Gateway Arch National Park

The Gateway Arch National Park of St.Louis, Missouri preserves the golden history of the United States and is the smallest park in the U.S.A.

The Park is spread over 90.9 acres of land. It is very much famous for St.Louis’ Old Courthouse for its Dred Scott case hearings. This case was one of the triggers for the outbreak of the American Civil War.

The park was Formerly known as Jefferson National Expansion. The park has a wonderful Museum of Westward Expansion and Gateway Arch.

The 630-foot stainless steel Gateway Arch’s design was made by Eero Saarinen and its construction began in 1963 and was completed on October 28, 1965, for a total cost of less than $15 million. The arch can confidently withstand high winds and earthquakes.

The arch becomes more beautiful in the morning and in the evening because of the colours contoured of sunrise and sunset glow on the arch.

Beneath the Arch, the Museum of Westward Expansion holds the treasure of variants of artefacts from the Lewis and Clark expedition. Also, the mounted animal specimens and authentic

American Indian tipi should not be missed.

Best time to visit

If you are planning to pay a visit to this symbolic park, the best time to do so is during the months ranging from August to September. The rush on an everyday basis depends on that specific day.

This is why you should keep in mind to buy your tickets ahead of time because they tend to sell out quick.

There is an initial rush when the gates of the park open at 8:00 am. Hence, I would not advise this as the best time. However, I would say that around 9 on Wednesdays and Thursdays is the best time to visit due to the absence of a rush.

As far as the view is concerned, the sunset time is a good pick to visit the park. The best summer hours in July are 8:00 am to 10:00 am and the last tram of the evening doing to the top about 9:10 or 9:15 pm is pleasant. 

If we talk about months then Summers ‘June to August’ and winters ‘December to February‘ are the best months to visit gateway arch.

Summer is the best season to visit this terrific park. Even in winter, the cold winds will not make you feel freezing because the temperature doesn’t get lower than 32 degrees more than 25 days throughout the winter.

Tips before visiting

There are a couple of things that you should know before visiting the Gateway Arch National Park which will really help you out. Here are some of the tips for you before you visit the great Arch

  • If you have purchased a tram ticket in advance, then you have to arrive 30 minutes before the time.
  • You have to do reservations for ranger-led program 30 days prior to your visit. You can call 314-655-1700 between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m (U.S.A timings)
  • All the tickets, i.e. Riverboat tickets, and Combo tickets often sell out very fast. Therefore I would strongly suggest that you book your tickets way in advance on www.gatewayarch.com
  • As far as accessibility is concerned, Tram Ride to the Top of the Gateway Arch is not full can not be accessed by guests with mobility impairments. This is because wheelchairs, scooters, or strollers are not permitted on the Observation Deck. do keep this mind before making plans.
  • For safety purposes, all the visitors have to clear an airport-style security check before entering the park. On a busy day, this can take up to 30 minutes or more. Therefore a good tip is to reach the park at least 30 mins to an hour prior to the reserved ticket time.
  • One last thing to keep in mind is that there are no group discounts available at the online purchase of tickets at the Gateway Arch. however, you can book group reservations by calling their call center.

Gateway Arch National Park tickets

There are a few type of tickets available at the Gateway Arch National Park. these can be broadly divided into 3 categories which are as follows

  1. Gateway Arch tickets 
  2. Riverboat tickets 
  3. Combo tickets 

I will now discuss in further detail about these tickets. To start off I will proceed with the Gateway Arch tickets.

Gateway Arch Tickets

Here you can choose between two types of tickets.

  •  Tram Ride to the Top – as the name suggests this is a ticket for a tram ride to the top of the Gateway of Arch. Its duration is from 45-60 minutes. The fees are $12 – $16 for Adults and $8 – $12 for Children (3–15). 
  • Documentary Movie- is a ticket for a documentary movie of the Gateway Arch called Monument to the Dream Film. The duration is 35 minutes. Fees are – Adults $7; Children (3–15) $3

Riverboat Tickets

There are multiple riverboat tickets to choose from like

  • St. Louis Riverfront Cruise – Adults $19 – $22; Children (3–15) $8 – $11
  • Sunday Brunch Cruise- Adults $48; Children (3–12) $20 
  • Skyline Dinner Cruise- Adults $51; Children (3–12) $20

Combo Tickets

Tickets with a combination of both the first two types of tickets. 

  • See Everything Combo- Includes Tram Ride to the Top, Documentary Movie & St. Louis Riverfront Cruise. Fees-  Adults $33 – $40; Children (3–15) $18 – $25. 
  • Tram and Cruise Combo- Includes Tram Ride to the Top & St. Louis Riverfront Cruise. Fees- Adults $29 – $36; Children (3–15) $15 – $22.
  • Tram and Movie Combo- Includes Tram Ride to the Top & Documentary Movie. Fees- Adults $16 – $20; Children (3–15) $11 – $15.

Number of Visitors

Around 2,016,180 number of tourists visited Gateway Arch National Park.