Chicago is one of my favorite cities and while there's a lot of blogs about Windy City experiences here on AAATravelViews, I'd like to add a few of my recommendations:

Attractions
My absolute favorite place to go in Chicago is The Second City, an improv theater that’s been around since 1959 and features some of the best up-and-coming comedy sketch artists.  This is where Joan Rivers, John Candy, Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Eugene Levy, Gilda Radner, George Wendt, Shelley Long, Mike Myers, Steve Carell, Tina Fey, Stephen Colbert and Jane Lynch got their start. The shows are adult-oriented... Read More

Whether I’m traveling for business or on pleasure, it’s the destination experience that counts, not necessarily where I’m going to be spending the night. I usually end up at a standard mid-priced chain (company’s choice) or an easy-on-the-wallet, hopefully charming/quirky property (if it’s my dime). However, in Chicago I found that an upscale, business-oriented hotel like Marriott’s Renaissance Chicago Hotel can have distinct advantages.... Read More

I’m not sure if it’s actually a mile long, but the 14-block stretch of N. Michigan Avenue dubbed the “Magnificent Mile” is where you go in Chicago if you’re enamored of high-end retailers, upscale vertical malls and an air of smart urbanity. If Carrie Bradshaw and her three “Sex and the City” BFFs lived in the Windy City instead of the Big Apple, they’d be hanging here 24/7.

I set out for a walk on a cool Saturday morning. Lying at the foot of the Magnificent Mile is the Michigan Avenue Bridge. It’s a bascule (meaning moveable) bridge that provides clearance for boat traffic, and unlike... Read More

  
 When she found out I was going to Chicago my esteemed colleague Sharon Kudlowitz informed me, “You have to try the deep-dish pizza at Lou Malnati’s.” In fact, in a recent blog she rhapsodized so enthusiastically about the glories of Lou’s deep-dish pie that while reading it my mouth started watering. But while Lou’s sounded fantastic, I also wanted to claim my own discovery.

A quick bit of research revealed that three chains all vie for the hotly contested title of “Chicago’s best pizza”: Lou Malnati’s, Giordano’s and Gino’s East of Chicago. Each has its admirers and, no doubt, equally vociferous detractors. And all three have ... Read More

Navy Pier would be my choice to while away a lazy Chicago summer day. Trouble is, I paid a visit on a decidedly chilly late April afternoon. But although my timing was off, the pier is poised—once the weather warms up—to assume its role as the city’s No. 1 outdoor family-friendly entertainment destination. 

The day started out brisk and sunny, but by noon the sky had started to cloud over. By the time I headed up Michigan Avenue and then took the short jog over to the pier, the sun had vanished and low clouds ... Read More

   
Art museums in big cities almost always inspire, and that’s certainly the case at the Art Institute of Chicago. I spent a morning wandering through the institute’s maze of galleries on a recent Windy City trip before sensory and informational overload (not to mention my growling stomach and aching lower back) forced me to leave. It’s just too much to absorb in one visit. What I did see, however, knocked my socks off. ... Read More

  ‘America’s Worst Driver’ continues its search for the worst driver in the country in Chicago this Sunday, March 28 at 10 p.m. E/P on Travel Channel.

AAA’s collaboration with Travel Channel as the official safety partner on the new reality competition continues as four new contestants will take on the roads of the largest metropolis in the Midwest. As in previous episodes, the city’s worst drivers will participate in a series of challenges while visiting some of the most iconic locations in the Chicago. ... Read More

I’m not a pizza fanatic and generally order pasta or a salad when dining at a pizzeria with family or friends. Maybe it’s a result of too many mediocre pizzas in my youth; let’s face it, Domino’s, Pizza Hut and Little Caesars aren’t exactly gourmet establishments. Or maybe it’s because I grew up in Memphis where barbecue reigns supreme—who knows?... Read More

When I went to Chicago several years ago I got a glimpse of Millennium Park in Chicago from my bus window and it looked intriguing. When I went back last weekend, it was on my must-see list. I’m not sure why. I’m not a huge fan of modern architecture, but I still wanted to see how it looked in person.

My son, who lives in Chicago, was showing my husband and me the sights. ... Read More

“Big shots at da Conrad!”  That’s how my good buddy Kyle described my girlfriend and I in his thick Chicago accent when he saw our room at the impressive AAA Four Diamond Conrad Chicago on Rush and Illinois. Kyle joined us at the hotel to watch the Cubbies on our room’s awesome 50-inch plasma TV. 

We didn’t make the game this year, but the last time I was in Chicago Kyle and I caught a game and went on the Wrigley Field Tour.  Both the game and the tour are highly recommended.  I even shed a tear when I first saw the Friendly Confines. And no, it wasn’t after the Cubs lost in the playoffs last year. This year I decided to take my best gal and see more of what Chicago has to offer. ... Read More