Local Accommodations

Chicago is the third most populous city in the United States, home to 9.8 million people in its greater metropolitan area. It is one of the major financial centers in the U.S. led by the venerable Chicago Board of Trade, the world's oldest futures and options exchange. Though now merged into the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, its distinctive tower caps the southern end of LaSalle Street and has been featured in many feature films including The Untouchables and Road to Perdition. Highly renowned for its late 19th and early 20th century architecture, Chicago has an incredible mix of styles, including signature works of Frank Lloyd Wright, Louis Sullivan and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe.

Chicago's other cultural highlights include:

• World-class museums such as the Chicago Art Institute, the Field Museum of Natural History and the Museum of Science and Industry, one of the Western Hemisphere's largest science museums
• Music venues including the renowned Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and a vibrant blues and jazz scene
• Theatrical arts from the venerable Lyric Opera of Chicago, The Goodman Theater, The Chicago Shakespeare Theater and The Second City, to smaller independent and experimental theater throughout the Chicagoland area. Chicago's beautiful downtown on the shores of Lake Michigan has verdant parks and fine beaches that are a delight to stroll.