This place is huge with a food court, cute shops, and plenty of seating. It's super clean and has a great view of the Willis Tower just outside the building. They even have a water taxis close to the building so If you're just at the union station to connect to another train or bus and you want to explore the city and you don't have time to walk a lot then take a water taxi read more

Chicago Union Station - Train Stations Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Stately Christmas tree this December greeted passengers. I've been taking Amtrak out of Chicago Union station for 20+ years. Back in college, I often took it to get to school or visit friends. But lately I've been using the metropolitan lounge so I can't speak to what the rest of the waiting areas are like these days. I had a sleeper car so it was complementary for me. I left my luggage in the storage near the front desk, which felt safe enough. The bathrooms are ample and clean. Multi stalls on the main floor and a single room (one for men, one for women) upstairs. There are complementary snacks but nothing exciting. Some chips and granola bars. I appreciated the soda although they also have water and coffee. With two floors, there's plenty of space, from my experience to spread out. Options of tables and chairs or various softer chairs. When it's time to go to the train, there's a PA announcement to get our stuff and line up. read more

Chicago Union Station - Great room - Train Stations Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

I was at Union Station in February 2026. No complaints except for the public address system. The sound quality was very poor. Announcements could not be understood at all. read more

We had a great experience at the Amtrak lounge. The station is beautiful with lots of personal available to help with any questions. read more

Chicago Union Station - Inside the station - Train Stations Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

The history and architecture of this building is amazing! It's over 110 years old! I love the historical significance of this building! Yes, it could use some better signage to more easily navigate where to go. Ladies everywhere are used to standing in line for the ladies room in all kind of public places. The bathrooms here are small and the one I went to had one stall that was out of service. The line for the ladies room was quite long outside. I really enjoyed the beautiful architectural details of Chicago's Union Station. read more

See all

Busy, Busy, Busy. Chicago is the main hub of the nationwide Amtrak train system, and would be the required stop if you wanted to travel across the country coast to coast by rail. We came in from Los Angeles after a 2 night journey on Amtrak, and lo and behold, right at afternoon rush hour on a Wednesday, so things were hopping. Because of the rains in Los Angeles, we were a little more than 2 hours late. Once you get off of Amtrak, you have a bit of a walk to the indoor station. I think if we had waited, we could have been picked up by the Red Hat shuttle/cart service, but we didn't have many bags so enjoyed walking the outside platforms. We had checked two bags in Los Angeles, so needed to go to the baggage claims area of Amtrak to get our bags. We found the area by sign, and asked a nearby employees; "Where do you pick up bags?". She smiled and pointed...we had been right next to a baggage carousel (exactly like what you would see at the airport, only smaller). The baggage came within the promised 20 minutes, and then we were off to find the Metra lines that would take you to the suburbs. We had checked the schedule of the Milwaukee District West line, and knew that we had less than 10 minutes. The line we wanted was the express, which would get us to Hanover Park in less than 40 minutes. After asking and a few wrong turns, we found a kiosk to purchase the two tickets (you have to type in the from/to and will be charged based on distance....it ended up being $6.75 per one-way ticket). The trick was to find the right platform...we asked an employee who helped us by checking the timetable...the weird thing is that the Metra website had the schedule and status, but didn't list the platform for each train (one would think that if the platform choices are so stable that a printed pamphlet would be accurate, they could show it on the site). Metra uses the 2 decker cars (similar to what Metrolink uses in LA)...it wasn't too crowded so able to find a seat near an empty space to hold onto our luggage. There was a small illuminated 20th century technology sign telling the stops, so we knew were on the right train. They left EXACTLY at 5:10, and it was a quick trip. It was only later I realized that the Chief stop before Union station is Naperville, which is actually a short Uber ride to where we wanted to finally go. But, it was planned this way, and ended up being a good experience. Just wish we had a little more time at the station to check things out (including the Amtrak lounge that we could have gone to). read more

Chicago Union Station - Luggage Carousels - Train Stations Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

We took Amtrak from Milwaukee to Chicago and everyone was wonderful. I have my son with me, they helped with bags and making sure we got on safe. From Chicago we are going to New York City and coach is a mess. No one helped anyone (there were people who were handicap and women and children) and all Amtrak did was yell at everyone about their bags. No assistance, nothing. Why even have a bag check if no one is going to check bags and help. I struggled so bad getting on with my two year old. Then the doors to the connecting carts weren't closing and we went through a SNOW STORM. Luckily I brought 3 blankets and pillow and it was still freezing in our cart. Being late, couldn't help it because of the snow. The only person helpful was the lady running the cafe. If you ride coach, you can not have access to the dining cart. I thought that was so weird. No one was in there and we couldn't sit down and order like a Restaurant. I don't mind paying for food. I took my mom on a 60th birth trip and I'm super disappointed in this Amtrak. read more

