RV Parking at the Gateway Arch

[wnytaxman]

We will be coming into St. Louis on I-70 from Indy and I was wondering if there is RV parking at the Gateway Arch. On Google Earth it doesn't appear that there is any RV parking.

[RJay]

Quote:

Originally Posted by wnytaxman We will be coming into St. Louis on I-70 from Indy and I was wondering if there is RV parking at the Gateway Arch. On Google Earth it doesn't appear that there is any RV parking.

Hi wnytaxman,
There is a road that parallels the Mississippi River and passes in front of the Arch between the river and the Arch. I saw signs on that road pointing to RV parking in the direction of the I-70 bridge but I never saw the actual parking area. I was on foot since I took the train into St. Louis but I did see RV's on the road heading in the direction the signs were pointing. Be aware there is alot of construction in the downtown St. Louis area.

[FleetMan]

A fall back position you could use is to park at the Casino Queen on the Illinois side, directly across from the Arch and take the train over. If you have a toad, parking for that is a lot more convenient than parking for an RV.

[bdaball]

That road between the arch and the river was underwater when we were there in March.
Your better off parking at Casino Queen and driving the toad back to a paid parking lot or walk across the bridge. It's not far at all.
The paid parking lots are much cheaper a few blocks away from the monument parking gargage.
Yes there is construction around the area.

[RJay]

I am in St. Louis now and although both the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers are high the road between the Arch and the Mississippi was dry when I was at the Arch two weeks ago. But I agree with the others about parking at the casino and taking the train to the Arch and avoiding the traffic and construction.

[Frank P. Martin]

If you have the time, Why not just camp overnight at the Casino Queen? I did that back in 2002. It was inexpensive and the Casino Queen had a shuttle that took us right to the light rail station where we boarded the car to take us across the river to St Louis.

One thing you have to keep in mind, though. While it's pegged as a campground, it's more like Walmart parking, but with hookups. If you like trains, you're in for a treat as they're nearby and you'll hear them all hours of the day.

Also, you should make reservations to take the ride to the top of the arch. There's a train of 8 cars on each side of the arch and each car holds 5 passengers (40 in total). The trips run on a schedule so you need to book your date and time you expect to be there. Riding in one of the cars is like riding in an oversized dryer drum and in my opinion, it is not something for those who are claustrophobic. Below is a picture of what the entrance of one of the cars looks like. The red bars are scaffolding. There were renovations being done when we visited.



More information is available here:

Gateway Arch Riverfront

Enjoy your visit. I'd go again if I ever had another opportunity.

[Ray,IN]

I've got to agree, the Arch RV park- about 2-3 blocks S., is a joke, a sad one to be sure. You are inside a 8-10' chain-link fence on blacktop parking lot. The Casino RV park is pleasant, clean, and as like others replied. The Casino is in a not-so-good area of E. St. Louis, I;, but their security is very reassuring.

[CurbCrusher]

We were there a couple of weeks ago and stayed at Babler State Park just west of St. Louis and drove the toad in. I didn't even notice the RV parking signs as were were approaching the Arch, I just know I would not have liked driving the RV in that part of St. Louis, it felt tight in the Vue.
Through June 30, if you buy your tickets to go to the top of the Arch at the web site in advance, they include parking in the Arch garage that is right there at the park.

[a k]

I went up in the Arch in 1970 and would never do it again. You better hope every body in there has on deoderant. Hippies in the 70's didn't. It's going to be 100 degrees here in St Louis today. Casino Queen is the place to stay. You can ride the Metro Link over to the Arch. There is a RV park on the west side of the Missouri River Sundermeierrvpark. If you stay in the one downtown, I would advise you to be armed.

[Frank P. Martin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ray,IN The Casino is in a not-so-good area of E. St. Louis, I;, but their security is very reassuring.

That was the scariest part of the trip- driving through E. St. Louis to the Casino Queen. I felt like Chevy Chase in "National Lampoon's Vacation" where he's driving through a rough section of St Louis. Every traffic light I had to stop at I was half-tempted to holler "Roll 'em up!" even though all my windows were already in that position.

[CurbCrusher]

Just noted that it looks like wyntaxman (who started the thread) has a bunk house. That indicates you might have kids with you. On another thread in the Crossroads section someone traveling with kids said that the Casino park in East St. Louis does not allow campers under 21. You might want check on that if you are headed there.

[Bill Adams]

RV parking anywhere near the Arch on the MO side is out of the question at this point due to the flooding going on. I highly recommend that stay at the Casino Queen RV Park on the IL side of the river. No, E. St. Louis is not the greatest city in the US, but if you come in from the West you won't even see the city and if you come in from any other direction you will just barely touch the outskirts before you get to the park. The Arch is less than 5 minutes from the park across the Eads bridge. The park is very safe, has a great location, is well run and quite full on the weekends and during many of the Cardinals games.
We have been in this park for the last week and we have to leave tomorrow (dang). We are on a waiting list to get back in here for the 4th of July. If you want to see the Arch, this is the place to be.
By the way, while the elevators to the top of the arch are very small, I highly recommend the trip to the top. I am not claustrophobic but I did find this to be a bit intimidating at first. However, the pay-off was well worth it and the trip up (after a minute or 2) and the trip back down actually became a most interesting event. I don't know about the hippies, but there was nothing offensive about anything or anyone during our trip up or down.

[CurbCrusher]

St. Louis was a stop on June 12th, along a big swing out west for us. While sitting in the hot tub at the Rafter J some folks told us the secret to the Arch was to go early. I bought tickets online (with free garage parking thrown in) for 9:20. We left Babler State Park around 8:00, got parked and walked to the Arch by about 8:45. We went inside (no line for security) and they let us board the next tram to the top. There were a few people at the top, not packed by any means, and it did not smell.


We took pictures and hung around for a while and then took the tram down without waiting in line. By the time we hit the bottom it was probably 9:45 and there were still not lines for the trams going up.
After wandering around the museum, and letting our daughter do the Jr. Ranger book, we left the Arch around 10:45 and the line to get past security was stretched most of the way up the ramp.

[phays]

I too recommend the Casino Queen RV Park. If you aren't going to be there overnight there appears to be ample parking in an area just before you get to the RV park. I've stayed there twice. The first time with my two grandsons (age 9 and 11) and the second time on a business trip. On both trips I took the metrolink across the river. The arch is the first stop after you cross the river.

Coming in on I-70 you will exit on the left. Watch for your exit carefully. I missed it the last time and ended up in downtown St. Louis with my MH and toad. Fortunately it was Sunday and I was familiar with downtown St. Louis so I made it back across the river without too much trouble.

Oh, the casino will not allow anyone under 21 to enter. I had hoped to utilize their restaurants with my grandsons but struck out on that one. The sites on the south side of the rv park are a little larger and have a bit of grass.