St. Louis Arch

I'm sure its talked about a lot, but the Arch is one of the coolest things in MO, I think. For only about $7 you can go up into the arch and get a great view of Down Town St. Louis as well as go underneath and go through the museum for free. Its fun and inexpensive and something I would highly recommend you do if you are in the area with kids, I'm sure they'd get a kick out of it.

It's only $7 to get a ride to the top .. It's pretty inexpensive. Although, I doubt it was worth $7. You jam yourself into this tiny space to have a very long bumpy ride o the top of the arch.

Once you get up there you're like .. "This is it?"

It's no different than looking out a window of a super tall building. Not THAT amusing.

The Gateway Arch is the center piece of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial located on 91 acres next to the Mississippi River in St Louis, MO. The other pieces of the Memorial are the Old Courthouse and Museum of Westward Expansion.

The Arch is 630 feet tall, took 4 years to build and was completed in 1965.

While very impressive to look at a trip to the top is a combination of claustrophobia and boredom. That said I have done it twice, as it’s just one of those things you should do at least once.

The cost of tram ticket is $10, $7 if you already have a National Park Pass. As it is impossible to put a standard elevator in a curved structure, the Arch has a tram, which operates similar to a Ferris Wheel as it ratchets up one side of the arch, with you and four of your closest friends inside. The trams are tiny and if you are claustrophobic you will not like them. You have to be reasonable fit to ride in them as well. They require a bit of dexterity just to climb in and out of them, due to the small entrance and tight space.

I wish I could say that once you are at the top the trip was worth it. But, the view is through one of a handful of small windows. You do get an excellent view of the Old Courthouse and downtown St. Louis. While much more roomy than the tram, once you get up top it can be crowded, so during the summer you still get the feeling of being in a cave. It is air conditioned once you get up top, but the tram portion is not. As the arch is made up of stainless steel, it gets pretty warm in the trams. Luckily the trip is only about 10 minutes or so.

As I mentioned while the experience is a bit of a let down, it is unique and I would not have passed up either opportunity to do it. The tram system was specially designed for the arch and I don’t think it has been replicated anywhere else in the world. So unless you are very pressed for time or money, or hate enclosed spaces I would still do it.