St.Louis Attractions You Can See for FREE

Everyone likes to get away from it all from time to time. Unfortunately, whether you travel fulltime or only once in a while, seeing even a small fraction of all the amazing attractions in any given city can cost a small fortune. That is, unless you go to a super budget-friendly city like St. Louis.

My family and I just had the opportunity to see this amazing city. It was beautiful, fun, and surprisingly easy on the wallet. Honestly, we rarely spend much on attractions and entertainment thanks to our many reciprocal memberships. However, we didn't even need to use those while in St. Louis. An enormous number of attractions in this city are completely free, meaning even a person with no reciprocal benefits whatsoever and very little money in their pocket could still have a great time.

Related Read: Missouri Destinations You Have to See

Of course, if you've read this far, you're going to want to know what exactly you can see and do for free in the Gateway to the West. Here are my favorite free St. Louis attractions.

St. Louis Zoo

There is nothing more fun than heading to the zoo for the day. Seriously, I love it! We've been to big zoos and little zoos all across the country, and I've found plenty that I like. However, St. Louis Zoo is easily in my top 5 favorite zoos of all time.

Why do I say that? Well, for one thing, this place has both penguins and a polar bear, two animals that are typically pretty hard to come by in zoological parks. On top of that, they have beautiful, well-maintained habitats, animals who are clearly well cared for, and an enormous variety of creatures to look at and learn about, with plenty of staff standing by to answer questions.

Perhaps best of all is that fact that this attraction offers free admission. You do have to pay to park, and it's a bit steep at $15 per car, but it still beats paying the typical admission cost at similar zoos. Besides, there is free parking available in Forest Park if you're willing to hoof it to the entrance.

St. Louis Science Center

Science centers are another favorite of my clan. We love that they offer so many awesome opportunities for hands-on learning. St. Louis Science Center certainly does not disappoint in that respect—or at all, really!

The museum features state-of-the-art exhibits on such subjects as dinosaurs, space, and ecology. Visitors are encouraged to jump in and experiment with the tools provided and live demonstrations offer a chance to see how the pros use their scientific tools. This place could easily entertain anybody for hours on end, and if you have kids, dragging them out at the end of the day might be quite the chore—that’s how awesome it is.

General admission to the museum is free. That said, the attached planetarium and the OMNIMAX Theater—and a few other special attractions—do require a ticket. Parking also costs extra, and will set you back $12 during the summer and $10 at all other times. There is also the option of using public transportation.

Related Read: Arizona Destinations You Have to See to Appreciate

The Gateway Arch, Museum of Westward Expansion, and the Old Court House

No trip to St. Louis would be complete without a visit to the Gateway Arch. Riding to the top and looking down on the city is fun of course, but that does cost money, and even just looking up at it and being reminded of the amazing role St. Louis played in our expansion into the west is quite nice.

Whether you decide to pay to ride to the top of the Arch or not, there are other things to do at this location that won't cost you a dime. These include the Westward Expansion Museum and the Old Courthouse.

As of this writing, the Westward Expansion Museum is closed for construction. That said, I've seen this museum before, and at the time it was well worth a visit, especially for those interested in US history. The museum is set to reopen this summer, and I can't wait to see what’s in store.

The Old Courthouse now houses some of the exhibits from the old Museum of Westward Expansion. We had a great time exploring those history lessons and checking out the gorgeous architecture of the Old Courthouse building. This location also has a fun Junior Ranger program for young children, which allows them to do a scavenger hunt of sorts and earn a special badge.

The MUNY Performances

Finally, I wanted to include a super cool free attraction I just learned about. Apparently, St. Louis is home to the oldest and largest outdoor music theater in the country. This theater, the MUNY, seats 11,000 guests per show and runs a summer season that consists of 8 different musicals with 7–8 showings of each. That's a lot of performances!

Here's where the cool part comes in. Because this organization is so keen on spreading their love of the arts, they have chosen to give away 1500 seats to each of their summer shows. The seats are in the back rows, but they're FREE, and beggars can't be choosers, right?

All you have to do to claim a free seat is be one of the first 1500 people in line when the gates open at 7pm. That said, there is always a line, so you will definitely want to show up extra early in order to ensure you get in.

As I'm sure you can tell, I'm a huge fan of St. Louis and all the incredible free attractions it has to offer visitors and residents alike. That said, even without the many free experiences found here, this city would still be wonderful place to visit. The city is lovely, the people are kind, the coffee is plentiful, and camping can be found on all sides of the city.

So go ahead and give St. Louis a try. You might just fall in love! I know I did.