Where to Stay in St Louis with Kids

With its Children’s Museum, a superb hands-on City Museum and a first-class zoo, St Louis is a city that loves kids. And it shows in the hotels that cater to families, too.

A Good Value Downtown

In the city center, Drury Inn St. Louis at Union Station is near the Gateway Transportation Center, handy for families arriving by train. It’s the extras here that make the Drury Inn so attractive to budget-minded families. Breakfast is included, along with an evening Kick Back with a good selection of hot foods sturdy enough for a light dinner. Kids love the popcorn machine in the lobby where they can help themselves at any time, as well as the free soft drinks. All the rooms have refrigerators and microwaves. The heated pool is indoors for year-round use, and there is a good fitness room. Secure parking is an inexpensive bonus. Train-crazy kids will like the lobby décor of model trains

Family Value Near the Arch

Another good choice under the same brand is located close to the Gateway Arch, St. Louis’s top attraction for visitors. The Drury Plaza Hotel St. Louis at the Arch offers many of the same amenities as its sister property, including free breakfast and the evening Kick Back hour with complimentary food. Kid-pleasing choices include hot dogs, chicken tenders, pasta dishes and a taco bar. And like the Drury Inn St. Louis at Union Station, the hotel always has free popcorn and soft drinks in the lobby. Walk to the Arch (you can see it from most of the rooms) and take the kids on a riverboat cruise on the Mississippi.

Family Suites and Bedtime Cookies

There’s the air of a grand hotel about the Magnolia Hotel St. Louis, located about midway between the Gateway Arch and the City Museum, another must for kids visiting the city. Suites have large rooms, separated by French doors, giving parents a little more privacy. The kids will love the complimentary cookies and milk at bedtime and everyone will like the air of quiet luxury in this historic hotel (it’s on the National Historic Register of Historic Places).

St. Louis Union Station Hotel © Calvin L. Leake | Dreamstime.com

Free Light Shows and a Pool

St. Louis Union Station Hotel, Curio Collection by Hilton is located in the beautifully restored Union Station, a landmark building in the central downtown area. Kids will think they are staying in a palace from the moment they step into the awe-inspiring lobby, once the Grand Hall of the station. The painted decorations have been carefully restored to their original brilliant colors, as have the stained glass panels. Impressive at any time, these are showcased dazzlingly in several free laser light shows each evening. More spectacles awaits your wide-eyed kids at the outdoor pond behind the hotel, where hourly pyrotechnic shows are synced to music. The elegantly decorated guestrooms and ornate décor of the public areas will convince the kids they are living in a palace, and they’ll love the pool area with its glass ceiling.

Storybook Fun Near the Zoo

At the edge of Forest Park, home to the zoo and several other family-friendly attractions, The Cheshire is a bit like staying in a bookish theme park. The hotel looks like an English country inn, with rooms set around a pool area that simulates the courtyard of a coaching inn. Inside the half-timbered building, guestrooms are themed around an author or book characters. Kids will love the Treasure Island– or James Bond-themed rooms, and younger kids will get a complimentary backpack of goodies that includes a treasure hunt throughout the hotel. The restaurant, of course, feels like a convivial British pub.