Hotels for Classic Stadium Tour

A stadium tour puts you where the crowds usually aren't allowed: pitchside, in the tunnels, up in the press boxes and suites that shape a matchday. Mornings work well for this kind of visit, when the concourses are quiet and guides have time to point out the details rather than rush a script. Expect stories about the building itself as much as the teams who've played there — old locker rooms, retired numbers, decades of alterations. It suits families, sports history buffs and anyone who wants to see a famous ground with nobody shouting from the stands.

The Bears trace to the Decatur Staleys of 1919, one of the NFL's founding franchises, renamed Chicago Bears in 1922 by owner George Halas to align with the baseball Cubs who shared their stadium — bears being bigger than cubs. Halas coached the team for four decades, and the franchise carries more official NFL championships than any other, nine in total, though only one, in the 1985 season, came in the Super Bowl era.

That team's dominant defense and the 'Super Bowl Shuffle' made it a cultural phenomenon. Soldier Field's lakefront setting and the Bears' status as one of only two founding franchises never to relocate underline the club's deep roots in the city.

Home to the Chicago Bears, historic Soldier Field sits on the city's lakefront within the Museum Campus, hosting NFL football, soccer and stadium concerts against a backdrop of Lake Michigan and the skyline. The setting is one of the finest in American sport, close to the museums, Grant Park and the lakefront trail.

Buses and nearby transit link into downtown. Booking a room in the Loop or South Loop lets you walk or ride to the game and enjoy the lakefront before and after.