Tours of Chicago Architecture: Visit The City's Great Buildings

Chicago has many acclaimed, historic buildings and skyscrapers. The Chicago Architecture Foundation offers tours of Chicago's significant buildings, with different themes.

If you would like to see and learn more about these buildings and these buildings, and the City of Chicago, here are some tours you will enjoy.

The Chicago Architecture & Commerce Package

The Chicago Architecture Foundation presents some of the great landmarks of Chicago. Many of Chicago's great buildings were constructed after the Great Chicago Fire. The architectural landmarks were built in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The tour visits: the Reliance Building, Carson, Pirie Scoot & Col., The Chicago cultural Center, The Palmer House, and the famous Michigan Avenue Streetwall. The tour visits beautiful interior treasures and tell the stories of the men and women who built the buildings. This tour also touches on Millennium Park, Chicago's exciting new 21st century park, outdoor gallery, garden and music venue.
The tour meets at the ArchCenter Shop in the Santa Fe Building, 224 S. Michigan. tour duration is about two hours. Tours are scheduled through March, 2007: Friday, Saturday, and Sundays and 2:00 pm. Price: Non-Member $14.00, Senior $11.00, Student $11.00. Contact 312-922-3432 for reservations.

Historic Skyscrapers

Chicago is the birthplace of the skyscraper and is a leader in early innovations of skyscraper design. The tour looks at some world famous early skyscrapers including:
Burnham and Root's Rookery (1888), with a Moorish revival exterior and recently restored Frank Lloyd Wright interior.
Adler and Sullivan's Auditorium Building (1889) a masterpiece on engineering, design and acoustics.
Holabird and Roche's Marquette Building (1895) Chicago School of Design building.
Holabird and Root's Chicago Board of Trade Building (1930), a glamorous Art Deco skyscraper.
Tours meet ten minutes prior to departure and the ArchiCenterShop in the Santa Fe Building, 224 South Michigan Avenue. The daily tour starts at 10:00 am and takes about two hours. Prices: Non member $14.00, Senior $11.00, Student $11.00.

Modern Skyscrapers

Tour of modern skyscrapers, built after World War II. The acclaimed building include: Meis van der rohe's Federal Center, Richard J. Daley Center, 190 South LaSalle, One South Dearborn. Tour departs from the ArchiCenterShop in the Santa Fe Building, 224 South Michigan and ends at 190 South LaSalle. The two hour tour departs daily at 1:00 pm. Tickets Non-Member $14.00, Senior $11.00, Student $11.00.

Downtown Deco

Admire the soaring exteriors and opulent interiors of some of Chicago's magnificent Art Deco skyscrapers. Topics include the difference between Jazz Deco, Classical Deco and Streamlined Deco, as well as Chicago's importance in the Art Deco movement. Tour start at the ArchiCenter shop in the Santa Fe building, 224 South Michigan Avenue.
Tour last two hours and fifteen minutes. The tour runs on Thursday and Saturdays and 11:pp am. Tickets Non-Member $14.00, Senior $11.00, Student $11.00.

Tiffany on Wednesday

Tour four of Chicago's most magnificent art glass and mosaic installations, each of which was designed and crafted by the Tiffany Glass and Decorating Company. Included are a vault, domes, a rotunda and lights fixtures of four late nineteenth century landmark buildings: The Art Institute of Chicago, the Marquette Building, the Chicago Cultural Center and Macy's on State Street. The tour fee includes general admission to the Art Institute for the tour plus one additional day. There is also a special gift courtesy of Macy's on State. The tour departs from the ArchiCenter Shop in the Santa Fe Building, 224 South Michigan Avenue. The tour is offered year around on Wednesdays at 3:00 pm, and runs for two hours. Non-Member $18.00, Senior $14.00, Student $14.00, CAF Member $6.00.

These architectural tours in Chicago cover different points of interest. Please contact the Chicago Architecture Foundation at 312-922-3432 for more information.