Chicago Highlights Driving Tour Questions Answered!
On our Chicago Highlights Detour 101 we take private tour guests to see a lot of Chicago’s primary tourist attractions which we discuss regularly. Chicago Detours tour guides like myself are all passionate about Chicago history and know a lot, but sometimes we still get stumped. So I dug into some tour questions we couldn’t quite answer […]
Discover the Traces of Military History in Chicago
For Veterans Day I want to highlight some of the traces of military history in Chicago. Both downtown and throughout the neighborhoods, buildings, place names, museums and memorials bear tribute to the brave women and men who fought for their country. So, in memory of the sacrifices made for the country by our veterans, here […]
Five Creative Ideas for a Chicago Girlfriends Getaway
A girlfriends getaway to Chicago is not foreign here at Chicago Detours. We are a female-owned and operated business. We know all about the importance of a good #girlsquad and a good girlfriends getaway. The best part of being in a girl squad, of course, is that they make the best travel companions. Who better […]
Best Neighborhoods for Historic Chicago Pub Crawls
We love good Chicago historic pub crawls. Just ask the guests from our Historic Chicago Walking Bar Tour. Or the 1893 World’s Fair Tour with Bars. Or the Big Shoulders Historic Bar and Food Bus Tour, which takes guests through the working-class neighborhood of Bridgeport for stops in historic bars. Seems safe to say that […]
Chicago Gay Neighborhood History
I started thinking about how Chicago being the “City of Neighborhoods” has intersected with the city’s LGBT history. Chicago’s Boystown neighborhood made history in 1997 when Mayor Richard M. Daley designated it the city’s official gay neighborhood. It was the first such designation in American history. Chicago gay neighborhood history stretches back over a century […]
Questions from the Historic Chicago Walking Bar Tour
Our guides accumulate a lot of knowledge in the course of learning and guiding our Chicago walking tours. Still, we all get questions that stump us from time to time. Being responsible and honest folks, we never fib. Instead, we take the time to do research and discover more about Chicago history. So let’s delve […]
Seven Holiday Things to Do in Chicago
It’s that time of year when snow is falling, lights are twinkling and you’re desperately searching for holiday things to do in Chicago. We get it. We’ve fallen into the rut of doing zoo lights and the same bar crawl every year. This holiday season you can be more creative with the activities you plan […]
For Columbus Day: Five Sites for Italians in Chicago
Next Monday, October 8th, is Indigenous Peoples’, er, Columbus Day. Here in Chicago, that means the annual Columbus Day Parade will go down State Street, sponsored by the Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans. It also gives us a good opportunity to look at sites and ideas associated with the history of Italians in Chicago. […]
Learn About Edgar Miller, A Great Forgotten Chicago Artist
Edgar Miller is not a name that comes tripping off too many tongues in Chicago these days. I’ll admit that while I knew some of his work, I never heard his name until very recently. Yet 80 or 90 years ago his name was everywhere. Back then, you’d find a bubbling local arts scene with […]
Where’s the Historic Marker for the Infamous 1968 DNC?
The 1968 DNC (Democratic National Convention) is among the most infamous and miserable events in Chicago’s history. Cops beating protestors. “The whole world is watching!” Mayor Daley sweating bullets and cussing out politicians. The DNC felt, still feels, like the culmination of an era. Post-war America ended in a sweaty convention hall and the contentious […]