Was It Worth It?
Gateway Arch National Park

​Posted November 2, 2025, by Janet Wolfe

What It Is

A 630-foot high stainless-steel structure designed to commemorate Thomas Jefferson’s vision of a transcontinental United States.

Where It Is

St. Louis, Missouri

When We Went

July 2019 and August 2021

What We Did

The first time we went, we visited on the 4th of July.  We spent about two hours walking around the grounds, exploring the visitors center and gift shop, and watching the 35-minute documentary about the Arch’s design and construction.  We walked back to the hotel for dinner (see why we love staying in Drury hotels) but returned an hour later for our tram ride to the top.  We stayed and watched the fireworks.  

When we returned to the Gateway Arch in 2021, we again walked to the park from our hotel in the evening.  We spent about an hour or so walking around the grounds, inside and outside, and another hour or so walking around the next morning, but we did not engage in any paid activities.

The kids earned Junior Ranger badges.

How Much We Spent

In 2019 we bought packages that included the tram ride to the top of the Arch, the documentary movie, and the riverfront cruise (which ended up getting cancelled).  We paid $39/adult and $25/kid for a total (with $3 convenience fee) of $131. Entrance into the museum under the Arch is free.

How Much Time We Spent There

In 2019, we spent a total of about 7 hours in and around the park, but that included about 3 hours waiting for and watching fireworks.  When we visited St. Louis in 2021, we spent about an hour in the evening and about an hour the next day walking around the Arch and visiting the gift shop.  Depending on what you decide to do, you could probably spend as little as two hours or as much as all day at Gateway Arch.

What We Liked

We loved looking at downtown St. Louis, the Mississippi River, and Illinois (on the other side of the river) from the small platform inside the top of the Arch. We were there in the evening on the fourth of July, so our focus through the 16  rectangular windows was largely straight down at all of the people sitting on their blankets in the park, but according to the park’s website, visitors can see up to 30 miles to the east and west on a clear day.

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What We Didn't Like

The egg-shaped tram cars that you ride to the top of the Arch in are a little snug.  They seat five people, so we had a “stranger” with us on the ride up.  Since you’re literally knee-to-knee with your neighbors, this was a little awkward.  Fortunately, the ride up is only four minutes and the ride down about three, so you don’t have to sit like that for too long.


Was it worth it? 

Yes!  It really is a remarkable structure.  We liked it so much when we stopped in St. Louis in 2019 that we made a second brief visit in 2021.  The site is truly impressive, especially when you consider that construction was completed in 1965.

For more information, visit https://www.gatewayarch.com/.

Did you know?  Although the Arch does not typically sway, it was built to move as much as 18 inches and withstand an earthquake.  According to the Arch’s website, “it takes a 50-mile-per-hour wind to move the top 1.5 inches to either side of center.”

At 63 stories tall, the Gateway Arch is taller than the Statue of Liberty, the Washington Monument, and the Seattle Space Needle.