'Chicago for Chicagoans' Walking Tours Explore City Neighborhoods

Chicago, IL - Chicago is one of the most popular tourist destinations for travelers throughout the United States, but how often do Chicagoans actually “visit” their own city?

Not as often as they should, and that’s the premise behind “Chicago for Chicagoans,” an effort led by Albany Park resident Patti Swanson to organize walking tours in off the beaten path city neighborhoods.

Swanson has been a tour guide in Chicago for more than four years, and is always a bit surprised when locals tell her how much they learn about their own city when touring it with an out-of-towner.

“They tell me they were only there because a friend was in town and were surprised to learn so much,” said Swanson, an artist and historian who studied at the Art Institute of Chicago. “They are amazed that millions of strangers who come here know about this and we never did.”

And so came the idea for “Chicago for Chicagoans,” which had its grass roots just a couple of months ago but has gained steam with sold out “pay-what-you-can” tours in Albany Park and Boystown.

“I just started with a few friends in Albany Park, then it really took off from there,” Swanson said, noting a DNAinfo Chicago story on her effort helped increase momentum.

Unlike other neighborhood tours, Swanson says “Chicago for Chicagoans” events will be led by tour guides who know the neighborhoods inside and out. While she calls the operation a “one-woman operation” right now, the goal is to expand this to all of the city’s 77 official neighborhoods and sub-neighborhoods as well.

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Upcoming tours of Boystown planned for Saturday, July 9, Sunday, July 10 and Sunday, July 17 will feature guest collaborator Andie Meadows, who Swanson describes as “a queer lady activist, Boystown historian and photographer” who will contribute her “totally unique, femme-focused perspective on the history of the US's first officially designated gay neighborhood.”

“It will be an interesting mix,” Swanson said of the planned Boystown tour. “Andie will cover the neighborhood’s queer history and I’ll talk about architecture.”

Giving tours with no attachment is “silly,” she adds.

“Chicagoans should be in on this...People should learn from the ones who know these places the most.”

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Swanson already has plans for tours in Wicker Park, Edgewater, Rogers Park and Lincoln Square in 2016 and could add neighborhoods on the city’s South Side in the future as well.

“In the tourism industry, there is an inclination to advise tourists away from the South Side. I have heard from other tour guides not to go to the South Side, but that really bothers me,” Swanson said. “There are so many cool things on the South Side. No one should actively discouraging people. Tell them to be a city person.”

Swanson’s passion for non-touristy, off the beaten path tours has landed her a gig as a contributor with Atlas Obscura, a website focused on “weird things and unusual things to do” in tourist hotbeds like Chicago.

“What I can’t fit under my own service, I get from them,” Swanson said. “I love the way they do events in weird spots.”

The July 9 and July 10 “Chicago for Chicagoans” tours of Boystown are sold out, but there is still space for July 17 tour. RSVP here.

Tours are limited to 30 people and take up to two hours, covering usually about three miles walking.

“We make it feel like you are in a big city, but in areas that feel like small towns,” Swanson said. “You aren’t just in Chicago, but part of a tiny group.”