Best Tours in St Louis

There are many things to see in Saint Louis, that's why I want to show you some of the best plans and tours to get to know it all.

Andressa García

Andressa García

12 min read

Best Tours in St Louis

St. Louis Arch | Thomas Hawk

On the banks of the Mississippi is located the city of Saint Louis, a place where you will find fun for everyone. In this case, I am going to tell you some of the tours that you can include in your list of things to see and do in Saint Louis, to know the city from all its angles.

From bar tours to bike rides, the city of Saint Louis offers you interesting things to see and do. The Soulard and Lemp neighborhoods are some of the places you can visit on these interesting city tours.

1. Go for a walking tour in downtown Saint Louis

The Old Cathedral| ©rlkitterman
The Old Cathedral| ©rlkitterman

On this tour you will walk from the river to the city and learn every detail of the forces that have shaped the city of St. Louis from its indigenous roots to what it is today. You will also learn how the Gateway Arch became the gateway to the American dream for millions of people.

The itinerary for this tour begins at The Old Cathedral, the oldest cathedral west of the Mississippi. Here you will learn about its origin and architectural features. There is an opportunity to see the inside of the cathedral. The next stop will be the Gateway Arch, under whose arch you will walk, while listening to its history, significance and origin.

Other interesting places you will see on this tour are: Old Courthouse, the Wainwright Building, and The Old Post Office and Custom House, where you will learn about its iconic history and architectural connection to Washington DC. As long as it's not Sunday, you'll be able to see the inside of the building.

Details of Interest

  • Price: This activity is priced at approximately €28 per person.
  • Duration: The tour can last about an hour or an hour and a half.
  • Means of transportation: The tour is completed on foot, but you have to get to the starting point on your own.
  • Advantages of this option: It is accessible for people in wheelchairs. Baby carriages are admitted, as well as assistance animals.
  • Disadvantages of this option: Transportation to and from your accommodation is not provided. No meals, beverages or other personal expenses are included during the tour.

Book a tour of downtown Saint Louis

2. Tour the city and learn about real crime in the Soulard neighborhood

Soulard Quarter| ©Steven Martin
Soulard Quarter| ©Steven Martin

On this walk through the history of Soulard's past, your tour guide will take you through streets lined with buildings dating back to sometime after the Civil War. You'll also learn about some of the best bars and restaurants that are spread throughout the city.

As you make your way through the city from place to place, your guide will tell you incredible facts based on old headlines in the city, in which horrific crimes were recounted. Prohibition gangsters, bank robberies, bloody duels, election riots and psychopathic midwives are some of the grisly tales you'll hear during the tour.

One thing you'll love about this tour is that you'll be able to carry alcoholic beverages on the streets during the tour. So you can tell the bartender at the bar to give you your drink to go, so you can enjoy it while you tour the neighborhood and learn a lot more about history.

Details of interest

  • Price: This adventure can be priced at approximately 29 euros per person.
  • Duration: This is an activity that can last around an hour to an hour and a half.
  • Means of transportation: This tour is done on foot, so you have to get to the starting point on your own.
  • Advantages of this option: It is a wheelchair accessible tour. Baby strollers and assistance animals are allowed.
  • Disadvantages of this option: It is not a good plan for people with heart conditions or other medical problems. Transportation to and from the hotel or lodging site is not included.

Learn about the history of the Soulard neighborhood in a fun way

3. Hop on a bike and take a private tour of Missouri.

Shopping at the St. Louis Market| ©Nick Normal
Shopping at the St. Louis Market| ©Nick Normal

During this tour you will ride all over the city of St. Louis aboard a Cycle Saloon, which is a party bike suitable for up to 14 people. These bikes are also known as barcycle or beer bike. This is an ideal tour if you want to celebrate a special moment such as bachelor parties, birthdays or even if you just want to hang out with your group of friends.

At Big Daddy's the tour begins, so while you wait for the ride to start you can hop on and explore. The ride passes the iconic Anheuser-Busch Brewery, just before continuing on to the Soulard Farmers Market, Saint Louis' historic market. At this stop you can hop off the cycle saloon to explore the site, if you wish to do so.

Details of interest

  • Price: This private tour is priced at approximately 370 euros per person.
  • Duration: You will be cycling for just over two hours.
  • Means of transport: The whole tour is completed by bicycle, so you will have to get to the meeting point on your own.
  • Advantages of this option: Certified driver. There is public transportation nearby. This is a private tour or activity. Only your group can participate.
  • Disadvantages of this option: Not wheelchair accessible. Weather must be good for this experience to take place. This experience does not include alcoholic beverages or snacks.

