Beyond the Arch: Unique & Offbeat Things to Do in St. Louis
Revised July 12, 2026
What are some unique things to do in St. Louis?
The best unique things to do in St. Louis for adults include City Museum (a surreal warehouse playground with a rooftop bar), the free World Chess Hall of Fame and its giant chess piece, the Budweiser Brewery Experience, the City Foundry entertainment hall, antique-lined Cherokee Street, and the Delmar Loop — plus the ancient Monks Mound at Cahokia Mounds across the river.
Keep reading ↓Everyone who visits St. Louis sees the Arch, and they should — it’s magnificent. But the Arch is the beginning of what makes this city interesting, not the end of it. Scratch the surface and St. Louis turns out to be one of the quirkiest, most surprising cities in the country: a place where you can climb through a ten-story art playground, stand next to the world’s largest chess piece, and eat frozen custard so thick they hand it to you upside down.
Whether you’re a visitor who wants more than the postcard or a local looking to rediscover your own city, here’s a guide to the most unique and offbeat things to do in St. Louis — the “wait, that’s here?” stuff that sticks with you. These are the places locals bring out-of-town guests to show off — the spots that turn a skeptical visitor into someone who suddenly gets why people love this underrated city.
City Museum: Not Just for Kids (Especially at Night)
Start with the strangest, best thing in the city. The City Museum is a 600,000-square-foot former shoe warehouse that the late sculptor Bob Cassilly turned into a climbable, crawlable fever dream — caves, tunnels, ten-story slides, a rooftop school bus dangling over the edge, and salvaged-material art everywhere you look. It opened in 1997 and still feels like nothing else on earth. Come during the day with kids, or come on a weekend night when it’s open late and 21+ energy takes over — either way, wear clothes you can crawl in. People try to describe it and fail; it’s part playground, part sculpture, part obstacle course, all built from salvaged industrial scraps — old chimneys, airplane fuselages, bank vaults, miles of rebar bent into tunnels. You will get a little lost, you will find slides you didn’t expect, and you will leave sore in muscles you forgot you had. There is nothing else like it in America, and it’s reason enough to visit St. Louis on its own.
The World Chess Hall of Fame (and a 20-Foot King)
In the Central West End, St. Louis quietly became the chess capital of America — home to the Saint Louis Chess Club and the World Chess Hall of Fame, a legitimately fascinating museum of the game’s history and art. Out front stands the star attraction: the world’s largest chess piece, a Guinness-record king that towers about 20 feet tall. It’s free to photograph, endlessly Instagrammed, and the kind of only-in-St.-Louis oddity this list exists for.
The Budweiser Brewery Experience: Beer, History, and Clydesdales
The Budweiser Brewery Experience in Soulard is the historic Anheuser-Busch brewery, founded in 1852, and its tours are a genuine St. Louis rite. Walk the beautiful old brew house, learn how the beer is made, meet the famous Clydesdales at their stables, and (if you’re of age) sample a fresh pour. There are several tour tiers, from a free general tour to deeper behind-the-scenes options — a great, very St. Louis way to spend a couple of hours. The brewery has been part of the city’s identity for well over a century, and standing inside the ornate old Brew House — a National Historic Landmark — is genuinely impressive whether or not you drink the beer. Kids come for the Clydesdales; adults come for the history (and the sample). It’s a rare tour that works for a whole family.
City Foundry STL: A Whole Date Under One Roof
City Foundry STL in Midtown took an old industrial foundry and turned it into a buzzing food hall and entertainment complex. Beyond the dozens of food vendors, it’s home to Puttshack — high-tech mini golf from the founders of Topgolf — plus a cinema and more. It’s the easy answer when you want dinner, a game, and a movie without hopping between venues, and it’s become one of the city’s most popular gathering spots.
Cherokee Street and the Delmar Loop: Two One-of-a-Kind Strips
For the real texture of St. Louis, walk its signature streets. Cherokee Street in south city is a six-block run of antique shops (Antique Row), murals, vintage stores, and a vibrant Mexican dining-and-culture corridor — a browser’s and eater’s paradise. The Delmar Loop in University City packs a dozen nights into one strip: the bronze-star St. Louis Walk of Fame set into the sidewalks, Chuck Berry’s old haunt Blueberry Hill (with its music-club Duck Room), restaurants, record shops, and theaters. Both are free to wander and impossible to replicate — the kind of streets where the browsing is the activity. Give yourself an unhurried afternoon on either one: poke into the shops, grab a taco or a slice, listen to whatever’s spilling out of a doorway, and let the block set the pace. This is the version of St. Louis that no landmark can show you.
Ted Drewes: A Sweet St. Louis Ritual
No offbeat St. Louis list is complete without Ted Drewes Frozen Custard. A family institution since 1929, its Chippewa Street stand has sat on an old Route 66 alignment since 1941, and ordering a “Concrete” — a custard so thick it’s handed to you upside down to prove it won’t fall out — is a genuine local rite of passage. The Chippewa shop is open most of the year (closed in January); the South Grand location runs seasonally. Get in the line; it moves fast, and it’s worth it. Order a Concrete in a flavor you can’t get anywhere else, watch them flip it upside down at the window, and you’ll understand why generations of St. Louisans measure summer by trips to Ted Drewes.
