Only the highest quality guide is equipped to introduce you to one of the greatest museums on earth. the Art Institute, one of the world’s great art museums, houses a works that cover centuries of Art & History. Its is also known to have the worlds greatest collection of Impressionist artwork (Even rivaling the Musee D'Orsay in Paris). Your expert guide will help you explore the major artworks and hidden gems from this expansive collection and explain how this iconic American museum differs from its older European counterparts.
Spiro was a fantastic and knowledgeable guide and you travel through the Art Institute with him and learn so much along the way. He helpfully points out what to look for in the art itself but also how it is situated relative to other art or the building itself. It’s very cool!
Excellent guide. Knowledgeable about art history and chose prominent and interesting works to highlight in the tour.
Amanda was an amazing tour guide. She was incredibly knowledgeable as well as warm and inviting. Truly this was a wonderful experience and I would recommend to anyone coming to Chicago.
If you ever get to the store, see if you can get Spiro. What a font of knowledge. When I grew up, I was exposed to a lot of these paintings. Some of the paintings were part of my DNA almost (I felt the same way when I went to the British museum the first time and saw everything I’ve seen in an encyclopedia as a kid.) It was wonderful to see the different paintings from all the artists. I’ve only read about. I actually had some emotional responses to actually seeing the paintings in real life When I saw “nighthawks” by Edward Hopper. I almost cried. Fantastic tour. Fantastic tour guide. (our original tour guide had to bow out because he/she had a bicycle accident on the way over to the Museum, And by serendipity, Spiro just happened to be at the Museum area at the time. I hope the original guide was OK.) Worth the money. Take the tour. Ask for Spiro.
Spiro was a great tour guide. He shared a lot of history of the pieces and also what was happening in the world at the time the pieces was made to help us understand what the artist may have thinking or what point they wanted us to understand.
Spiro was an Excellent Guide. Learned so much. He spoke loud enough to hear, went at a perfect pace, repeatedly found us benches so we could sit and rest while we listed. Highly recommend!
I was on Spiro's Chicago Art Institute tour today. It was great! He has a great speaking voice, easy to hear, personable and presented a well thought out program. I left the museum with a better understanding of what I was looking at than if I had wandered aimlessly on my own. He confirmed that it is better to hire a guide for museum tours and get an understanding of what you are looking at and why it matters. Thank you Spiro.
Mandy was an excellent guide! Her knowledge of art and the museum was a key reason we chose a guided tour though this amazing museum. Well worth the time and $!!
Highly recommend! Spiro was the most knowledgeable guide I’ve ever had. He explained the art as well as why the museum placed the art as they do. He spoke loud enough so it wasn’t a chore to listen. I learned so much more than going into a museum on my own. Totally worth the money
A wonderful experience from start to finish. Our guide was knowledgeable, friendly, and engaging, bringing the art to life through the stories, history, and context behind the works. There was a lovely balance between seeing remarkable masterpieces and taking the time to truly appreciate them. Nothing felt rushed. The small group made the experience especially enjoyable, allowing for questions, conversation, and a more personal connection with the art. We also had the good fortune of visiting when the museum was nearly empty, which made the experience all the more special. An excellent introduction to an extraordinary museum. Highly recommended!
Patti gave a wonderful detailed tour. Patti kept us entertained the whole time and made sure we saw the best parts of the museum. Patti made the experience great, and we enjoyed meeting her.
Spiro, our guide was fantastic. He was very informative and explained the evolution of art through the years fascinating. I would recommend this tour and the guide to anyone.
Samantha was our guide. Very knowledgeable, pleasant and walked us through the museum at a perfect pace. We enjoyed learning about the cultures and lives of the artists whose works we saw - so much more that if we had just walked past them ourselves.
Spiro was a terrific guide. He was knowledgeable and he skillfully organized the tour allowing us to follow the progression from the early works he showed us through the later works. The group was small and he made sure to address the interests of all in the group.
Patti was great! Wonderful experience
Spiro is a very knowledgeable and personable guide. He gathered info on what the group was interested in and tailored the tour for a custom experience. I will definitely seek him out for my next tour. Thank you!
Fabulous venue, incredible art, spectacular building. Our guide Spiro was outstanding. I learned more about art history and the relationships across ages and countries than ever before. I highly recommend Babylon and Spiro as your guide is a must.
Mandy was such a wonderful guide. She is extremely knowledgeable and has a real passion for what she does. She knows secrets about the paintings and makes the tour fun. I can see where she would be really good with families. I recommend you ask for her specifically!
We had a fantastic tour with Mandy! She did a great job of giving a wide variety of pieces that were a fabulous overview of the collection. Interesting descriptions and stories about the artists and pieces. Highly recommend a tour with Mandy!
The museum is exceptional. Laid out perfectly and representative of all art. What really made tour outstanding was our guide Spiro. I learned more about art history, evolution and relationships than ever before. He combined facts, stories and humor all throughout tour. You must book your tour with Spiro as your guide.
