St. Louis travel tips
 

Well, I sure would like advice on where to stay in St. Louis. In town the middle of July for 4 nights and want me and my wife to really get a feel for everything St.Louis! Plan on attending a Cardinals game, but other than that no set agenda. Want a very nice hotel (4 stars), outdoor pool, work-out room, etc. Might not rent a car for the entire stay, but could rent one for a day or two. Advise on where to eat, what to see would be very much appreciated. No kids...just the two of us!
Thanks in advance for your help. Oh yea, will be flying into St. Louis.

I stayed at the Grand Hyatt which is in an old train station and connected to a small mall w/ restaurants. I got it through Priceline for about $45 a night.

You must got to Forrest Park which contains all freee museums and zoo. Ride the big ferris wheel there.

Take a ride up into the Arch after seeing the movie about how the Arch was made.

Have frozen custard at Ted Drewes.

Take the Anhauser Busch Tour.

If you cringe about walking 1/4 mile you'll need a car in St Louis. If you're willing to walk a mile or two you can easily do without one.

The Central West End might work well for you. The Chase Park Plaza has an outdoor pool.

www.chaseparkplaza.com

It's about a mile north of the Central West End rail stop. I walked to it from the rail station just this past weekend. I could easily do it with a suitcase with wheels. The plaza has a couple of restaurants; Eau has very good food. There are a few shops and a movie theater though the screens are a tad small.

In the Central West End are lots of little shops, bars, some art galleries and many nice restaurants. My fav is Chez Leon. Almost a city institution Balabon is in the area. More casual but still excellent food is Moxie's.

I've walked from the Forest Park light rail station to the zoo, then the science center then back to the Central West End for dinner. I figure it was 4 to 5 miles of walking.

The Cardinal's stadium is on the light rail, as is LaClede's Landing/Arch, Union Station and a stop across the river at the Casino Queen. The airport is one end of the rail line.

If you want to gamble go across the river to Illinois' Casino Queen. Fewer limits, rules, entrance fees, etc. then Missouri's idea of gamling.

The Delmar stop on the rail has the Pageant music venue. Another quarter mile down the road is Blueberry Hill. If I recall Chuck Berry still performs there once a month or so.

www.thepageant.com

www.blueberryhill.com

One of the big draws NOT on the light rail is the AnheuserBusch brewery tour.

The aforementioned Hyatt at Union Station has an outdoor pool, but I think the sun would be intermittent due to the overhead train shed. It's on the rail.

The Westin downtown is another very nice hotel but I believe the pool is indoors. It is across the street from the Cardinal's stadium and on the rail.

The Ritz-Carlton is in Clayton. I've not stayed there but their restaurant is excellent. You'd need a car for this hotel.

Salute the old stadium while there. This is its last season. Next year they'll be playing in their new retro-park.

Our visit to St. Louis last summer was fantastic. Here's what we enjoyed:

Anheuser-Busch tour. It's free and you learn a lot. Plus, you get to see those amazing Clydesdale horses (and the Dalmatian) up close in their palatial barn. Free samples at the end.

Tour of the Cardinals Stadium. We're not Cards fans but love baseball. We skipped the Cards museum (which is in with the International Bowling Museum, go figure) but the tour was amazing. Our guide was an older guy and had great stories. Plus, this is the stadium's last summer before they tear it down.

A meal at Blueberry Hill. Great fried (I know the locals call it something else) ravioli and an eye-popping decor. They have live music there but we missed it. Good food. Just walking the area is fun.

A visit to SLAM, the St. Louis Art Museum. It is free every day, except for special exhibits. And on Friday (I think) even those are free. Their collection is quite diverse and well worth the time. My husband loved the sections on arms and armor.

A visit to the St. Louis History Museum. You can learn a lot about the city there. They have some cool history on the Cardinals and the old days as the Browns. FREE!

A stop in at the St. Louis Zoo, also free. The puffins and penguins were all we had time to see. Park up at SLAM for free and walk down since the parking lot at the zoo is a pay lot.

A visit to Crown Candy Kitchen. Yes, it is in a rather sketchy area of town but during the day it's fine. It's a classic soda shop with plenty of character and fantastic ice cream treats.

A trip to Ted Drewes for frozen custard. YUM! This is where the natives go and for good reason.

St. Louis Basilica. We did this on our way out of town. Amazing mosaic work, including an alcove designed by Louis Comfort Tiffany. A beautiful, quiet place.

