Best Shopping Malls, Outlet and Places in The Wire Area

"A few of the highlights of your tour include the Museum Campus, Navy Pier, Water Tower Place Mall, Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower), and more. You’ll be able to disembark at most landmarks, so it’s easy to use this your to further your itinerary (although traffic can be a factor, so don’t rely exclusively on this for transportation)."

"Water Tower Place is a Chicago landmark renowned for its broad selection of over 100 stores. This 8-story mall features a number of restaurants, entertainment options, as well as a live theater. Their stores and restaurants include famous brands like Adidas, Hollister co., The LEGO Store, Pandora, Sephora, and many more."

"Water Tower Place is a Chicago landmark on the Magnificent Mile and renowned for its vast selection of over 100 stores. Beyond shopping, the eight story mall also houses a number of restaurants and entertainment options, including a live theatre..."

"The shops at 900 North Michigan are based within a skyscraper of the same name. Situated between Michigan Avenue and Oak Street, the six-storey atrium offers an elite shopping experience; with Bloomingdales as headliner, the architecturally stunning building is home to such stores as Gucci, Michael Cors, Coach and Karen Millen. Once you have covered the 450,000 square feet of designer shops, dine in style at the award-winning Seasons Restaurant in the attached Four Seasons Hotel, or head to exclusive eateries like Oak Tree, Baisi Thai or Forty Carrots at Bloomingdales."

"The 70+ stores in this upscale shopping center are focused on the luxury lifestyle. The anchor is Bloomingdale’s and retailers include such high end boutiques as Crosell & Co., Galt Toys + Galt Baby, and kate spade new york. Shoppers at 900 North Michigan Shops can get a pre-spree workout at Equinox Fitness Club and a post-shopping fix at Baisi Thai or Allium Restaurant & Bar in the Four Seasons."

"900 North Michigan Shops is a visually stunning and highly desired shopping destination that resides on the north end of Chicago's vibrant Magnificent Mile with an exclusive tenant mix including Bloomingdale's, Gucci, J.Crew and more."

"It is actually the only nonprofit organisation in the USA that is fully devoted to ‘outsider’ art and self taught art. It’s more than just an art gallery or museum – it’s somewhere to come for inspiration, and it’s actually used a lot by art students in the city of Chicago. There are over 1000 works of art here, so plenty to see!"

"This is a term coined by its founders to describe art created by self-taught artists or those without any formal training. The focus here is on artists who for any number of reasons exist outside of mainstream art. The permanent collection features artists including Minnie Evans, Miles Carpenter, and William Hawkins."

"Intuit: The Center for Intuitive and Outsider Art features a large number of artworks presenting intuitive and outsider art. They have been featuring various artworks since 1991. Their world-class exhibitions give an opportunity for the public to explore this kind of art."

"The Arts Club of Chicago is an art museum with public exhibitions and private tours. The club's first floors are open to the public at no admission cost; private tours of the permanent collection can be arranged. The Arts Club, which opened in 1916, was home to the first United States showing of Pablo Picasso's work."

"If you need custom T-shirts or bulk T-shirts at warehouse prices, then Cannon’s T-shirts and More is the place for you to be."

"Source: Photo by Wikimedia Commons user One Homo Sapiens used under CC BY 3.0. Heading to the Southwest Side of Chicago?. Ford City Mall has stood there since 1945."

"It was very popular during the ‘80s and locals are still loyal to it. It is easy on the eye, with lawns and trees, and brick walls. Nowadays, it still attracts people and offers plenty of parking space, with security, and convenient shopping."

"Many of Chicago’s most historic buildings are located in the loop. The Willis Tower was the world’s tallest building until 1998. Including the antenna, it is 1,730 feet tall."

"Based on Navy Pier, this adored non-profit theatre company has done as much as anyone to help keep Chicago on the cultural map over the last 30 years. In short order the theatre has earned three Laurence Olivier Awards, as well as a regional Tony in 2008. Its main aim is to introduce people to the works of William Shakespeare, through school tours, summer plays in parks and productions at its own majestic venue, adding up to 600 performances a year."

"Another way to enjoy some family fun in Chicago is at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater. This might seem like an odd recommendation for a holiday with kids, but the showcases put up at this theater also include several kid-friendly productions. There are special abridged versions of the classic plays for the younger ones and students to enjoy."

"For theatre lovers, check out a performance at The Chicago Theatre. If you feel like doing an activity, head to 10pin Bowling Lounge under the Marina Towers north of the Chicago River. They offer a selection of beers and upscale snacks."

"At 280 acres, Big Marsh certainly lives up to its name, but this far southeast side public park—opened in 2016 in the Calumet Area Reserve—is still a relative secret to most locals. The park includes 45 acres of recreation areas designed specifically for mountain and BMX biking and casual trail riding. The rest (234 acres) is a nature preserve great for hiking and bird-watching."

"Whether you want to relax with a nature walk or go on an adventurous hike, this park is a great place to check out. Forty-five acres of the park are dedicated to more intense endeavors, such as hiking, adventure courses and off-course biking. The other 235 acres is devoted to more passive activities like bird-watching and nature walking."

"The Poetry Foundation Library is another attraction that you can’t find anywhere else in Illinois. In fact, you’d be hard-pressed to find it anywhere else in the US. There are only a handful of poetry libraries in the entire world, but the good news is that the Chicago version is one of the best."

"Chicago's Poetry Foundation is all about the study of poetry. It was the first place in the city of Chicago to focus only on poetry as an art form, which was the dream of Poetry magazine's Harriet Monroe. The foundation's goal is to heighten public and cultural interest in poetry."

"We love this sophisticated home of Poetry magazine for its underplayed elegance and hushed presence among bustling River North. It’s not shouting, “Look at me!. ” in any way or trying to be the biggest or tallest; it’s just quietly doing its job."