Top Choice Museum in The Loop
Art Institute of Chicago
The Art Institute is the second-largest art museum in the country. Its collection of impressionist and post-impressionist paintings rivals those in France, and the number of surrealist works is tremendous. Download …
Top Choice Park in The Loop
Millennium Park
The city's showpiece is a trove of free and arty sights. It includes Pritzker Pavilion, Frank Gehry’s swooping silver band shell, which hosts free concerts most nights in summer (6:30pm; bring a picnic and bottle of…
Top Choice Tower in The Loop
Willis Tower
It's Chicago's tallest building, and the 103rd-floor Skydeck puts you high into the heavens. Take the ear-popping, 70-second elevator ride to the top and then step onto one of the glass-floored ledges jutting out in…
Top Choice Classical Music in The Loop
Grant Park Orchestra
It's a summertime must-do. The Grant Park Orchestra – composed of top-notch musicians from symphonies worldwide – puts on free classical concerts at Millennium Park's Pritzker Pavilion. Patrons bring lawn chairs, bl…
Top Choice Gastropub in The Loop
Gage
This always-hopping gastropub dishes up fanciful grub, from Gouda-topped venison burgers to mussels vindaloo or Guinness-battered fish and chips. The booze rocks too, including a solid whiskey list and small-batch b…
Top Choice Bar in The Loop
Berghoff
The Berghoff dates from 1898 and was the first spot in town to serve a legal drink after Prohibition (ask to see the liquor license stamped '#1'). Little has changed around the antique wood bar since then. Belly up …
Notable Building in The Loop
Chicago Cultural Center
This exquisite, beaux-arts building began its life as the Chicago Public Library in 1897. Today the block-long building houses terrific art exhibitions (especially the 4th-floor Yates Gallery), as well as jazz and c…
Architecture in The Loop
Rookery
The famed firm of Burnham and Root built the Rookery in 1888 and Frank Lloyd Wright remodeled the atrium 19 years later. It's renowned because while it looks hulking and fortress-like outside, it’s light and airy in…
Theater in The Loop
Chicago Theatre
Take a gander at the six-story sign out front. It's an official landmark (and an excellent photo op). Everyone from Duke Ellington to Frank Sinatra to Prince has taken the stage here over the years (and left their s…
Plaza in The Loop
Daley Plaza
Picasso's eye-popping untitled sculpture marks the heart of Daley Plaza, which is the place to be come lunchtime, particularly when the weather warms up. You never know what will be going on – dance performances, ba…