Went with a group of friends (Chicago locals) on the fireworks tour last night with Chopper, Hannah, and Guac and we had a great time! Best place to watch the fireworks in the city and awesome music to accommodate! Great to learn a little bit about the city while having fun with friends. 10/10 would go back for another fireworks night, especially with this crew of Seadog captains! read more

The sea dog cruise was fantastic Tony the tiger did a dreat job very entertaining would recommend this vedry much read more

Seadog Cruises - Boat Charters Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

I've gone on a SeaDog cruise twice- always with family in from out of town. Both times was good. This last time was about a month ago, and our tour guide was very cheerful. She was even funny and kept trying to crack jokes which were sometimes funny, but the audience was dull. I think almost everyone except for 6 or 7 of us was over 45 years old.. bah The information they give out during the cruise is interesting, like some stuff about where Oprah lives but I was out of it too and didn't hear it all. read more

I have lived in Chicago for nearly a year now and I did my first boat architecture tour yesterday for a friend visiting the city. The tour guide, Grant, must take improv lessons at Second City because he was incredibly quick on his feet and crazy funny. I've been done a couple walking architecture tours in Boston and San Francisco but nothing beats chilling on a boat and just taking it all in. On a nice day be prepared to interact with a few of the more 'festive' neighbor boats. read more

Bought a group-on for the 75 minute architectural tour and had heard good things about it so I had high expectations going in. They met my expectations and while Charlie was no Vince Vaughn, he was informative and entertaining. Basically, he knew his shit! I would highly recommend this tour for anyone that wants to see the beautiful and historical parts of Chicago and it helps you go around with bits of knowledge you can drop so you look well informed. read more

Very informative and scenic tour on the Chicago river. The best way to see the skyscrapers and learn the history of the city. A must do tour when in Chicago. Sea dog has the most comfortable boats and a great staff. read more

We decided to take the 30 min extreme thrill tour of lake Michigan, that was a great decision!! I'm not usually a water person so I was hesitant but my best friend insisted and I'm glad she did. The crew was great and the ride was so much fun. Our host was Dan, he was hilarious! He kept the crowd pumped up and laughing. I'm pretty sure I smiled the whole time except for when I was singing along to the awesome music playing or getting water splashed in my face. Our captain was Jamie and she made sure this ride was worth the $32 price tag, lots of unexpected twists and turns. It felt as if we were drifting on the top of the water the whole time i almost forgot about the water and thought I was on a roller coaster. I definitely suggest checking it out, we're two girls in our 30's and it was great, also saw a lot of kids and older people on this ride and they were having a blast too. All ages fun! read more

Really fun and informational tour of the city from the boat. Architecture about the buildings and history of Chicago. Billy our "tour guide" was really good and had some fun Seinfeld references. Good knowledge of city history and fun info. Bottles of water on the tour and great crew! Tour lasted about 75-80 minutes and the weather was perfect. (they don't have control of the weather, so don't blame them if it's bad for you) Overall it was a great tour and well worth the money. They take a nice picture before and have them for sale after and the crew will walk around towards the end and take your picture with your phone or camera with the lake and skyline in the background. Thanks Seadogs!! read more

Seadog Cruises - Chicago skyline from the lake - Boat Charters Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

The architecture tour exceeded my friend's and my expectations. Hannah was our tour guide. She was goofy and personable and made the time fly by! Hannah has all kinds of interesting facts about the histories of the buildings and I enjoyed hearing about her favorite buildings and why. The whole staff was friendly and I really enjoyed learning about the sneakery of Chicago reversing the flow of the river and the Lake Point Tower loophole. It was a great time even on a cold, grey October day. read more

I was pretty excited to ride this boat due to the advertisement of a 2000 horsepower thrilling ride on Lake Michigan. The boat went in a straight line at approximately 30 mph at best stopping at 2 locations where the "tour guide" Andrew practiced his terrible stand-up comedy routines on an unsuspecting crowd who were also trapped on a boat with no tomatoes to throw his direction. From his tasteless Donald Trump impersonation to his dry "dad jokes" about every little thing and appeared to be rather uneducated on Chicago history and architecture. If I am to return to Chicago's Navy Pier, I will not be paying to have this experience again. read more

