Activities in St. Louis
Let us help you plan your activities in St. Louis, because we’re so much more than the Arches! Yes, our arches are a cultural icon and we hope everyone gets the opportunity to see them up close and personal. But our hometown of St. Louis activities has be SO MUCH MORE to offer its residents and guests, like museums, and parks, and live sports, and delicious food. Take a little virtual tour with us and get to know that St. Louis we all love.
Gateway Arch
Now that we’ve talked all about how St. Louis is more than it’s famous Arch, let’s talk about the Arch itself! At 630’, it is the #1 icon of St. Louis. Did you know that it was built in the 1960s in honor of 19th-century explorers, Lewis and Clark, as well as President Thomas Jefferson. You’ll be interested to learn about St. Louis’s key role in the famous Westwards Expansion.
Before you leave, be sure to take a stroll along the St. Louis Riverfront and visit the Old Courthouse where civil rights history was made.
Forest Park
This well-loved park lies smack in the heart of St. Louis. With more than 12 million annual visitors, this largest of US urban parks is beloved by residents for its vast open green spaces.
Contained within the park are some of our other favorite destinations, like the Missouri History Museum and the Science Center. If you’d like an interactive visit, make sure to go to the Steinberg Skating Rink and the Turtle Playground.
Summertime is all about concerts in the park at Art Hill – you’ll be dazzled by the views!
St. Louis Art Museum
While you’re planning your activities in St. Louis, don’t forget to include the St. Louis Art Museum. Located within Forest Park in the center of town, the art museum is a must-do for visitors. With exhibits ranging from 5,000-year-old artifacts to modern oil paintings, there’s something for every interest here.
Municipal Theatre Association
Catching live local talent is a great way to enjoy a vacation. St. Louis’s Municipal Theater Association makes it easy to get your feet tapping as you take in a Broadway production. For more than 100 years, this theater has been entertaining the residents and guests of St. Louis. Now, it’s your turn!
City Museum in St. Louis
While this is the 2nd museum entry on our list, it is far different than the first and another on your can’t miss activities in St. Louis! Rather than housing exhibitions, it’s closer to a playground! St. Louis artists have repurposed unused city infrastructure into tunnels, slides, and even castles. Guests can find secret passages and climb on giant frames as they discover this mysterious world of St. Louis. Kids absolutely love it!
Missouri Botanical Garden
Who doesn’t love a botanical garden??
This Missouri Botanical Garden has the distinction of being the oldest in the country and is a designated National Historic Landmark. Guests have a whopping 79 acres of grounds to enjoy.
Exhibits here run the gamut from Climatron rainforests to Japanese gardens to koi ponds. You’ll also get to experience historical buildings, as well, such as the Cleveland Avenue Gatehouse with its Gothic Revival architecture and shingling detail.
Don’t forget to visit the Butterfly House before you go.
St. Louis Hop-On, Hop-Off Bus Tour
How fun is this??
Check out some of the most popular sights in the city with a hop-on hop-off bus tour. Those sights include City Hall, the Gateway Arch, and the Busch Stadium, and come complete a guided narration. Louis
Citygarden Sculpture Park
Another great way to enjoy St. Louis’s abundant green space. This is a fun and eclectic urban park dedicated to sculpture, with interactive art, fountains, and gardens taking you away from the hustle and bustle of the city. Some of the quirky sculptures you’ll see are playful rabbits, a giant head, and a scarecrow modeled on Christ the Redeemer in Rio. Your activities in St. Louis won’t be complete without this!
St. Louis Science Center
The kids will love the Science Center, where they will be dazzled by the 700 exhibits. They will also get the opportunity to enjoy live science shows, with fire and electricity taking center stage.
Then they can learn about a different era, with the dinosaurs of Antarctica in the Omnimax theater and new constellations in the twinkling star show.
Budding astronauts may be most excited of all to take to the stars in a flight simulator.
Busch Stadium
How could you not? Enjoy our St. Louis Cardinals on their home turf. Before you go, take a gander at the St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Fame Museum which charts the story of the team while featuring key championship moments and artifacts.
Grant’s Farm
The closest you’ll get to a true safari in all of Missouri! This farm is home to over 900 animals from across six continents. It’s a pretty exciting addition to your list of activities in St. Louis!
