Best Museums in Chicago

Chicago is not only famous for its splendid architecture and imposing skyscrapers. The so-called "Windy City" also stands out for hosting a large number of museums with paintings, artifacts, installations, sculptures and natural objects that are unique in the world.

For example, among the things to see and do in Chicago you should include a visit to the Museum of Natural History and, thus, contemplate the evolution of mankind. But, if you are traveling with the little ones, my advice is not to miss the Children's Museum, so they can have fun while they learn. The options are very diverse and, depending on your interests, you will find a museum that will catch your attention.

One of the things you should do in Chicago is to get tickets for the Field Museum of Natural History, since it is one of the most outstanding in its category worldwide.

Its halls house important objects representative of the history of mankind and the different periods and civilizations that have existed.

Currently, the Field Museum of Natural History houses more than 40 million natural and historical pieces. The building offers three large floors in which you will find distributed around 30 permanent exhibits, referring to geology, zoology, anthropology and botany.

However, the main attraction of this museum is the dinosaur room, where you will see "Sue", an impressive skeleton of a Tyrannosaurus Rex, belonging to the Cretaceous period. It is a 4 meters high and 12.3 meters long specimen, considered the largest find in the world.

Practical information about the Field Museum

• Address: 1400 S. Lake Shore Drive.
• Hours: from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (daily)
• Price: the average entrance fee is 26 euros.

One of the most popular museums in the city is the Art Institute of Chicago, visited daily by groups of tourists and locals with the desire to enjoy the works exhibited in the halls: twentieth century design, ceramic pieces, sculptures, writings and other artistic resources belonging to different world artists.

The museum offers more than 300,000 works in which you can appreciate the work of great exhibitors of impressionism and cubism, Chicago artists, the African diaspora and a series of urban landscapes.

The installations also house ink paintings, vases, bottles and statues belonging to the millenary collection of Asian art.

For example, some of the frescoes and sculptures on display include:

• Vincent van Gogh'sbedroom.
• Kanagawa oki nami ura or Under the Kanagawa Wave by Katsushika Hokusai.
• Mao by Andy Warhol.
• The red armchair by Pablo Picasso.
• The basket of apples by Paul Cézanne.
• Inventions of the monsters by Salvador Dalí.
• American Gothic by Grant Wood.
• Blue and Green Music by Georgia O'Keeffe.
• The Boxer (bronze sculpture) by Richmond Barthé.
• Shakyamuni Buddha seated in meditation (Dhyanamudra). Granite sculpture from the Chola period (c. 855-1279).

In addition to the art collections, the museum has a library, world archives, and several study rooms devoted to reading, photography, printmaking, and drawing. However, these areas are not open access, so you must reserve your tour through the admissions section of the Art Institute of Chicago.

Practical information about the Art Institute of Chicago

• Location: 111 S. Michigan Avenue.
• Hours: Thursday (11 a.m. to 8 p.m.), Friday to Monday (10 a.m. to 5 p.m.).
• Price: the average price of general admission is 25 euros per person. Although I recommend a guided tour to learn first hand the details of the works of Goya, Picasso, Van Gogh and Monet. In the private option you have exclusive explanations for you and your group.

Another museum you can visit on your trip to Chicago is the creepy Museum of Medieval Torture. Here you will learn about the terrifying weapons used at the time along with the torture devices and representations of the most horrifying moments of this dark era.

If you are not afraid to see with your own eyes the most horrible executions in history, you can go to this museum of more than 370 square meters, which has interactive exhibits, wax figures and even a ghost hunting experience that will make you spend a truly frightening day. For this experience you must download an app on your cell phone.

In addition, with the tickets that you can purchase through the Hellotickets website you have an audio guide that will give you more details of how and why all the torture artifacts contained in the different rooms of this museum were used.

If you are a fan of the novels of Mark Twain or Frederick Douglas, you can not miss this other museum in Chicago: the Museum of American Writers, where you will discover everything about the writings of the great writers of American literature.

From interactive reading activities for children, themed rooms, unique exhibits of the most important authors, to immersive games to learn about the life and work of American writers of all time. All this awaits you in this unique museum where you can spend a very entertaining day learning about the literary genre.

