Take the long way around the Gateway Arch
Look beyond the skyline symbol to a carefully made landscape, a free museum and the freedom stories inside the reopened Old Courthouse.
Inside this guide
The photograph is almost too easy. Two steel legs rise from the riverfront, meet above St. Louis and leave an enormous piece of sky inside their curve. You can recognize the Gateway Arch before you know anything about the city beneath it. Spending a little longer here changes what that outline contains.
There is a designed landscape to walk, a free museum beneath the lawn and a courthouse where the promise of American freedom was tested by people denied it. The tram adds a remarkable view, but it is one part of the visit. Give the ground some attention before you leave it.
Three ways to spend your time
Grounds & museum
A free visit with the Arch’s architecture, the park and six historical galleries. No museum ticket required; security screening still applies.
A substantial visit in its own right, including accessible paths and museum exhibits.
Add the tram
Book a timed ticket for the compact pods and the view from 630 feet. The complete experience takes 45–60 minutes.
Limited time at the top, at least 96 steps and prolonged standing. The summit is not wheelchair accessible.
Include the courthouse
Free galleries about the Scotts, African American history, architecture and the workings of nineteenth-century courts.
Allow a separate stop west of the Arch. The courthouse usually closes earlier than the visitor center.
