Chicago, IL, goes by many names, but the Windy City sticks for many reasons. It describes the city's windy weather, breezy lakefront, and talkative folks. The city has a lot to offer, with fascinating places all over, from downtown Chicago to West Town and the Bridgeport neighborhood. Art and design lovers will love The River North, while restaurant lovers will enjoy visiting West Loop.
The Morgan Arts Complex, Magnificent Mile, Navy Pier, Millennium Park, and International Museum are just a few of the city's top must-visit attractions. These are all hallmarks of an ideal destination to enjoy fun times and create new memories, with numerous event spaces ready to welcome crowds celebrating different functions. Whether for business meetings, corporate events, or cocktail parties, Chicago has an event venue for the occasion!
Giggster has an event space primed for hosting all occasions. With Chicago as the backdrop for your next event, choose from our selection of spaces with beautiful Lake Michigan views, exposed brick walls, or a grand staircase with contemporary art.
Why Giggster for Your Party in Chicago
Our site offers hundreds of listings covering all Chicago event venues, guaranteeing you'll find versatile spaces for corporate functions, baby showers, and other social events. Consider event venue ideas that can inspire your forthcoming special event:
- Does flexibility top your checklist for an ideal venue for your next event? A darkroom studio fits the bill, with brick walls, mirrors, WiFi, LED, and smart-activated lighting. A contemporary event space suits everything from fitness classes to dance parties.
- Book a minimalist speakeasy in the West Loop if your party would benefit from a laid-back, casual atmosphere. Modest yet functional party venues are all the trend. Features like a pool table, cafe tables, vintage Sansui stereo system, and off-the-alley loading zone are ideal for mixers, intimate weddings, and photo/video shoots.
- Check out a contemporary, spacious venue with a sleeping loft for an occasion requiring modern sophistication. Comfortably accommodate many guests for a standing cocktail or fewer people for a seated dinner.
- Are you looking for a conveniently located venue for your corporate meeting? Consider a small South Loop conference room with high ceilings, exposed brick, and a rich history.
Transform Your Party in Chicago Starting at Just $27/hour
Exceptional Variety & Quality: From charming fixer-uppers to storefront cafes and elegant studio bars, Giggster's 443 listings in Chicago, IL, guarantee a perfect venue for every special occasion. Our site has a suitable setting for your next event.
Hassle-Free Booking: Our user-friendly platform provides every detail you need to know about a venue, including pricing. Best of all, Giggster offers unique party venues starting at $27/hour. You can narrow your search based on event type, venue style, and rental price.
24-Hour Free Cancellation Policy: There's always an off chance that planning private events won't go as expected. Giggster's 24-hour free cancellation policy allows you to postpone your private dining event or intimate gathering.
Platform Protections: Giggster's optional platform protection covers event permit requirements. Book a New Space | Tables & Chairs Included | Free Hour, knowing you can attach an add-on insurance package covering liability and damage.
Pros and Cons of Parties in Chicago
Giggster makes it easy to lock down a Chicago event venue, guaranteeing an outdoor setting or unique venue for your forthcoming gathering. Still, knowing what you are signing up for when booking private event spaces in the Chicago Bears' stomping grounds helps dot your Is and cross your Ts.
Advantages
- Chicago, IL, rests strategically on Lake Michigan, presenting an opportunity to host a beach party. The best Chicago event venues provide scenic views and striking backdrops for your photos.
- Chicago's world-class dining options make it an all-around food lover's paradise. From the restaurants in River North serving international cuisine to the dinner spots downtown, you can find dishes that please your palate and caterers for your event.
- The Hyde Park Jazz Festival, Chicago Theatre, Chicago Jazz Festival, and Art Institute of Chicago shape the city's cultural scene. It's the best place to host a party centered on dance, music, the visual arts, or theater.
Disadvantages
- The last thing you want is for the traffic in downtown Chicago to delay your event. Most popular venues around the city also tend to have people congestion, so consider these aspects when exploring such areas.
- Bone-chilling winters make the city a gloomy place where nothing much happens—the below-freezing temperatures peak from December to February.
- Chicago has environmental challenges from transportation and industrial sources. The poor air quality can impact outdoor events.
