Welcome to Chicago Elevated, thank you so much for stopping by. Please peruse the walking tour offerings and if you have any questions, feel free to ask! Also, if you’re interested in a custom or private tour, just let me know. I like doing them. I’ll rock it out for you.
Reservations are required for all walking tours: You can either purchase tickets on the website, or you can call me 773.593.4873 or write me at margaret@chicagoelevated.com
THE CHICAGO PEDWAY WALKING TOUR
Monday & Thursday & Saturday at 10:30 – 90 minutes – 20$
Chicago’s Pedway, a series of heated walkways, passages and tunnels, serves as the backdrop for an amusing and enlightening tour of some of the hot-spots (or a least warm-spots) of downtown Chicago. The walking tour focuses on interesting anecdotes and tales about some of the great buildings downtown, but it’s also a study of the city underneath the city. The Chicago Pedway is a strange and wonderful place and adds so much to the city’s personality. These are great tours for Chicagoans who want to learn more about the city and for tourists who want a full Chicago experience without ever going outside.
START: The Monday and Thursday tours start at 40 W. Lake, inside the “Gallery of Shops.” The Saturday Pedway Tour starts at Block 37 Mall at 108 N. State between Randolph and Washington.
DISTANCE: About a mile and a half, good amount of walking, ups and downs and escalators, etc.
CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS FOR THE MONDAY OR THURSDAY PEDWAY TOUR
CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS FOR THE SATURDAY PEDWAY TOUR
THE CHICAGO LOOP TOUR
Fridays at 10:30 and Saturdays at 1:00PM – 90 minutes – 20$
Come with me and explore the highlights of the Chicago’s famous Loop, the best of the best, my personal highlights. I’ll show you the places I love the most and the places that make me laugh and cry. (I’ll try not to cry too much on the tour though, you know, I’m professional!)
We’ll see the best historic and modern skyscrapers. We’ll talk intelligently (yes we will) about our gorgeous public art: Chagall, Picasso, Miro, oh my! I’ll sing you the song about Mrs. O’Leary, her cow and the Chicago fire and tell you what really went down that fateful day in 1871. The skyscraper church, City Hall and the Picasso all sit on a big beautiful plaza together, we’ll stand in the middle of it and look up and talk about the men and women who built this magnificent city.We’ll marvel at Tiffany domes and look for ghosts in haunted “death alley.” The tour will end at the Cultural Center – my favorite building in the city. I leave it for last because I lose people in there. They love the building so much it’s hard to get them to leave!
If you want a fun walking tour that covers all the bases – check out my Loop Tour. Fall in love with the city just like I have. I dare you!
START: Harold Washington Library lobby – 400 S. State
FINISH: Cultural Center – 78 E. Washington
DISTANCE: A pretty good walk, we clip along. It’s city streets, some stairs, elevators, escalators, etc. Maybe 1 – 1.5 miles.
CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS TO THE LOOP TOUR FRIDAY AT 10:30
CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS TO THE LOOP TOUR SATURDAY AT 1:00PM
THE DISASTER! TOUR
Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays at 1:00PM – 90 minutes – 20$
What do Fort Dearborn, an ill-fated cattle bridge and underground tunnels have in common? They’re all included on the Disaster! Tour. This Chicago tour takes you through a series of unfortunate incidents, from the largest theater fire in history to the um…mistake…made by the Dave Matthews Band. We’ll wander through haunted Couch Place (pronounced “cooch” I swear), the pedway and under the el in the Loop, no part of our urban fabric is free from mayhem. Come discover how human folly and regrettable timing led to Chicago’s greatest disasters and alternately, it’s greatest victories.
START: The NW Corner of Wacker & Wabash by the statue of George Washington and friends.
DISTANCE: This tour is a good amount of walking in and around the Loop, about a mile and a half. It’s a quick-moving tour with ups and downs, escalators and a few stairs and such.
PURCHASE TICKETS FOR THE DISASTER! TOUR
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THE FOLLOWING TOURS ARE AVAILABLE FOR PRIVATE TOURS OR BY APPOINTMENT ONLY! I’m fun by appointment only, which really just means, “private tour.” If you’re interested in one of these, let me know! I’m happy to show you at your leisure!
THE CHICAGO RULES TOUR
There is no set schedule for the Rules Tour. It is available on a private tour or group tour basis. Call or write if you’re interested in the Rules Tour!
The idea of the Chicago Rules tour is simple. I’m going to show you Chicago. But I’m not going to stand around and point out buildings and throw out random information about things that happened 100 years ago (I mean, I might a little). The Rules Tour will teach you how to “use” Chicago now, today. And Chicago’s streets, buildings and sculptures will be our schoolroom.
Not sure how to use the bus? Or where to buy a CTA card (or maybe you’re wondering what a CTA card is exactly?) I got you! We’ll buy passes together and hop on the bus for a short ride. We’ll also get on the elevated train line for a trip around the Loop – best views ever.Meander around Chagall’s gorgeous “Four Seasons” sculpture while I lay out the proper way to layer clothes and explain how the population of Chicago doubles on the first nice day. Learn to pronounce street names like “Goethe” and laugh when you find out what the word “Trixie” means. We’ll talk maps, neighborhoods, food, culture, sports…you name it. And yes, I’m a tour guide but I’m also a comedian and improviser, so…I’m not real good at sugar-coating. You know I’ll always be giving it to you straight!
Oh and hey, did I mention the Chicago hot dog at the end of the tour? No? Huh.
THE RED LIGHT DISTRICT TOUR
No no, to answer your first question, the Red light District isn’t here NOW, but back at the turn of the century, Chicago had the largest red light district in the country. New York, New Orleans, San Francisco…they had nothing on us. Now known as Printer’s Row, the Levee was home to the famed Mickey Finn, the most proper of all the madams – the Everleigh Sisters and the most notorious of all the First Ward alderman, Bath House John and Hinky Dink Kenna. But to truly understand the beauty of Chicago, we have to first understand it’s ugliness. We’ll learn about Eva the Cow, a madam who murdered a few prison guards while we gaze up romantically at man’s first skyscrapers. We’ll delve into the psychology of Chicago’s identity crisis and analyze the city’s ego…and it’s id. Hold on to your hats, this is gonna be a bumpy ride.
THE CHICAGO RIVERWALK TOUR
The prettiest of all my Chicago walking tours, this tour uses the new and improved riverwalk to see the buildings usually only seen by boat. Walking the riverwalk allows us to stop and talk and admire the buildings in the sunlight. Learn how some buildings have distinct “personality” how buildings talk to each other and envy the condo building with the best view in the city. We’ll talk about the Merchandise Mart, Trump Tower, 333 N. Wacker and the greatest corner of any city in the world at Michigan and Wacker. This is definitely more of an architecture tour, but we’ll also talk about personalities and history and the river and the fire, all while we stare at buildings from the prettiest vantage point around.
Also, these neighborhood tours are pretty fun and also available for you whenever you would like!
BOYSTOWN
ANDERSONVILLE
LINCOLN PARK
OLD TOWN
