UChicago students live right next door to some of the best museums, cultural hubs, and theaters in Chicago. Whether you have an hour or a whole weekend, Hyde Park, Kenwood, South Shore, and Woodlawn have you covered!

ON CAMPUS

1. Start off your campus adventure with a coffee and flakey pastry from Plein Air Cafe. (5751 South Woodlawn Avenue). Their beautiful outdoor patio is a great place to wait for your friend who’s running late for your campus museum tour.
   

2. Head right next door for a tour of the Frederick C. Robie House (5757 S Woodlawn Ave), created by Frank Lloyd Wright for his client Frederick C. Robie. See what makes the house with its contemporary architecture one of the most important buildings in the history of American architecture!
   

3. Make your way to the quad and stop by the Oriental Institute (1155 E 58th Street) also known as “the OI,” to check out the permanent collection and special exhibitions of archaeology, history, art, languages, and civilizations of the ancient Near East. If you’re ever in need of a new study spot, on the second floor, you’ll also find one of most beautiful and hidden libraries on campus. UChicago students have access to a free membership with their UCID.
   

4. Take a short walk across the quad to Cob Hall’s 4th floor where you’ll find the Renaissance Society (5811 S Ellis Avenue). This contemporary art museum, referred to as “The Ren,” presents four exhibits a year by artists from Chicago, the United States, and around the world, often presenting new work created specifically for the exhibition. Claim your Free membership using your UCID for exclusive and private performances, events, and gallery tours for members and their guests ONLY, and a 10% discount on all Renaissance Society publications.
   

5. Exit the quad and walk north along S Ellis avenue toward the Smart Museum (5550 S Greenwood Avenue). The Smart is home to thought-provoking special exhibitions and a broad-based collection representing Western and Asian traditions from antiquity to the present day. Admission and programs are always free!
   

6. Rest your feet and grab a seat at the Court Theater (5535 S Ellis Avenue) right next door. “Court” was called “the most consistently excellent theatre in America” The Wall Street Journal called Court. Tickets are free Wednesday and Thursday nights, $10 rush tickets other nights on sale at the box office window starting 1 hour before performance based on availability, and $20 in advance available online. You can also get to know the Court virtually here.
   

NORTHEAST OF CAMPUS

1. Located in the Hyde Park Art Center, Bridgeport Coffee (5030 S Cornell Ave) offers extraordinary beverages and excellent light meals in a light-filled sanctuary.
   

2. Hyde Park Arts Center (5020 S Cornell Ave) is a hub for contemporary arts in Chicago, serving as a gathering and production space for artists and the broader community to cultivate ideas, impact social change, and connect with new networks.
   

3. Norman’s Bistro (1001 E 43rd St) serves up delicious Cajun Creole fare daily and live jazz every Sunday night at 9pm with no cover charge.

EAST OF CAMPUS

1. Just a 20-minute walk from campus or seven-minute Midway Metra shuttle ride from Goldblatt Pavilion to 57th Metra/Stony, the Museum of Science and Industry (5700 S Lake Shore Dr) is the largest science museum in the Western Hemisphere with more than 35,000 artifacts and 400,000 square feet of hands-on experiences designed to spark scientific inquiry and creativity.
   

2. Following your museum visit, escape to the Garden of the Phoenix (6401 S. Stony Island Ave; East side of Cornell Ave). Right behind the Museum of Science in this Japanese garden on Jackson Park's Wooded Island, you’ll find a waterfall, foot bridges, and blossoming cherry trees in the Spring.
   

3. End your East Hyde Park excursion with a meal at Chef Sara’s Cafe (7201 S Exchange Ave), heralded the South Side Weekly’s 2020 “Best Neighborhood Mainstay.”

SOUTH OF CAMPUS

1. Start your day right across the midway with one of the best cups of coffee in Hyde Park from Build Coffee (6100 S Blackstone Ave), house in the Experimental Station. Spend some time browsing their bookstore - especially their zine collection. As a hub of community-driven non-profits, mutual aid, and civic journalism projects, Experimental Station is a place to know if you’re interested in radical collaboration.
   

2. Next stop is the Stony Island Arts Bank (6760 S Stony Island Ave), an abandoned bank turned arts center. Walk over to Stony Island and 60th to catch the southbound 28 CTA bus to Stony Island and 68th. Part of Rebuild Foundation, a non profit organization founded by renowned artist and UChicago Department of Visual Arts, Theaster Gates, the Stony Island Art Bank is a center for lectures, concerts, and exhibitions by Art Bank’s artists in residence.

WEST OF CAMPUS

1. The DuSable Museum of African American History (740 E. 56th Pl) is dedicated to the study and conservation of African-American history, culture, and art. Originally founded by the beloved artist, teacher, writer, poet, criminal justice reformer Margaret Burroughsin in her living room (1959), The DuSable Museum is a space filled with history and life. Go for the permanent exhibitions AND special concerts, films, and literary discussions.
   

2. Just north of the museum, you’ll find a Washington Spirit of DuSable Series (5531 S. Martin Luther King Dr.), a sculpture garden filled with artworks to honor Jean Baptist Point DuSable, a Haitian immigrant and Chicago’s first non-indigenous settler, after whom the museum is also named.
   

3. Walk a little west of the museum and find a sunny spot in Washington Square Park (5531 S. King Dr.) for a picnic. Designed by Frederick Law Olmsted & Calvert Vaux, Washington Park is considered one of Chicago’s most important historic landscapes.