Best time to travel in St. Louis?
→ The detailed month-by-month page, with 2015-2024 averages
Best time: April to June, September to October
Best avoided if possible: December to February (less pleasant weather or big crowds).
Temperatures and rainfall: 1991-2020 normals from the St. Louis Lambert Airport station, NOAA data (public domain).
Humid continental: hot, muggy summers around 32°C with thunderstorms, cold winters around 4°C by day and below freezing at night, some snowfall from December to March, and a risk of tornadoes in spring. The best time to visit St. Louis is April, May, June, September and October, with temperatures reaching 31-32°C (July). By contrast, January, February, March, July, August, November and December are generally less favourable (less pleasant weather or big crowds, depending on the destination), though a trip is still possible with a bit of planning. In high season, book early: prices and visitor numbers climb fast.
Go against the flow. To avoid the crowds without sacrificing too much on the weather, aim for March and November: the crowds thin out, prices drop too, and the climate stays pleasant.
Do these months appeal to you? See what's best elsewhere too: where to go in April · where to go in May · where to go in June · where to go in September · where to go in October.
At a glance
Why go to St. Louis?
St. Louis still bears its French name, that of King Louis IX, given in 1764 by Pierre Laclède and Auguste Chouteau, two fur traders from New Orleans. The city became American with the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, then the great gateway to the West: it was from here that Lewis and Clark set off up the Missouri, and here that the pioneers stocked up. In the 19th century, Mississippi steamboats, the beer of German brewers and shoes made it one of the largest cities in the country.
The Gateway Arch, raised on the riverfront in 1965, recalls this role as a gateway, and it remains one of the most astonishing silhouettes in the country: a 192-metre arc of polished steel that you climb from the inside. But the city is above all worth visiting for what its residents built for themselves: Forest Park, larger than Central Park, with a free zoo, art museum and history museum, a botanical garden of 1859 and a cathedral covered in mosaics.
St. Louis also has a character all its own. The City Museum, a giant playground cobbled together in a factory, is like nothing you have ever seen. The Italian neighbourhood of The Hill, the music of Chuck Berry, born here, and of Miles Davis, who grew up across the river, barbecue with sweet sauce, toasted ravioli and frozen custard add an identity you can taste. The city has lost more than half its population since 1950 and some neighbourhoods bear the scars, but its major sites remain easy to reach and largely free.
Tourist map of St. Louis: what's where?
The map below pinpoints the 6 places covered in this guide: a handy way to picture the distances between each stop and plan your route in St. Louis.
- Gateway Arch
- City Museum
- Forest Park
- Missouri Botanical Garden
- Soulard
- Cahokia Mounds
How much does a trip to St. Louis cost in 2026? Budget calculator
Estimate your budget for St. Louis based on your travel style: accommodation, meals, activities and local transport included (flights excluded). Adjust the length and the number of travellers, and the totals update.
Totals for all travellers over the chosen length; the daily amount is per person. Flights extra, indicative amounts to adjust depending on the season.
Bank cards are accepted everywhere, contactless included. Prices are shown before tax, about 9 to 10% extra on purchases and meals, more on hotel rooms. A tip of 18 to 22% is expected in restaurants, and $1-2 per drink at the bar.
Safety in St. Louis: should you be worried?
St. Louis has one of the highest crime rates of any big American city, but the violence mainly affects residential neighbourhoods in the north and south that visitors do not pass through. The tourist sites, the riverfront and the arch, Washington Avenue, Forest Park, the Central West End, The Hill, Soulard and the Delmar Loop, are busy and safe by day. In the evening, downtown empties outside game days: take a ride-hailing car rather than walking between neighbourhoods, and leave nothing visible in a parked car. In spring, violent storms and tornadoes are the main natural risk; summer is hot and humid. Carrying firearms is legal in Missouri, except where a sign prohibits it. Medical care is excellent but very expensive, so health insurance covering the United States is essential.
Things to see and do in St. Louis
Our first-hand favourites, and the great classics:
- Gateway Arch
- City Museum
- Forest Park
- Saint Louis Art Museum
- Missouri Botanical Garden
- Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis
- Anheuser-Busch Brewery
- The Hill
What to book before you go to St. Louis →
🧭 Discover the St. Louis itinerary, day by dayMap, timings, budget and where to stay: free to access, to fit your dates. Create my tailor-made itinerary →The riverfront and the Gateway Arch
Gateway Arch National Park occupies the Mississippi riverfront, with the arch, its free underground museum and a landscaped park reopened in 2018 that links it to downtown. The Old Courthouse, a domed courthouse begun in 1839, where Dred Scott sued for his freedom, can be visited free of charge two streets away. To the north, Laclede's Landing keeps 19th-century warehouses and cobblestones, with a few bars. Paddle boats, replicas of the steamboats of old, offer one-hour cruises on the river at the foot of the arch.
