The Grafton Ferry just announced some exciting news. They no longer are a seasonal attraction with…read morelimited days and hours. They are now open 7 days a week and 365 days a year. The hours of operation have also been extended. They start crossing the river at 5 AM. Did you know that taking the Ferry you can shave 30 minutes off your commute from St. Charles, MO to Grafton, IL.? With the price of gas currently, that will also save you dollars filling your gas tank. Taking the Ferry is $10 one-way and $19 round-trip. I think that's a good price, when you consider your time and the price of gas. The ride across the river is approximately 10 minutes. While you're on board the ferry boat, you can get out of your vehicle and enjoy the beauty of nature. You'll have many photo opportunities to take pictures worthy of a postcard. Your attendants on board the ferry are friendly and they'll make sure your trip across the river is safe. Don't worry, if something does happen there's plenty of life preservers on-board. Use the Grafton Ferry to cut your commute shorter, or just to have a fun adventure. Either way it will be money well spent.

Such a cool experience. If you want to go for the scenery and you don't want to drive the long way…read moreto Grafton, take the ferry. You wait in line for it to pick you up and take you to, Illinois then back to Missouri. Short ride like 10 minutes and you see great views. You can get out of your vehicle to walk and take pictures, or stay in your car. The person comes to collect your money once you get on the ferry. Cash only, no cards. Plan on coming back to Grafton soon and we'll take the ferry again.

Stay Away!! Horrible people don't do business here. They are crooks and will rent out your…read morereserved boat or jet ski and when you show up they will act like it's no big deal and that it's your problem. Not to mention the young lady that was almost killed by one of their renters and the way the owner talked to them and called them names.. just check other reviews if they don't delete them first.

The owner, Justin Stearns does not have insurance and these jet skis are not registered to his…read morebusiness. Rather, they are registered to himself personally. In fact, he does not have a business license for this company in the state of IL. Furthermore, his lack in credible business almost killed me July 5, 2020. A man- who admitted to being under the influence, ejected himself off his rented jetski. I asked the employees if he would be removed & they assured me he would. Instead, they let him back on. Minutes later, I was hit at 40-50 mph. My leg was hanging off my body. My pelvis was in pieces. My brain, heart, liver & lungs were damaged. The worst of this, the employees found me immediately, but chose to leave me in the water for over 20 minutes. I screamed & begged for them to pull me out until my lungs physically could not fill with air enough for me to speak- because they were so damaged from impact. An employee finally brought a boat to me, but they still did not help in retrieving me or bring ANY safety equipment. I was told they do not have any. The untrained employees left no option, I was pulled out of the water by another individual who rented a jetski. employees made my rescuer sit on the back of the boat with his legs in the water. Quite literally, he had to try to hold my leg/pelvis back together & to the boat. Bones, blood was everywhere. No one made sure my rescuer & I weren't ejected from the back of this boat. They didn't even lend a towel to try to stop the massive amount blood I was losing. I eventually lost so much I passed out until I was airlifted to the hospital. Where I was told I would most likely not wake up with both of my legs. I spent the next 6 days in ICU & have had many visits since. If Justin Stearns had simply trained his employees to know to pull me out of the water, my surgeon explained I would have only needed 3 surgeries. Instead Ive required 10, & I need more. By leaving me in the muddy Mississippi, I went septic. The bacterial infection made its way to my heart & I will require antibiotics for the rest of my life to stay alive. If Justin Stearns had any safety equipment, there's no telling the amount of damage that could've been prevented to my pelvis/spine. Even worse, if Justin Stearns had insurance it could help with the hundreds of thousands of dollars in medical bills he has caused me. Instead, I've been left no option but to pursue an ongoing lawsuit against him & his illegal buisness. When I say illegal business, I mean the state ordered Stearns to shut down this business until he obtained proper paperwork. What he did instead was keep operating. In September 2020, Justin allowed a minor to get on the water with one of his watercrafts. This minor was subsequently in danger. Stearns was caught & the state issued 17 charges, many of which felonies. I came across this yelp review (i'll include pic) July 25, 2020- almost an entire month after my accident. She rented in advance, & he has many jetskis he could've offered. Instead, he chose to lie and say my accident happened 1 day prior to her arrival, damaging the jetski she rented and not issuing her a refund. Justin stated to police this jetski was removed. Past employees have recently heard my story & reached out to explain the lack of training they received. Even told, leave someone if they're dying. I will include some of their statements. Once my story went public, people began posting on River Road Watersports official facebook page. In response, he began deleting the negative posts to increase his review score. Once I posted the proof he was manipulating the score, the entire facebook account was disabled. There was also an update to River Road Watersports website, adding a brand new location at Longshot Marina: 1545 River View Drive Portage Des Sioux, MO 63373. This address was not on his website as of at least July 29,2021 but has magically appeared since I've gotten my story to the judge and the public. Please keep your loved ones away from here! This is a man who does not care about your life. This man is shady! Stay safe.