Purchased a Groupon for this cruise. Redeeming the Groupon was quite easy and made reservations online. We arrived 20 minutes prior our boarding time. Crew was welcoming and organized. Seating was comfortable and the cruise was quite entertaining. Our tour guide Anna was pretty cool. The cruise allowed us to see the Chicago river from a different light, rather than simply driving by it. Nice thing to do on a warm Summer day. read more

My husband and I were in Chicago for a few days last week and the architecture tour with Seadog Cruises was by far the best part of our trip! We decided to do the last tour of the day and I'm so glad that we ended up with the crew that we had. Captain Grant and Guac were great, but the real icing on the cake was Andy, our hilarious and informative tour guide. He made an already great trip even better and kept us laughing the whole time. The tour itself was also wonderful; if you're thinking "Eh, I don't care about architecture," DO IT ANYWAYS! You'll be surprised by how much you'll enjoy it. Seeing the downtown buildings from the Chicago River is amazing and the "speedboat" part on Lake Michigan at the end is something I'll never forget. And if you get lucky enough to have Andy as your guide, it will be the best part of your day! read more

Seadog Cruises - Chicago from Seadog Cruise boat. - Boat Charters Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Except for the smell of diesel fuel, an enjoyable view of the city from the river. Went at night during the Halloween weekend so the Haunted Tour River Cruise was an appropriate choice. The passengers had plenty of room to sit, on a bit of a chilly and windy (go figure) evening. We were all entertained (I hope most would agree) by a gentleman whose task was to make the ride a bit spookier. He played the role well. Based on this trip I wouldn't mind doing it again on a day run. Interesting perspective from down below. read more

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Had so much fun seeing all of the gorgeous buildings and learning about some Chicago history. Andy was knowledgeable and goofy, making the experience super enjoyable. read more

Captain Swag, Stephen and Billy were the capable and friendly crew of the Seadog Architectural cruise on Lake Michigan and the Chicago River. The day could not have been more beautiful and Chicago dressed in its finest for Stephen's guide and history of the various major buildings, bridges and Harbor Lock along these waterways. It starts at Navy Pier and is a lovely way to spend an hour. If you are a visitor to the City it is great way to get a peek at places you may want to visit. Want to stop at the end of your cruise to get a bite to eat? These is a variety of eateries to choose from. I suggest the Tiny Tavern for a reasonable excellent meal. read more

abby was the best!! should be manager or ceo. she was the vibe of the boat. she kept the boat at place

This was fun I enjoyed the end when the made the boat go fast .... captain sawg Andy and the lady Amanda were great

I had such a blast on this boat ride. We did the 30 min speed boat tour. The staff on the boat did an excellent job and were a hoot- very funny group of gents. The gave us fair warning about getting wet, which I appreciated. They gave us some Chicago history and played some music and took us for a ride. My husband (and one of our friends) got soaked, and it was hilarious! They weren't upset getting wet and the entire experience was wonderful! Thanks for a great time, guys! read more

Great entertainment on the Haunted architect Tour. Wonderful views of the city at night. Dress warm! read more

Seadog Cruises - Haunted Tour - Boat Charters Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Rode the seadog in mid-August on a beautiful weekday afternoon with the wife and three kids. Youngest kid not tall enough for the "Extreme" so we chose the combined river/lake tour (75 minutes). Have done the Wendella boats many times before and we all liked this a bit better. Very comfortable seats, free water, good tour guide (Tequila - not really her name but close). Ride was very smooth and comfortable. During the lake portion of the ride it becomes more like a speedboat and they crank up the music. Kids loved that piece for sure! Overall a fun time when sightseeing our beautiful city in the summer. Will definitely return - hopefully next time to try the extreme! read more

Good tour ... Must see in Chicago ... I would imagine all the tour companies are similar ... The your narrator was very good ...

