African American Heritage Tour of Chicago

Knowlledgable informative tour

I seek out Black history/heritage tours in every city I visit, but this tour was by far the most intimate and personable excursions that I have been privileged to participate in. The tour guide was passionate about the history, landscape, and experiences of Black people in Chicago, and he exuded Chicago vibes. By the conclusion of the tour, I had a completely different understanding and respect for the city, the people, and the culture, and I could not wait to return home to share my many photos, new knowledge, and overall experience with my family and friends. Thank you for creating a tour of this magnitude, it is a definite must for anyone interested in learning and embracing the Black Chicagoan experience.

Steve is very informative on the history of Chicago. Not only downtown Chicago other "spots" as he call them. The African American Heritage tour was outstanding.

This tour is a must if you’re in Chicago. Steve was an amazing guide knowledgeable and entertaining.. not a dull moment. If you’re reading this you have to book now and if you get Steve please give him an extra tip for me.. I didn’t have enough cash to show my true appreciation. Priceless..Also Good reviews are a bonus.

This was a great AA heritage tour that takes you through a journey then and now. Highlights the work that still needs to be done. Mr. Steve did a great job!

Get ready to learn and grow your preconceived notions!! Steve had history that he knew up close and his personal experience!!

Wonderful! Engaging .. great attraction ..right size trip… love the heritage .,, tour guide has great personality

We were very excited about the African American tour and learning about rich culture in Chicago. After I purchased the tickets I got a call from Mr. Steve telling me that I could tour even more neighborhoods for an additional cost. I wasn’t interested in, but he kept saying he wouldn’t want to come to Chicago and only see 7 neighborhoods. I thought the tour would include others, but I was surprised, and happy, that it was only my family on the tour. The tour took place in Mr. Steve’s van and I was happy there were charging ports in the backseat. Before we departed I asked how long the tour would take. It was our last day in Chi and we had some last minute plans for the rest of the day. He wouldn’t give a clearcut answer about the length of the tour. He kept asking, how long do we want the tour to be. This pmo because, just give me a ballpark so that I know how much time we may be out for the day! I ended up saying I only needed about 3 hours. He then said he would have to rush to do the tour in 3 hours. Well, how much time do you usually spend?! He proceeded to take us through town, talking incessantly and repeatedly about high rises that we would pass by. He’d say they have trees in the sky and other businesses inside the buildings. Ok, what does that have to do with Black history? He took us to a beautiful place along Lake Michigan to take a photo which was lovely. I enjoyed learning about historical Black celebrities, artists and politicians and seeing where they lived. I was upset that he wouldn’t let us out to take pictures at the most popular places - Michelle Obama’s childhood home and Emmett Till’s home. He kept saying we had to hurry since I only wanted 3 hours! If he already allocates more time than that on the tour, why couldn’t he be flexible to let us take pictures at the places we were most interested in? Even though there are some places listed on the site we didn’t go to them all. He said they no longer go to DuSable Museum because now they go to Obama’s museum. But all we did was drive by it!!!

I would say, read the reviews before taking this tour. Unfortunately, I found that many of the lower-rated reviews were more accurate than the higher-rated ones. My biggest issue was transportation. I was told my hotel wasn’t “downtown,” even though it was right off the Magnificent Mile and listed on the company’s website as a downtown pickup location. My child and I were the only people on the tour, so I don’t understand why we couldn’t be picked up or dropped off at our hotel. At the end of the tour, Mr. Steve told me that if I hired him to take us to the airport the next day for a fee, he would drop us back off at our hotel after the tour. I didn’t think hotel drop-off should be contingent on booking another service. When I declined the airport ride, he dropped us off at the Chicago Theatre instead, nearly a mile from our hotel. The food portion of the tour was also misleading. We were first taken to a restaurant where we were told we couldn’t eat at that time. When I asked if he had ever eaten there, he admitted he hadn’t and was relying on someone else’s recommendation. We eventually ended up at a crab boil restaurant. There was nothing wrong with the food, but it wasn’t what I expected from the description or the theme of the tour. I genuinely want Mr. Steve to be successful, but I think he needs to improve the customer service aspect of the experience. I also recommend reading the other reviews regarding some of his comments and opinions during the tour to decide whether it’s a good fit for you. I don’t like agreeing with one-star reviews, but after taking this tour, my experience aligned much more closely with them than with the five-star reviews. That’s simply my honest experience.

Wonderful experience; the tour conductor, Steve, was very knowledgeable. Everyone in our group enjoyed the tour.