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Jun 18, 2023 · May 21, 2024 - Looking to get inspired on your trip to Chicago? Immerse yourself into world-class art, exciting history, and mind-bending science. Check out the best museums in Chicago to visit in 2024. Book effortlessly online with Tripadvisor!
- The Art Institute of Chicago. Art Museum. The Art Institute of Chicago is one of the oldest and biggest art museums in the United States with more than 300,000 works in its permanent collection.
- The Chicago History Museum. History Museum. Founded in 1856, The Chicago History Museum was originally named the Chicago Historical Society. Like so much of the city, the Chicago Historical Society's early collection was destroyed in the Great Chicago Fire of 1871.
- The Field Museum. Natural History Museum. The Field Museum of Natural History is one of the biggest natural history museums in the world. The Field Museum is considered a leader in its scientific and educational programming.
- Museum of Science and Industry. Science Museum. The Museum of Science and Industry is located in Chicago's Jackson Park in the former Palace of Fine Arts.
Explore ancient Egyptian tombs, underwater worlds, Impressionist masterpieces, the depths of space, and beyond. From major exhibits to neighborhood cultural attractions, there’s a whole world to explore at Chicago’s renowned museums, galleries, and historic places. Save with attraction passes
- American Writers Museum. Since it opened in 2017, the American Writers Museum has been dedicated to preserving and honoring great American writers throughout history.
- Art Institute of Chicago. The Art Institute of Chicago is one of the oldest art museums in the world, having opened in 1879. It also happens to be one of the largest museums of its kind, with a collection of over 300,000 pieces divided into 11 different categories.
- Chicago Children’s Museum. The Chicago Children’s Museum is one of the city’s best spots if you’re visiting the Windy City with kids. The facility was designed to cater to youngsters of all ages, from babies and toddlers all the way up to preteens.
- Chicago History Museum. With its first roots dating back to 1856, the Chicago History Museum was created to preserve the city’s history. Though the original collection curated by the Chicago Historical Society, the organization that runs the museum, was destroyed in 1871, it was largely restored in the following years.
- Art Institute of Chicago
- Adler Planetarium
- Richard H. Driehaus Museum
- Field Museum
- Shedd Aquarium
- Museum of Contemporary Art
- Chicago Architecture Center
- American Writers Museum
- Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago Money Museum
- Pritzker Military Museum & Library
It’s been voted one of the top museums in the world by TripAdvisor users, it’s one of the oldest and largest art museums in the country, and it’s home to one of the biggest collections of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist art outside the Louvre in Paris. Need we say more about the Art Institute of Chicago? Probably not, but we will. It’s also wh...
Explore the origins of the universe, peer through ancient telescopes, and view the stars at this lakefront planetarium and museum, part of Chicago’s Museum Campus alongside the Field Museum and Shedd Aquarium. This is, in fact, the Western Hemisphere’s oldest planetarium. Not that you’d be able to tell from the state-of-the-art exhibits you’ll see ...
As soon as you step through the door, you’re going to be wowed by Driehaus Museum’s glistening marble floors, grand staircases, ornate decorative arts, imposing fireplaces, and antique furnishings. The museum is housed in the former Nickerson Mansion, which became known as the “Marble Palace” — a fitting place to bring Chicago’s Gilded Age to life....
Snap a selfie with the largest creature to ever roam the Earth at the Field Museum, where Máximo the Titanosaur greets you as soon as you walk through the doors. After, explore the museum galleries and say hello to SUE the T.rex, man-eating tigers, mummified Pharaohs, rare gemstones, and giant bugs. You can also do some Dozin’ With the Dinos, when ...
Watch sharks feed, sea otters swim, stingray glide, and dolphins play at Shedd Aquarium, one of the largest aquariums in the world. Although not strictly a museum, Shedd Aquarium is part of Chicago’s Museum Campus, along with the Field Museum and Adler Planetarium — so think of it more as a living museum filled with exotic aquatic life. The views a...
Get a little bold and adventurous at the Museum of Contemporary Art, located just one block east of historic Water Tower Placeon The Magnificent Mile. Browse the museum’s permanent collection, which includes more than 2,500 works, displayed in rotation, spanning media and movements from the 1920s to the present. Over the summer, Tuesdays on the Ter...
There couldn’t be a better location for the Chicago Architecture Center than the legendary Ludwig Mies van der Rohe skyscraper at One Illinois Center, overlooking the Chicago Riverwalk. As if that wasn’t enough to entice you, the center offers more than 85 walking, bus, and boat tours, including the Chicago Architecture Foundation Center River Crui...
The writing’s on the wall at the American Writers Museum — literally. Located a short walk from Millennium Park, this is the first museum of its kind in the nation, with exhibits that explore the history of American writing in all its guises, including fiction, poetry, journalism, and more. A couple of the museum’s many highlights include Paul O. Z...
Want more bang for your buck on your tour of the Loop’s museums? A visit to the Money Museum won’t cost you a dime. The collection spotlights historical currency and artifacts, so if you’re wondering what money looked like in Colonial times, this is the place to go. There are games and simulations, too, so you can experience how the Federal Reserve...
At the Pritzker Military Museum & Library, You’ll find thousands of artifacts, books, posters, photographs, maps, and manuscripts, ranging from military medals to swords, that tell America’s history through the eyes of the citizen soldier. Take a tour any day of the week (free with admission) or wander collections ranging from WWII and Korean War t...
Jun 26, 2019 · Top 10 Chicago Museums. By. Jennifer Roche. Updated on 06/26/19. Fact checked by. Patrice Williams. ShutterRunner.com (Matty Wolin) / Getty Images. Chicago is an exciting getaway destination —great for a long weekend. Chicago's museums are bright jewels in its crown and rank among the best in the world.
Mar 19, 2024 · The Most Popular Museums in Chicago. The Field Museum of Natural History. The Art Institute of Chicago. Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago. Adler Planetarium. Shedd Aquarium. Museum of Science & Industry. Best Chicago Museums: Local Favorites. National Museum of Mexican Art. The DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center.
