What Goes Into Starting a Tour Company?
Starting a tour company is a daunting challenge! Here Amanda, our Executive Director, shares her experience as an entrepreneur with her tour company in Chicago, which was founded in 2018. In 2020, the tour company became a virtual events company. Here are her thoughts on going into small business in the travel and events industry. […]
Three Tips for Planning a Chicago Family Reunion
Planning a Chicago family reunion can be tricky. With multiple days, multiple age groups, and multiple guests with multiple opinions. At Chicago Detours, we’ve arranged many a Chicago family reunion. We’d like to share with you a little of the knowledge we’ve learned. Here are three tips that will help you plan a memorable Chicago […]
The Best Free Rooftop Views of Chicago
We want to highlight the best free rooftop views of Chicago. After all, paying for cover and drinks at the swanky rooftop bars isn’t exactly cheap. You can still get that sweet skyline view on the cheap, though! Heading into famous and overlooked buildings and finding a hidden vista is one of the great downtown […]
Learn How We Guide Chicago Walking Tours in Winter
Leading Chicago walking tours in winter presents a unique set of challenges. Chicago, you may have heard, tends to be grey and cold in the winter. Now, don’t get me wrong, there’s still plenty of great reasons to visit Chicago in winter. Leading a winter tour is much easier when the weather is nice, though. […]
Five Ways to Appreciate Chicago’s Historic Buildings
Chicago’s historic buildings are a three-dimensional manifestation of our city’s history and culture. If these buildings could talk, they would have endless stories to tell about the city and the many people that have passed through. Read here to learn how to better understand the architecture around you, and imagine, if Chicago’s buildings were among the […]
Four Engineering Secrets that Help You Survive Winter in Chicago
It can be a real challenge to survive winter in Chicago. The bone-chilling cold, pothole-strewn roads, battering blizzards, and endless slate grey skies make for a brutal experience. From the first chills of October to the lingering muck of May, most locals can only focus on how to simply make it through winter in Chicago. […]
What’s New at Navy Pier?
For our outing this month, the Chicago Detours team decided to head out to see what’s new at Navy Pier. Much like our Segway tour adventure in September, we wanted to change gears for a Chicago experience more frequented by tourists than locals. I’ll admit that my interest was also piqued because 2016 marks the centennial celebrations for Navy […]
Three Fun New Places to Visit for Student Groups in Chicago
Chicago attracts student groups from around the world. This outline of new places to visit was made specially for teachers, group leaders and student group tour operators. Since we offer student group tours of Chicago, we know what students like! If you’re planning a student group visit to Chicago, we hope this information on some new places […]
What’s a Chicago Segway Tour Like?
Recently, the Chicago Detours team took a night off and went on a Chicago Segway tour. It may seem more touristy than our “Detours” style, but none of us had ever done a Segway tour before. Plus, we spend so much time as tour guides, that being tour guests sounded fun. We toured with our […]
Where to Stay in Chicago: Historic Hotels
Often on our architectural walking tours, locals and tourists alike will ask me about the best Chicago hotels. Being a Chicago native, I cannot recommend from experience. Instead, I recommend from history. Here are some of the best historic hotels in Chicago. There where I would stay if given the excuse. Maybe the Most Legendary […]