Recently, Blair and I were in St. Louis for her to attend a dance convention. Although we live in Kansas City, it was actually Blair’s first time visiting St. Louis! Our hotel happened to be right next to the Gateway Arch, so I asked her if she wanted to see the St Louis Arch inside — and she was definitely interested. Going up in the St Louis Arch has changed a lot since I was a kid, so today I’m sharing our Gateway Arch Travel Guide so you’re ready for your own St. Louis adventure!
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Gateway Arch Video
First, if you haven’t already watched my Gateway Arch video on Instagram or TikTok, you’ll want to start there. I have some great Gateway Arch photos and tips to share in this post, but you’ll get the full impact of the St Louis Arch inside best through video.
@tricianibarger what to know before visiting the gateway arch in st louis, mo ????️ @BLAIR KARMEN loved riding up in the st louis arch when we were in town for a dance competition! have you been inside the arch? @Gateway Arch Park Foundation @Visit Missouri @Explore St. Louis @Hyatt #gatewayarch #stlouis #stl #familytravel #travelwithkids #familytravelblogger #missouritravel ♬ original sound – TRICIA NIBARGER ????
With this Gateway Arch Travel Guide, I hope to answer a lot of your questions about going up in the St. Louis Arch. Prior to going in the Arch with Blair, I had only been inside the St Louis Arch once. It was actually when I traveled to St. Louis for a gymnastics competition as a kid, and now Blair got to go inside the Arch when she was in town for a dance competition! Full circle moment.
How much does it cost to ride the Gateway Arch?
I paid $37 for Blair and I to both ride the St Louis Arch inside. The cost breakdown was $19 for 1 adult ticket, $15 for 1 child ticket, and $3 for a convenience fee.
Purchasing tickets ahead of time is highly recommended, especially on peak days. The price does fluctuate based on the popularity of the day (i.e., weekends are the most expensive). So, if you are going to be in St. Louis for multiple days, you might check the pricing calendar ahead of time to see if you can save a few bucks.
We chose the basic “Tram Ride to the Top” tickets to go inside the St. Louis Arch. There are some add-ons you can do–a virtual reality theater and a documentary movie, among others–but we chose to stick with just the tram ride. There was still plenty to do between the free museum and our ride, plus simply exploring the park around the Arch outdoors.
Hotels Near Gateway Arch
There are multiple hotels near Gateway Arch so I suggest comparing rates for your travel dates. The 2 closest hotels to Gateway Arch are the Hyatt Regency St. Louis at the Arch and Drury Plaza St. Louis at the Arch. We stayed at the Hyatt, which you can actually see in the photo above (taken from inside the St. Louis Arch). It was a great property, and I highly recommend it. This was the host hotel for the dance convention we were attending. It also has a Starbucks, a bar & grill, and Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse inside.
[Hyatt fan? Check out my recent Hyatt Regency Tulsa Downtown reviews!]
The Drury Plaza St. Louis at the Arch is just outside of the view of the photo above. That hotel is just outside of the left side of the photo, so it’s also very close to the Arch. While I’ve never stayed there personally, it looks beautiful from the outside and has a great location.
Blair and I also stayed one night at the Hilton St. Louis at the Ballpark, which is only a couple blocks from the St. Louis Arch and definitely walkable. It’s also extremely convenient to all of the new St. Louis Ball Park Village restaurants and activities, as well as Busch Stadium (home of the St. Louis Cardinals).
Finally, the Hilton Pennywell St. Louis at the Arch is another nearby option. It’s probably slightly closer to the Arch itself than the Hilton at the Ballpark, but I personally prefer the rooms at the Hilton at the Ballpark.
St Louis Arch Inside – What are the views?
From one side inside of the Gateway Arch, the view is of the Mississippi River. It was really neat to see the Arch reflection on the riverfront.
The view on the other side of the Gateway Arch is of downtown St. Louis! It was fun to spot some of our landmarks, like our hotel, from a bird’s eye view.
St. Louis Arch Photos
I hope you have found these St. Louis Arch photos and information about St Louis Arch inside to be helpful planning your own trip to STL! I had so much fun getting to see inside the Gateway Arch with Blair. When I was working at my first job out of law school, we actually litigated a lot of cases in the St. Louis area courts (both Missouri and Illinois sides), so I spent a lot of time in St. Louis–but I had never been inside of the Gateway Arch as an adult. I was glad I got to share this experience with Blair!
If you have any questions about the Gateway Arch, feel free to send me a message on Instagram and I’ll do my best to answer.
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