Signature Segway Tours

These people are absolutely horrible.
They charge more than what you signed up for and wont refund you the money. Damn crooks is what they are.
When you call them to complain, management is not on site and you are prompted to email them in which they do not even respond to you so its impossible to do anything about it except leave them a bad review. I think I’ll trash there area. Thats all I can think of at this point.

It is a hassle enough trying to book a tour with this business. I will be posting further updates IF I EVER HEAR BACK FROM THEM.

No-​go on the segway tour. :-(They «had something happen last night» then the guy was surprised «nobody called you?» Equalled us standing outside of a building looking at the segways inside. By the time they picked up their phone, the other tour at the other location had already been started.

I want to make this short but can’t promise any sweetness!!!
Management is terrible. I made reservation for a large group for 2:30 to 5:00PM tour. Not everyone in a large group can show up on time and that is what happened to us and without notifying prior to our trip leaving they jacked up the price to $ 59 from $ 39 originally promised. When I refused to pay the extra $ 20 per head, they refused to give my credit card back. I ended up calling cops on them who basically yelled at them and got me the refund of $ 20 a head as well as the credit card. They charge $ 6 per head tax without any tax receipt. I am going to call my financial institute and asked them to have them provide me a receipt of tax else refund the $ 6 bogus charge.

RUN AWAY!
Positive: Our 8÷21÷2012 5:30 p.m. tour group of nine riders was led by Adam, a pleasant college student. He kindly took photos of everyone when requested and knew a few facts about each stop. It was our first time on Segways but would never recommend this company.
NEGATIVES:
1. Chris, one of the tour guides, and resident jerk on a power trip.
We, in Adam’s group, were so grateful not to be in Chris’s group.
2. Chaos at check-​in.
The process could be greatly improved. Chris would say one thing, «Wait over there.» Another employee would say another, «Follow me to get fitted for a helmet.» The space is an accident waiting to happen. The girl working at the registration desk was unfriendly. The tour didn’t kick off until 6 p.m.
3. Shady $ 5 tax payable only by cash because you can’t charge less than $ 15 to your credit card. I’ve done other Living Social activities and haven’t had to pay cash for the tax at the vendor.
4. Shady $ 3 tire insurance. Shouldn’t tire maintenance be part of their normal business expense?
5. Incomplete tour.
Their site implies you’ll see certain sites. We did not go to Millennium Park. They advertise «Ride More and Pay Less» but I doubt it given the tour started late and ended early.
6. Your credit card is held hostage while you’re on the tour. Why not make a copy of the card or note the number? Car rental agencies don’t keep your card until you return their vehicle.
7. Waiting around for 25 minutes thanks to Chris’s power trip.
Our tour returned at 7:50. The store was closed and Chris had the keys. We had to wait another ten minutes for Chris to arrive with his group. He wanted to give them extra time on their tour (obviously angling for a better tip.) We didn’t walk out of the store until 8:15. That’s 25 minutes of wasted time.
8. Chaos at check out.
Instead of handing out the hostage credit cards from the top of the pile, Chris was going first to the people in his group, then shuffling through the pile to find that person’s card. A different employee asked me what was wrong and I told him the process was inefficient. There were two other guys standing around. Why not let them hand out cards? His response is they have to verify the owner of each card. Baloney. No one was asked for I.D. I could’ve walked out with someone else’s card.
SAVE YOUR MONEY FOR A BETTER COMPANY.

This segway tour was the best thing I’ve done in a while — and I’ve have a fun summer! Our group of 9 sorority sisters, one of the husbands and lovely young lady visiting from Croatia made up our early Saturday morning group. From the very start our guides, Patrick and Nathan, were informative and entertaining! We felt very comfortable after our training time and took off for an exciting ride, enjoying the sites of Chicago that I hadn’t seen up close in a while. They were very helpful and patient in taking pictures of the group and individuals with multiple cameras. They allowed for a restroom and water break at the aquarium. They had interesting facts about the buildings, both near and far, and about popular movies filmed along the way.
We saw other tour companies that passed by and they weren’t having fun at all! We were so glad to chosen this company and I’m going back next week with my kids!
As for the negative comments, I’d say try it and have your own experience — this is the place to go to!

