St. Louis Gateway Arch
No visit to St. Louis is complete without a visit to the iconic St. Louis Gateway Arch National Park. Just two miles from Lehmann House Bed & Breakfast, it's just a five minute drive or a 40 minute walk to the Arch. The MetroLink also stops at the Arch.
Standing 630 feet tall, the magnificent St. Louis Gateway Arch remains the tallest man-made national monument in the United States. Its unique shape and stainless steel façade represent the history made in the City of Saint Louis. Two enclosed trams, one in each leg, inside the Arch, takes you on a five minute ride to the top, where you will experience breathtaking views of modern Saint Louis. You can see up to 30 miles in each direction on a clear day. Along with the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, the St. Louis Gateway Arch has an amazing museum of history about how Saint Louis served as the Gateway to the West for our early settlers. Be sure to watch the 30 minute movie on the Arch being built.
In 1947, the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial Association conducted a contest to create a structure that would commemorate Thomas Jefferson and settlers’ expansion into western America. Renowned architect Eero Saarinen won the contest with his concept of a stainless steel arch. His vision was completed in 1965, when workers installed the last exterior shell piece of the Gateway Arch.
It cost $13 million ($190 million in today's dollars) to construct the Arch. The foundations extend 60 feet into the ground, and in its entirety, the Arch weighs 17,246 tons, including 900 tons of stainless steel. Built to withstand earthquakes, high winds and, in 1993 a major 500 year flood, the monument may sway up to one inch in a 20 mile-per-hour wind.
You can also take a one hour trip, stepping back in time to when steamboats ruled the Mississippi, with Gateway Riverboat Cruises. Narrated by the captain or a National Park Service ranger, this cruise highlights the history of St. Louis and the mighty Mississippi's role today.
Your day at the Arch can be customized from just a tram ride, the movie, or the riverboat cruise, or any combination of two or all three.
Reservations are required, best done online so you get a time convenient to you. And plan a little extra time getting there. The Arch is a federal monument and you will have to go through security. Plan your trip by visiting the Gateway Arch website.
The ride up in the tram includes a total of five Arch guests for every tram. It's a five minute ride up and a three minute ride down. If you're at all claustrophobic, be mindful of this.
ARCH HOURS OF OPERATION:
- Summer Hours, Daily 9:00a-8:00p
- Winter Hours, Daily 9:00a-6:00p
NOTE: It's recommended to purchase your tickets online to avoid standing in line to purchase tickets and then standing in line all over again to get in. They sell out early and often, so plan ahead.