Tour Chicago: River & Architecture Boat Tours

I've taken a few of the many many boat trips available in Chicago, and this past weekend we went on another one (thanks to a Groupon deal). Hands down, the river and architecture tours are the best (versus lakefront/harbor tours). Better still, find one that does both. This time, we took a Sea Dog cruise.

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I thought, since I picked the river/architecture tour, that that was all we'd get, despite the fact that Sea Dog's fleet consists entirely of giant speed boats. Nope - as it turns out, everyone gets at least a 10-15 minute speed boat ride along the lake front too. Not recommended for people with medical conditions or women in the late stages of pregnancy, which made me nervous, but it was actually really fun.

After that, we sailed up the river from Navy Pier to the Willis Tower and got a rundown of some of the more notable buildings along the way...

{Lake Point Tower - a condo building that escaped the city ban on
buildings east of Lake Shore Drive, apparently because
it was built on columns above an existing parking lot.}

{Trump Tower - a recent addition to the Chicago skyline and

the second tallest building in both Chicago and the US...

our guide got it wrong and said it was shorter than John Hancock}

{The Willis Tower - the tallest building in the US, and home to the Mister's office}

{Some of the 38 bridges crossing the Chicago River}

We also passed the Wendella cruise dock, right next to the Wrigley Building off Michigan Avenue. I took another river and lake front tour with them a couple of years ago when my Dad was visiting. It's a more relaxed tour and considerably more informative than the Sea Dog trip, and more convenient if you're strolling the Mag Mile or checking out Millennium Park - I'd recommend that one too.

Sea Dog cruises start at about $33 for the River and Lake Architecture Tour - more info at seadogcruises.com.

Wendella cruises start at about $25 for the Combined River and Lake Front Tour - more info at wendellaboats.com.