Illinois
Go Solo: Art and Architecture in Chicago
Program No. 24935RJ
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Go Solo: Art and Architecture in Chicago
Go Solo: Art and Architecture in Chicago
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Participant Reviews
Based on 8 Reviews
SHOWING
This is a well-organized trip with a good downtown Chicago hotel, which made free time a lot of fun. The cheerful guide, Kim, kept everything on track. I have always wanted to visit the Art Institute, and it was absolutely wonderful. I didn’t realize how interesting the Frank Lloyd Wright specifically and the architectural history in general would be. I loved learning about it.
— Review left October 19, 2025
I really enjoyed Go Solo:Art & Architecture in Chicago.
It was my first Go Solo trip and I can recommend it to anyone hesitating to take a tour alone. People were easy to talk to and I learned so much.
I'm looking forward to going on another Go Solo adventure.
— Review left August 17, 2025
I thoroughly enjoyed the program and the educational viewpoint that was explored. Many times, we never look up to see the pain staking details that went into the designs. I have a whole new appreciation for the designs and plans that go into building a city
— Review left July 1, 2025
Based on my experience on this trip, I urge Road Scholar to offer more
Solo-Only trips! Our group of 20 women and one man gelled right away and we continued to interact very happily, with easy flow among different combinations of people. The social side of this trip worked by far the best of any of the organized trips I have taken (i.e., two with Road Scholar--Ultimate SW and Quebec City--and three with OAT in Italy). I will keep checking for Solo-Only trips, especially domestic ones (because they are easier to schedule).
Another feature of the trip I liked was the thematic focus on art and architecture. (Having a theme for which everyone signed up probably also helped group cohesion). Thumbs up on all of the scheduled activities. Our trip leader, Andrea, was fun, knowledgeable, appealing-- makes me smile to think of her. She took some of us on some unplanned walks to see notable interiors. All the guides were very good. I especially loved the woman who gave the classroom slide talk on the history of Chicago. While covering basics, she also assumed that we were an educated bunch -- didn't give the feeling of talking down. For me, the guides who offered the most revelatory content were: the guy on Street Art, the young woman at the Mexican Art Museum, and the guy at the Frank Lloyd Wright house.
The location of the hotel was ideal. The hotel was comfortable. The only underwhelming aspect of the whole trip was the hotel breakfast set-up (probably partly a problem of under-staffing). Otherwise, our joint meals were good, usually very good. We were surprised that they were generally family-style, but that worked well. I thought the two nights without a joint dinner might be a bummer, but Andrea made sure that no one was left as a stray. In fact, some of us went with her, while others went to a jazz club or to some other chosen activity.
I will be on the look-out for Solo-Only trips (women and men please).
— Review left June 22, 2025
Wonderful tour of Chicago! The guides were extremely knowledgeable, Karen Kaplan's organization was terrific, and the group was very nice. Hotel was okay...great location but not great facilities...and the food overall was not great...too much quantity and not enough quality, especially for a city famous for its restaurants.
— Review left May 12, 2025
What a fabulous trip and great introduction to Road Scholar trips. Our lead, Karen, was excellent at keeping us on time and in line. The days were full of wonder and excellent food. The trip to look at street art was unexpected and so interesting. The hotel was perfectly located. And Wrigley Field was a lovely stop.
The only thing I would suggest is to have lighter lunches when dinner is also provided. As an older person, my digestion is slow and I could barely eat the beautiful dinner the last night as I filled up at the Hemingway Cafe at lunch.
Otherwise, I am so happy about the entire experience and I am already eyeing other solo trips coming up.
Oh, and the solo trips are so attractive to this solo lady. It can be awkward to travel with mostly couples as I have in the past. Keep it up!
I'll be back.
— Review left May 11, 2025
First time traveling in almost 5 years, and I loved this Art and Architecture in Chicago trip. Would highly recommend going.
— Review left May 11, 2025
The May solo Chicago tour was a delight. Our group was intelligent, educated, engaging, curious, kind, social, artistic, and just flat out impressive. I think I learned as much from mingling with them as I did from the tour itself! It was an honor to briefly be in their lives. As for the tour topic itself, there was great opportunity to see what I wanted to and expand my knowledge in ways I did not expect. Thumbs up!
— Review left May 10, 2025