World Chess Hall of Fame & Galleries

It's free or donate a $5. It is worth it for a nice experience. The best part is the large chess piece outside and the cool boards. A great stop while you are in the area but not something you drive 30 minutes away for

A nice little place, but honestly a bit underwhelming. I was expecting more exhibits and artifacts on the history of chess, and maybe a deeper dive into the greatest players (after all it is called the Hall of Fame), but it was mostly a collection of unique chess sets. Cool to see, and worth making a short visit to say you’ve been, but don’t go in thinking it will be a chess museum or something.

Intimate concerts are absolutely amazing. Great acoustics. Crafting is also enjoyable and a way to socialize and meet new people.

The largest chess piece in the world was actually bigger than I thought. I was honestly amazed at the special exhibit about different styled chess sets. Some of them were really creative, like a chess set made out of coral. In the floors above it, there was a history of chess worldwide and the best chess players around the world. There was even one of the old tournament chess sets from a match Magnus Carlson played on. Overall, it was a great experience, and I'd recommend it to anyone interested in chess.

Although I'm not a chess enthusiast, my husband loves chess and wanted to visit the world chess hall of fame. The museum itself is free and there is a donation box in the entrance area. There are a variety of different chess sets and it was very interesting to see chess sets from the 18th century! There was even a chess set with the pieces made from wooly mammoth tusks! On the very top floor, there's even an interactive kid friendly area that I was not expecting so it was great for my almost 2 year old. My family and I had a nice visit and I definitely recommend checking this place out.