One of America’s largest cities, Chicago can be a daunting place to navigate – so a convenient and affordable way to do so is by booking an organised bus tour.
The Windy City is renowned for its eye-catching architecture, world class museums and vibrant sports scene. Much of the city is also fairly walkable, but if you’re tight for time it might make sense to consider a guided bus tour that removes the need for arduous walking or expensive taxis. There are a wide number of affordable Chicago bus tours ranging from standard sight-seeing excursions to themed experiences – and we’ve picked out five of the best below.
Hop-on Hop-off Sightseeing Tour
Hop-on hop-off buses are available in most major cities nowadays – and for good reason. They’re an easy, cheap and quick way to see all the sights, allowing you to jump aboard and disembark at designated stops throughout a city. Run by Big Bus Tours, tickets for this Chicago hop-on hop-off tour can be purchased to be valid for either 1 or 2 days. While on-board you’ll get to hear the stories that made Chicago through engaging digital commentary available in English or German. Buses also offer comfortable seating and panoramic views. From $48 per person.
Prohibition Speakeasies Bus Tour
America’s Prohibition Era has been re-enacted and dramatised in myriad ways and Chicago visitors keen to learn more about this period in the city’s history can do so on this immersive tour. Over the course of 3-4 hours, you’ll be transported by bus to a number of famous Prohibition Speakeasies, with the option to buy a few drinks while you’re inside – including authentic tipples popular during that famous era. Throughout the tour, your expert guide will regale you with fascinating stories and facts about how alcohol flowed through the streets of Chicago despite being prohibited at the time. From $47 per person.
Mob and Crime Bus Tour
Every city has its dark and seedy underbelly – and Chicago is no different. Visitors are invited to delve into the city’s murky past on this 1.5-hour bus tour themed around its notorious history of crime. As you’re transported by bus throughout the city, you’ll discover how infamous criminals, mobsters, and gangsters ruled the city by fear through live commentary. Along the way, there’ll be stop-offs at several notable landmarks that have been the scene of crime and punishment down the years, including the historic criminal courthouse, the Biograph Theatre, Holy Name Cathedral, Clark Street Bridge, and the site of the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre. From $46 per person.
Minibus Tour with Optional Architecture Cruise
This sightseeing tour of Chicago takes place aboard a climate-controlled minibus which will take you through the city and past some of its most famous landmarks and places of interest. Starting in downtown, you’ll pass through the bustling Loop with its eye-catching buildings, with a chance to disembark and enter one of its skyscrapers whose lobby was designed by the legendary Frank Lloyd Wright. Other highlights include Lincoln Park, Grant Park, Lake Shore Drive and the original Playboy Mansion. Guests also have the option to upgrade the minibus tour to include an architecture cruise along the Chicago River. From $47 per person.
Ghost Bus Tour
Running northeast-to-southwest between Chicago’s Chinatown and the neighbouring city of Lockport, Archer Avenue has earned a reputation as one of the most haunted roads in the world. This captivating half-day bus tour lets you decide the veracity behind these ethereal claims by taking you along its length, which is steeped in stories of sorrow and tragedy that endure to this day in the spirits that many claim still stalk its path. Stop-offs include Fairmount Willow Hills Memorial Park, where mysterious music emanates from the cemetery’s clock tower; St. James at Sag Bridge Catholic Church, and Maple Lake, where furtive lights dance above the water. From $45 per person.
By Paul Joseph