I took the Amtrak from Dallas to Chicago. We had a huge delay which resulted in us get to the station more than 12 hours late. We arrived at 2:36 a.m. the station was closed for the most part. But it was great to be greeted by friendly staff waiting to help us. They had arranged rooms for us. They offered us snacks. They had arranged transport to and from the station to the hotels. They had a plan in place when we arrived. Some of us didn't want to go to the hotel but rather we opted to try and be on the first trains out. I was traveling with my son and wanted to get him home. Anthony Ramsey and Kisha Terry were absolutely AMAZING!!! They heard our concerns. They stayed over even though they had made other arrangements for us. The made sure we had spots on the first trains out. It was such a refreshing experience. They had no control over the delays we experienced. But they made sure everything they could do on their end was done. read more

First time taking the train to Chicago. Even with renovation/construction everything was pretty smooth and seamless. The train is a good new option for when we wanna play in Chicago! read more

I'm surprised I have reviewed the train station yet!? It's a maim Metra and Amtrak hub (different sides of station). It's a great place to people watch. In the main hall, you must see the architecture and designs if you can. It opened in 1925, so there's a lot of history here. They have a number of events that are held here annually. There's also restaurants sprinkled about the station (mainly fast food), but they do have a Chick-fil-a now. They have small beer kiosks if you need something to go. The bathrooms can be extremely disgusting, though. I think they're worse than the airports. I saw things I wish I could unsee. It's a large station, but it's easy to navigate if you're worried about getting lost. Like any other big city location, watch yourself and don't let your kids wander off by themselves. read more

Rude worker. Made us pay for luggage even though it fit in the sizing bin. Others with same size luggage didn't have to pay.

An iconic building and the hub for train traffic for the western part of the US., Chicago's Union Station was originally designed by Daniel Burnham and completed by Graham, Anderson, Probst and White. A magnificent building worthy of the city's status as a national railroad hub, it is a treasured part of Chicago history. The architecture in the grand hall is beautiful, the amount of traffic going in and out of here is staggering and the amenities available are surprising. There are places to eat, areas to hold private events, areas to shop, and more. It is a wonder to behold and one of the truly iconic building in Chicago. read more

Chicago Union Station - Train Stations Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

See all

The train ride on Amtrak from Chicago, IL to Milwaukee, WI was nice. Union station in Chicago was clean and very nice to sit and wait for our train. The only problem I had was that they charged us $20.00 for large suitcases. Even though they were only an inch over the box you put them in to check sizing. You still have to carry them yourself and load them on the train. If they are going to charge you, they should load them for you. read more

Chicago Union Station is a historic 5 story building, its to the hub station for the mid west , the is a very busy station, you have to stop here to transfer to go further east of west,its located next to the Chicago River. The architecture is so pretty, this building is famous for filming movies like the 1987 the Untouchable plus private event, the food court is on the 2nd floor, there are mobile qube that are located though out the building to charge cell phones. Up on me arriving here was no problem at all, departing was so confusing, there was not enough seats, and when to board my train took a lot of patience, Amtrak is the main rail here there is also Metra and a commuter rail. I fail to mention that this station is as busy and crowded as LAX. read more

See all

Very lovely, as far as Landmarks go. Very busy train station with a decent food hall. Would recommend stopping in if you have the time, but be mindful of others just "passing through." I expect some sketchy things happen from time to time, and It would also explain the large amounts of security. read more

See all

I took the train into Chicago and it dropped off at Chicago Union Station, but whatever way I came out didn't pass through all the beauty of the station at all, so I had no idea how stunning it was going to be before I came back here to get the train to leave the city! Had I known, I would've come to Union Station earlier to sit here and vibe, rather than stay in the lobby of my hotel! This place is beautiful and stunning and so CAVERNOUS! Tons of sunlight during the day, beautiful architecture, and just an abundance of space, which I loved! I was here on a Monday (Memorial Day), so it was extremely sparse and not at all populated, so I can't speak to how busy it might be normally, but everything was very organized as well and easy to navigate to my Amtrak platform as well. I absolutely loved it here and can't wait to take the train in and out of this station again soon! read more

