Old Post Office Tour: Historic Chicago Architecture

Discover Chicago’s Old Post Office: a historic gem transformed into a modern office and event space with a stunning rooftop park.

Duration: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • The Old Post Office - Visitors will explore the inside of the Old Post Office on W Van Buren Street, delve into its history, and learn about its transformation into a contemporary office space. They will also understand the concept of adaptive reuse and its significance. Highlights include the Main Lobby, the “Zig-zag wall”, the “postcard wall”, and the rooftop meadow.
What's Included
  • Tour of the Old Post Office
  • Led by a certified Chicago Architecture Center docent
What's Not Included
  • Food or drink
  • Coat check
  • Storage for luggage or strollers
Additional Information

Discover the newly transformed Old Post Office Building, an early 20th-century masterpiece that has been beautifully repurposed into a modern Class A Office space. Once at risk of losing its magnificent architectural features, Chicago’s Old Post Office stood empty for nearly twenty years. However, this 2.8 million square foot structure, originally…

Location
The Old Post Office
West Van Buren Street
The Old Post Office Building; meet inside the Van Buren entrance.
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
5.0
(21 Ratings)
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Caffelatteboy
May 12, 2026
Not to be missed! - Alice was an excellent and energetic tour guide through this wonderful example of an adaptive (but expensive) reuse of the Old Post Office. Alice’s descriptions bridged the past to the present with interesting insight about the methods of mail handling in Chicago and its contribution to the USA.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
I9929pwleet
Apr 18, 2026
Highly Recommend the Historic Old Post Office Tour - This tour was fabulous. The guide was knowledgeable and provided a great overview of the history of the building. Many of the original art deco elements were retained and then incorporated into the modern redesign. Chef’s kiss! Make sure to go up to see the rooftop space.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
James_d
Apr 14, 2026
Informative - Informative tour that tells about the history of the building and how they integrate the history back into the renovation.
Review provided by Viator
Dream746445
Apr 8, 2026
The Chicago Old Post Office is a Must See! - Loved our visit to the Chicago Old Post Office yesterday!! It is beautiful to see how a building can be repurposed and fascinating to hear all the details to the process. Thank you Alice!!!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Sheilal143
Apr 7, 2026
Old Post Office building tour is a must-see Chicago site - The Old Post Office building is a treasure. Our guide, Alice shared the history (from 1934) to present. Great tour for the entire family. Thanks Alice for an amazing tour!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Stay50676251380
Dec 14, 2025
Well worth it - Alice was our tour guide on the architecture river trip. She was fantastic so we joined her on the old post office tour as well. We loved her enthusiasm and all the knowledge she shared with us. We'll worth the while.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
890gens
Sep 2, 2025
Just book it! - Had a wonderful tour of the old post office building. Our guide, Alice, was very knowledgeable about all the historical and architectural facts! Highly recommend visiting- the rooftop was magnificent!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Ticketless55
Aug 21, 2025
Magnificent Re-imagining! - Wow! What a re-imagining! Our docent from the Chicago Architecture Center was such a knowledgable guide . Great downtown trip. Plan to have lunch afterward at the food court. Easy walk from Union Station, a bit farther from Ogilvie, but very do-able.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
216lianeb
Aug 5, 2025
Beautiful building - We loved the tour and our tour guide, Alice. She knew a lot of the history of the building. Thank you so much for the educational tour.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Marykv2097wp
Jul 30, 2025
Awesome but incomplete because of inability to hear. - The building and it's history are amazing. It was difficult to hear our docent sometimes. On other tours we had ear pieces that made it so we didn't miss anything. At one point, we moved away from another Chicago Architecture tour group so we could hear better, and they promptly followed us.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
From $15
up to 5 guests
1 - Adult
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).