Your Most Beautiful Places in Chicago

The Most Beautiful Places in Chicago

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, so what do you see? Chicagoans from all over the city and beyond share their favorite beautiful places and tell us why they find them beautiful. Is yours a park? A particular building? A street? A house of worship? A hidden gem? Or is it something else altogether? Tell us your favorite spot in or around the city and the reason it holds a special place in your heart, and we may share it below! Submit your favorite place.

Lake Michigan in Edgewater

Lake Michigan in Edgewater

It’s a perfect place to sit and reconnect with nature after a long day of Zoom meetings.

- Kaitlyn T.

The Music Box

The Music Box

I love walking down Southport Avenue and seeing the beautiful, old-school Music Box marquee. It always makes me excited to watch a film there and gives the theater a timeless feel.

- Sean P.

Rosehill Cemetery

Rosehill Cemetery

It’s so peaceful and quiet. It’s a large plot of land that’s nestled between several major streets, but you wouldn’t notice because it feels so secluded.

- Emily O.

Horner Park

Horner Park

Horner Park’s walking trail along the river is such a hidden gem. In the spring and summer, the plants are so verdant and lovely. I think what makes this park so beautiful, too, is the way that it’s used. On a nice day, Chicagoans are out there playing on the baseball fields, in the dog park, or on the playground. It sometimes looks like a scene from a movie.

- Meredith F.

Lincoln Park Boardwalk

Lincoln Park Boardwalk

My first Chicago apartment was in Lincoln Park, and I loved walking the zoo trails in the summer. My husband and I also took our engagement pictures there, holding extra meaning for us. I love the uniqueness and elegance of the honeycomb structure, and how you can see the skyline behind us!

- Megan L.

The Chicago River

The Chicago River

The Chicago River is my "most beautiful" place because it's where the city — geographically and figuratively — converges. It's dyed green for St. Patrick's Day, it freezes over in the winter, and it has boat tours all year-round!

- Justin H.

875 N. Michigan, fka the Hancock

875 N. Michigan, FKA the Hancock

It’s so simple and yet so iconic, easily recognized and recalled. It’s such a defining feature of the skyline, and its black matte hue against a blue sky is just perfect. I love that you can see how it is held up via its X-braces, and that it departs from a typical skyscraper shape by tapering instead of simply standing straight up, giving your eye plenty of lines to move along. Plus, it’s influential and groundbreaking!

- Daniel H.

The Spruce Plot at the Morton Arboretum

The Spruce Plot at the Morton Arboretum

If you’re willing to go a bit off the beaten path at the Morton Arboretum, there’s a place called the Spruce Plot way out on the east side. The trees are tall and the trunks are bare, the whole place is quiet and beautiful; it falls somewhere between haunting and captivating.

- Hannah S.

Chicago Theater

Chicago Theater

Chicago as a city represents live stage performances and comedy to me. Going to the Chicago Theater is the epitome of that––and also that big neon sign is cool!

- Chris B.

Montrose Point Bird Sanctuary

Montrose Point Bird Sanctuary

When you enter the Montrose Point Bird Sanctuary, the city's skyscrapers and street sounds disappear beneath a canopy of trees and chorus of birdsongs. One of the most beautiful places in Chicago has the power to make you forget that you're standing in one of the biggest cities in the world - and that's worth celebrating!

- Andy B.

Shakespeare Garden at Northwestern University

Shakespeare Garden at Northwestern University

It is the most beautiful to me because it evokes a feeling of peace and tranquility. There are many places to sit and never very many people. It is kind of hard to find. This makes it a hidden gem.

- John K.

The Ramova Theater

The Ramova Theater

After decades of community efforts, Bridgeport's own Ramova, a 1929 atmospheric theater and sister to the Music Box, was added to the National Register of Historic Places and is undergoing a $28 million restoration. My husband saw Star Wars 10 times there, and snuck into the R-rated Saturday Night Fever at the tender age of 11. We look forward to the awesome Spanish courtyards and stars on the blue ceilings.

- Jenny M.

Old Post Office and Rooftop

Old Post Office and Rooftop

When I first walked into the repurposed Old Post Office in September 2022, I immediately knew that I had just entered the ultimate restored building in Chicago. Upon entry, you are greeted by a 1920s Art Deco lobby…The post office rooftop is like no other. Surrounded by plants, with skyscrapers to the northeast and Chicago's urban sprawl to the west, the rooftop embodies Chicago's motto of Urbs in Horto: a city in a garden.

- Ezra L.

Loyola Park and Rogers Park beaches

Loyola Park and Rogers Park beaches

Pratt Beach is Chicago’s best kept secret and a neighborhood "Riveria!” A spacious sandy stretch from Loyola University to Evanston…Loyola Park is hugged by the colorful Mural Wall, which is repainted each Father’s Day by 150 lucky neighborhood artists. I won a spot last year. My favorite place in the universe!

- Katie C.

Schweikher House

Schweikher House

This 1938 early mid-century modernist house (now a museum) is an elegant assemblage of rough sawn redwood, common brick and plenty of windows, borrowing design concepts from Japanese architecture and blended with a rustic American vernacular. The creator of the Doomsday Clock, artist Martyl Langsdorf, lived there with her Manhattan Project scientist husband, Alex Langsdorf, for 60 years. They were perfect stewards of the house, lovingly preserving it as we see it today.