If you want to experience great boat ride with an awesome crew on Lake Michigan, Seadog is the ONE! ! Our tour guide Lexi was wonderful, funny & very knowledgeable. Shout out to the captain, Jamie for an AMAZING job with SeaDog! Looking forward to the next season. read more

I had family in town over the weekend who had never been to Chicago, and this was a perfect way to see the city from a different angle and also learn a lot! My sister-in-law had run the Chicago marathon that morning, so this was a perfect way for her to relax her legs for a little bit. GRANT WAS AMAZING!!! His jokes were cheesy and right up our alley! I loved that he wanted the tour to be interactive so he asked questions ... a lot of the people on our boat didn't seem into listening so they missed a lot, but that was their loss. I would definitely recommend this tour. I live in the city, and it was still very cool for me to see it from a different angle. :) read more

Great cruise. Grant was awesome. Super high value. The information was great and Chicago info was perfectly informative. I'd come back again. read more

We had a great time with Trooper on our boat ride. Our two girls (1&2 yrs) loved every minute as well. Great time for boat ride with young kids. It was a great way to celebrate our visit to Navy Pier. read more

Seadog Cruises - Trip with our family - Boat Charters Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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First time in Chicago for both my Girl and I so we wanted to see the architecture of the city. Seadogs has a great tour. Our guide Chopper offered a lot of information and kept it interesting with some trivia. I'd recommend this tour to anyone who is in town! Also Captain Dave and Greg were very hospitable. Looking forward to returning to this great city and seeing Chicago from the water again. read more

Seadog Cruises - Trump Tower - Boat Charters Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Great tour! We were rained out on our first scheduled trip but really enjoyed the architectural tour the next day. Great tour guide Drew (soup). Threw in a little music and speed on Lake Michigan and it was a party!!! read more

Seadog Cruises - We loved it! - Boat Charters Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Had the BEST time!!! All host were fab and tour guide Tela was absolutely great and hilarious :) Lots of info and amazing views. Very cold so I recommend a heavy coat, scarf, snuggie... All in all definitely worth it! Do it! read more

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We took the 75-minute architectural tour. Beware: the first 10 minutes of the cruise is a high-speed ride around Lake Michigan and there is a good chance you will get wet! The rest of the cruise is slower on the River. It was drizzly and cold on the day we booked our tour, but Seadog staff wiped down all of the seats for passengers. They also came through and took photos of each group on the tour with our own cameras. (FYI, they also take a photo of each group/couple as they board the boat and then charge $20 to purchase it. So I appreciated that they took photos on the boat, as well.) Chopper was our tour guide and seriously, if you can choose your guide at all - he was amazing! He was funny and incredibly knowledgeable about the history of the city and the architectural designs. He was dealing with a group of cranky, cold and wet passengers and his narrative and good humor made the hour-long ride fly by. I found this tour via a TravelZoo deal for $25/per person (I think the regular price is $38/pp.) Chopper easily made this tour worth the full price, but as other reviewers have pointed out, you don't know what kind of tour guide you'll get for your cruise. Not sure that I would have paid full price for it after reading some reviews on poor guides. But the deal is still available, so I suggest going for it! read more

I recently did the Seadog river/architectural cruise with my 2-year-old son. We're semi-locals (from the burbs) and spend a lot of time at Chicago's museums, cultural attractions, etc. One of my son's favorite things about the city is the lake, and he loves the "tall buildings." After a recent visit to the Children's Museum at Navy Pier, he asked to ride the Seadog. I was worried he'd be a bit bored, especially during the lock transfers, but he was in heaven the whole time. He loved the short jaunt out on the lakeshore, which was just enough to be exciting but not overwhelming. Our boat captain/tour guide was very entertaining even during the lock transfer, and knew a crazy amount about Chicago history and architecture. I'm a docent at the Field Museum, and I still managed to learn a good deal about Chicago history and architecture on this cruise. The Seadog staff were very respectful when I asked whether my son was big enough to ride - they explained that he was too small for the high-speed ride, but that he'd be fine on the river cruise for sure. They checked our stroller and had it waiting for us when we docked again. We had a great time. Thank you, Seadog! Rrrrrrrrrruff! read more

We took the 75 minute architectural tour. Charlie was our tour guide, he was very knowledgeable and funny. The speed part of the tour was my favorite, very relaxing, but the information about the city's buildings was super cool too. I would recommend this tour boat company. read more

