This article was written by National Geographic Traveler (UK).
If urban legends were to be believed, on October 8, 1871, a cow called Daisy transformed the world forever into a dry, windy Chicago night. She knocked on a lantern and caused one of the biggest urban fires in modern history. Approximately 3.5 square miles of Illinois have burned out, destroying more than 17,000 buildings, leaving blank canvases for new architectural styles and groundbreaking engineering.
The reconstruction began almost immediately, and by 1885 Chicago had enshrined itself in architectural history as the home base for the world's first high-rise building, the home insurance building. Boat tours on the Chicago River look at the history of the city's skyline, but new walks from within Chicago aim to reveal a different perspective. “Everyone comes to Chicago and does a boat tour, which is great,” says founder and guide Hillary Marzek. Her team will take tourists on a Loop's Whirlwind Walking Tour (Downtown District), which offers access to five famous spaces that give context to the architectural wonders seen on the streets of the city.
The tour began in 2025 in time for the 140th anniversary of the home insurance building. It was demolished in 1931 to make way for a large building. Walk knits a period of architecture and interior design, ranging from the Streamlined Future Art Deco Chicago Trade Commission to the postmodern architecture of the Federal Plaza. Built in the late 1880s, Rookery offers views of the lobby, which was redesigned by Frank Lloyd Wright in 1905 and inspired the building in the post-Chicago building.
“Architecture is what makes a city,” Hillary points out. “The buildings are talking to each other here. As soon as you understand the references, you're kidding too, and Chicago is one of the places you really want to join in the conversation.”
Other design experiences in the US in 2025
One of America's greatest architects and considered a pioneer of 20th century American modernism, Frank Lloyd Wright's progressive designs can be seen from Arizona to Pennsylvania, but last year, six A new building opened in the month for a private tour on the island of Hudson Island in New York. valley. The Massaro House on Lake Mahopac was built in 2007 by engineering magnate Joseph Massaro, inspired by the original painting of Wright, which Massaro received as part of the island's purchase. The building has a distinctive, staged level of architects, and incorporates the natural environment, with huge boulders double as the walls of the kitchen and bathroom.
Stay in the SF set
To feel like you're wandering around the film set, book at Outpost X, a Utah architectural eccentricity, about a 1.5 hour drive from Zion National Park. Opened late last year, the wellness resort is designed to mimic dystopian sci-fi fantasy. Upon arrival, guests embark on an extensive onboarding process that immerses them in apocalyptic planetary history. The stone-like construction and hard-angle trailer of Outpost X is not out of place in the Luke Skywalker tattoo. Guests can stay in cave houses, viking tents, geodesic domes and rent outfits. Off-grid sci-fi vibes are only enhanced by desert-like utah settings. There is also a day pass option.
A glittering new perspective from Times Square
Built as the headquarters of the New York Times, the 121-year-old One Times Square Building, home to the famous Great Year Day glitterball, has won a facelift in 2025. A number of new attractions that show off the heritage of the building. There is a museum that tells the location of Times Square in its history. A closer look at the viewing deck overlooking the screen-lit intersection, augmented reality entertainment experiences, and a New Year's Ball – developers say the purpose is to bring something new every day from Eve in the year to Times Square. We hope that the improved building will be announced by summer.
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