Explore St. Louis

Gasoline prices got you down? Perk up with a visit to St. Louis where your car can take a vacation, too. Once you arrive in the Gateway City you can lock it and pocket the key then hop, scoot and zip around to great attractions all over town. Alternative transportation options include ultra-modern Segway scooters, traditional shuttles, bicycles and festive double-decker, open-top buses.

Hopping around St. Louis has never been more colorful thanks to the addition of the authentic London double-decker, open-top buses of City Sightseeing to the touring scene. Tours circulate through downtown St. Louis and nearby attractions or take in the top spots in Forest Park and the Missouri Botanical Garden. Tickets are good for two days with hop-on, hop-off privileges at 33 stops including the Gateway Arch, City Museum, St. Louis Union Station, the Anheuser-Busch Brewery Tour Center, the fun-filled Loop neighborhood, the Cathedral Basilica, the Saint Louis Zoo and more. Kids under 16 years of age ride free with an accompanying adult.

Use the latest technology to tour the attractions within St. Louis’ historic Forest Park via a that Segway motorized standing, two-wheel “scooter.” The Saint Louis Science Center operates the tours from its McDonnell Planetarium site within Forest Park. A dozen Segways are available for three-hour, guided “Park ‘n’ Ride” tours through the park highlight the architecture, nature and attractions within the 1,300-plus acre greenspace including the Grand Basin fountains, the Jewel Box greenhouse, the Missouri History Museum, the Saint Louis Art Museum and the World’s Fair Pavilion. The “Wheels ‘n’ Meals” tour includes a box lunch meal. Riders must be 16 years old and weigh between 100 and 260 pounds and complete a 30-minute Segway training session offered before each tour.

Segway tours run through Labor Day. During June, the Segway program is scheduled on Saturdays from 11:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. and Sunday from 12:30 p.m. until 3:00 p.m. The tour schedule will expand in July to Wednesday through Sunday. Visitors can make credit card reservations by calling the Saint Louis Science Center Box Office at 314-289-4424. Prices are $5 for Segway pre-tour training, $80 for the “Wheels ‘n’ Meals” tour and $60 for the “Park ‘n’ Ride” option. Segway 101, a more detailed training course, is available for $10.

Another great way to experience the wonders of Forest Park is with the Zip2 Forest Park Shuttle. The shuttle operates from the Forest Park/DeBaliviere MetroLink light rail station and zips to the park’s most popular attractions including The Boathouse, Forest Park Visitor Center, Missouri History Museum, the Jewel Box greenhouse, The Muny Opera, Saint Louis Art Museum, Science Center and Zoo. Forest Park Shuttle tickets can be purchased on board the Forest Park Shuttle, for $1.50 (or $.75 for Senior Citizens, Disabled Passengers, and Children ages 5-12).

Forest Park visitors also can take leisurely, guided bike rides around the roads and paths with City Cycling Tours. Daily 2.5 to 3-hour-long programs cover a 12-mile route with 20 stops that describe the history of the park, architectural and natural features and background on the cultural institutions that call the park home. Helmets are provided and there are a wide range of
comfortable bike frame sizes available. Start times are flexible and group rates are available.
Call 314-616-5724 for reservations. For those who wish to explore the park or surrounding neighborhoods on their own, bike rentals are available at Big Shark Bicycle Company. Located a short bike ride from Forest Park at 6178 Delmar in The Loop neighborhood. Big Shark offers a variety of bike styles and helmets. Call 314-862-1188 or visit Big Shark's web site for details.

Visitors can use their own pedal power to explore even more of St. Louis. Single bikes, tandems, trailers and tag-a-longs are available from 9 a.m. until 7 p.m. daily from the kiosk operated by the Gateway Arch Riverfront. With their rental, visitors can get maps of the surrounding trail system. Cyclists also can follow new Bike St. Louis markers scattered throughout downtown St. Louis and several historic neighborhoods. The 20-mile path allows bikers to take a self-paced tour of top attractions and St. Louis’ noted architecture and links riders with a variety of regional trails.

If you’re such a fan of gasoline-consuming personal transportation that you can’t part with your vehicle, be sure to drive to the new automobile gallery at the Museum of Transportation. That’s where 17 vintage automobiles are housed in a glass-enclosed gallery designed to resemble a new car showroom.

At the end of the day, you can get your kicks along the St. Louis stretch of fabled Route 66 with a refreshment break at Ted Drewes Frozen Custard, an iconic “Mother Road” refreshment stand known for serving “concretes” – milkshakes so thick they serve them to you upside down.