My Husband I enjoy the tour on 08÷18÷12 @ 8:30PM. T he instructors were kind funny and full of Chicago knowledge. The were very helpful and funny throughout the tour. they took each person individually and made sure they could go forward, turn, slow down and stop. The made sure we understood the instructions clearly. These guys are great! We had the time of our lives! I would highly recommend to anyone who wants a fun way to see Chicago… even locals! What a great deal!

CARELESS… DANGEROUS… GUIDES DON’T CARE ABOUT THE RIDERS!!!
Our guide’s name was Mike… I did this tour last week (7÷25÷2012), we had the 5:30 pm tour.
1. 20 + riders only 2 guides
2. check in to start of the tour was over an hour
3. 5 minute safety and use talk
4. RIDER SLAMS ONTO A WALL AT TOP SPEED AND GUIDES DONT SEE IT HAPPEN. AT ALL…
5. RIDER SPEEDS AND FLIPS SEGWAY IN FRONT OF GUIDES… GUIDES WERE NOT ABLE TO STOP HER IN TIME (TOO BUSY TRAINING OTHERS)
6. the tour consisted of 3 spots and pointing at buildings.
7. WIFE GOT HEAT EXHAUSTION TOLD THE GUIDE… HE DIDNT SEEM TO CARE. ASKED TO PULL OVER TO GET SOME WATER. HE KEPT GOING WITH THE TOUR. WHEN WE FINALLY STOPPED WE HAD TO YELL AT THE GUIDE SEVERAL TIMES TO HELP. NEVER CHECK IN. NEVER ASKED HOW SHE WAS DOING. OTHER RIDERS CHECKED IN ON HER — GUIDE JUST BOUGHT HIMSELF A DRINK. (even though we were told in the beginning that it was a hot day and if we started to feel dizzy let them know — they have water).
8. poor speaking skills… «right to the right of this building… right to the left of that building… right to the right of that building…»
9. shady groupon… groupon was for 39 each said it was a 79 dollar value. when you got to the place you will see signs for a 49 dollar tours…
10. Tip tactic — they hold on to your credit card. the guide hands it back to you at the end of the tour. one by one and stares you in the face. waiting for a tip… at least thats what MIKE did…
Those. are the highlights since this is a long rant and i want to make sure this is seen by everyone…
It was bad. Really bad. We had the same issue as many of the other negative comments. This would be our second segway tour and had a blast at the first one in San Diego, so we though this other one would be similar experience. We got there early, maybe around 5:15 pm. Between checking out the gear, trying to sell us more insurance (scam), and waiting for all the training to happen, we didnt really start the tour until almost 6:30pm. The problem was this… THERE WERE TOO MANY PEOPLE! in that particular group there was about 25 people and only 2 guides. Let me share to you all what happened that first hour…
Problem 1: after being given a 5 minute talk on «safety and use» (they didnt cover a lot of key things by the way) they took each person individually and made sure they could go forward, turn, slow down and stop. for the experienced people they spent about a minute — which was understandable, for the first timers they took about 3 — 4 minutes on average — so for the two guides to go through all the people it, it took the about 45 minutes.
Problem 2: my biggest concern is that there was clearly not enough guides to manage and take proper care of 25 people. during the training session — they encouraged everyone to go around this little park place to get used to the segways (fun at first got really old going around in circles during minutes15 — 45) so try and imagine 20 + first time riders with only 2 people supervising them. while the 2 guides were occupied with a few accidents happened. One girl sped down the path too fast lost control and SLAMMED AGAINST THE WALL… and the guides? still training. a few of the other riders had to go to her. check on her. tell her not to go anywhere while WE went to the guides and told them about the accident. a few minutes later a rider drives down a path looses control and FLIPS THE SEGWAY. thankfully this happened right in front of the guides so they were able to respond. This is how i see it… the guides did not give proper instructions and safety tips to drivers — they did not mention anything about the push back you get when you exceed the 12 miles per hour maximum. I believe that in both cases the rider sped up too fast got the push back and continued to push forward and there for loosing control (clearly stated on the training video that comes with a segway. they should be showing that video instead or at least covering everything included in it safety section). This should have never happened. there should have been enough guides to properly keep an eye on people to make sure they are not speeding and loosing control.
when the tour finally started…
problem 3. they split up the group into two. our group had about 11 people so the other had about 14. The guide told us to stay about 5 feet away from each other and be in a single file line for safety reasons. so… 11×5 feet. thats about 55 feet from guide to last driver. coudlnt hear instructions from the back. didnt hear what he was saying. had to rely on the persons infront of me to tell me hazzards, direction, etc. its like playing telephone on segways at 12 mph next to a busy street. with 5 feet gap in between.
problem 4. looks like im about to run out of space. but im sure by now you get the point…