See all

What a gorgeous tourist attraction. When I got off the Amtrak undeground and made my way upstairs, the Union Station greeted me upon my arrival to Chicago. The moment I stepped through the doors and into the Great Hall, the noise of the train station fell away, and gave way to the soft jazz music playing in the great hall. It really felt like one of those video game moments where you enter a new area on the map and the music and ambience changes. What a lovely portal to step through to enter Chicago. read more

See all

We were traveling by Amtrak and had a two hour layover at Union station. Union Station, especially the Great Hall is beautiful and a great place to sit and wait for your train or bus or even to just sit and people watch for a bit if that's your thing. Finding the food court and the bathrooms are another matter entirely. The one bathroom we found was behind a sign for first class passengers only. I had to convince the lady that I wasn't going to sneak into the nice lounge, I just needed to use the toilet. It's not as if this place has bathrooms every five feet like other places; it doesn't. This was the only bathroom I saw, The food court! There were signs pointing in the general direction of a flight of steps, so up we went only to find a bank. Just a bank. A Chicago resident felt sorry for us as we were trying to figure out the building map and directed us downstairs, so down we went. Only to find another sign pointing us in the same direction as the aforementioned toilets, which was the exact opposite as the previous food court sign. Well thankfully another Chicagoan saved the day for us and showed us the super secret escalator to get to the food court, which we would have never found on our own!! Because it was hiding behind another misdirecting sign. Chicago please! You have to fix this food court problem!! I know we're not the only ones who couldn't find it! And we both have graduate degrees. These parts of the building seemed to have been built by MC Escher with confusing anomalies. read more

Chicago has a nice Union Station west of the Loop, the downtown area. It seems kind of like Grand Central but smaller. Much less busier as well. Amtrak is the main train here but there's also other methods of transportation to catch. The place has lots of classic architecture so if you're into old school Beaux Arts check it out. It has a lot of history as far as transportation and Chicago goes. Lots of trains go through here on Amtrak, and there's also the local Metra. This has been the setting for lots of movies. A lot of movies have been filmed here. The best known is the Untouchables where they're on the stairs in that classic scene. It may not be as exciting without all the shootouts and runaway baby carriages but this is a fun place for those especially into old architecture. The old hall is the best part. A lot to check out around here. It has stops on Amtrak and Metra. There's also plenty of bus stations. read more

Chicago Union Station - Outside - Train Stations Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

See all

There is not much to say about this station, but the simplicity of it is what makes it so wonderful. A true Union Station, where both METRA and Amtrak come together based on several freight company lines, all come together. It is also the central of the four major terminals in the downtown Chicago area; Millennium, La Salle, Ogilvie, and this one, Union Station. Truly an architectural masterpiece, where less is more, this stands out. It is super easy to navigate, the Grand Hall is a thing of beauty to walk around, and there are plenty of decent food options nearby. It is no wonder several films had scenes take place here, it is beyond picturesque. I could go on how The Untouchables was filmed here, and how the Grand Staircase is a marvel in that regard, but that would not be doing this station justice. It is a work of art that should be preserved to remind generations that rail travel was, is, and will always be part of the American drive to be great. read more

Chicago Union Station - Grand Staircase - Train Stations Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Chicago Union Station is always consistent love being able to come in from Milwaukee without having to drive and worry about parking. Station is under construction a few escalators were non-functioning, hoping that the updates are complete soon. I can't wait to see the finished product. read more

This iconic Beaux Arts building designed by Daniel Burnam is a massive edifice by the river. The waiting room with its soaring glass ceiling has wooden benches which look uncomfortable, you are encouraged to arrive 30 minutes prior to boarding. I chose Business Class tickets instead which admit you to the Metropolitan Room prior to boarding. There are plenty of tables and comfortable seating, tvs and outlets to plug in. They also have complimentary chips and sodas. read more

See all

The staff is friendly and the environment is very inviting would recommend for your travel needs! read more

Chicago Union Station - Train Stations Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

See all

Historic Neoclassical building that occupies a full city block in downtown Chicago. It is the fourth busiest rail terminal in the US. The Great Hall is massive. Two statues, "Night" and "Day" by Henry Hering, represent the round the clock service offered by the railway. "Night" holds an owl, while "Day" holds a rooster. read more

