares about the students by having a clean and inviting facility with staff who are warm and welcoming and most importantly, knowledgeable.

My son has been getting piano lessons for a little bit over a year. We are incredibly happy with…read moreour wonderful teacher June and with the school overall. I never thought that my son would develop such an interest in music. He started relatively late, he was almost 13 years old then. I can not believe how much he has learned. This whole experience has been a pleasure for our entire family.

Had a fun, exciting private flight around Chicago for my fiancé's birthday. Mo was super friendly…read moreand accommodating and we felt very safe. Thanks Mo!

We (two passengers) went in a 6-seater plane ride over scenic downtown Chicago! We had a great…read moreexperience and felt very safe throughout the ride! Pilot was experienced and provided great information throughout. We would highly recommend, even for those who may be a little nervous/apprehensive beforehand.

My GF and I purchased a Groupon for the Chicago Photo Safari and we chose to shoot at Millennium…read morePark. Unfortunately, about 15 minutes into the session, it started to rain so the group (around 10 of us) fled into the Chicago Cultural Center for the remaining time. I thought the CCC was interesting for about an hour but definitely did not have enough interesting areas to fill up a 3 hour photo shoot. This brings me to one of my complaints-the safari was supposed to be 3 hours, but it was only about 2 hours and 20 minutes. I'm sure it would be a better experience in Millennium Park but if you are planning to make the safari rain or shine, you should have a better back up plan. Also, b/c the CCC isn't brightly lit, this limited the settings people could use while taking pictures. Our instructor - Scott - is a student at Columbia and he had a good personality and did his best to engage the students and help them. I thought it was helpful that he had an iPad that allowed him to pull up a picture that illustrated the concept that he is explaining. He also was knowledgeable re photography. The one complaint regarding Scott is he clearly was out late the night before and still smelled like stale beer. Not a big deal to us, but I can see how that might bother some people. I think this class would be useful for someone that has a DSLR and only shoots in automatic mode or in program mode without understanding what is actually happening in the program mode. I'd say the majority of the class fit into this description. But, if you have a basic idea of how to set the exposure, what depth of field and what ISO are, I'd skip the safari and just walk around Millennium Park. The 3 stars is based on the Groupon price and if you are an absolute beginner. If you paid full price the rating would be a 2 stars.

My Mom and I bought a Groupon and did the Millenium Park daytime safari. I live out of town, and…read morethought this would be a fun way for us to spend time together while I was visiting for the holidays, and it was! The MP safari was beginner level, which worked well for my mom who was borrowing one of my DSLRs for the first time. As a more intermediate DSLR photographer, I got more familiar with my new camera and was able to talk lenses and other advanced topics with the instructor and students with the same DSLR Rebel I had. But the most beneficial thing for me was the fact that we spent so much time photographing the same subject (the Cloud Gate) over and over. Other yelpers lamented that there wasn't enough subject matter to photograph, and although that is true, the real benefit to the repetition is that you can take the same shot over and over and adjust your settings each time. Then when you go home, you can load the shots into the computer and compare the settings for each picture, and try to learn more about what settings work in which conditions. "Setting intuition" is something that I struggle with and having a slow tour through MP has already helped me to better predict how to set my camera for different lighting conditions. I would certainly recommend Chicago Photo Safaris to (1) beginners who own or have access to a DSLR camera or (2) intermediates who are either looking to become more familiar with their DSLR or use the safari as a way to experiment with settings, take home the shots, and critically evaluate them. The MP safari was NOT for folks who (1) want to take a bunch of pictures of different things, (2) don't own a DSLR or other digital with shutter speed and aperture controls, or (3) are easily bummed out by being outdoors on one of Chicago's many less-than-perfect days or indoors in one of our many old, under-lit buildings. As for me, I would seriously consider another Chicago Photo Safari when I'm in town in the future.