Downtown and Washington Avenue
Downtown lines up early 20th-century buildings, including Louis Sullivan's Wainwright Building of 1891, one of the first skyscrapers in the world, and the former Union Trust, now the Hotel Saint Louis. Washington Avenue, with its former shoe and clothing warehouses turned into lofts, bars and restaurants, leads to the City Museum. Union Station, a station of 1894 with a stone tower, has been turned into a hotel, aquarium and Ferris wheel. The Cardinals' stadium, Busch Stadium, and Ballpark Village come alive on game nights, from April to September.
Forest Park
The large park of about 530 hectares, laid out for the 1904 World's Fair, concentrates the city's free institutions: the Saint Louis Zoo, the Saint Louis Art Museum, the Missouri History Museum and the Science Center. You can cycle around its lakes, hire pedal boats at the Boathouse and, in summer, watch open-air musicals at the Muny. The park deserves a whole day, starting with the zoo at opening time and finishing on Art Hill at sunset.
Central West End and the Delmar Loop
East of the park, the Central West End is the most pleasant neighbourhood on foot, with its streets lined with grand houses, its terraces on Euclid Avenue and the mosaic cathedral. To the north-west, the Delmar Loop, near Washington University, lines up restaurants, concert venues and Blueberry Hill, the bar where Chuck Berry played once a month for nearly twenty years. The stars of the St. Louis Walk of Fame, set in the pavement, pay tribute to the city's famous sons and daughters.
The Hill, Soulard and the south
The south of the city brings together The Hill, the Italian neighbourhood and its trattorias, and Soulard, one of the oldest neighbourhoods, with the Soulard Market covered market, its red-brick houses and the Anheuser-Busch brewery. The botanical garden and the Victorian Tower Grove Park, with its colourful pavilions, are next door. Ted Drewes' frozen custard, on old Route 66, draws a queue of customers every summer evening.
Day trips: Cahokia and the Mark Twain road
15 km to the east, in Illinois, Cahokia Mounds, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, preserves the earthworks of the largest pre-Columbian city north of Mexico, including the 30-metre Monks Mound, climbed by a staircase. To the north, the road follows the Mississippi to Hannibal, two hours away, Mark Twain's boyhood town and the setting for Tom Sawyer. To the west, the Missouri valley and the village of Hermann, founded by Germans, line up wine cellars and vineyards.
How many days, and which itinerary in St. Louis?
Two days cover the arch, the City Museum and Forest Park. Three or four days let you add the botanical garden, the cathedral, the brewery, The Hill and a Cardinals game. A day trip to Cahokia or Hannibal adds a day.
🗺️ Day-by-day St. Louis itinerary · 📓 Printable St. Louis travel guide (PDF) · 🌍 Discover all of the American West
The weekend (3 days)
Day 1: the Gateway Arch and its museum in the morning, the Old Courthouse, a one-hour cruise on the Mississippi, the City Museum in the afternoon, dinner on Washington Avenue. Day 2: Forest Park by bike, the zoo at opening time, the Saint Louis Art Museum, lunch in the Central West End, the mosaic cathedral, an evening of blues or a gig on the Delmar Loop. Day 3: Missouri Botanical Garden, an Italian lunch on The Hill, a tour of the Anheuser-Busch brewery and a stroll through Soulard.
St. Louis and around (5 days)
The three days of the weekend, plus a morning at Cahokia Mounds, across the river, and an afternoon at the Missouri History Museum or Grant's Farm, and a day in Hannibal, Mark Twain's town, along the Mississippi road, with a paddle boat cruise. From April to September, keep an evening for a Cardinals game at Busch Stadium.
Across Missouri (10 days)
Three days in St. Louis, then the road west along the Missouri: Hermann and its vineyards for a night, a stretch of the Katy Trail by bike from Rocheport, then Kansas City for four days, between the National WWI Museum, the jazz of 18th & Vine, the Nelson-Atkins and barbecue. The two cities are 400 km (250 miles) apart along the I-70, about 3 hrs 45 by direct road. Allow 800 km in total, including the return.
How to get to St. Louis and get around?
There is no regular direct flight from Paris: St. Louis Lambert airport (STL) is reached with a connection in Chicago, Atlanta, New York or Washington, for 10 to 12 hours of travel. It is about 22 km north-west of downtown.
MetroLink, the city's light rail, serves both airport terminals and reaches downtown in 35 to 40 minutes, passing through Forest Park, the Central West End and Union Station. A single ride costs $2.50, about €2, and a one-day pass $5, about €4.
Downtown, the riverfront, Washington Avenue and the City Museum can be explored on foot or by MetroLink. The Central West End and Forest Park are five or six stops from downtown, about fifteen minutes away. For the botanical garden, The Hill and Soulard, a ride-hailing car is more practical than the infrequent buses.