See all

Union Station is magnificent and I can't wait until the renovations will finally be complete. A little bit of a maze to get around but overall easy to board. The food court is an issue with people just hanging out and spending the night inside. Hard to find a table with homeless camped out. Amtrak needs to clean that up. People do not want to deal with that on top of handling luggage around to get to their train. read more

The staff are helpful, the food options are decent in the food court, but the security is not good at the food court. I was actually robbed of 500 dollars by 2 con artists inside the food court. If you encounter men claiming to represent the bucket drummer group, then they are in fact thieves. Avoid them at all costs. read more

Absolutely beautiful architectural masterpiece! We came here to catch the Empire Builder Amtrak train to Seattle but I've always wanted to visit this station just to see its beauty in person. We arrived early enough so I could wander around the Grand Hall and study everything. You have to walk slowly and just feel the history of the building seep into you. You can't help but look up and around. I wasn't the only one there taking it all in. Even if you're not catching a train to anywhere, you really need to just step into this building and feel the history. It's well worth a trip to Chicago. read more

See all

Two stars because it is historic, beautiful, and been in so many movies. But like a lot of movie stars, Chicago Union Station doesn't have a great personality when you meet face to face. Workers here are cynical, jaded, and disgruntled. And they will take their frustrations out on you. It's hard to figure out their gate system even if you come through here a lot. They cut off boarding suddenly soon after they start boarding so make sure you are in the right place at the right time. There are often delays. Other stations like Milwaukee are much nicer, it's like they are completely different companies. There aren't enough seats for everyone waiting. Restrooms are busy and more than a little scary. Wear a mask and bring hand sanitizer. Try to avoid eating here. read more

I arrived to Chicago's Union Station on Friday June 16th from Indianapolis. It was my 1st time ever being in Chicago's Union Station especially to ride Amtrak train. When, I arrived at the Union Station it was very busy, from having the Chicago local trains, Greyhound, and just people trying to catch their trains. It was very easily to get lost in the Union Station, love the history, the beautiful giant columns, and you had to be there to see the actual beauty of Chicago's Union Station. The food court is on the upper level, where I had McDonald's twice when I was at the Union Station. The food at the Union Station is definitely pricey, but the food I had at McDonalds was always fresh & hot, and the restaurants at the Union Station stay busy. Oh, the beautiful Great Hall is beyond beautiful, and on June 16th someone was getting married. Then, when I arrived back from my train trip on June 26th in the Great Hall when it was very busy a couple was taken their engagement pictures. The Great Hall can be rented out for weddings, photo shoots, private events. Etc. Next time you're in Chicago checkout their Union Station. read more

See all

This was my first time using AmTrack and I will say I was pleased with my experience! I wasn't sure what to expect. I came from an extremely small station with just a vending machine so Union Station having multiple food and beverage options was a huge bonus! I will say the food court area was not clean, however, we were able to easily find a table and wipe it off with some napkins before using it. Employees were helpful in aiding us to find where to go. read more

Gorgeous train station. Love to take the train into Chicago when I can. It's the airport of train stations with easy to find terminals and comfy seating. The main area is an open space with beautiful architecture. It's busy, clean, and just an awesome space to see. This train station is hoping inside and outside. Sometimes I drive in and park to take the train, other times I uber. Parking is across the street, but expensive. So uber is usually the best option. read more

They allow women to use the men's restrooms and think nothing of it. It's dirty usually. They did not handle the St.Patrick's crowd well at all. read more

The station is beautiful, with a grand waiting room evoking the best of the golden age of rail travel. Sadly, Amtrak Mid-West seems hellbent on snuffing out that nostalgia. As soon as you need to board a train you encounter Amtrak's desire to bring the worst of air travel to train travel: Nylon ropes restrict all passenger movement through two lounge areas, where one is forced to wait cheek by jowl with the whole train. Despite the train being at the track one must wait until an Amtrak employee lets you through the "velvet" rope. There is no discernible reasoning for this herding of people, which only delayed our train's departure by nearly 10 minutes. Next, rather than selling assigned seating on the train, a junior conductor queries each passenger as to their destination; shunting them to the appropriate train car. In the end one pulls out of Chicago with a bitter taste in your mouth, the glories of the station long forgotten and the raised blood pressure, inefficiencies, and cattle like treatment foremost in mind. Amtrak needs to seriously look at best practices for train boarding from railroads, not Spirit Airways. Not just foreign railroads, but other US cities could teach Chicago how to make boarding a train there pleasant enough that one would want to return. read more

Chicago Union Station - Train Stations Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

