The story
The Knickerbocker has stood at 163 East Walton Place since 1927. Over the decades it has served as a hotel, and in the 1970s it also doubled as Playboy Towers.
The building is said to have served as a gangster headquarters for the Capone family, and a secret door and a hidden getaway staircase still exist. The hotel has hosted everyone from Al Capone to other famous guests, and a concierge tour covers secret doorways, renovations and ghosts. The Capone stories rest on the hotel's own tour and retelling.
Today the hotel has 306 guest rooms and suites and nearly 19,000 square feet of meeting space, including the Crystal Ballroom, plus a first-floor restaurant.
What's There Now
It operates as the Millennium Knickerbocker hotel with 306 guest rooms and suites, meeting space and a first-floor restaurant.
Everything that was here
- 1927–present · still open
Millennium Knickerbocker HotelHotel
A Gold Coast hotel that opened in 1927 still has a secret door and a hidden getaway staircase, and it doubled as Playboy Towers in the 1970s.
See the map in 1928 →
Did you know?
Connected places
Eastern State Penitentiary
The Ivanhoe Restaurant
The Blackstone Hotel
Lexington Hotel
The 226 Club (Exchequer Restaurant & Pub)
Eastman Kodak Store
Explore the full web of connections on the map.
Nearby history
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