Sign up for a private bike tour of Missouri

4. Have fun with a scavenger hunt in St. Louis

St. Louis Central Library| ©Eugene Kim
St. Louis Central Library| ©Eugene Kim

This is a scavenger hunt through the streets of St. Louis. You will walk through the most interesting landmarks of the city while answering trivia questions and solving fun riddles, so it is one of those things you should include in your list of things to do in Saint Louis with kids.

This is an activity that you have to do as a team or you also have the option to compete against them. You will learn about the most interesting historical facts of the city. You can live this experience with friends or do it on a special occasion like celebrating a birthday or for corporate celebrations.

You will be able to choose an interactive role, and you will be assigned challenges that may vary. Among the places you can visit during the tour are the City Museum, the Central Library, and the Peabody Opera House.

Details of interest

  • Price: This experience is priced at approximately 12 euros per person.
  • Duration: The activity usually lasts no more than two hours.
  • Means of transportation: The whole tour is done on foot, so you will have to get to the meeting point on your own.
  • Advantages of this option: All taxes are included, including local taxes, as well as fees and processing costs. You will be able to have your photos of the treasure hunt.
  • Disadvantages of this option: Food and beverages consumed during the tour are not included. Other personal expenses are not included. Transportation to and from your lodging site is not guaranteed.

Participate in the treasure hunt in St. Louis

5. Walk through the haunted Lemp neighborhood

Lemp Mansion| ©Scott
Lemp Mansion| ©Scott

This haunted tour is organized by the St. Louis Paranormal Research Society, so terror is guaranteed. It is also a tour of none other than one of the most haunted neighborhoods in the United States. The tour is led by Mark Farley, one of the most experienced paranormal investigators.

As you discover some of the dark history of the Lemp Mansion and Brewery and his family's curse, you will also learn about the history surrounding the Lemp neighborhood. During the tour, this expeditious investigator will take you into at least two of the Brewery' s darkest basements to tell you about the bloody episodes that these spaces saw at some point in history.

This is clearly not a family or children's tour. So I recommend that you live this experience with your partner or with your friends. If you are a lover of fear and terror, this is one of those tours that you cannot miss.

To add more terror to the scene, I recommend you to include the walk among your itinerary of things to do in Saint Louis in winter, because in this season the atmosphere gets a little darker, ideal for a horror tour.

Interesting details

  • Price: This walk is priced at approximately €24 per person, approximately.
  • Duration: The activity can last between one and one hour and a half.
  • Means of transportation: This tour is done on foot, so you will have to get to the meeting point on your own.
  • Advantages of this option: You are allowed to bring baby carriages, and assistance animals are also allowed. You can count on public transportation nearby.
  • Disadvantages of this option: It is not a wheelchair accessible tour. Not recommended for people with back problems.

Take your haunted tour of the Lamp district

6. Participate in the pub crawl in St. Louis

Pappy's Smokehouse| ©Thomas Hawk
Pappy's Smokehouse| ©Thomas Hawk

In this tour you will get to know each of the most interesting bars of the city, you will have the opportunity to taste national and international beverages, but at the same time you will be able to enjoy the drinks that you like so much. Your guide will give you the pertinent recommendations and you will also be able to enjoy typical food during the experience.

This is an ideal activity if you are alone or if you are traveling with friends or family, also if you want to do it to celebrate an important moment such as bachelorette parties, birthday parties, among others.

It is a good tour whether you are visiting or you are a local, because it is a fun way to explore some of the most emblematic places of the city. It's definitely one of the tours I would include among the best things to see in Saint Louis at night.

Details of interest

  • Price: It will cost you around 12 euros per person.
  • Duration: This tour lasts approximately two hours.
  • Means of transport: The tour is done on foot, with a meeting point established before starting the route. So you will have to get on your own to the starting point of the tour.
  • Advantages of this option: A drink is included. Assistance animals are welcome. Baby carriages are allowed. It is wheelchair accessible.
  • Disadvantages of this option: Food and beverages are not included, except for those included in the reservation package. They do not offer transportation to or from the attractions.

7. Meet and tour the Lafayette Square

Homes in Lafayette Square| ©Brodybro
Homes in Lafayette Square| ©Brodybro

On this tour of the Lafayette area, you are going to learn about the history of the neighborhood and the park, from its founding just after the Civil War. At that time, the city had only a few wealthy families, but no place to spend their money. To solve the problem, they agreed to build Lafayette.

With this construction, this plaza became the first urban park in the United States located west of the Mississippi. It didn't take long for it to gain an elite reputation. Soon men of prominence in St. Louis built their Victorian-style homes around it, but a natural disaster would later change the landscape forever.

