Chicago Flyover is an Amazing Navy Pier Experience You Won’t Want to Pass On
Just imagine soaring over Chicago’s stunning skyline, from the heights of the sprawling skyscrapers above Michigan Avenue down through the streets of the city’s expansive neighborhoods. Imagine being able to scale the city’s enormous footprint and at once zoom down through the open doors of one of it’s most iconic venues, zipping in and out of corridors and walkways, spying a concert performance at stage level just before dashing up to the balcony and out the doors again, skimming across Lake Michigan just inches from its surface. This kind of first-person, birds-eye-view of Chicago has never before been possible, at least for those of us without wings. But now, at Navy Pier, Chicagoans can experience this immersive, seemingly all-encompassing flying experience through the power of virtual reality.
Opening March 1 at Navy Pier, Flyover Chicago presents a multi-sensory, three-part experience that showcases the power of community and the resilience of this amazing city. Presenting breathtaking views of Chicago neighborhoods, people and events that succinctly weave together the vibrant tapestry of the city’s rich history and culture, Flyover Chicago is much more than a sprawling film experience. It’s a dazzling first-person narrative presented on a 65-foot spherical screen that offers an incredibly immersive telling of the story of Chicago on an intimate scale. Aiding the palpability of the Flyover experience are powerfully effective flight motion seats engineered to swoop, dip and turn with every sensory immersion. Wind, water spray, and even scents are layered onto the experience, taking visitors on a journey that feels so real, it’s nearly impossible to convince the mind you’re not soaring at breakneck speeds high atop the Windy City.
Flyover Chicago is the fourth of its kind, produced by global attractions and hospitality company Pursuit. The company has created similar attractions for Las Vegas; Reykjavik, Iceland; and Vancouver, Canada–presenting immersive and exhilarating flying journeys that take visitors on a sensory experience across stunning landscapes and iconic locations across the globe.
The three-act attraction offers a beautiful and intimate look at the power of community and resilience of Chicago and its community, showcasing various neighborhoods, people and rich cultural landscape. Telling that story through stunning visual fly-on-the-wall perspectives, the Flyover Chicago team offers a peer into a veritable tapestry of life in the Windy City. From a summer’s afternoon on North Avenue Beach to an invigorating sail on Lake Michigan to a dash in across the spray of a fire hydrant on Chicago’s North Side and more the Flyover experience offers a loving tribute to the power of what it means to be a Chicagoan and enlivened by the exhilaration and strength of this enigmatic city.
Featured prominently in this journey are some iconic cultural and artistic elements that help to visually articulate the Chicago experience. Viewers get a glimpse into a Joffrey Ballet rehearsal high above the everyday activity on Chicago’s bustling State Street, and they fly into the midst of a seemingly live concert experience in The Chicago Theater featuring the city’s beloved Chicago Children’s Choir. Both scenes offer views into the wildly creative and infinitely inspiring tapestry that is Chicago’s arts and culture community, an element without which the team at Flyover would not have been able to accurately depict the vibrancy that defines our city.
For the Flyover Chicago team, weaving these intimate stories together into one powerful, immersive experience was a remarkable undertaking, and the prospect of presenting it for the first time to Chicago audiences came with great anticipation.
“Officially opening Flyover in Chicago is a special one for us,” said Lisa Adams, COO and Executive Producer, Flyover Attractions by Pursuit. “Over this past year, we have had the privilege of hearing stories from Chicagoans from all walks of life, stories that illustrate the grit and tenacity this incredible city has that we have grown to know, and love. Flyover is our love letter to Chicago, and we can’t wait for everyone to lose themselves in this thrilling adventure and experience the city like you’ve never experienced it before.”
Located at Chicago’s Navy Pier, the multi-sensory experience incorporates leading drone technologies, crafted especially for this singular experience, to capture impressive aerial shots and first-person narratives that peer into the heart of Chicago daily life. This signature journey transports 61 guests at a time and unfolds on an immersive, 2-story spherical screen with flight motion seats that take visitors on a journey unlike any other within the city limits.
Flyover is now open to the public Sundays through Thursdays from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. To learn more about the attraction or to purchase tickets, visit ExperienceFlyover.com/Chicago.