See all

I appreciate public transit and having Union Station available for trekking in and out of the city whenever I'm staying in Chicago is helpful. That said, I don't enjoy spending time in Union Station... when I'm here, I just want to be on my train and heading to my destination. I don't take issue with the fact that it's a city train station and can be needing a bit of a clean-up due to high volumes of commuters... that's the norm. What I take issues with are things like completely unhelpful staff in the station when issues arise with train scheduling or asking where to find something across the multiple floors and switched gates (especially while areas of the main part of the station appear to be under construction). Given that it's a city train station, you can also expect to see homeless utilizing the station for shelter. I don't consider this a scary station by any means... but something to be aware of if you're not used to a big city like Chicago. At least in my experience here during my last visit, signage was really lacking. I get it... the place was under construction... but c'mon, Union Station, help folks out. I guess I agree with Brian F. (another Yelper who left a review for this station) and his sentiment of "Staff are rude, particularly in the Amtrak lounge, and SIGNANGE. Is. AWFUL." Once I finally did find my Amtrak waiting area, it was in the way back recesses of the building with very minimal room for those waiting, especially folks with families. The addition of some torn up & sticky seating, and just a bit of general grunginess reinforced that whole internal "Ugh... just get me out of here and on my way"-internal dialogue. Thankfully, the train was running on time. (That certainly isn't always the case... because I have waited in the Albany train station SO MANY TIMES for a train to Boston that ORIGINATED in Chicago and was running hours and hours and hours late - back in 2014, I think there was one that was running 9 hours late. You just never know.) * Side note: if you're taking an Uber or Lyft, hope you get someone who knows their way around Union Station. I've had pick-ups and drop-offs that have turned into a cluster because the driver hasn't known how to handle the roads + paired with the difficulty of finding easy drop-off or pick-up locations for the cars (again, no clear signage or easily accessible spots). TL;DR It's such a central travel hub that you don't necessarily have an easy choice if traveling into / out of Chicago. Its not an especially enjoyable location... so if you're traveling and going through Union Station? Just try to make the best of it, I guess. read more

See all

The best way to get to Chicago from Metro Detroit is to take the Amtrak to Union Station. No hassle of driving, no need to pay a ton for parking. My only complaint about union station is that the waiting areas down by the platforms are crowded. More people should stay on the upper floor to enjoy the beautiful architecture. read more

One of the biggest train stations in the US, and one of the coolest. Customer service can be hit or miss. Be sure to check the boards for when and where your train will leave, and PLEASE get there with plenty of time because it's a HUGE train station and it can be easy to get overwhelmed, especially if you cut it close. read more

I took the Amtrak for the first time during a holiday weekend since I did not want to have deal with traffic to and from Saint Louis. Union station is a very busy station, but they had signs to help me navigate where I needed to go which was helpful. It's a huge station and you can easily get lost if you aren't paying attention. There were lots of screens posted around the station so that travelers could check the status of their trains. It was easy for me to find where I needed to be and they had a lot of seating while we waited to board. I am not sure if this is normal or now, but there were a lot of pigeons walking (and flying) around while we waited. They did have signs posted about masks being required, but I did not see anybody enforcing the mask mandate so there were many people without masks walking around. I found the process of arriving and departing from this station pretty easy and I would do it again despite a 3 hour train delay (while we were sitting on the train)! read more

I arrived an entrance from my Lyft that was difficult to enter due to construction that has been going on for more than 2 years. It was very confusing to find where to go once inside. It was completely empty until I got to the tracks. There was nowhere that indicated which track my train was on. Apparently, that's only visible in the upstairs area far from where I was dropped off. I was looking at signs for any indication of my train number but it only had destinations that weren't familiar. I went to look for where to ask and by that time my train had left. There wasn't another to my destination for 5 hours. I ended up having to get greyhound tickets instead. Such a waste of time and completely preventable by providing useful information. I got a text before my trip that said where to wait but nothing about which track. That would have made all the difference. read more

Nice clean station to catch a train. Food available and an Amtrak lounge if you qualify. Easy Uber ride from most downtown hotels. Plenty of people people to help with train information. read more

please fire brenden he was mean and we tried to pay him for ticket and the total was 3.75 and we gave him a 20 and when we tried to give him 75 cents he made a big deal out of it and said he "didnt want change" like uhm? thats kinda your job and my mom threw the quarter at him and he said we would be "prosecuted" like your a grown man and your being so immature. fire him please he was very rude read more