Chicago Guide
The Near North Side
While the Loop is more important as a centre of business and finance, Chicago's Near North has established itself as the most energetic downtown area, with its four very different districts – the Magnificent Mile, Streeterville, River North and the Gold Coast – each offering different reasons to visit.
The "Mag Mile" (North Michigan Avenue) is best known for its world-class shopping, with nearly every major international chain store having some kind of presence here. Reaching east from Michigan Avenue to the lake, Streeterville, by contrast, is a mostly residential neighbourhood of high-rises, with a couple of notable exceptions: the small but compelling Museum of Contemporary Art and Navy Pier, an unabashedly commercial entertainment complex. The hippest bit of Near North is River North, west of Michigan Avenue, where many former warehouses have been turned into art galleries, clubs and restaurants. Extending north from the Magnificent Mile to Lincoln Park, the Gold Coast is, as its name suggests, one of Chicago's wealthiest enclaves, with smart boutiques on its south end, posh mansions to the north and a clutch of party-hardy bars in the middle.