You’ll learn which architects designed each building as well as its style. The tour guide will also give some background on the Chicago River itself, the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, and various engineering feats. A portion of proceeds from each CAC River Cruise ticket supports the CAC’s nonprofit educational mission.
Chicago Architecture Center River Cruise Aboard Chicago's First Lady Tickets
That’s why USA Today’s 10 Best named the Chicago Architecture Foundation Center River Cruise aboard Chicago’s First Lady the number one boat tour in North America. Complete your architecture experience with a visit to the Chicago Architecture Center, just $5 with a General Boarding Ticket and valid for up to 7 days after your cruise. Chicago's First Lady's fleet is available for groups of 2—250 to charter for your special events.
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Its boats hold up to 250 passengers and feature open-air upper decks, full-service bars, climate-controlled lower cabins and upscale marble and granite restrooms. Being onboard is sure to be an experience you'll never forget. The city's most popular tour is now offered in the evening.
All Aboard the #1 Boat Tour in North America
Please contact our group sales team at Private rentals are available.
Priority boarding tickets are also available and include an exclusive early boarding period, the option to skip the queue during general boarding, and CAC admission. Highly trained and enthusiastic volunteer CAC docents (guides) provide visitors with a compelling and detailed narrative of Chicago's numerous architectural styles and the stories of the legendary figures who designed and built our city. In 1993, to respond to rapidly growing demand for more tours, CAC found the perfect boat partner in Chicago’s First Lady Cruises. This family-owned business already had more than 50 years of experience on the river and was led by Holly and Bob Agra. Chicago’s First Lady Cruises had a reputation for Chicago’s finest fleet of cruising vessels which are docked at the southeast corner of Michigan Avenue and Wacker Drive. CAC and its world-renowned docents in partnership with Chicago First Lady Cruises created what’s known today as the Chicago Architecture Foundation Center River Cruise aboard Chicago’s First Lady.
Art Deco Skyscrapers: The Riverfront
You can buy Chicago Architecture Foundation Center River Cruise tickets online at cruisechicago.com. Add $5 to your ticket price for admission to the Chicago Architecture Center. You’ll learn about those early years, and how a city rebuilt after it was reduced to its foundations. You’ll learn about the White City, and how it influenced Chicago’s architecture through the roaring twenties.
TripAdvisor users rank the Chicago Architecture Center River Cruise aboard Chicago's First Lady as the city's #1 boat tour. A visit to the Chicago Architecture Center (CAC) includes access to two floors of extraordinary exhibits. Admission is normally $15, but with the river cruise bundle, you get access for only $5! Have a magical experience as you cruise the Chicago River in the evening. You'll delight in breathtaking views as you discover the stories behind our glorious buildings.
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Being onboard is sure to be an experience you’ll never forget. A boat tour with the Chicago Architecture Foundation is anything but boring. Not only are the docents well versed in their subject matter, they also are very entertaining. You’ll even find out if Mrs. O’Leary’s cow really did start that fire back in 1871.
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Explore Chicago’s iconic architecture aboard TripAdvisor’s #1 rated boat tour of the city. The only Chicago River cruise partnered with the Chicago Architecture Center (CAC), Chicago’s First Lady Cruises offers visitors the city’s most engaging 90-minute architectural tour experience. Led by the Chicago Architecture Center's expertly trained docent volunteers, this 90-minute cruise reveals fascinating stories behind Chicago's majestic buildings in a way no other tour can. Because CAC had already been giving walking tours along the river, docents adapted this content to suit a river-going excursion. The first cruise CAC offered to members of the NeoCon convention caught a slight snag; the boat required that the bridges be opened, but arrangements had only been made to open each bridge once, turning that inaugural tour into a one-way river cruise. Even so, the tour proved such a success that it would soon offer multiple departures each week—now with bridges always accommodating round-trips for passengers.
