Looking Down on Some

Brave tourists have been trying out Chicago's newest attraction - a 1000ft-high viewing platform that offers spectacular downward facing views over the city.

TILT is housed in 360 CHICAGO on the 94th floor of the John Hancock Tower and, as the name suggests, the enclosed glass and steel platform tilts visitors forward for a unique perspective of the city's The Magnificent Mile.

The attraction, which costs $5 to tourists and is thought to be the first of its kind, holds up to eight people, with the platform slowly moving outward to an adventurous angle above the Windy City. 

Patrick Abisseror, CEO of Montparnasse 56 Group, which owns 360 CHICAGO, said: ‘We had a vision for elevating the experience, and providing memories for guests that will last a lifetime.

‘TILT is yet another example of the innovative and forward-thinking vision of Montparnasse 56 Group.'

The company also owns the Observation Deck at Montparnasse Tower in Paris, France, and the iconic Berliner Fersehturm/TV Tower in Berlin, Germany.

Nichole Williamson, General Manager of 360 CHICAGO, which was rebranded from the John Hancock Observatory this month, said: ‘Chicago has long been a pioneer in architecture. 

‘As the birthplace of the skyscraper, Chicago continues to be the leader in innovative architecture and TILT furthers that tradition. 

‘Visitors to Chicago will soon be able to experience unsurpassable views while in motion on TILT.’

Chicago is the third most populous city in the United States, after New York City and Los Angeles. 

With 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in both the U.S. state of Illinois and the American Midwest. Its metropolitan area, sometimes called Chicagoland, is home to 9.5 million people and is the third-largest in the United States. Chicago is the seat of Cook County.

Chicago was incorporated as a city in 1837, near a portage between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River watershed, and experienced rapid growth in the mid-nineteenth century.   

Today, the city is an international hub for finance, commerce, industry, technology, transportation and telecommunications, with O'Hare International Airport being the second-busiest airport in the world; it also has the largest number of U.S. highways, and railroad freight entering its region.