Travel to Chicago (u.s)

Travel to Chicago (u.s)

Chicago ( /ʃɨˈkɑːɡoʊ/ (help·info) or /ʃɨˈkɔːɡoʊ/) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Illinois, and with over 2.8 million people is the third largest city in the United States. Located on the southwestern shores of Lake Michigan, Chicago is the third-most densely populated major city in the U.S., and anchor to the world's 26th largest metropolitan area[3] with over 9.5 million people across three states.

After a series of wars with the local American Natives, Chicago was founded in 1833, near a portage between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River watershed. The city became a major transportation and telecommunications hub in North America. Today, the city retains its status as a major hub, both for industry and infrastructure, with its O'Hare Airport as the second busiest airport in the world. In modern times, the city has taken on additional dimension as a center for business and finance, and is listed as one of the world's top ten Global Financial Centers. Chicago is a stronghold of the Democratic Party, and has been home to influential politicians, including the current President of the United States, Barack Obama. The World Cities Study Group at Loughborough University rated Chicago as an alpha world city.


Chicago attracted an approximate combined 35 million people in 2007 from around the nation and abroad.[8][9] Upscale shopping along the Magnificent Mile and State Street, thousands of restaurants, as well as Chicago's eminent architecture, continue to draw tourists. The city is the United States' third-largest convention destination. Most conventions are held at McCormick Place, just south of Soldier Field. The historic Chicago Cultural Center (1897), originally serving as the Chicago Public Library, now houses the city's Visitor Information Center, galleries and exhibit halls. The ceiling of its Preston Bradley Hall includes a 38 ft (12 m) Tiffany glass dome. Millennium Park sits on a deck built over a portion of the former Illinois Central rail yard. The park includes the reflective Cloud Gate sculpture (known locally as "The Bean"). An outdoor Millennium Park restaurant transforms into an ice rink in the winter. Two tall glass sculptures make up the Crown Fountain. The fountain's two towers display visual effects from LED images of Chicagoans' faces, along with water spouting from their lips. Frank Gehry's detailed, stainless steel band shell, the Pritzker Pavilion, hosts the classical Grant Park Music Festival concert series. Behind the pavilion's stage is the Harris Theater for Music and Dance, an indoor venue for mid-sized performing arts companies, including the Chicago Opera Theater and Music of the Baroque.

In 2007, the city attracted 32.8 million domestic visitors[8] and about 1.15 million foreign visitors. Making use of its abundant resources, Chicago has a heritage for hosting major international, national, regional, and local events that include commerce, culture, entertainment, politics, and sports. In 2008, Chicago was chosen as one of the final four world city candidates to host the 2016 Summer Olympics and is the only American city on the list.

Globally recognized,[nb 1] Chicago has numerous nicknames, which reflect the impressions and opinions about historical and contemporary Chicago. The best known include: "Chi-town"; the "Windy City" with reference to Chicago politicians and residents boasting about their city; "Second City,"[nb 2] due to the city generally being the second most prestigious in the nation in terms of culture, entertainment, and finance;[nb 3] and the "City of Big Shoulders", referring to its numerous skyscrapers (whose steel frame designs were largely pioneered in Chicago), described as being husky and brawling.