Turns the massive Art Institute into a doable clear picture and enjoyable experience. Would do again!
One of the best tours we've taken. We don't know much about art and Samantha was amazing! She taught us so much while we enjoyed the overwhelming museum! While we waited, other tours gathered in the same spot. First two guides were nice, but general tour guides. One of them also guides the food tours. Each group had maybe 15 people. Then here comes Samantha, a graduate of the art institute in art history. Four people on our tour. Yes we hit the highlights but she also personalized it. She was fun and interesting. We walked away feeling like we were the lucky ones and can't stop talking about our morning. Cannot recommend Babylon enough.
Spiro was a wonderful guide. He was extremely knowledgeable about the art and my friends and I learned a lot from him. We thoroughly enjoyed the tour.
Spiro was a FANTASTIC tour guide. I learned so much from him and would highly recommend his tour. He was funny and very knowledgeable.mm
Excellent, informative, fun tour. Learned so much from Spiro, our helpful and witty guide. Expensive, but generally worth it: You get to see, learn, and experience so much more than if you navigated the museum on your own. Spiro's guidance enabled us to maximize our precious time at this world-class museum.
Great tour! Our guide Spiro was excellent, very knowledgeable and engaging.
Was SO worth it! Huge museum you can get lost in so was nice to have our fabulous guide Spiro leading us. He was so upbeat, knowledgeable & fun!
Mandy was great. Friendly, knowledgeable and organized. We learned a lot and had a great time. Perfect introduction to the museum. FWIW: We came on a Friday (Labor Day weekend) and the ticket area wasn’t crowded when it opened.
Amanda was funny and insightful as we explored the galleries. Printed tickets for us to enjoy the rest of the museum on our own.
Arnold did a wonderful job relating the artwork, explaining what we were looking at, the historical context, info about the artists etc. So informative and entertaining.
Arnold is very personable and knowledgeable. The tour he led was to many timeless classics. I highly recommend Arnold as a guide.
Megan was a great Guide! An excellent Art collection an an amazing Building. Megan was very nice and we are very thankful for all the Information.
We know a little about art, so it was helpful to enter the gallery before opening time (you notice the crowds, once it is open to the public) and have Megan guide us to the pictures you should see if on limited time. 2 to 2 1/2 hours is probably the amount of time you need before you decide you have had enough.
Spiro was great! I hadn’t been in 50 yrs and the tour was as enjoyable now as it was then.
Our guide Spiro was absolutely outstanding. I just wish we could have spent hours more with him. I learned more about art than ever before and my husband learned si much as well (and he has no appreciation for art). Highly recommend this tour. It was great!!!!
The tour guide was knowledgeable, friendly, efficient and fun. Mandy was great!
Spiro our guide was most awesome! He was very knowledgeable, clearly dedicated his life to art history. He was easy to hear, well organized and extremely engaging!
Shapiro was awesome...brought art history back to life for me!
Spiro was the best! He was extremely well-spoken, friendly, and knowledgeable. We all came away having learned a lot and feeling energized from the experience. Having such a good guide made us appreciate the art even much more. We wholeheartedly recommend him.
Great 2.5 hour highlights tour covering the massive museum. Well informed and entertaining guide. Would tour with this guide again.
It was very interesting lots of information. Our guide was friendly and was very informative. His name was Arnold.
Excellent tour with our guide, Spiro. Our small group had all levels of interest and experience - from novice to seasoned, and Spiro expertly led us through the museum with emphasis on the Impressionists. He additionally took the time to address questions and other interests. Seeing the museum with a guide as fun and knowledgeable as Spiro elevated our experience. Highly recommend.
Incredible experience! The price was totally worth it! The knowledge Arnold had of the art was mindblowing! You definitely need to try to get Arnold! The length of the tour was perfect and covered all the highlights we wanted. The atmosphere was wonderful, we were able to hear clearly and he gave us time to look around each room we focused on. The crowds were minimal since we started our tour at 1030am. Highly recommend this tour especially with Arnold!
Great experience! Arnold was very informative and knowledgeable anout all the art work! He also highlighted all the best pieces! Highly recommend!!! 10 out 10!
Arnold is a superb guide with deep knowledge and great organization. His exceptional art history expertise made our visit exceptional. Strongly recommend.
Spiro was absolutely fantastic!! His enthusiasm and knowledge made this tour a fun and great learning experience! I highly recommend!!
This tour was great. Our guide, Spiro, was one of the best of the art tours we have done. He was very knowledgeable and humorous. Rather than just doing a rote tour, he was very interested in what we were hoping to see and made sure he included it.
Mandy was Super friendly and knowledgeable!
Samantha P was an outstanding tour guide for our Art Institute Tour. My wife took a lot of art history in college and was impressed by Samantha P knowledge while I know nothing about art but found her description and context of the artwork very understandable.
Patti was so knowledgeable and delightful. It was an amazing experience She is an outstanding guide.
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