Top Things to do in Illinois
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Things to do in Illinois, United States: The Best Observation Decks & Towers
Discover the best top things to do in Illinois, United States including Skydeck Chicago - Willis Tower, 360 Chicago Observation Deck, South Quad Bell Tower, Dearborn Observatory, Millennium Carillon, Smiley Water Tower, Historic Water Tower, Northmoor Observatory, Centennial Wheel.
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1. Skydeck Chicago - Willis Tower
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 17,474 reviews
No trip to Chicago is complete without a visit to the top of the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere and The Ledge at Skydeck Chicago! Treat yourself to a "one stop Chicago" experience on your journey to the 103rd floor. Enjoy 360-degree views spanning up to 50 miles and 4 states and our most spectacular view - 1,353 feet straight down! "Dare to Stand Out" on The Ledge - glass balconies extending 4.3 Feet outside the building provide a thrilling, once in a lifetime experience!
Reviewed By manjushap1907 - Visakhapatnam, India
A must visit place when u visit Chicago.. A unique experience when you stand in the glass box and have unparalleled views of Chicago city.. Advise don’t visit this place during long weekends as the waiting time is too long and you cannot have a good experience due to the rush of the crowds.. You are given 1-2mins to just take pics and you cannot really enjoy the experience..
2. 360 Chicago Observation Deck
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 10,847 reviews
Located on the 94th floor of the John Hancock Center, 360 CHICAGO offers breathtaking views of Chicago’s skyline, the lakefront, and four states. It’s the only place you can enjoy Chicago’s highest thrill ride, TILT – a giant moving platform that literally TILTs visitors over the edge of the building. Relax at BAR 94 with local favorites, a large cocktail selection, and front-row seating to the city’s best views from 1,000 feet up. Explore HD interactive touch screens in seven languages and learn more about the Windy City. If you really want to experience Chicago, make your first stop 360 CHICAGO.
Reviewed By Mobile750626
I visit the observation deck last week and I have to say it was incredible!, I was there when the sun goes down and the view everywhere you look at was simply amazing, and the tilt experience is also highly recommended!!!
3. South Quad Bell Tower
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 8 reviews
Reviewed By 866TaylorB - Chicago, United States
Some architectural critics have compared the McFarland Carillon on the University of Illinois campus to the Picasso statue in Chicago. Not so. Located at 1301 West Gregory Drive in Urbana, the McFarland Carillon also has been referred to as the McFarland Bell Tower or McFarland Memorial Bell Tower or South Quad Bell Tower. Built in 2008-2009, it is a 185-foot-tall bell tower with 49 bells, which can be controlled by a computer with 500 pre-programmed songs or can be played directly with a keyboard. Truth be told, the South Quad Bell Tower wasn't supposed to be. The carillon project began as an attempt to upgrade and renovate the University Chimes in the bell tower of Altgeld Hall. But it wasn't feasible to fit 49 bells in a tower that holds only 15. So a free-standing campanile tower that had been considered as a possibility for the campus since 1913 became a reality. The construction of the McFarland Carillon was funded with a $1.5 million donation by Illinois alum H. Richard McFarland and named for his wife Sarah "Sally" McFarland, who died of ovarian cancer in 2003. The tower's 49 bells were cast in the Netherlands and transported to Champaign-Urbana at a total cost of $550,000.
4. Dearborn Observatory
Overall Ratings
4.0 based on 2 reviews
5. Millennium Carillon
Overall Ratings
4.0 based on 79 reviews
14-story tall tower with a 72-bell Carillon instrument inside. Climb to the top and see Naperville and beyond. On a clear day, see the Chicago Skyline. Concerts are performed by world-renowned carillonneurs spring-fall and concert-goers can enjoy the music from the lawns surrounding the tower. Also a site for weddings.
6. Smiley Water Tower
Overall Ratings
4.0 based on 35 reviews
Reviewed By johnVectorman - Atlanta, United States
What an amazing water tower. It is big, tall and bulbous. It has a smiley face painted on it. My life has never been the same since I first laid eyes on it. There are days that I feel like I can't get through the day without returning to this water tower. From what I understand, it is actually still in use to this day! The town of Atlanta survives only with the help of this water tower. It's not just another pretty face.
7. Historic Water Tower
Overall Ratings
4.0 based on 221 reviews
Reviewed By The_Loup_Garou - Phoenix, United States
I first encountered the Water Tower, on N Michigan Ave (Magnificent Mile), when we first stayed at the near-by Ritz Carlton. That was about 25-30 years ago. On this September trip, we were staying near-by, but at the Westin, a block, or so away. The Water Tower is really two buildings, on either side of N Michigan Ave, the Water Tower itself, with a small art gallery, and then the Chicago Avenue Pumping Station, much of which is now a Department of Tourism office, a small theater, the Looking Glass Theater Company. For me, the architecture is the primary draw, and it always has been, however, there is much history associated with the Water Tower - the second oldest remaining such tower in the USA. Even in the dull light of a cloudy September day, the structure is beautiful, reaching into the sky 185'. As much of this area has been rebuilt, with much more modern structures, the Water Tower is a throwback - a throwback to 1869. Visually, it almost seems out of place, but then maybe it’s the newer, much more modern structures, which are themselves, out of place? One positive effect that I encountered on this day, was that the light was soft, as too often, these two structures have some hard shadows cast upon them, by the taller, surrounding buildings. Besides walking around each of the buildings, I also got to gaze upon the Tower Building, from the restaurant, a few floor up in the Park Hyatt hotel - a view that I had never taken in before. I spent probably an hour and a half between both buildings, and would recommend that one budget at least an hour, to take both structures in, to their fullest.
8. Northmoor Observatory
9. Centennial Wheel
Overall Ratings
4.0 based on 158 reviews
Reviewed By Sonny_circumvehor - Toledo, United States
Not allowed to complain about the price, if you agreed to the price. Yes expensive, but it is what it is. Maybe because it wasn't super busy but we did get a pod to ourselves . Side note, go thru the arboretum, then a few short steps to the ticket booth / ride.. It looked as though there is a merry go round in the summer as well. I think, open till 11?