Chicago Architecture Center River Cruise Aboard Chicago's First Lady Set Sails Early - Lawndale News
Chicago Architecture Center River Cruise Aboard Chicago's First Lady Set Sails Early.
Posted: Thu, 07 Mar 2024 08:00:00 GMT [source]
Enjoy cruising in comfort and style aboard Chicago’s Finest Fleet, featuring unobstructed sightlines and guaranteed seating on our open-air upper decks and full-service cocktail and snack bars in our climate-controlled interior salons. You’ll see why visitors and locals alike consistently name our tour the best way to see Chicago. Architectural river cruise tickets start at $48.18 per person. If you’re a Chicago Architecture Center member you can get 2-for-1 tickets one time throughout the year. Your docent will talk about several of the individual buildings you’ll pass during your Chicago River cruise.
Tour takers soak up the relaxed setting, and docents appreciate the unique opportunity to focus more on the stories behind the buildings and less on navigating Chicago’s busy streets. Perhaps most importantly, this tour has inspired Chicagoans and out-of-towners alike to explore the city’s history and vitality—and to understand the role of architecture and design in shaping it. The founders and early members of CAC knew that architecture tours were the organization’s most vital offerings. And CAC docents had stories waiting to be told about the Chicago River. During CAC’s early decades, however, the river was not the sparkling waterway winding through the heart of the city that it is today. Decades of industrial and commercial waste had left it highly polluted.
Chicago Architecture Center River Cruise aboard Chicago's First Lady - WGN TV Chicago
Chicago Architecture Center River Cruise aboard Chicago's First Lady.
Posted: Sun, 21 Apr 2024 13:14:41 GMT [source]
You can find out more information by visiting cruisechicago.com/private-events. Wacker Drive into your GPS.Located at the northeast corner of Michigan Avenue and Wacker Drive, a black awning marks the boat dock entrance stairs that lead down to the river. If you have limited mobility, see these directions for an alternative way to reach the dock. Learn about the great architectural landmarks of Michigan Avenue and State Street. The 40 years between 1890 and 1930 saw the creation of some of Chicago’s the most memorable buildings, many of which are featured on this tour. Get the latest on CAC tours, programs, products and events delivered right to your inbox.
In pursuit of the CAC’s mission to inspire people to discover why design matters, the CAC produces programs for children, students, teens and families. Programs proactively advance diversity, inclusion and representation in STEM fields and ACED careers, while field trips, award-winning publications and online tools expand the CAC’s reach into communities across and beyond Chicagoland. Chicago's Leading Lady, Chicago’s Classic Lady, and Chicago's Emerald Lady are wheelchair-accessible. These vessels cruise at the 9am, 10am, 11am, 12pm, 1pm, 2pm, 3pm and 5pm departure times. When boarding, guests cross two ramps and enter through a 36-inch-wide opening (doorway).
Chicago Architecture Center’s tours have long received global recognition for their original content and passionate, knowledgeable docents. As CAC marks its 50th year in 2016, we share the story of how our most popular tour came to be. Taking a boat tour with the Chicago Architecture Foundation is an excellent way to learn about Chicago’s past.
Take in the city’s magnificent architecture bathed in golden light as it begins its transition from day to night. Want a quick introduction to Chicago’s magnificent architecture? This 90-minute tour takes a comprehensive look at the city’s architectural history by viewing buildings in chronological order, from early skyscrapers to new supertall high rises. We’re proud to partner with Chicago’s First Lady Cruises, operator of Chicago’s finest fleet of cruising vessels. Its boats hold up to 200 passengers and feature open-air upper decks, full-service bars, climate-controlled lower cabins and upscale marble and granite restrooms.
Crew members will assist in guiding the wheelchair across the gangway. Please present yourself to our staff if you prefer to board before general boarding starts. Guests unable to climb stairs to the upper deck may choose to sit in the open-air bow or the enclosed, climate-controlled salon with large windows. For safety reasons, motorized scooters and electric wheelchairs cannot be accommodated.
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