During the tour you will learn more about this and other stories, as well as architectural details of Lafayette Square. You'll learn all about the famous ship's captain, just before you begin exploring the park's interior.

Details of Interest

  • Price: You can find this tour for approximately €29 per person.
  • Duration: It is a ride that can last around one hour.
  • Means of transportation: The tour is completed on foot, so you have to get to the meeting point on your own.
  • Advantages of this option: It is accessible for people using wheelchairs. You can bring strollers and assistance animals to this walk. Public transportation is available nearby.
  • Disadvantages of this option: Transportation to and from your accommodation is not provided. Personal expenses are also not included, nor are expenses for drinks and meals.

8. Hop on the streetcar to travel around the city

Classic St. Louis streetcar| ©Robert Linder
Classic St. Louis streetcar| ©Robert Linder

This is an authentic trolley tour through time and throughout the city of St. Louis. The expert local guide will take you all over the city, passing by interesting places, while making sure you always have a little more knowledge about the history of St. Louis.

You will see some of the best places in the city, such as the Anheuser Busch Brewery, or Busch Stadium, which is the home of the St. Louis Cardinals, you will also see the Gateway Arch which is about 192 meters high and is nestled next to the Mississippi River.

On the tour you will pass by the old St Louis Union Station, which is now an aquarium and a big Ferris wheel. Other places of interest to see during the tour are: the new Cathedral Basilica, Millionaire's Row, the old Courthouse, the Science Center and Museums, the St. Louis Walk of Fame, and you can't miss downtown St. Louis.

Details of interest

  • Price: You will be able to participate in this tour for an approximate price of 30 euros per person.
  • Duration: The tour lasts about 75 minutes, that is approximately one hour and fifteen minutes.
  • Means of transport: The whole tour is done by streetcar, however, you have to get to the starting point of the trip on your own.
  • Advantages of this option: Transportation by trolleybus is included, with the company of a guide. It does not stop due to the weather, so you can do the tour rain or shine. It is available for people with reduced mobility.
  • Disadvantages of this option: Meals and drinks are not included. A Spanish-speaking guide is not available.

9. Take a romantic tour with your partner in Saint Louis

Candlelight dinner| ©René Ranisch
Candlelight dinner| ©René Ranisch

During this ideal experience for couples, you will get to know some of the most romantic places in the city. In addition to this, your guide will take you to the birthplace of many of the foods and beverages that are now world famous, such as Anheuser Busch beer. You will get to know in depth the characteristic architecture of Saint Louis.

The whole atmosphere will be perfect for your date, because your guide will make sure to take you to some of the best places to go on a date in the city, while telling you where you can take nice pictures with your date. They will also tell you about the city's love stories, some of them very sad and sad, and others more fun.

Interesting details

  • Price: To enjoy this tour, you will have to pay around 176 euros per person. Although the price may vary according to the number of people attending the activity.
  • Duration: The romantic tour can last around two hours or a little more.
  • Means of transportation: The activity is completed on foot, so you have to get to the meeting point on your own.
  • Advantages of this option: You have a professional guide at your disposal and with all the knowledge. There is transportation close by so you can get to your meeting point. It is also an activity that almost everyone can do without impediments.
  • Disadvantages of this option: Drinks and meals are not included. Personal expenses during the tour are not included. Transportation is not provided to or from your lodging site.

10. Bonus: Experience the magical Christmas tour of Saint Louis

Old Courthouse| ©Robert Linder
Old Courthouse| ©Robert Linder

I know this is a seasonal tour, but it is definitely one of the activities you can't miss on your list of things to do in Saint Louis at Christmas time. It is a visit to the best decorated places in the city with the company of a professional local guide.

The Christmas atmosphere in St. Louis is enchanting, so during the tour you will not only see the lights that illuminate the city, but also learn about the history of the Christmas tree, and who is credited with decorating it for the first time in the world. Your guide will tell you all about the magical things that can happen at Christmas.

You will learn about the spells and miraculous Christmas legends that have become famous in the city. Together with your guide, you and your group will visit the beautiful Saint Louis Christmas tree, which is located next to the Old Courthouse. There you will not only learn why it is so popular, but you will also experience a true gastronomic experience of local Christmas products.

Details of Interest

  • Price: This tour has an approximate price of 154 euros per person.
  • Duration: It can last up to two hours from the beginning to the end of the tour.
  • Means of transportation: This tour is completed on foot, so you will have to get to the meeting point on your own.
  • Advantages of this option: You have public transportation close to the meeting point. This is a private activity, meaning that only your group can participate. You will have a professional local guide.
  • Disadvantages of this option: Entrance fees to the places you will visit are not included. It is not an adapted tour for wheelchair users.