Chicago is abounding with hidden treasures. From its popular architecture to its flavorful neighborhoods to its music, Chicago has a lot to offer both locals and tourists alike. Amanda Scotese’s sightseeing tour venture, called Chicago Detours, is about uncovering some of those finds. Whether its winter, spring or summer, Detours has an adventure awaiting you.
“We do interactive tours of history, culture and architecture. So, we bring people to explore stories of places locals don’t even know about,” says Scotese. Spending eight years as a tour guide and guidebook researcher, Scotese, used her breadth of knowledge to develop several Chicago-centered tours: The Loop: Explore without Freezing; Good Times Around Michigan Ave.; Our Chicago Sound: Jazz, Blues & Beyond. “It’s more off the beaten path,” said Scotese. “We really want to connect people to with the city, and we have an interactive dynamic because all of our guides have worked as educators.”
Scotese also uses Chicago Detours to provide educational tours to many of Chicago’s alternative schools. “I used to teach video at alternative high schools in Chicago … I really liked teaching and the education aspect of it. We are a social venture. Instead of tips at the end of the tour, we take gift donations and use those to offer the tour free to kids in alternative high schools.”
The latest “detour,” Our Chicago Sound, launched in June. Scotese sees this adventure as an opportunity for conversation on what makes Chicago’s music so unique and a major influence on jazz, blues, rock and house music.
For more information, please contact www.chicagodetours.com.
