This Chicago Riverwalk continues in the same innovative vein as the city’s previous groundbreaking construction projects. Some of the finest architecture in the United States lives here, with buildings by such luminaries as Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Frank Lloyd Wright, Frank Gehry and Jeanne Gang. Stretching 2.5 kilometres from Lake Michigan to Wolf Point, where the Chicago River diverges, the Riverwalk is divided into nine inter-bridge blocks.

With the first block started all the way back in 2001, the six newest blocks have all been completed over the past four years. It is these distinct spaces, or ‘rooms’, that boast features such as floating gardens, fishing piers and fountains, as well as an array of new waterside wining and dining venues. There are also areas where kayaks and larger boats can pull alongside.

Much of the Riverwalk project has seen new land built on what was once river, with an expansion of the previous riverside dock to incorporate a pedestrian walkway and areas to hang out. Since the Chicago River acts as a stormwater reservoir, part of the design is periodically submerged, so the Riverwalk’s hardscape and plant materials are floodproof, with tethered floating gardens rising and falling on metal poles.