Cynthia Bates, 2016
I had a wonderful experience on a River Cruise I recently took with an out-of-town guest from Switzerland. When we were waiting at the dock, the docent, Cynthia Bates, greeted us very pleasantly, and asked us where we were from. She started the boat tour by welcoming all of us, and amazingly she remembered my guest was from Lausanne, Switzerland and I was from Evanston! There was an impressive amount of information about architects, styles, complex engineering details, and all woven together with history and stories. Cynthia was engaging, sharing interesting personal details about her love for the city and her living in its midst. Even a brief shower didn’t dampen her enthusiasm or obvious love for the city and its architecture. For my guest, an architect from Lausanne, it was one of the high points of his visit. It was also one of my favorite tours, and a great way to entertain out-of-town guests.
Kathleen Carpenter, 2006
I have to give props to Kathleen, our River Cruise guide. She did an amazing job of describing the architectural history behind the buildings viewed on the tour. Her knowledge and explanations of the history and design of the buildings was amazing. – Frank B Louisville, Kentucky
Emily Clott, 2012
This was such a great River Cruise tour! Emily, the tour guide, was informative and very friendly. She explained each building I was interested in and catered it to her audience. I would recommend this tour to anyone visiting Chicago! Such an awesome experience! – Brian F. Colleyville, TX
Kent Foutty, 2009
Absolutely phenomenal River Cruise. Our docent, Kenton, knew his material for sure. It was such an informative and fun tour that it was worth the $58. I decided to go with CAF for the cruise based on what others have said and I am now one of them. If you ever want to do a cruise, go with CAF – you won’t regret it.- Milena H. New York, NY
Lance Friedmann, 2015
Today (June 14) I took the architectural River Cruise tour with the amazing guide Lance Friedman. He was just perfect: with a great knowledge, passion and humor. I learned a lot about Chicago and it´s treasures. THANKS for such a fascinating experience!!! – Monica Unikel, Mexico City
Carol Sue Garner, 2016
Twilight River Cruise is the tour to take and our docent Carol was great! She was passionate, energetic and entertained us while giving great, interesting narration as we cruised the Chicago River for 90 minutes. I was impressed with the tour, it went beyond my expectations. We had a great time and it blew our socks off! – SuzeQ, Chicago, Illinois
Georgia Goldberg, 2012
What an amazing River Cruise experience, with our docent Georgia Goldberg keeping us entertained and informed!! Sure can see why this city is the great shining star of the Midwest. – Marty K.
Pat Grund, 2001
Pat Grund led a fantastic River Cruise tour-full of insight into city history, water/environment, and architecture delivered with ease and good humor. Thanks again.- Jim.
Mary Jo Hoag, 2007
Just took the Chicago Architecture Center’s River Cruise tour – it was excellent! Mary Jo was our docent, and she was knowledgeable, interesting and fun. It’s a great tour and gives you a good foundational understanding of Chicago’s architects and architecture, some history of the city and the river. It was at the right depth – just enough to make you want to learn more! – Karin Z.
Dan Johnson, 2016
Our River Cruise guide Dan was excellent, talking at an easy-to-follow pace and sharing his enthusiasm and knowledge. This is a top notch operation and it’s easy to see how it is the top rated tour of its kind. – Texho, Austin, Texas
Wayne Johnson, 2016
Wayne is awesome! The CAC River Cruise is always fantastic and our docent Wayne Johnson made it even better. Never too much information and delivered in a fun way. A great and informative way to introduce out of town guests to our beautiful city! – Kent Bartram
Kelly Jones, 2016
Kelly was an amazing and knowledgeable River Cruise tour guide. My 18 year old actually chose this cruise to learn about Chicago. We were very impressed and would highly recommend this particular cruise. – Momroulou Lutcher, Louisiana
Judith Kaufman, 2010
Wonderful Judith! We had the most informative and welcoming time on this River Cruise thanks to our amazing volunteer guide – Judith. She was warm, friendly and very knowledgeable about the Chicago skyline. Not only did Judith explain the inspiration for each building on the tour, she also gave an historical context and engineering idiosyncrasies. All in all a fascinating visit and a great introduction to Chicago. Craig Hassall, Bologna, Italy
Peg Leonard, 2005
Recently my husband and I visited Chicago and booked a River Cruise trip to see the beautiful architectural buildings along the waterfront. We had Peg Leonard as a docent and she was absolutely fantastic!! Her knowledge and presentation was spectacular. Please be sure and thank her for us. When we return to Chicago, you can be certain we will ask specifically for her tour. Kudos to Peg.
Lou Mehl, Exhibit Host
Today by chance in the library I met “Lou” who is a fairly new volunteer exhibit person. Later by chance I was with a friend viewing the model, and there was Lou. First, he was so friendly and courteous when I met him in the library…that was so nice as sometimes people are in such a hurry they don’t have time to say more than “Hi”. Second, he did such a nice job after the film, explaining the exhibit for all of us who were seated there to view the film. I came away very impressed with his professional approach. Just wanted to give him a salute. – Joan Johns 2008
Susan Osborn, 2003
Our River Cruise tour guide, Susan, was fantastic. It was particularly fun because she lived in one of the buildings on our tour! The views are great, it’s very informative, and it’s a great way to see the city! Highly recommend. – Droycro, Algonquin, Illinois
Ronnie Jo Sokol, 2006
We love this River Cruise tour! Our docent, Ronnie was excellent!! Our tour was at 5:30 pm and our weather was perfect! – Erica S
Lisa Tallman, 2015
The River Cruise is a must on any trip to Chicago, it’s the only place you can see all the architecture and hear the history of the city from the famous fire to its current renaissance. The docent Lisa was well versed in all of the nuances and specifics of the city, well worth the time. Not to be missed. – Marygrace B., Princeton Junction, NJ
Mitzi Walchak, 2003
We took the 5:30 River Cruise tour. The weather ended up being beautiful which certainly helped but even without that, the cruise would have been well worth it! Mitzi, our CAC docent, was outstanding. Very knowledgeable and full of interesting facts, both old and new!
Michael Weiland, 1984
Loved this tour! Mike was such a wonderful tour guide – so knowledgeable about the city and architecture! He was so great and made this such a cool and fun experience for us. Thanks Mike!! – Alexa K. Chicago, IL
Claudia Winkler, 2007
We’ve done this River Cruise 3 times. In 1.5 hours you learn a combo of history, architecture, and Chicago factoids. Perfect overview of the city. Try and get Claudia. She’s absolutely outstanding. E. Clisak Vancouver, Canada
Joan Winstein, 2012
Lovely tour of the city by River Cruise. Joan was a great docent, full of lots of interesting facts, history and paid attention to the details.