Rollin’, rollin’, rollin’ — GET THOSE SEGWAYS ROLLIN’!
Just one of the many mantras chanted by our fearless leader, Harrison, captain of «Team Harrison» — the group of 12 riders in my tour group from the weekend.
There are a lot of negative reviews here. If you’re doing these tours, please realize: you’re riding around the city in a single file row of Segways wearing a bright yellow helmet — you should have (or utilize) a sense of humor while on the tour. Lighten up. Have some fun.
My group of four purchased Groupons for a 2.5 hour Segway tour that we scheduled for a Saturday evening. We got there in the nick of time, and found a large group for our same time slot (25+ total — broken up in two groups of 12). [ I’m not sure what’s happening with the space — it looks like it’s under construction — but there is no bathroom, and there really should be. ]
Once we signed waivers and paperwork, we all migrated across the street to a little park area where we went through a thorough, one-​on-​one training session to make sure we were all semi-​comfortable before heading out on the open trails (sidewalks). This practice time is important, because these things take a little time to get used to (you’re dealing with shakiness, balance, pressure of heels and toes).
Once everyone had a chance to get acquainted with their ride, we took to the sidewalks and headed for Buckingham Fountain. I’ve been to the fountain many times before, but atop my blue/​white Segway (named the «Great White Shark» by a Tour guide), this landmark felt new again. Zipping around Grant Park in my line of Segways, we were like a flight of big, two-​wheeled-​helmet-​wearing birds, spreading our wings through the city. Other highlights /​photo-​ops included the South Loop’s Magdalena Abakanowicz sculpture, Museum Campus /​Aquarium, Field Museum, Skyline view from the south, and my favorite — Soldier Field. At each stop, we got a brief history lesson about each site.
My group had a blast and was pleasantly surprised with the tour. Our guide was funny, attentive, and enthusiastic — getting the whole group into the tour. Thanks for a memorable Saturday evening!

I decided that since I’ve lived in the suburbs for the past 17 years, and I’m moving tomorrow, it would be a good idea and a lot of fun to take a Segway tour with my dad! It was so much fun! We got there a little early, and signed a waiver, and then got going. Max was our «guide?» «host?» and he was super cool, way nice, and we had such a small group that he learned everyone’s name and was a really great guy. The tour was basically from the shop to a park to learn the ropes, then to Buckingham Fountain where we hung out for a few minutes and he told us a couple fun facts. Then we scooted on down to the museum campus, had a 20 minute break at the Shedd, then went to Soldier Field, rode around that and went to the Field Museum and then scooted on home. Took about two hours maybe? We stopped a lot for little facts and some history, which was mostly well known facts, but it was still really cool to see the city from another angle. They did keep my dad’s credit card while we were away (Max told us how at another Segway place they had someone scoot off on a Segway and never come back so that’s why) and they did expect tips, but Max was so friendly, outgoing and made the trip fun so no worries.
I would definitely recommend this place! There were only 4 people on our tour and it was perfect.

We picked up info on $ 49 Segway tour at their store, called two days later and made a reservation. They said it was $ 75 if you used a credit card or $ 49 cash. (IRS are you listening?) When we arrived later, a different guy tried to charge us $ 59 each. He claimed that was the price, and that our card (from 2 days earlier) was 2 years out of date. I talked him out of that, but he charged us $ 49 + $ 3 bogus tire insurance + 9% tax. I’m still not sure if that’s a real tax, or if it went into the guy’s pocket. The other person in the store had no comment on this scam.
The guide (Kyle) was fun and super nice, but the tour was low on information. We spent a lot of time riding around, including a complete circle of the outside of Soldier Field, but never even got to (listed attraction) Millennium Park. The 2:30 — 5:00 tour ended about 4:10. My kids had a lot of fun riding the Segways, but I would not recommend doing business with this shady outfit.

