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Skip the Line: American Writers Museum Admission Ticket

Skip the Line: American Writers Museum Admission Ticket

Overview

In the heart of downtown Chicago, the American Writers Museum celebrates all genres of writing through interactive exhibits and programming. From Twain to Tupac, there's a story here for everyone. Discover for yourself and visit today! 180 N. Michigan Avenue. Reopens May 14, 2021. Named Illinois' Best Attraction by USA Today and One of the 10 Best New Museums in the World by Fodor's.

City: Chicago

Sun 23 Feb

Other dates

You can choose the date already on the booking website

Starting at $14.00

Make a reservation

Sun 23 Feb

Starting at $14.00

Make a reservation

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What's Included

Skip the line ticket

Route and map

Meeting point

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Chicago
180 N Michigan Ave, 2nd Floor

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

Additional Info

Wheelchair accessible
Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
Service animals allowed
Public transportation options are available nearby
Transportation options are wheelchair accessible
All areas and surfaces are wheelchair accessible
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Students qualify for the senior rate, must present a valid student ID upon arrival
The Museum welcomes all visitors and we hope to make our exhibits and programming accessible to all. To that end, the following services are offered: Button activated doors at the building entrance Elevator access to the 2nd floor A large, gender-neutral, family restroom Wide restroom stalls with grab bars
Button activated doors at the building entrance
Elevator access to the 2nd floor
A large, gender-neutral, family restroom
Wide restroom stalls with grab bars
Hand sanitiser available to travellers and staff
Face Coverings Required For Unvaccinated Visitors

What To Expect

American Writers Museum

Visitors will explore the great writers’ hometowns and learn about all of the AWM Affiliate homes in Writers Hall. In A Nation of Writers they will learn about and celebrate authors who are emblematic of a unique American Voice, across history, genre, and mediums, from poets to sportswriters . Galleries such as The Mind of a Writer will de-mystify famed writers’ works and methodologies and invite visitor creativity with games and other immersive offerings. The Wintrust Chicago Gallery will delve into the great writers, literary influencers, characters, and groups that shaped the city’s unique literary tradition. Featured in the Meijer Gallery is the temporary exhibit, My America: Immigrant and Refugee Writers Today explores contemporary writing by immigrants through various themes. The Tools of the Trade exhibit in the Roberta Rubin Writer’s Room focuses on the tools used by famous American writers through history, from Frederick Douglass to Helen Keller to Maya Angelou.

Cancellation Policy

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

Traveler Photos

Reviews (49)

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Redrabbits81

May 2018

I just loved the American Writers Museum! I should also add the caveat that I majored in literature and writing in college, but I do think that you don't have to be a book nerd to enjoy this museum. One whole wall of the museum is dedicated to highlighting writers throughout America's history. Not only did this timeline exhibit provide the context of history, but it was also approached with inclusivity in mind. Not only did the exhibit include women writers and people of color, but the museum took effort to include a diversity of type of writing. It included journalists, poets, and essayists among novelists. As a visitor, you could also choose the depth of your interaction with the exhibit. You could peruse a few of the writers and their story, or you could dig deeper to learn the historical context of their writing and how it fit into the timeline of American history and thought. You could also watch interactive videos to dive in depth to themes throughout American writing in general. I got very immersed in the exhibit and had to stop reading every single word if I wanted to finish the rest of museum before they closed. In the next room I got to pick my five favorite books and see where my votes lined up with other visitors. If I provided my email address, I was supposed to get a bookmark of my selections but I didn't receive it. In addition to couches and books to read, this room had interactive panels where you could learn facts about bookstores and reading in schools. In the last stretch of the museum, you are invited to play with a variety of old school typewriters. The idea is that you write a bit of a story, and someone else comes along and adds a bit more. No one had left a story for me to add to, so I decided to start a couple, though technically one of them was actually a poem. Hopefully someone finishes them. I liked the idea of stranger collaboration. the next exhibits were very technical. They had these huge tables and the surfaces were tablets. I thought it was cool but I didn't have time to play with it so I don't know what really what they did. I was impressed with how fancy they looked. There were other panels on the wall where you could learn about creating dialogue between characters. Another panel illustrated that writers usually have routines and let you compare your choices for a routine with those of other American writers. Who does't enjoy being compared to Walt Whitman? The last exhibit I came to looked like one of those Pac-Man tables, but instead the game was to try and fill in the blanks of a paragraph with words provided. You can play by yourself or with another person sitting across from you. You earn points for how many words you use correctly, and get the most points if you use the same word as the original text. It is timed and so it is really hard, but I enjoyed playing it against my wife (she did not enjoy it as much as me, but that's only because I was beating her). I spent about two hours here, and I easily could have spent another hour here. It is a rather small museum, but if you are interested in reading all the information and interacting with all the exhibits, you will need about three hours. Overall it is one of the best museums I have ever been to, and I hope people go and check it out.