Spend about an hour getting a real sense of Chicago's layout and history by cruising the rivers on an architectural boat ride. Make sure it is an authorised and well-reviewed outfit.

www.architecture.org/tour_view.aspx?TourID=8
www.chicagoline.com/
www.shorelinesightseeing.com/

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Make sure you catch a morning flight to Chicago - you'll arrive in time to catch an afternoon architecture tour of the city, by river boat. Chicago's the home of the skyscraper, and you get some awesome views of some of the world's first, and finest, tall buildings from the river. From Trump Tower to the Wrigley dynasty's HQ, you'll feel like you know the city a lot better at the end of the tour. The guides are great - typically friendly mid-Westerners keen to share their enthusiasm for one of the world's great cities.

www.architecture.org/tour_view.aspx?TourID=8

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One of the world's great art museums, from Monet to Chagall, fantastic artifacts from Chicago's architecture history (the best in the US by far) including the trading room from Louis Sullivan's legendary (and much lamented) Chicago Stock Exchange. You could spend a week there, but plan a long afternoon. The admission is whatever you wish to pay. There's food inside and out. Grant Park and the Buckingham Fountain (and Lake Michigan) are just outside. www.artic.edu/aic/index.php

111 South Michigan Avenue, Chicago, Illinois - at Monroe. CTA "El" ("The Loop") to Adams Street, walk a block east to the museum; www.artic.edu/aic/index.php

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One of the city's least-know jewels, despite being housed in the grandest piece of classical architecture on one of the busiest stretches of Michigan Avenue. An unusual thing in America, the whole place is free to the public.

It is primarily a museum and performance space, with a busy schedule of exhibits and performances. On Saturdays, they often have midday dance classes for young and old (great fun, even if you just watch).

The Chicago Symphony and Opera both offer free performances in the opulent Preston Bradley Hall, covered in glass mosaic, beneath the world's largest Tiffany dome.

On Michigan Avenue, at Randolph. Half a block away from the Loop trains, served by several buses and underground garages;
www.ci.chi.il.us/Tourism/CultureCenterTour/

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago_Cultural_Center

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Chicago's finest 'pork project' in decades, it features surprising architecture and art that are all interactive in some way. In nice weather, you'll find dozens or hundreds of kids playing at Crown Fountain, with two towering digital screens showing the smiling faces of Chicagoans in slow-motion.

The city also offers free performances in the Gehry-designed Pritzker Pavillion. There's a bike centre to rent or stow a bike, a large garden, skating rink, restaurant and spectacular views of both the lake, and the most elegant stretch of Michigan Avenue.

My favorite part? The world's only Gehry bridge, which meanders like a lazy stream, and leaps across Columbus Avenue, tranporting you into another large park.

On Michigan Avenue between Randolph and Monroe.
One block from the Loop, served by every elevated train in the city, numerous buses, and several underground garages; www.millenniumpark.org/

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