Once you get your tickets to the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, located in the heart of the city, you will have the opportunity to see a collection that highlights paintings belonging to different artistic movements: postmodernism, minimalism, surrealism, conceptualism and pop art.

Also, in the gallery you will see amazing installations, photographs, performances and sculptures. All of them, works conceived by national and international artists.

As you walk through the halls you can enjoy more than 2,700 pieces and approximately 3,000 books by the artists. These are the objects that have made up the museum's permanent collection since the 1940s.

In addition, you will be able to contemplate different individual exhibitions throughout the year, as temporary loans are incorporated from artists who wish to make their art known.

The tour of the museum can be done in a minimum time of one hour, which will allow you to do other tourist activities during the day. For example, you can join one of the best gastronomic tours or go to the Shoreline Pier to board one of the Chicago cruises on Lake Michigan.

Practical information about the Museum

• Location: 220 E. Chicago Avenue.
• Hours: Wednesday to Sunday (10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.), Tuesday (10:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.).
• Price: the average ticket price is 15 euros.

Since its creation in the early 1980s, the Chicago Children's Museum has been dedicated to providing a space designed especially for the little ones of the house.

It is a place where children can learn while having fun, exploring and interacting with the different exhibits.

Children will be able to practice their psychomotor skills, assume different roles and stimulate creative thinking with each of the museum's interactive proposals.

In this sense, the little ones will have the opportunity to build objects and join the recreation of an expedition to the Sahara to dig up dinosaur bones.

They will also be able to play with water, climb, participate in demonstrations, scientific experiments and much more.

Without a doubt, this visit to the Chicago Children's Museum is an educational activity that you can incorporate among the things to see and do in Chicago with kids.

Practical Information

• Location: Navy Pier.
• Hours: 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (Thursday to Monday).
• Price: the average price of general admission is 19 euros.

The Dusable Museum of African American History of Chicago was founded in the early 60's, with the purpose of making known both African American art and the history and culture of this great community. All this, through a series of invaluable historical exhibits and memorabilia.

In total, the museum boasts a collection that exceeds 15,000 pieces. Inside, you will find documents that belonged to the African slaves taken to America and a series of objects used by them.

Also, in the rooms you will find engravings, artifacts and interesting photographs. On the other hand, you will see sculptures and paintings by African-American artists.

This is definitely a must-see for African-American culture enthusiasts, who, like you, want to see the great collections on display in the museum's rooms.

In addition, after this visit of about an hour, you will have enough time to take one of the Segway tours of Chicago, on foot or aboard the best tour buses.

Practical information about the Museum of African American History

• Location: 740 E. 56th Place.
• Hours: Wednesday to Sunday (11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.).
• Price: free admission.

This is one of the largest museums in Chicago. Inside you will find approximately 75 rooms with more than 2,000 scale exhibits, interactive areas, restorations, simulations and much more.

The Chicago Museum of Science and Industry is comprised of three levels, and on each level you will discover interesting permanent exhibits.

• Lower level. You'll see the restored U-505 German submarine, MSI's Henry Crown Space Center with Scott Carpenter 's Mercury Atlas 7 spacecraft and the legendary Apollo 8. Also, a gallery with race cars.
• First level. You will enjoy the maze of mirrors, a model railroad explaining the evolution of transportation in the city (steam locomotives and warplanes, etc.). In addition, the simulation of a tornado, the interactive exhibition "Genetics: decoding life", the recreation of a coal mine, the model "Main Street of yesterday" in the city of Chicago, etc., stand out.
• Second level. Here you will see some flight simulators and warships. On the other hand, there is the interactive exhibition "You! The Experience", which is a four-meter high heart with 3D technology.

In addition, you can find different temporary exhibits, which usually change every five months. In this regard, you should keep an eye on the page of the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry. You can also book tickets, check schedules, prices and any other information.

Practical Information

• Location: 5700 S. DuSable. Lake Shore Drive. Chicago.
• Hours: from 9:30 am to 4:30 pm.
• Price: the average ticket price is 21.95 euros.

The Chicago Museum of Contemporary Photography has a history of more than 40 years. It is the first university art museum in the world dedicated to collecting important photographic works belonging to artists of the twentieth century.