Take the exciting open-air tram ride through the 281-acre wildlife preserve and picture yourself in the wilds of the old American West. You may see bison, elk, and Sika deer as you adventure through Grant’s Farm. For up close and personal interaction, head over to the petting zoo.
Laclede’s Landing
You’ve earned a night out on the buzzing riverfront district! Here is your one-stop-shop for some of the best dining and entertainment in the city. The former warehouse district has been transformed into a cornucopia of trendy restaurants and hip bars, which attract both locals and visitors.
Play a Round of Golf
Hit the links at one of the many courses in the St. Louis area. Choose from Bear Creek Golf Club for a challenging game that winds around lakes and creeks. For something more sedate, try out the 9-hole public golf course in St. Ann. Another short course can be found at Incline Village, with tree-lined fairways. St. Peter’s Golf Club offers an overall well-rounded experience with some bunkers and ponds. When it’s time for a cold beer or basket of winds, the St. Genevieve Golf Club comes out on top.
National Blues Museum
Though we may never know where the true birthplace of blues was, St. Louis has always been one of the top contenders! Enjoy one of our claims at fame at the National Blues Museum, dedicated to this soulful genre, in a state-of-the-art theater where you can hear, and feel the full force of the Blues in what visitors have called pure musical immersion.
Myseum
Parents love this interactive museum experience for their kids of all ages! All 30 exhibits here are totally hands-on and include a wide variety, from a dinosaur dig to a magnetic ball wall.
Young explorers can learn new skills at the vet clinic, and let their minds run wild in the imagination playground. Older kids will love the thermal imaging camera and the musical Tesla coil. Kids of all ages can’t resist the giant UFO maze?
Scavenger Games
Here’s a unique way to get to know the city! With an interactive app-led scavenger hunt, visitors will be issued challenges correlating to each stop on the route. These challenges must be solved before the next clue is revealed. Here’s that chance to brush up on your problem-solving skills!
St. Louis Barbecue Scene
Besides the Arches and blues, St. Louis is known for its barbecue. So, when it comes to sampling this specialty, it’s not so much a question of which restaurants to visit, but how many places can you fit in.
Pappy’s Smokehouse offers succulent Memphis-style ribs, while the Sugarfire Smoke House has the best beef brisket in town. Meanwhile, at Salt + Smoke, sample thick slices of smoked chicken or try a cherry smoked salmon sandwich.
Soulard Farmers’ Market
Believe it or not, the Soulard Farmer’s Market in the heart of St. Louis dates back to 1779! Located in an ornate Italian Renaissance hall, the market hosts 150 vendors selling everything from organic fruits and vegetables to artisan jewelry. Luckily for visitors, it’s open Wednesday to Saturday, all year round. Just be sure to bring cash, as most vendors don’t accept cards.
Lone Elk Park
With 546 acres to traverse, you’re sure to find the peace and quiet you crave here. Be on the lookout for free-roaming bison, wild turkey, and elk roam, while the lake is home to waterfowl. If you time it just right and stay quiet, you may even be rewarded with a glimpse of deer.
The 4-mile long White Bison Trail is the most popular, and makes a great half-day outing at the park. Picnic shelters are available in the woods if you need a break.
Distillery Tours
Forget beer and wine, go on a distillery tour right in town, The tour includes the knowledge of a dedicated tour guide, and behind the scenes discovery of the processes involved in producing the popular whiskeys, rums, and gins.
Best of all, of course, is the tasting. You’ll sample several different brews that are produced in the factory. If you find one that particularly strikes your fancy, stop in the gift shop after the tour and pick up a bottle.
If you find something you like, pop to the gift shop after the tour and pick up a few tasty souvenirs.
The Fabulous Fox Theatre
Savor a taste of living history at this piece of St. Louis’s gilded past. Decked out in rich reds and gleaming golds, you’ll get a sense of the grandeur of days gone by and revel in the elegance with which an evening out was treated. And that’s all before the show!
It’s like an evening’s entertainment and a living history lesson all in one! The Fabulous Fox Theatre opened its doors in 1929 and has been putting on show-stopping performances ever since. Visitors here have enjoyed Broadway classics, Vegas extravaganzas, old movies, and concerts.
Let JZ Vacation Rentals help you find the perfect accommodation for your stay in St. Louis!