The Best Party Venues in Chicago
After assessing what a venue offers and its suitability for your forthcoming gathering, pinning down a versatile event space kickstarts the next step in your planning process. It could be a banquet hall in the West Loop or a unique venue in River North; one thing is for sure: Giggster will help you find a private party space that ticks all the boxes. Our site has 443 event space listings you can rent in Chicago.
Bars – Birthday Parties. Your next birthday party should unfold in a beautiful, multi-faceted space. Chicago has many studio bars that can host photo shoots, yoga classes, and private parties. Most feature cocktail tables, fully stocked bars, and bartenders serving delicious cocktails.
Lofts – Intimate Gatherings. The heart of Chicago has lofts that double as photography studios and event spaces. These versatile venues have high ceilings, cyclorama walls, and surround sound systems.
Cafes – Brunches and Dinner. A cozy and casual storefront cafe creates a great venue for brunch or other food-based gatherings. Book an industrial-style cafe with natural light, colored walls, and high ceilings for private dinners guests won't soon forget.
Homes – Sophisticated Soirees. Do you prefer a homely yet luxurious setting for your party? Chicago, IL, has many cozy and elegant upscale homes. You get all the comforts of a residence, including air conditioning, WiFi, and even a spa bathtub!
Gardens – Receptions. Chicago has sprawling gardens that accommodate all crowd sizes for graduation, wedding, and funeral receptions. They are also ideal settings for tastings, outdoor yoga classes, and photo/video shoots.
Planning Your Party in Chicago
Organizing any gathering starts with researching locations before booking the best event venue. Features that contribute to a seamless event and fun experience should also help you pick the best location. Giggster also assists with selections of thoughtfully curated party locations, and with these tips, you can pull off an epic event.
Pick the Best Venue – Chicago offers a selection of private rooms in upscale restaurants and small party venues with modern amenities. Your budget and the particular occasion are some aspects that can guide your decision.
Work with Local Professionals – Local catering companies, event planners, and decorators can help plan your next gathering. They'll also offer invaluable insights about the lay of the land and point you toward discounts and other incentives.
Pick a Theme – A theme is the glue that holds it all together, from the invitations to the menu. Decade themes suit birthdays and anniversaries, while movies and pop culture references work for all occasions.
Prepare for the Unexpected – Besides the small things like having extra ice and menu items, plan for weather changes. It could mean preparing a secondary venue or tents to shield guests from the sun's rays.
How to Save Money on Your Party in Chicago
Your party budget in Chicago varies depending on the occasion and where you intend to host the event. However, using these tips, you can still pull off an affordably fun gathering in the Windy City.
Have you scouted the best location?
Choosing an event venue in the Fulton River District might cost more than a location in West Town. Therefore, consider this when looking for event spaces around the city for your social or corporate event.
Is there an all-inclusive package?
Most event spaces allow you to bring your own food if they provide something other than in-house catering. However, consider all-inclusive plans that cover event planning, decoration, and catering. Some venues also offer bartending services or beverage packages.
Ask for discounts.
When hiring different vendors or event planners, it doesn't hurt to ask about discounts. Most vendors typically provide favorable group rates, add-on services, or discounts on advance payments. You'll be surprised that all it takes is to ask for available offers to receive great deals and save money!
Chicago Parties with Giggster
Giggster offers a list of venues for all occasions, making it easy to find and book the best possible setting for your forthcoming shindig. The choices are exhaustive, from trendy restaurants and hidden speakeasies to lofts and sprawling estates. We have listings in neighborhoods across Chicago, and an event setting for your scheduled occasion is a click away.
By Emma Madden
Famous party venues from Chicago history
Nearly two centuries ago, on March 4, 1837, Chicago was incorporated. Yet even in its relatively short history, the White City has played host to iconic supper clubs, jazz nights, balls, and overall budget-busting shenanigans.
Most of Chicago's epochal parties hail back to the Gilded Age, when socialites frequented private, swanky clubs that played host to all kinds of decadent and debonair scenes. Remnants of that time still remain, even if the venues have since gone through several transformations. No matter the change, the stories from those heady nights have been recirculating for decades, and there's no doubt those legendary tales will keep being passed down for years to come.
Undeniably, the city's nightlife has played a pivotal role in shaping Chicago into the storied and bustling hub that is today, turning it into the sophisticated metropolis that it's become. To celebrate some of the very best nights out in history, Giggster has spotlighted five iconic party venues—and the shindigs that made them famous—in the Windy City.