We had A LOT of fun on our Segway tour, but probably not like most of your average tourists. You could say that we’re big nerdy dorks that would be a pretty accurate description. That we are not new to Chicago, its landmarks, and sights is also true. And that’s a good thing, because this tour is many things, but a valuable guide to Chicago it is not.
However, not having to buy a Segway outright for a chance to tool around Millennium Park and the Museum campus is TOTALLY worth the cost of admission. (Which, with the Groupon we bought was a pretty good deal.) People riding Segways make it look pretty damn easy, but don’t be fooled, there is a bit of a learning curve. The first 45 minutes of the «tour» is the training session, and it was time well spent. Though it might be a better idea to restructure it a bit so that it’s not one person at a time getting trained while the rest of us watch. That said, volunteer to go first– you’ll get the most time to ride solo around the park while everyone else in your group gets oriented.
Earlier I said that the tour’s not a guide to Chicago; don’t take that to mean you don’t see anything, you actually see quite a lot! But there’s not a lot of stop-​and-​talk, and you can’t really yell trivia and historial anecdotes down a line of people cruising along at 15mph. It was a great way to see some familiar sights, though! The tour does stop a few times, and our guide had some great info on the places we visited, some stuff that we didn’t know having lived here for years. We several chances to take photos, and our guide was happy to man the cameras so that everyone who wanted to could be in the shot. Not to mention, was he QUITE the expert on his own Segway and SUPER friendly. He made a conscious effort to learn all of our names.
Come to think of it, overall our experience was very positive. Other people have reported having problems redeeming coupons, or with scheduling, but ours was pretty smooth sailing. Once you register on the website, they say they’ll call you to confirm, but we never got the phone call. I called them a couple days before, and they said that everything was good to go, so no lasting harm done.
If you go, I would recommend the last tour of the day. Cruising along the lakefront as the sun’s setting is just the best.

Owner was rude. Asked me if I spoke English when I was learning to ride.

Riding a Segway is always fun; not with this company though.
I bought LivingSocial coupon; gave to my sister as a gift. My sis called to make appointment. Signature Segway Tours confirmed it; by the time for their tour (w/​c is today). A guy from that segway tours said they cant use it because he couldn’t pull the name of who bought the coupon. I don’t understand why it was like that; since they have the print out coupon.
It was a hassle!!! I called LivingSocial customer service. Good thing they picked up right away. I explained the situation to LivingSocial guy; he talked to the segway tour guy. Segway tour guy was rude to LivingSocial guy. They figure it out what happend. Blah blah blah blah. My sis was able to go on to their tour; she’s having a blast.
It’s really inconvenient for paying customers to have situations like this. Especially if you buy this deal for a gift, it’s a bit embarrassing to have this situation. LivingSocial did their part; helped us resolved it right away. A++ for them. Signature Segway Tour didn’t do their part. Horrible customer service. Whoever was working around 11 to 1130ish on Nov 13 2011 on their check in desk shouldn’t be allowed to deal with customers anymore.
Hopefully this issue/​situation wouldn’t happen to anyone.

Not worth it. You can find a cheaper and mush better segway tour else where. They charge you for everything and the groupon is sham, you can get the same price at the store as the groupon. The tours are boring, all they did is take us to the fountain and museum campus with out much explanation. Thats it !
I must say that the tour guides were nice and helpful. But try the other ones instead, I tried another one which was much better than this.

Great value for a decent tour.
Took their 5:30 PM tour on an August Tuesday. Tour guide was Ronan. I’m a life-​long Chicagoan and though these tours seemed like the most touristing things in the world and they pretty much are, but
A. Segways are super fun.
B. It’s a completely different way to look at the city
C. Signature provides a good «value» tour in the midst of at least a dozen other tour operators.
Some folks complained on here about their office which is a barebones buildout a block south of the Art Institute. If you want a posh waiting area this may not be the company for you.
However, I booked this tour on a Groupon and got a great price so felt like I was getting a great value even without a fancy office. When booking during the first groupon day their line was busy but they called back quickly and we’re very courteous – that’s not typical I find with groupons or living social deals both of which they seem to do with some regularity. (Once again, the complaints seem to surround those promos – prime time goes fast folks, that’s why it’s a deal!)
The instruction portion was thorough but not boring or condescending and tour the whole group’s ability into account. Ronan stayed on top of the whole group and was consistently available to snap photos or answer questions.
He was from Ireland and had some factual inaccuracies in his tour (many Chicago born guides do the same I’m sorry to say) and that was perhaps my greatest letdown on the tour. But this isn’t the architectural foundation so one should have reasonable expectations.
I was glad to tip the guide for his conscientiousness – about half the tour did.

