Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)I would strongly suggest this book is not useful to Chicago visitors.
It has 31 tours, more than a typical visitor can do in a few days, but does not offer effective ways to prioritize/connect. The walks are poorly indexed (yes, they are numbered from South to North and there is a "per theme" index, and a minimalistic "connecting walks" line at the end of each tour, but that is all).
I've tried to use 5 different tours during a short first time visit and not once I finished the walk as recommended (because the routes are not efficient in covering the interesting parts of the city).
There are enough typos and mistakes (swapping "right" for "left" and "51st St" for "55th St" - try to follow the Washington Park or Hyde Park tours, for example) sprinkled all over. Not a big deal in a regular guide, but crucial in a walking tour.
Try to walk half mile across Washington Park "in the Southeast direction", without any reference and a bad map and end up exactly where the tour picks up on the other side (where the book assumes you are at a very exact place, but you have no idea where it is).
The access/transit info is mostly correct, but minimalistic enough to be useless.
Even when the author is "witty", it is at the expense of function. Millennium Park is one of the most touristy places in Chicago (no need for directions) but he spends several pages making up names for the landmarks and mixing real and "funny" names. What does the reader win in exchange for the confusion? Viagra fountain jokes. Then, in the same walk, crossing Grant Park, when there is opportunity for a guide book to add real value, the text is vague and sparse.
I don't mean to say it is all garbage. But the purpose of a walking tour book is to be read while you use it walking the city. For that purpose, in a city as easy to walk as Chicago, you would be better off with regular travel book and common sense than trying to follow the tours in this book.
Click Here to see more reviews about: Walking Chicago: 31 Tours of the Windy City's Classic Bars, Scandalous Sites, Historic Architecture, Dynamic Neighborhoods, and Famous Lakeshore
Walk the streets of Chicago and discover why the town that brought us Michael Jordan, Al Capone, and Oprah is anything but a "Second City." Chicago's diverse neighborhoods represent a true melting pot of America-from Little Italy to Greektown, Chinatown to New Chinatown, and La Villita to the Ukrainian Village. It's also the most walkable city in the country, with flat streets laid out in a sensible grid and 21 miles of stunning lakeshore. The 31 walks described here include trivia about architecture, political gossip, and the city's rich history, plus where to dine, get the best deep-dish pizza, visit world-class museums, have a drink, and shop.
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