The view isn’t spectacular, but it is peaceful.Īt the northwest corner of 360 Chicago is a cafe and bar, with a selection that wouldn’t even fly in an airport bar.

You’ll be pleasantly surprised by the scattered benches that face the windows, allowing you to sit and watch traffic pass on Lake Shore Drive or people playing on the beach below. So is it worth the $7? Maybe, if only to hear your acrophobic father squeal and say, “I’m only looking straight ahead, I can’t look down.”Īfter you finish leaning over the city, stroll up to the north side of the observation deck. Others, you’ll see, clench their whole bodies and push away from the window, as if holding on for dear life. Some people rest completely on the glass, carefree, looking over the city. The “ride” lasts only about a minute and a half before you’re returned to the upright, locked position, but watching those who go before you is entertaining. You can look straight down onto Michigan Avenue, if you’re not too afraid of heights. Then an operator presses a button, and the hydraulics push the top of the glass out, making you lean no more than 60 degrees out over the street below. You’ll also see a lectern advertising the attraction’s “thrill ride,” Tilt! The premise is simple: Stand facing a glass wall, hands firmly grasping the metal bars on both sides of you. Head over to the eastern windows, and Navy Pier comes into view, its Ferris wheel spinning in the distance. It seems that 360 Chicago confused “exit through the gift shop” with “enter through the gift shop.”īut beyond the Chicago T-shirts and novelty mugs, you see an expanding wall of blue. Lake Michigan is the first thing you see - well, not the first. The doors open, and bright blue slaps you in the face.

Forty seconds later, you make it to the 94th floor. Then step in front of a green screen with your friends or family, fake a smile and get your ticket for the inevitable souvenir photo for sale at the end of your visit.Īfter 15 or 20 minutes of forced preparation, you arrive at the elevators, which are surprisingly average given the number of trips you’d think they would need to make - only three or four families fit at a time. You’ll read a paragraph about Pilsen or Bronzeville, getting the watered-down historical background of these areas. On the wall there are maps of different Chicago neighborhoods.

so you have a narrow perspective on the city you’re about to look down on.īefore you get to the elevators, you glide through a minimuseum. It has dates important to Chicago history - when the Hancock was erected, when Mayor Richard M. You’re greeted by a short video presentation, which throws fast facts your way via text and photos. Security is next, but it’s only a quick bag search at the end of the hall, and you’re on your way. You walk right up to the ticket counter in the basement of the Hancock, or briefly wait behind a few families in line, before buying a ticket. Unlike its competitor in the Loop, Skydeck Chicago, the lines at 360 Chicago are short - a positive, for sure. It has its upsides, but 360 Chicago doesn’t feel as spectacular as it should. Unfortunately for the observation deck, the childhood adage “first is the worst, second is the best” doesn’t hold true for this also-ran. Chicago’s second-tallest observatory, 360 Chicago, sits inside the John Hancock Center.

360 observation deck chicago