My friends and I did the Brunch Cruise on Miss Augusta for my birthday and it did not disappoint. I…read morewas impressed with their timeliness and organization. We boarded the charter bus at the Augusta Vineyard and departed exactly at 10:45am. Upon arrival to the yacht, we were greeted by the captain who had a list of registrants and the party to which they belonged. The entire crew was sweet, professional and very helpful. During my registration, I listed some dietary restrictions and was unsure if they'd be able to accommodate. Shortly after our table was called to the buffet, a member of the crew came to check in with our table about the request. He informed me that the chef had prepared something special just for me and would deliver it shortly. About a minute later, the chef came out with a beautifully arranged plate that was pescatarian and dairy free--just like I'd asked--but nothing short of flavorful! The attention to detail was so appreciated. The cruise itself up and down the Missouri River was perfectly timed at 1.5hrs. I got to drive the boat and be "captain" for a bit--so cute! I and my girls will certainly be back!

We were given the cruise as an anniversary gift by our Son and his wife. We did not do the dinner…read morewhich looked great but did end up having the meatball appetizer which was fantastic! We split for the two of us! There is a fully stocked bar which many took advantage of. We thoroughly enjoyed the super relaxing cruise and history lessons delivered by the captain. Also enjoyed talking with him afterwards and he is highly experienced...the Missouri is a cake walk compared the his Alaska experiences. The crew was very friendly, helpful, courteous and professional! We give Miss Augusta two thumbs up!!

Did the touristy thing tonight and took the dinner cruise. It was a great experience. The entire…read morecrew were extremely friendly, helpful and professional. The bar prices were very fair and the bartender did a fine job. Dinner was a buffet and was very tasty with several choices. The server team also did a great job. The cruise was scenic and enjoyable. Finally the entertainment was enjoyable. Overall ... if you're in Hannibal give them a try.

To start off this review I want to say that I would absolutely recommend doing this riverboat…read morecruise at least once. The crew was friendly. We had a souvenir photo taken before the ride that can be purchased for $10. They have drinks and snacks for purchase during the ride and an overall great tour with plenty of dad jokes and storytelling. It's easy to book a reservation on their website and the place is easy to find with ample free public parking nearby. The things I would like to see improved: The boat is very old and could use a deep cleaning as evidenced by the dead bugs lining the windows obscuring the view. The tabletops were sticky. There was a large wad of gum under one of the tables that I accidently touched. Unfortunately there was a fish kill occurring during the time we went on our ride and there were floating dead fish everywhere. My kid daughter asked the crew about it, but no one addressed it and it left her sad.

No boat cleaning. Turn it in to be cleaned and gassed up Nice choice of boats and get one when you…read morego to florida too

Freedom Boat Club has made my boating experience amazing while saving me the headache and expenses…read moreof traditional boat ownership. I highly recommend all of my family and friends to come check the club out and get out on the water! They have a fleet of awesome brand new boats and are always adding new boats to the fleet throughout the year. Haven't found another club that offers a multimillion dollar fleet of brand new boats for their members to enjoy. Not to mention as a member you get access to their 280 other locations across the world!

I was not impressed the boat was way smaller than what they had said and stalled out and would not…read morego over 30 miles at best after about 10 minutes it. Ruined the day and they didnt do a thing about it!