A car becomes useful for Cahokia, Hannibal, Hermann and the southern neighbourhoods. Parking is easy outside downtown, often free around Forest Park and The Hill, and paid downtown and at hotels.
Where to stay in St. Louis?
Downtown, near the arch and Washington Avenue, concentrates the big hotels, several of them in historic buildings: the Hotel Saint Louis in Louis Sullivan's Union Trust, The Last Hotel in the former headquarters of the International Shoe Company. Expect €120-250 a night, within walking distance of the arch and the City Museum.
Union Station, turned into a hotel beneath the glass roof of the station of 1894, is an address apart, with an aquarium and a Ferris wheel in the courtyard. The station is on the MetroLink line, between downtown and Forest Park.
The Central West End, on the edge of Forest Park, is the most pleasant neighbourhood to stay in within walking distance of the museums, with the Chase Park Plaza, a grand hotel of the 1920s, and a few simpler hotels. The Delmar Loop and Grand Center have characterful hotels, the Moonrise and the Angad Arts Hotel.
Clayton, west of Forest Park, brings together the upmarket business hotels, including the Ritz-Carlton, on the MetroLink line. Prices rise on Cardinals game weekends and during major conventions; the airport chain hotels remain affordable but far away.
Our picks stop by stop, in three price ranges →
What to eat in St. Louis?
St. Louis has its own specialities: toasted ravioli, breaded and fried ravioli born on The Hill, St. Louis-style pizza with a cracker-thin crust and Provel cheese, cut into squares, gooey butter cake, a rich, sweet buttery cake, and the St. Paul sandwich, a bean sprout omelette served in Chinese restaurants. Allow $12-20, about €10-17, for a simple meal.
The Hill remains the best place for Italian food, from grocery stores to family trattorias. St. Louis barbecue stands out for its grilled pork steaks and ribs and its sweet sauce, and the city has good smokehouses downtown and in the south.
Frozen custard, a very thick egg-based ice cream, is eaten at Ted Drewes, on old Route 66, where they turn the concrete upside down, a custard so dense that it does not fall out of the cup. Soulard Market sells fruit, spices and snacks at weekends.
Beer is part of the city's history, from Anheuser-Busch to Schlafly, the first craft brewery to open in the city after Prohibition, in 1991. Prices are shown before tax: add about 9 to 10% on purchases and meals, plus a tip of 18 to 22%.
Which kind of traveller is it for?
St. Louis lends itself to a cultural and foodie trip. Whether you travel with family, as a couple or even solo, everyone finds their own pace. For accommodation, you will mostly find classic hotels and boutique hotels.
Entry requirements & practical info
UK, Australian and most EU passports need an ESTA, applied for online before departure, for stays of up to 90 days; a few EU countries sit outside the Visa Waiver Program and need a full visa. Canadians need neither, only a passport. Anyone who has been to Cuba since January 2021 cannot use an ESTA and must apply for a visa.
Rules change: before you leave, check your country's official travel advice.
Once there, to stay online without paying roaming charges, an St. Louis eSIM activates in a few minutes and works as soon as you land (plans from €3.99). Remember suitable travel insurance too.
Frequently asked questions about St. Louis
When is the best time to visit St. Louis?
April to June and September to October, with 20 to 28°C during the day and parks in bloom or in autumn colours. Summer is hot and muggy, around 32°C, and winter cold. Spring is also the season of violent storms: follow the weather warnings.
How much does it cost to go up the Gateway Arch?
The tram to the top costs from $15, about €13, per adult and $11, about €9, for ages 3-15, depending on the date. The price includes a $3 entrance fee paid to the National Park Service. The museum beneath the arch and the Old Courthouse are free. Book online, especially at weekends.
Are there direct flights from Europe to St. Louis?
Not from Paris: you need a connection, most often in Chicago, Atlanta, New York or Washington, for 10 to 12 hours of travel. From the airport, MetroLink reaches downtown in 35 to 40 minutes.
Do you need a car in St. Louis?
Not for the essentials: MetroLink links the airport, downtown, Union Station, Forest Park and Clayton. A ride-hailing car fills the gaps for the botanical garden, The Hill and Soulard. A car becomes useful for Cahokia, Hannibal and the Missouri valley.
Is the City Museum suitable for adults?
Yes, that is even one of its distinctive features: people crawl, climb and slide at any age. Wear clothes that cover you and closed shoes. Some evenings are reserved for over-21s.
What are the free things to do in St. Louis?
The Saint Louis Zoo, the Saint Louis Art Museum, the Missouri History Museum and the Science Center, all in Forest Park, the museum beneath the Gateway Arch, the Old Courthouse and the Cathedral Basilica. The park itself, its lakes and its cycle paths are free.
How many days do you need in St. Louis?
Two days for the arch, the City Museum and Forest Park, three or four to add the botanical garden, the brewery, The Hill and a day trip. The city combines with Kansas City, 400 km away, for a week in Missouri.
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