Bought a LivingSocial coupon recently for Signature Segway and it is a complete disappointment. Here’s why:
1. Instructions asked that we call to make an appointment. We called multiple times, left a message but no one called back, even in 3 days. Showed up anyways but the sessions were full for quite some time now according to the person working there. If it’s full, CALL ME BACK to let me know. They should not let their customers waiting.
2. We showed up for the 8.45 am session but the person in charge did not arrive until 8.25 or 8.30AM. They kept all of us waiting and we were wondering if they are even going to open.
3. They encouraged us to pay extra for insurance in case the tire goes flat when you’re riding it. If without insurance, they will charge you $ 30 – 40 to replace them. What a SCAM! I have been to other segway tour companies. None of them came with this insurance. How do I know if they flat tire is due to wear and tear? What utter nonsense.
4. They are in the Metropolitan Tower building but the unit is unfinished with exposed ceilings. Kinda dangerous if you ask me.
5. The high school kid who was in charge shows some attitude. Not sure if he knows what customer service is.
Bad experience overall.

I have done a segway tour in Washington, DC just over a month ago. I can’t explain what a let down this tour was here in Chicago. The tour was from 230pm-​5pm. It was 340pm before Zack got off his power trip and finally started the tour. The group was back to the office and walking away at 445pm??? 4 spots of Chicago were shown and cheesy jokes along with it. Really!!!
If you do this tour, PLEASE do yourself a favor and DEMAND Tucker as your tour guide. The boy is one of the nicest people.
Signature Segway… Let Zack go! He’s bringing down your business and it’s a real shame!

Positives: Great way to see Chicago in a short period of time.
We found this group on Living Social and promptly bought and booked the tickets for Fourth of July weekend weeks in advance. On the day of the tour, Signature called us to inform us that city ordinances would not allow the tour to occur as originally scheduled. Luckily, there were able to accommodate us at an earlier time.
The first half hour or so was spent learning to use the Segways at the park across the street. Our tour guide, Travis, patiently taught everyone individually how to use the Segways. After we were properly trained, away we went!
On our tour, one of the girls fell off her Segway at a particularly heinous curb. After patching up her wounds, we started headed back toward the center. On the way back, Travis bought her an iced sweet, and she seemed fairly content about her boo-​boo.
Even though someone got hurt, my girls and I still felt the experience was very safe and a great way to see the parks and planetarium in two hours. Also, in addition to being fun, Segways are a surprisingly good leg workout. All of us were sore afterwards! I’m looking forward to more future Segway tours in other cities, including my own. It’s also a great way for locals to rediscover their city.
Between the ice treat, the phone call, and the rescheduling, I would give these guys five stars for their customer service, 4.5 for the «tour» aspects parts, and 6 stars for fun. =)

OK, so my (25-​year old) niece was visiting from out of town and I was trying to think up something truly unique. I really enjoy playing the Uncle role and I like to make each visit special and memorable in some way.
Well, we went on a Signature Segway tour. Honestly, I had mixed emotions when I made the reservation. «This could be a really cool experience and I finally get to see what it feels like to ride one of those dang things» or «I am going to look and feel like a complete dork.»
Gotta tell ya — this was really, really cool. We had a blast.
(And, you get over the dork feeling in about 2 minutes!)
The tour through the museum campus was really a treat. Stopped for a hot dog. Stopped for some pics at Buckingham Fountain. We looked like total tourists and, even though I’m local, I couldn’t have cared less.
If you’re having mixed emotions, definitely get off the fence and get ON a Segway. It’s really easy. It’s affordable. It’s fun. And, it was a unique treat that my niece and I will both remember for a long time.