We had a good experience. The pontoon was in great shape and the staff was courteous.read more

I have to say, my expectations on these things is never high coming from a town where everyone…read moreseems to do them. But I was pleasantly surprised with this one. I had booked a 1:30 cruise after a 10:30 Arch tram to make sure we could eat in between and that was way too much time. We were lucky enough to get on the noon cruise with an easy exchange at the ticket booth here and that was fantastic! The cruise guide is not corny at all and gives a good balance between history and current event information on the ride. There isn't a whole lot to actually see and this is a straight river, so you just go down and back, but the hour is just enough time and the weather was lovely. They also let you bring anything you bought to eat or drink at their stand onboard and you can get drinks and snacks on the second level as well. My tweens liked it - and loved the popcorn, so it was a win-win! And they also do the obligatory souvenir photos - $35 for a bunch and a digital link too isn't bad.

Went after seeing the Arch earlier that day It was a little…read morehot that day, but it was cool to see the Arch from the boat with a view of the Mississipi River as well(Mighty Mississipi) It takes an hour, but the Tom Sawyer Riverboat holds a lot of people on the three levels (Upper and lower decks) Park Ranger and Captain of the boat was very knowledgable Definitely worth the visit to one of the Riverboats if you are a St. Louis local or visitor

Great adventure!…read more Floating the Missouri River, from Blanchette Park, which is almost a baseball throw from the I-370 / Discovery Bridge... to... Sioux Passage Park in North County, right where the Missouri hits what looks like the apex of the curve, almost Arch-like in shape... this journey is mostly north... and when the river starts to flow back south, you take out at Sioux Passage Park (the Native Americans / indigenous people would save 20+ miles paddling by carrying canoes and items from the Mississippi to the Missouri and back). The canoes are about 20 feet long; single seats fore and aft for Big Muddy leaders; 4-5 dual seats in between... so you'll paddle one side at at time. Super steady. The river... so calm so quiet. A few weeks earlier, our daughter and I went fly fishing in Wyoming... small town; quiet... and still we'd hear a periodic pickup truck off in the distance. This Big Muddy journey... the Missouri River... the longest river in North America... once we passed Lambert's flight path, we hear no vehicles... zero... zip... zilch... none... not a single vehicle... so peaceful. This journey includes three stages... 1) Blanchette to the first stop where we all got out and stretched and floated in an eddy (backward current) - calm and smooth and save. 2) that island to the next for lunch 3) that island to Sioux Passage Park about one hour rowing in between... time depends on your canoe's paddlers... some are stronger than others... Enjoy the float... enjoy it wondrously. Big Mddy provides dry bags... they can readily hold a backpack and plenty of smaller items... the top rolls over and clicks close, nice and tight and dry. Clothes... you'll get sweaty... your feel will likely get sandy+dirty / dirty+sandy... that's part of the run of the trip. bring a charger for your phone... enjoy the float enjoy the nature enjoy your fellow canoeists enjoy the Big Muddy leaders THANK YOU, BIG MUDDY ADVENTURES, FOR ALL YOU DO FOR US AND ST. LOUIS AND MISSOURI AND OUR RIVERS!!!

What an incredible experience! Matt Fox is an exceptional guide and educator, and this kayak…read morewildlife tour was so much more than I expected. He has a genuine passion for nature, wildlife, conservation, and teaching, and that passion made the entire experience engaging and memorable. Exploring Post-Dispatch Lake by kayak gave me a completely different perspective of Forest Park. Matt helped us notice and understand the wildlife around us--from birds and aquatic life to the fascinating connections between an urban environment and the natural world. I especially loved learning how conservation efforts can make a difference in creating healthy habitats right in the middle of a city. What makes Matt stand out is the way he combines science, education, adventure, and genuine curiosity. He doesn't simply tell you what you're seeing--he helps you understand why it matters. I left the tour looking at the natural world around me differently and thinking about what I can do in my own yard to encourage wildlife and biodiversity. If you love kayaking, wildlife, learning, or simply being outside, I highly recommend taking a tour with Matt. It was educational, fun, peaceful, and truly one-of-a-kind. I would absolutely do it again!