Willis Tower or John Hancock Tower ? Also know as The Skydeck and 360 Chicago Observation Deck !
Summary : If I had to pick only one of the towers to visit in Chicago I would pick the John Hancock Tower – also known as the 360 Chicago Observation Deck ! I liked the lake view and felt it provided a more diverse view of the city ! For details read on !
There are two towers that you can visit in Chicago to get an aerial view of the city . The Willis Tower or the John Hancock Tower. Both towers are part of the Chicago City Pass . The Willis Tower also known as The Skydeck is automatically included in the city pass. In the city pass some of the attractions are included and for others you have to pick between two options. For the John Hancock Tower – you can either visit that tower or go to the Museum of Science and Industry. I like towers so I picked the John Hancock Tower over the Museum of Science and Industry.
The Willis Tower – The Skydeck
The view from the tower is beautiful. We went up around 4 pm so we can see the day time view and the night time view. When you use the city pass for the Willis tower you can use the fast pass option for the line.
There are multiple glass boxes along one side – you can walk onto these glass boxes. It is a fun experience or a terrifying experience if you are scared of heights ! If this is something that would excite you than the Willis Tower might be a better choice for you !
At the glass box there is a photographer available to take photos. If you don’t have a good camera I would recommend using the professional photographer to take photo of you in the glass box ! Makes a great souvenir !
The John Hancock Tower – 360 Chicago Observation Deck
The other tower we visited was the John Hancock Tower. Again we went around 4 pm so we can see both day time and night time views.
I found the view from this Tower to be better ! This tower is more closer to the lake, and the city looked more beautiful from this tower. More green and coastal view from this tower. You can also see the Navy Pier and the Ferris wheel from this tower !
This tower does lack the glass box but it has its own thing called the Tilt. For the Tilt you lie on a glass platform and it tilts 30 degrees. Cool experience , costs an additional $7 and not a big deal if you are not scared of heights !
I really liked the night time view from this tower – it was just breathtaking. We stayed for about an hour absorbing the night time view from this tower !
Both towers were enjoyable, and had beautiful views. If you can only do one pick the John Hancock Tower! If you want to sit in the glass box you would have to go to the Willis Tower !
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