St. Louis Holocaust Museum. Not easy to find but if you are into history, their exhibit is stunning. One of the best I have seen on the subject and featuring stories of St. Louis survivors.

Place we missed but want to see. City Museum. We heard so many good things about it and never made it.

Keep in mind, though, that the Brewery tour is only available during the week and during business hours. I don't believe the tours run on the weekends, or at least it didn't use to. You may want to check on that before you plan on taking a tour.

If you want to stay close to the stadium, consider the Westin. Its a really nice hotel, only a few years old, and right across the street from Busch Stadium. They is a nice fitness club. The Drury Plaza and the Renaissance are both nice as well, although the Renaissance is closer to the Edward Jones Dome.

I probably wouldn't recommend The Hyatt at Union Station. Its usually filled with people on tour groups. I work right behind Union Station, and I pass up the tour busses lined up at the Hyatt every day on my way to work. We have had business clients stay at the Hyatt and a few asked us not to book them a room there anymore because they weren't impressed.

Indytravel is right; St. Louis and the surrounding area is pretty spread out. While the Metrolink is nice, a car is the most useful. The city is extremely easy to drive around in and parking is fairly cheap.

The Central West End is great. If you like Italian food, definitely visit The Hill. There are tons of great Italian restaurants. My favorites are Favazza's and Zia's. For great Mexican food, head over to Lafayette Square. Its a great old neighborhood that is quickly being revitalized, and Arcelia's has terrific Mexican at affordable prices.

There are great suggestions and advice above. If you have any questions, please let me know. I've lived here all my life so hopefully I will be able to help!

Tracy

Check out AB's website:
http://www.budweisertours.com/docs/StLouis/hours.htm

There are brewery tours every day in the summer although the brewery would be difficult to get to on public transportation.

You should go see the Arch. Even if you don't go up in it (can be hot and claustrophobic to some) it is impressive to just stand at the base and marvel at its size. There is a museum in the base of the arch, run by the National Park Service. I'm sure there are details available about hours,etc. on their website.

Just to the North of the Arch Grounds is an area called Laclede's Landing.It is an area made up of rehabbed buildings and warehouses, it gives a slight idea of what the whole area looked like before the Arch was built. LL has many bars and restaurants although I can't really recommend any as I really never eat there. Hopefully, someone else can advise you. There is a bar/nightclub there called Mississippi Nights that has many national bands. You should check their website to see who is playing when you are in town.http://www.mississippinights.com/

If you like musicals, St. Louis has the oldest and largest outdoor theater in the country, The Muny. Located in Forest Park, it is kind of fun to see musicals outside in the evenings. There is a section of "free seats" for every show, although you have to get there early. http://www.muny.com/

You haven't really said what kind of food you enjoy eating, so it is hard to give you any advice. Let us know some more specifics and it will be easier to give you recomendations.


And, just to correct a few things previous posters have said... the Ferris Wheel that was in Forest Park last summer was only there for the 100 year anniversary celebration of the 1904 World's Fair, not there this summer. And they're called "toasted" raviolis and like everything else, there are good ones, bad ones and ok ones (the ones they serve at Busch Stadium are a good example of bad)

Thank you all so much for the advise. We were leaning toward the Chase Park Hotel..good choice? As far as food preferences, we like all types however other than a good mexican meal, we seem to lean toward a more healthy menu. If the Chase Park is our choice should we rent a car for our entire stay? We are pretty athletic so walking is not a big deal, but sometimes it seems time is an issue especially when you really don't know where you are going!). Thanks again, I appreciate all your advise. Best Mexican? Best Italian? Oh yea, I need a quality cup of java every morning and love the local coffee shops with outdoor seating! One last thought...is it safe to jog outside in the Chase Park Hotel area?

Thanks Liz5959 for clearing up the Brewery tour schedule. I haven't been on the tour in ages but I know that it used to be weekdays only.

For great toasted ravioli, my favorite is at Lombardo's, a terrific Italian restaurant in the basement of the Drury Hotel on 21st Street next to Union Station. Their toasted ravioli is almost like big fried doughballs filled with meat. Delicious!

As I mentioned above, my favorite Mexican is Arcelia's (although you will find plenty others in the area) and my favorite Italian is on the Hill...Favazza's and Zia's (although Cunettos is probably the most popular).

Tracy