Planning Your Visit

The below information is intended as a guide for all of our out-of-town guests. Hopefully you find this information useful. If you have any other questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us!

What to do in Chicago

We’re biased, of course, but here are some of our favorite places to visit in Chicago. This is by no means an exhaustive list. Here’s a top 10 museums in Chicago list for your use as a starting point. Many on this list are within minutes of our hotel. There’s also the official visitor’s website for Chicago.

  • Museums
    • The Field Museum – The Field Museum is one of the best natural history museums in our country. This museum is across Grant Park from the hotel, and is within walking distance. This would be an approximately 15-20 minute (o.7-mile) walk across the park and to the south.
    • The Shedd Aquarium – The Shedd is a very cool aquarium with a new exhibit on jelly fish – Cnidarians! One of the coolest phylum (aka groups) of animals. Located next door to both The Field Museum and Adler Planetarium, this museum is also within walking distance of the hotel.
    • Adler Planetarium – This planetarium has recently redone some of its interior to great effect. Jeff is enthralled with the projector system. This is within the same cluster about 20 minutes walking from the hotel. Adler Planetarium is on Lake Michigan.
    • Museum of Science and Industry – MOSI contains once of Jeff’s absolute favorite exhibits – the U-505 Submarine – the only one in the United States. This museum is farther south from the hotel than the others, but travel is possible via multiple public routes. Check out the possibilities. This hotel is approximately 7 miles south of The Blackstone – roughly 10 minutes by car or taxi, or 15-20 minutes by bus.
    • Lincoln Park Zoo – The Lincoln Park Zoo has free admission and is open every day of the year. The zoo is just a few miles north of downtown Chicago and is accessible via car, taxi, or public transportation. Please see their website for more information on getting to the zoo. In addition to several public buses, the metro stop is about 1 mile from the zoo. Their website approximates cab fair from the city to the zoo at about $10. Options abound.
    • Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum – This great stop is located just north of the Lincoln Park Zoo, and is also about 10 minutes (approximately 5 miles) north of The Blackstone. They have a nominal admission fee, with a great variety of permanent and traveling exhibits, both indoors and out. Details on getting there via public transportation can be found on their website.

 

 

  • Parks and other cool places – all within walking distance of The Blackstone, or more accessible with a short ride on a bus or in a cab.
    • Grant Park is in front of the hotel. This park extends across much of the Lake Michigan waterfront, and provides a great place to walk.
    • Buckingham Fountain in Grant Park – just west and a bit north of The Blackstone.
    • Millennium Park – this is about a 15 minute walk north of The Blackstone, or a very short bus ride.

 

  • Shopping
    • The Navy Pier – classic tourist stop in Chicago with tons of food options, shopping, a ferris wheel, games and goofy play spaces inside, The Crystal Garden (simply an interesting space – for those Floridians among us, it’s full of…guess what??? Palm trees! :D). The Navy Pier is best reached via a short cab ride – less than 10 minutes (approx. 2.5 miles from The Blackstone). It’s walkable, and if you’re up for the distance, it’s mostly park. But walkers beware as Lakeshore Drive is a seriously busy road which parallels Grant Park.

 

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