Chicago Line Cruises

This past weekend my best friend and unbiological twin, Becky, was in town and we were able to use my fabulous birthday present from Stephanie ... two tickets for an architectural boat tour!! I've been wanting to go on one for years.  There are quite a number of places that do the boat tours Chicago Architecture Foundation, Wendella Boat Tours and Chicago Line Cruises are the ones I would suggest.  Our tickets were for Chicago Line Cruises, one of my favorite parts about them is that they work with the Chicago History Museum to put on the tours.

We went on the architectural tour but they also have historical tours along with special evening tours, cocktail architectural and fireworks tours.  They don't explain much of the difference between the different styles of tour but we definitely got a good amount of history through the architectural one.  I think if I was to do it again I would do a historical one though or a cocktail.  The views were awesome in the daylight so I can only imagine what it looks like at nighttime!

Becky & I at the start of the tour.  

Sometimes in life it's also about the small things ... another big plus for Chicago Line Cruises is that their top deck had a canopy!  It was crazy hot Friday and that definitely helped to make it a more enjoyable tour.  I won't say too much about the details I'll let the photos speak for themselves.

Those are just a couple of the amazing views of Skyscraper alley and the city we saw.  One of our favorite parts was that we were able to see the city from an angle that we've never seen.  There were so many converted condo buildings that were made from factories and old warehouses, seeing all of different styles of architecture right next to each other and little tidbits about the buildings.  One tidbit I didn't know before was that some of the buildings are slightly curved like the bends in the river that they're on and the blue/green glass is supposed to mimic the color of the river, the last photo is the perfect example of that.  Until you're down on the river you never really notice that the buildings have that slight bend but I guarantee now that it's been pointed out to me I will be looking for it all over!

The boat tours can be a little pricey from about $30-$40 per adult at the various ones but honestly it's so worth it!  Plus if you're looking for a one of a kind Chicago experience it's totally worth it.  If you're in the area or know when you'll be coming be sure to check out Groupon and Living Social, every now and then deals for the boat tours pop up.  Now let's cross it off the list!!