The Hotel
There are many hotel options to choose from when visiting St. Louis. However, there is only one place that has everything you need when traveling with kids – St. Louis Union Station Hotel. Located in downtown St. Louis, this beautiful hotel was once home to one of the largest and busiest passenger rail terminals in the world. It saw some of it’s highest traffic during the World’s Fair of 1904 and World War II. Rich with history, it is now fully renovated with 539 guest rooms and suites. They plan on continuing renovations to the massive steel train shed to bring it back to it’s original glory of over 120 years ago.
Our daughter’s favorite thing to do when we get to the room is try out the bed. She must have found this one really comfortable because she slept through the night for the first time on a trip – both nights! Many of the rooms feature timeless decor, and several suites are railroad themed. All guest rooms have a work area, flat screen TV, and spacious bathrooms.
The Grand Hall
Once the main waiting room, the Grand Hall featured 65-foot barrel vaulted ceilings with an elegant, two-ton, wrought-iron chandelier with 350 light bulbs. The midway was once surrounded by steel and glass walls decorated by ornamental wrought iron gates that allowed for views of the trains coming and going. The chandelier and midway were all sacrificed to the war efforts during World War II.
Today, the Grand Hall features the original terrazzo floor, green glazed terracotta bricks, stained glass windows and wooden carpentry detailing. The hand-crafted Allegorical Window depicts three women in the Tiffany glass which represents the expanse of train travel in the 1890’s from New York to San Francisco with St. Louis in the middle, linking it all together.
At night, the Grand Hall transforms into a stunning 3D light show that is projected across the 65-foot vaulted ceiling. You can view this wonderful show from the Grand Hall’s lobby or full lounge bar. A little ways past the Grand Hall is a market and Starbucks where you can grab a coffee, snack, and souvenirs. You can watch a video of the light show on my Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/stories/highlights/17901718900511489/?hl=en
Dining
Inside the hotel, you can grab a bite to eat at the Grand Hall which has a wide variety of small plates that pair well with the railroad theme cocktails. The Station Grille is also located inside the hotel and does breakfast, lunch, and dinner. We had breakfast here both mornings. The staff was very friendly and attentive, and the food was very tasty. It was a great start to our mornings.
There are several restaurants right outside the hotel surrounding the pond including: Landry’s Seafood House, 1894 Cafe, The Train Shed, and St. Louis Union Station Soda Fountain. I will discuss these restaurants in more detail in a separate post.
Attractions
The reason this hotel is the #1 spot for kids is all of the attractions right at the hotel. There is the Grand Hall Light Show (mentioned above), a Fire & Light show on the lake, a Carousel, Mini Golf, Ropes Course, Mirror Maze, the St. Louis Wheel, and the St. Louis Aquarium. There is also an outdoor pool. We were able to do most of these attractions. I will discuss this more in the next post along with the other restaurants.
Conclusion
If it isn’t already obvious why this is the #1 spot to take your children for a stay in St. Louis – let me recap:
- Historic Hotel
- SIX dining options
- EIGHT attractions
- Outdoor pool
- Endless amount of FUN!
I love staying at hotels that have everything we need. There was no reason to even leave the hotel. However, if you do want to leave and explore downtown St. Louis, this hotel is in close proximity to everything! You can follow their social media channels here:
Union Station – https://www.instagram.com/unionstationstl/?hl=en
St. Louis Aquarium – https://www.instagram.com/aquariumstl/?hl=en
Soda Fountain – https://www.instagram.com/sodafountainstl/?hl=en
The Train Shed – https://www.instagram.com/trainshedstl/?hl=en
St. Louis Wheel – https://www.instagram.com/stlouiswheel/?hl=en
The Grand Hall – https://www.instagram.com/thegrandhallstl/
And you can follow my Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/hummingbirdandhousewife/?hl=en
Be sure to come back and check out the next post on the restaurants and attractions! I have some pretty great photos to show you all. You can see more photos and videos on my Instagram, so be sure to give me a follow!