Chicago Riverwalk & History Tour - Self-Guided Walking Tour (iPhone & Android)

Chicago Riverwalk & History Tour - Self-Guided Walking Tour (iPhone & Android)

Welcome to Chicago’s scenic Riverwalk. Spanning from Lake Michigan west to Franklin Street. Called the city's 'Second Lakefront', the Riverwalk contains restaurants during the summer months, seating areas to relax, boat rentals, and theater-style seating for various performances.

After you book the tour, we will email you the link to the APP and the TOUR PASSWORD.

FULLY-AUTOMATIC & OFFLINE: Each point of interest along the tour has a narrated story, narrated directions, and helpful images. As you walk along the path and approach a pin, it’s story will automatically pop up and start playing.

FASCINATING STORIES: Engaging, and entertaining story about each point.

FREEDOM TO TRAVEL: No scheduled tour timings, no crowded groups, and no rush to move along past stops that interest you.

PRE-TRAVEL PREPARATION
We recommend that you download the app & the tour while you have a good internet connection.

Itinerary
This is a typical itinerary for this product

Stop At: Wrigley Building, 410 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60611-4213

You can’t miss the gleaming glass Trump Tower on the left. But for now, focus directly ahead. Do you see a tall white building with a clocktower? That’s the Wrigley Building.

You probably know Wrigley from the famous Wrigley's chewing gum. That gum made William Wrigley Jr. his fortune! But William didn’t start out with gum -- he started out with manufactured baking powder and soap. He included gum as a promotional gimmick in the soap boxes. But the gum itself became so popular, that William decided to make it his primary product!

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Michigan Avenue Bridge, 333 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60601-3901

Michigan Avenue Bridge is officially known as the Du Sable Bridge. Jean-Baptiste Point Du Sable is the Founder of Chicago.

Born in 1745 in Haiti, Du Sable had an African slave mother and French mariner father. He traveled to France with his father, where he found both education and maritime adventures. On ships, it was easy enough for him to pick up many languages and he soon spoke French, Spanish, English, and even some Native American dialects.

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Trump International Hotel & Tower® Chicago, 401 N Wabash Ave, Chicago, IL 60611, USA

In 2001, Donald Trump announced that it would be the tallest building in the world, but after 9/11, plans were scaled back significantly. Today, the tower is the fourth tallest building in the United States. At 1,399 feet tall, it contains 98 stories and cost almost $850 million to construct. In 2014, the tower’s penthouse sold for a staggering $17 million, shattering previous Chicago records.

The tower employs the same building technique as the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. The building has a central concrete core with concrete arms that reach out across several different floors. The method allows for both structural strength an

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Irv Kupcinet Bridge, 330 N Wabash Ave, Chicago, IL 60611, USA

This picturesque bridge was awarded the American Institute of Steel Construction’s Most Beautiful Bridge award in 1930 – and it’s easy to see why.

Just like the Michigan Avenue Bridge behind us, this bridge is also a bascule. That means that when taller boats need to pass underneath, it can split in two and rise up.


Duration: 10 minutes

Stop At: Vietnam Veterans Fountain, 35 E Wacker Dr, Chicago, IL 60601-2314

Look to your left. Another set of large staircases lead back up to the main street. At their base is a sunken, rectangular pool and fountain. That’s the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Walk towards it.

Designed by Carol Ross Barney and unveiled in 2005, the Memorial honors Illinois service members who were killed, lost, or later died as a result of the Vietnam War.

Look behind the fountain pool at the large medal. This is a Vietnam service medal, awarded to everyone who served during the war. Look at the black granite beam below. It’s inscribed with the servicemens’ names listed in chronological order. A timeline of significant wartime events is alongside.


Duration: 10 minutes

Stop At: Bataan-Corregidor Memorial Bridge, 229 N State St, Chicago, IL 60601, USA

This is the State Street Bridge.

Completed in 1949, this is actually one of Chicago’s newer bridges. It took five years to complete because of steel shortages due to World War II. It’s one of the widest bridges in the city, accommodating an impressive 8 lanes of traffic. Constructing this giant bridge was difficult: the tresses were constructed off-site and brought on site by a giant barge.


Duration: 10 minutes

Stop At: Marina Towers, 300 N State St, Chicago, IL 60654, USA

The twin buildings across the river look like giant corn cobs, don’t they? Their circular and Designed by Bertrand Goldberg in the 60s, they were supposed to incentive residents to stay in the city instead of moving out into the suburbs.

The towers function as a “city in a city”. They have an in-house theatre, gym, pool, ice-rink, bowling alley, 360-degree roof deck, and of course a marina. Plus, each unit has a private balcony, often with a view of the river. The ‘burbs simply can’t compete with that!


Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Dearborn Street Bridge, Dearborn Street, Chicago, IL 60654

It’s another bascule bridge! This is Dearborn Street Bridge, built in 1963.

Fun fact: the first bascule bridge in Chicago was built in this location in 1834. Unfortunately, it wasn’t a great bridge: it was so small that it would obstruct passing boats! There was only a 60-foot clearance, so boats hit the bridge often.


Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Clark Street Bridge, Chicago, IL

Ahead of you is the Clark Street Bridge. Just beside is the site of the infamous Eastland Disaster. Continue forward and walk under the bridge as you listen to the story.

It was July 24th, 1915. Western Electric, Chicago’s largest manufacturer, was holding its fifth annual picnic right on the opposite side of the riverbank. The company had arranged a day of fun for the employees and their families: five ships had been booked to take around 7,000 people from Chicago to Michigan City.

The Eastland was one of these five ships. It was docked right opposite this spot, at the Clark Street Dock. Tragically, it never left.


Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Reid Murdoch Building, 330 N Clark St, Chicago, IL 60654, USA

Constructed in 1914, the building today is home to the Encyclopedia Britannica headquarters. In 1915, it served as a makeshift hospital for the survivors of the Eastland Disaster. The building seems small and quaint when compared to the towering glass skyscrapers all around, doesn’t it? It’s hard to realize that it was a signature piece of the riverwalk skyline a century ago.


Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Chicago Riverwalk, Chicago, IL 60601

Ever since it was expanded in 2015, the Chicago Riverwalk has become a popular destination for locals and tourists alike. The waterfront attraction boasts cocktail bars, views of some of Chicago's most beautiful buildings and access to one of our favorite boat tours. With breathtaking sights and plenty of locations along the way where you can sit down and enjoy them, there's no better spot to go for a walk and soak up the city.

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: 222 Merchandise Mart Plz Suite 107, Chicago, IL 60654-1103

The Mart was built by Marshall Field & Company, a department store. The idea was to create a central marketplace where retailers could come to buy their wares all under one roof. It’s so big that it even has its own zip code! Designed in the art-deco style, the Mart is a commercial building home to storefronts and corporate offices. When the building was built in 1930, it was the largest in the world at 4 million square feet!

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Wolf Point West, 343 W Wolf Point Plaza, Chicago, IL 60654, USA

How did this area get such an interesting name? Well, some believe it’s named after a Native American called Moa-Way, which translates to ‘wolf.’ There’s also a theory that a soldier from Fort Dearborn noticed that all the wolves would hang out around here at night. There’s no definitive right answer, so you can choose your favorite story!

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: The McCormick Bridgehouse & Chicago River Museum, 376 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60601-3807

350 years ago, the land you stand upon now was a muddy marsh. To the left, you would have seen miles of flat prairie land. On your right, you’d see sand dunes. This river is truly the lifeblood of the city, allowing for all the incredible transformation that has occurred since the first settlers arrived. The Chicago River was a crucial artery connecting the Great Lakes to the Atlantic, allowing settlers to travel and trade.


Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Tribune Tower, 435 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60611-4066

In 1922, the Chicago Tribune held a little competition to celebrate its 75th anniversary. The newspaper planned to build a new headquarters and invited architects to compete to create the winning design. They wanted the tower to be “the most beautiful and distinctive office building in the world,” a pretty tall order! The winning architects would receive a cash prize as well as the chance to make their mark on the skyline.


Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: William P. Fahey Bridge, Chicago, IL 60611, USA

The Columbus Drive Bridge can’t be called historic since it was built just in 1982. In fact, this bridge is the youngest river-crossing bridge.

In fact, this bridge is the youngest river-crossing bridge. It’s unique in a couple of different ways. For one, it uses box girders to span the river, rather than trusses. This bridge is also the first to have its trunnions set back, so that pedestrians can walk below it at river level. You can easily see the difference between this bascule bridge and the more historic and ornate ones we’ve covered.

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: NBC Tower, 455 Cityfront Plaza Dr, Chicago, IL 60611, USA

The tower contains 850,000 square feet and is 37 stories high. Fun fact: this was the former recording spot of the famous Jerry Springer Show, as well as the Steve Harvey Show.

You may know of NBC’s global headquarters at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in New York City. Well, NBC Tower here in Chicago is actually modeled off of the 30 Rock building. It’s a fine example of the Art Deco style, designed by architect Adrian Smith.


Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Chicago Harbor Lock, 108 N Streeter Dr, Chicago, IL 60611, USA

The lock is a device used to raise and lower boats between stretches of water on different levels. In this case, the lock exists to ease the flow of water traffic between the river and the lake. The lock chamber itself is about 80 feet wide and 600 feet long. That means it can fit up to 100 boats at a time! It’s one of the busiest locks in the nation for commercial and recreational use.


Duration: 5 minutes