The Ultimate “Wait, That’s Here?”: Cahokia Mounds
Here’s the one that stuns even lifelong locals. Just across the river in Illinois, Cahokia Mounds is a UNESCO World Heritage Site — the largest pre-Columbian settlement north of Mexico. At its peak around 1050–1150 AD, it was a city of tens of thousands, larger than London was at the time, and you can still climb Monks Mound, the largest prehistoric earthwork in the Americas, for a view over the whole site. (The Interpretive Center is currently closed for renovation, but the mounds and grounds remain open.) It’s free, it’s astonishing, and most visitors have never heard of it. Bring water and decent shoes for the climb up Monks Mound’s four terraces, and take a minute at the top to grasp what you’re looking at: the center of a civilization that thrived here a thousand years ago, on the flat Mississippi bottomland with the modern St. Louis skyline hazy in the distance. Few day trips anywhere pack this much history into a short drive.
Only-in-St.-Louis Quirks
Some of the best offbeat moments here are small and free. At St. Louis Union Station, find the Whispering Arch in the Grand Hall: stand at one corner of the archway, have a friend stand at the other, and whisper — the curve carries your voice perfectly across the room, an acoustic trick that delights kids and adults alike. Down on Cherokee Street, the Venice Cafe is a bar so thoroughly covered in mosaics, broken mirrors, and salvaged oddities that it feels like stepping inside a kaleidoscope. And at City Foundry, the Museum of Illusions packs in mind-bending optical rooms and photo tricks — a quick, fun stop that’s pure “how did they do that?”
A Few More Hidden Gems
If you want to go deeper, St. Louis keeps rewarding you. The newly reopened Old Courthouse downtown — part of Gateway Arch National Park, reopened in 2025 after a major renovation — is free and tells the story of the landmark Dred and Harriet Scott case in new galleries. The Griot Museum of Black History in north city preserves Black history and culture through wax figures and artifacts, and the Moto Museum in Midtown displays rare vintage motorcycles from around the world (call ahead, as it often hosts events). And if you have a car and a free afternoon, the Busch family’s Grant’s Farm offers a free-admission animal preserve with a tram ride, Clydesdales, and (for the grown-ups) a beer sample. Each is the kind of place you leave saying, “how did I not know about this?”
Which Offbeat St. Louis Day Is Right for You?
A cheap, smart date: the world’s largest chess piece and a walk through the Central West End. A rainy adult day: City Museum late-night or City Foundry. Beer lovers: the Budweiser Brewery Experience. A “wait, that’s here?” wow: Cahokia Mounds and Monks Mound. A classic night out: the Delmar Loop. Something free: the Old Courthouse and the Walk of Fame. St. Louis rewards the curious — you just have to look past the Arch. That’s really the theme of this whole city: the famous landmark is genuinely great, but the stuff that makes people fall in love with St. Louis is the weird, wonderful, often free stuff hiding a few blocks or a short drive away. Go find it, and you’ll come home with the kind of stories that start with “you won’t believe what’s in St. Louis.”
Find great local spots (and a note for the owners)
The best offbeat day pairs perfectly with a hidden-gem restaurant or a local coffee shop — and that’s what a local directory is for. You can search St Louis Near Me Directory to find spots near any of these places before you go.
And if you run a shop, restaurant, or attraction anywhere in the St. Louis area, getting found by curious visitors is the whole game. Listing your business is how people hunting for St. Louis’s hidden gems end up finding yours.
More St. Louis things-to-do guides
- The best outdoor activities in St. Louis
- Indoor attractions for a rainy day
- Active indoor things to do
Frequently Asked Questions
What are some unique things to do in St. Louis?
Unique St. Louis experiences include climbing through the City Museum (a former shoe warehouse turned art playground), photographing the world’s largest chess piece in the Central West End, touring the historic Budweiser brewery, exploring Cahokia Mounds (a UNESCO World Heritage Site), wandering Cherokee Street or the Delmar Loop, and getting an upside-down “Concrete” at Ted Drewes Frozen Custard.
What is the world’s largest chess piece in St. Louis?
It’s a Guinness World Record king piece standing about 20 feet tall, located outside the World Chess Hall of Fame and Saint Louis Chess Club in the Central West End. St. Louis is a hub of American chess, and the giant piece is a free, popular photo stop that captures the city’s quirky side.
Is Cahokia Mounds worth visiting?
Absolutely. Cahokia Mounds, just across the river in Illinois, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the largest pre-Columbian settlement north of Mexico — once larger than London. You can climb Monks Mound, the largest prehistoric earthwork in the Americas. The grounds are free and open; the Interpretive Center is temporarily closed for renovation.
What is a St. Louis Concrete at Ted Drewes?
A Concrete is Ted Drewes’ signature frozen custard blended so thick that it’s served upside down to prove it won’t drip out. Ted Drewes has been a St. Louis institution since 1929, and its Chippewa Street stand sits on a historic Route 66 alignment. It’s a beloved local ritual, especially on a warm evening.
What can you do in St. Louis besides the Arch?
Plenty. Beyond Gateway Arch National Park, visit the City Museum, the World Chess Hall of Fame, the Budweiser Brewery Experience, City Foundry STL, Cherokee Street, the Delmar Loop, Ted Drewes, and Cahokia Mounds. The free, newly reopened Old Courthouse and museums like the Griot and the Moto Museum round out a city full of offbeat surprises.
What free unique things are there to do in St. Louis?
Several of St. Louis’s most unique attractions are free: the world’s largest chess piece, the grounds at Cahokia Mounds, the St. Louis Walk of Fame on the Delmar Loop, the newly reopened Old Courthouse, and wandering Cherokee Street’s murals and antique shops. You can build a full, memorable offbeat day for the cost of parking and a Concrete.
Written by a dedicated team of St. Louis locals who live, work, and play right here in the St. Louis metro. Founder Lane Forman and team are committed to building the region’s most trusted directory by verifying listings and connecting local businesses with loyal customers across Missouri and Illinois.