- Dan F.

The Bean

The Bean

The Bean is where people from all over the world are drawn and all differences are set aside as they see the reflection of each other in the beautiful shine––the reason it's my favorite..

- Byron M.

Chicago Skyline from the Locks

Chicago Skyline from the Locks

The lights of the skyline reflected on the water makes this a gorgeous place and its a view not many have seen. My husband, Brad, was working for the Army Corps of Engineers replacing the gates to the Chicago Locks. It involved lots of night shifts when there was no boat traffic.

- Sandra T.

DePaul University's School of Music

DePaul University's School of Music

AKA the Holtschneider Performance Center. A beautiful space for beautiful music in a beautiful city.

- Tracy T.

Art Institute of Chicago’s South Garden

What a beautiful and serene space.  A symmetry of planters whose perimeters can serve as benches (great place for lunch). The trees make a graceful canopy. A beautiful semi-transparent roof and a shield from most of the noise. The central pool and the fountain of the great lakes are the cherry on top of the sundae. And if you possibly get bored, you can go inside the Art Institute.

- Robert R.

Holy Trinity Cathedral Chicago Orthodox Church

Tiny gem by Louis Sullivan at 1121 N. Leavitt Street. Combines traditional Russian architecture with Sullivan touches. Nicest thing about the church is its very human scale. Beautiful, impressive, exotic in the sense that most of us rarely see anything in this style, but accessible, even comfortable in a way.

- Don K.

Lincoln Park Conservatory & Gardens, Alfred Caldwell Lily Pool

These are such peaceful and beautiful places - a tranquil oasis right in the middle of the city. The flowers and vegetation are stunning, and are a bit different every time you visit. I once attended a sunrise summer wedding in the gardens, so it's a special memory for me. They are a rare gem for Chicagoans to enjoy.

- Julia M.

Harold Washington Library

The atrium on the top floor is one of the hidden gems in our city––a sunny, green respite on winter days, akin to the atrium in Navy Pier. I'd throw in the end of the Pier, too!

- Brad C.

The Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe

This place is truly inspiring, and will fill your spirit. During the winter months, the fountain is closed, but the place remains beautiful. It is dedicated to the Virgin of Guadalupe, and it has outdoor and indoor spaces to relax, meditate, and enjoy its beautiful construction.

- Paula C.

Uptown Theater

Billed as “An acre of seats in a magic city” during its grand opening in 1925, it was, and remains, the largest theater in Chicago. With its 100 year anniversary nearing, and decades since a live performance has taken place, the inside of the theater as it has fallen to disrepair. More Chicagoans need to know about and see the beauty that was (and is) the Uptown Theater.

- Robert M.

St. Mary of the Angels Catholic Church

Based on the Church of St. Peter in Rome, you can see the angels and the dome from the southbound Kennedy. There are a million steps (at least, that's how it seemed to me) in the front, and inside there is an amazing fresco at the front, and several altars all around … I haven't been inside in years, but I will always carry a memory of it.

- Joanna K.

The Graue Mill

This is one of my favorite places to visit. A stop on the Underground Railroad, it is still a real working grist mill through the Oak Brook Park District where you can purchase stone ground corn meal and whole wheat flour. The Mill's grounds are beautiful. I just love it here.

- Susan F.

The Board of Trade Building lobby

I love the Art Deco design in the lobby.

- Marianne G.

311 S. Wacker

The lobby's ironwork and glass are done in the style of the 1893 World's Fair and the Rookery, along with eight four-story palm trees, three-toned marble, and mahogany wood landscape. The crescendo of it is capped by an Italian artist carved water fountain & falls at entrance with each “shell” on it recognizing major events of Chicago history.

- Joseph B.

Skyline from Lake Michigan

We used to be avid Lake Michigan boaters out of Michigan City, Indiana. It was always very special to journey across the lake, through the locks, and up the Chicago River. But the view of the Chicago skyline from the lake at sunset is just a wonder to behold. It takes my breath away every time. Between the exquisite architecture, the lights just twinkling on, and the beautiful hues of the setting sun.... just wow! Viewing it from Navy Pier is also beautiful, but nothing equals seeing that magnificent skyline from the water.

- Corinne G.

The Tiffany Window in the Art Institute

It is beautiful and unique.

- Carol R.

Chicago Botanic Gardens

World class destination, ever changing, popular with local residents as well as international travelers.

- Margaret N.

Greenstone Church

Beautiful limestone exterior accented with beautiful stained-glass windows. It also houses a custom Steere & Turner pipe organ. Located in the historic Pullman District.

- George T.

Burnham Island in Graceland Cemetery

Graceland is already one of the most peaceful, beautiful spots in all of Chicago. Not only is the pastoral setting gorgeous but the cemetery also contains some of the grandest architecture and gravestone design you'll ever see… But one place in particular stands out: Chicago's own Daniel Burnham eternally rests on a small private island in the middle of the large pond. There is a cute little wooden bridge that leads to the island, which features a very quiet spot under some trees to sit and "make no little plans." It's a beautiful private spot to enjoy the weather or contemplate the fleeting nature of life.

- Pete G.

Edgar Miller Interiors

I find it fascinating that this amazingly talented artist is so little known because his interiors are still so desirable that they are privately owned and haven't been turned into museums. Any way to explore these private spaces would delight me.

- Felix G.