Everything else on this site costs nothing. These cost a little, and we list them because what you get is far bigger than the price.
$2.50The elevated train circles downtown at second-floor height, squeezing between office towers and crossing the river on the Wells Street bridge. One fare covers the whole circuit.
Board at Merchandise Mart heading into the Loop and stand at the front window of the first car. Stay on and the same train carries you back out over the river.
Source: Chicago Transit Authority
$5Unlimited rides on every CTA bus and train for 24 hours from the first tap. It pays for itself on the second ride.
Buy it on the day you go to Pilsen, Hyde Park or the 606, when you would pay three or four fares anyway. Load it on a Ventra card or in the Ventra app.
Source: Chicago Transit Authority
$4.50The only things inside the free zoo that small children will ask you to pay for. Rides start at $4.50 a ticket.
One ride each keeps a four-year-old happy for the rest of a free morning. Pick the carousel over the train, it lasts longer.
Source: Lincoln Park Zoo
A docent spends 90 minutes explaining more than 50 buildings from the middle of the river, an angle the Riverwalk cannot give you. You can walk the same water for free, but you will not know what you are looking at. Take a late afternoon departure.
Everything above is free. This is the only paid pick on the page, chosen because no free option replaces it.
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