The Biggs Mansion
Chicago's historic Biggs Mansion was originally home to the high-flying John DeKoven, a banker who commissioned the eminent architect Edward Burling to design the structure. Burling decked out the mansion in tiered chandeliers and Italian fireplaces—a decadent setting for the extravagant parties DeKoven would host in his home, the likes of which made the city's society pages for decades to come.
Today, the property largely functions as a cigar aficionado's haven. After a renovation project spanning two years that spared no costs and cut no corners, the Biggs Mansion was reopened to the public in September 2014. It now maintains the property's legacy as one of the very finest cigar emporiums, lounges, and member's clubs in Chicago. Fred Latsko, the venue's current owner, poured several million dollars into the restoration project—and it shows. While the building was left in a somewhat sorry state prior to the 2010s, Latsko managed to return Biggs Mansion to its former glory.
Chicago Coliseum
Right at the tail end of the 19th century, Chicago elected two aldermen to serve each ward: John "Bathhouse" Coughlin and Michael "Hinky Dink" Kenna (his small stature earned him that nickname). Their First Ward Ball developed an infamous reputation in the papers for being riotous and obscene, so much that the 7th Regiment Armony banned the pair from hosting the party there again.
The event nevertheless grew an even bigger crowd at the Chicago Coliseum—where circus acts and horse shows were among the biggest events in its early years—and lasted from 1896 until 1908, when prohibition laws spoiled the party. The annual political fundraiser developed an infamously lewd reputation across its two-decade existence, with parties attended by everyone from society thrill-seekers and noblemen to policemen and politicians. Even the waitresses are said to have paid $5 to attend (mostly on account of the tips they'd make).
The drink-guzzling was so legendary that, as soon as invites were issued, merchants began offering discount prices to the party's organizers, knowing they'd make more money than they knew what to do with. In the First Ward Ball's final year, around 20,000 guests drank in excess of 10,000 quarts of champagne and 35,000 quarts of beer, making it a solid candidate for one of the booziest nights in Chicago's history.
London House
Named after the 1920s neo-classical building it occupied, Michigan Avenue's London House encompassed a pair of nightclubs that were founded by brothers George and Oscar Marienthal in the mid-'40s. Toward the end of the decade, London House had become famed for its supper clubs. For a time, it was considered one of the most exquisite eateries in the city, a reputation it earned in part by its ties to the popular Fort Dearborn Grill. In the following decade, the venue became one of the country's foremost jazz venues and welcomed the likes of Dave Brubeck, Erroll Garner, and Frank Sinatra Jr. to its stage.
The history of Chicago jazz wouldn't have been the same without London House. However, in the 1970s, alongside the decline of jazz and the rise of rock 'n' roll, London House transitioned into none other than a Burger King. The suburbanization that overtook the city that decade had certainly dampened the party spirits, though it's since been somewhat revived. Today, the building serves as a high-end hotel that has been welcoming guests since 2016.
The Gaslight Club
If you truly wanted a glimpse into Hugh Hefner's world, you'd sooner enter The Gaslight Club than the Playboy Mansion. The original bachelor's paradise, The Gaslight Club is said to have inspired Hefner's vision for Playboy, what with its va-va-voom girls and atmosphere. A throwback to the decadence of the early 1900s, The Gaslight Club opened in 1953 as an updated form of a speakeasy, handing out exquisite cocktails to its tens of thousands of guests each year.
Dixieland jazz was the venue's specialty, and the genre's contagious fun soon spread throughout the city, though it was sadly short-lived: The glamorous club closed its doors in the 1980s. However, a watering hole bearing the club's name is now in operation at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport in tribute to the glittering venue.
The Tavern Club
Situated on North Michigan Avenue, the Tavern Club has served up shots to some of Chicago's most revered city-dwellers. The 1960s were the club's heyday, when it played host to the likes of Carl Sandburg, Frank Lloyd Wright, as well as Mayor Daley. A vital component of Chicago's high-flying social life, the club boasted some of the city's finest wines and food, which were enjoyed alongside a panoramic view of Michigan Avenue and Lake Michigan, as well as an ice-skating rink that once sat on the terrace of the 26th floor.
Sadly, the club closed shop after losing its lease in 2007. However, it was revived in the 2010s as part of a $60 million renovation and now serves as a luxury social space and tavern with capacity for 125 guests.