This museum was born as an initiative of Columbia College Chicago and its purpose is to raise awareness of the importance of the role of photography in the artistic, political and social environment, encouraging the exchange of ideas among students, artists and people in general.

In addition, MoCP is accredited by the non-profit American Alliance of Museums.

When visiting the halls of the Museum of Contemporary Photography in Chicago, you will be able to enjoy a permanent collection with more than 16,000 photographs, which combine different techniques and procedures. All of them belonging to American artists such as:

• Aaron Siskind (abstract - expressionist).
• Ansel Adams (developer of the zone system).
• Dorothea Lange (photojournalist).
• Harry Callahan (expositor of modern American photography).
• Irving Penn (fashion, portraits and still lifes), among others.

In addition, there are temporary exhibitions, educational workshops and other activities offered by the museum. Just go to the museum's official website to check the calendar.

Practical information about the Museum of Contemporary Photography

• Location: 600 South Michigan Avenue, Chicago.
• Hours: 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (Every day).
• Price: free admission.

At the Chicago History Museum you will find a large collection of photographs, objects and documents that will help you learn about the true memories of the inhabitants of the so-called "Windy City".

The museum offers a permanent exhibit showcasing the history of Chicago and the United States. You will see more than 22 million historic photographs and a series of objects rescued from the great fire of 1871.

In addition, there are interactive elements in the rooms that enhance the experience for both children and adults.

On the other hand, the museum has a larger collection that, although not available to the public, is often used for academic research. Therefore, such historical pieces are loaned to other museums.

You will also find some temporary exhibitions that are in the halls for a few months. Therefore, before visiting, it is best to access the Chicago History Museum 's website and verify this information.

Practical Information

• Location: Lincoln Park 1601 N. Clark Street.
• Hours: Wednesday to Saturday (9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.), Sunday (12:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.), Monday (9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.) and Tuesday (9:30 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.).
• Price: the average ticket price is 19 euros.

The Museum of Illusions Chicago is a space specially designed to trick the minds of all visitors through the stimulation of their senses. You will be able to have fun, be amazed by the different installations and learn the hidden mechanics behind each of the illusions, stereograms and holograms on display.

When you enter the halls of the Museum of Illusions Chicago you will find approximately 80 exhibits, among which the tilted, rotated and infinite room stands out.

You will also find the so-called vortex tunnel and infinity, the Beuchet chair illusion, a kaleidoscope, the cloning table, the record player, the complicated stick and the Rubin vase. Also, you will interact with the head in the dish, the ambiguous cylinder, the peanut illusion, optical illusions, holograms and the ames room.

The museum doors are open from 9:00 am until 8:30 pm. In fact, due to the closing time, this would be a good option to incorporate among the things to see and do in Chicago at night.

However, you should keep in mind that you will not always find tickets available at the box office. Therefore, you will have to make a reservation on the museum's official website.

Practical information about the Museum of Illusions

• Location: 25 E Washington St., Chicago.
• Hours: from 9:00 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. (daily).
• Price: the average ticket price is 20 euros.

The Chinese American Museum of Chicago opened for the first time in 2005. However, during 2008 the building suffered a fire and it was in 2010 when it reopened its doors to tell the true story of the Chinese Americans who participated in the construction of the transcontinental railroad.

In the building you will find:

• First floor: here you will find the exhibition "Attic Treasures II" which highlights dozens of historical objects such as jewelry, furniture, teapots, paintings, photographs, among others.
• Second floor: in this area you will enjoy the exhibition "My Chinatown: Stories from Within", a documentary through which you will learn about the labor, social and family customs of the people of Chinatown. Also on this floor is the exhibit "The Great Wall to the Great Lakes: Chinese Immigration to the Midwest". This is a video that explains in detail the arrival of Chinese immigrants, the discrimination to which they were exposed and their important contribution to railroad development.

In this way, you will be able to learn about the Chinese-American culture developed in the Midwest region of the United States during the 19th century.

You can also visit the official website of the Chinese American Museum of Chicago for more information about the exhibits, documentary screenings and the annual celebration.

Practical Information

• Location: Chinatown 238 West 23rd Street Chicago.
• Hours: Wednesday - Friday (9:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.) Saturday - Sunday (10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.).
• Price: The average general admission price is 8 euros per person.