Field Museum

The Field Museum stands on the lakefront Museum Campus, a short walk from the Shedd Aquarium and the Adler Planetarium. It was incorporated in 1893, originally as the Columbian Museum of Chicago, following the World's Columbian Exposition. Today its galleries cover fossils, world cultures, animals, gems and minerals.

Sue, the Tyrannosaurus rex, is the museum's most famous resident. When it was unveiled in 2000 it was the largest T. rex specimen discovered, and since 2018 it has had its own suite inside Evolving Planet, a long gallery that traces about four billion years of life on Earth. Beyond the dinosaurs, Inside Ancient Egypt displays 23 human mummies and a three-storey replica of a mastaba tomb, and Ancient Americas covers some 13,000 years of human history in the Western Hemisphere.

Other highlights include Native Truths: Our Voices, Our Stories, a permanent exhibition opened in 2021, the Cyrus Tang Hall of China, the Grainger Hall of Gems and the Hall of Jades. The DNA Discovery Center and the McDonald's Fossil Prep Lab show some of the science behind the collections. Special exhibitions change through the year and some need a separate ticket.

The museum is open daily from 9am to 5pm, with last entry at 4pm, and closes on Thanksgiving and Christmas Day. It is big, so allow at least three hours and choose priorities before you arrive. Families with children who love dinosaurs could spend most of a day here, while adults with an interest in archaeology will want time in the Egypt and Americas galleries. Weekday mornings outside school holidays are usually the quietest time.

Plan the visit around your interests rather than the floor plan. A sensible route for a first visit is Sue and Evolving Planet first, while energy is high, followed by Inside Ancient Egypt and then one of the cultural halls such as Ancient Americas or Native Truths. Leave the gem and jade halls for the end, when a slower pace suits them.

For general enquiries call 312 922 9410; a TTY line is also available. The museum website has full details of ticket options, accessibility, parking and dining. By public transport, take the "L" to Roosevelt and then the number 146 bus to the Museum Campus. Pair it with the Shedd Aquarium next door, or walk out along the lakefront towards the Adler Planetarium for views back to the skyline.