Seadog Cruises - Seadog boat tour - Boat Charters Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Big thank you to Diesel Dave, First Mate Leslie and Captain Rick! I caught the evening ride on a beautiful summer day on Lake Michigan. I liked that i saw all the buildings in the day light, caught the sunset on the way back and as we docked there was a perfect view of a night-time Chicago skyline. The cruise around the harbor was fun and I only took a light misting. DD gave ample warning regarding the potential for getting wet and additional safety precautions. The ride was smooth as butter. The river architecture and history portion was fascinating. I was instantly intrigued and decided to buy a book to learn more about Chicago history but by the end of the tour I felt I no longer needed the book! I will definitely do the trip again. Dave was AWESOME! Afterwards, i walked up the pier to the crab restaurant in front of the tall ship "Windy" and had the best lobster roll of my life. read more

Bowow wow the dog was set loose to sail with are man Charlie the MC on the Chicago Architectural tour. Just do it folks read more

Seadog Cruises - Boat Charters Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Nice balance of a river architecture tour and a speed run on the lake. The docent on our trip, Steve, made the trip really fun and he seems to really enjoy his job. Be prepared to wait at the river lock for a while, but (1) there's nothing they can do about it (2) you can still look at all the buildings, boats, etc. around you, and (3) Steve tries his best to distract you (Where are you all from? Anyone's birthday? Etc.) and succeeds. The speed run from Navy Pier to the Museum Campus and back, going right past the heart of downtown, was well worth the wait at the lock. Not as long as the half-hour all-speed trip (haven't done that yet) but enough to get a feel for what real speed on the water is like. Starting out during daylight for the river tour, then "flying" along the lakefront at night with all the skyscrapers lit up, worked out perfectly and was particularly nice. I'm glad I booked the 6:15pm departure (in late August)! read more

My family and I are from St. Louis and we visit Chicago every summer for vacation. This was my second summer in a row riding the Seadog Extreme Thrill Ride, and I will definitely be back next year and the year after that! The weather was absolutely beautiful (we went at 3:30 PM on July 8th, 2019), the ride wasn't too scary nor too boring, and the Chicago skyline in the background was breathtaking. Also, I just wanted to give a big shout out to the awesome staff, Cool J and Captain Cat! They were great and made the ride that much better. Captain Cat had also driven the one I went on last summer, and it was a blast both times. She really knows how to drive a boat! P.S. - The boat crew are NOT lying when they say you WILL get wet! The further back you are on the boat, the more wet you get. Last summer, I sat in the 2nd row from the front and barely got wet. This time, my family and I sat in the middle/back area, and all 6 of us got completely soaked!! read more

Super easy booking process through Groupon. However, you would have to call the entertainment cruises number to actually redeem your voucher since there's nowhere on the internet to type it in. Walked up to the boat right at 3:10 for a 3:15 cruise and the onboarding was very well organized. Got a cute picture taken and the cruise started relatively on time. We had a FANTASTIC tour guide named Curtin who was entertaining and kept us engaged. The pace of the architecture was good and was very informative. It finished with a speedy ride on the lake! 10/10 would recommend to anyone!! read more

I was pretty excited to go on the tour, but it wasn't like what I expected. Maui was our host, and he was really informative and knew his Chicago history. But honestly, I didn't want to hear him talk. I don't know, I think it was just the way he was talking too - really loud and talks like he's hosting a sports event. I just wanted to chill and relax. The worst part was that I was sitting right next to the speaker, so it was really loud and gave me a headache. I was going deaf too. During the middle of the tour, they passed out small bottles of water from a bucket of ice since it was hot out. It was interesting to learn about the history of the Chicago architecture, but at the same time kinda annoying to hear him talk all the time especially when you're sitting next to the speaker. Overall, it was just ok. Not the best. This was a bit too touristy for me. read more

Seadog Cruises - Boat Charters Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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I am sorry to have to give such a poor rating but I have to be honest about the experience. This was a complete joke for the amount of money for a family of 4. $108.00 and we thought we'd be going on a fast boat ride. We strolled out the first 10 min. Then went fast for about 5 minutes and by fast I am guessing around 30??? Then when the speaker was trying to talk to us about the history of Chicago you couldn't understand stand half of what he was saying and it almost seemed what he was saying wasn't making much sense. When you hear speedboat you think fast to the 4 of us it wasn't fast. We feel it was a complete waste of money. They ended with another 10 minute "fast ride" 5 minutes of speaking and back in. Sorry we'd never do this again. read more

This was an awesome cruise up the Chicago River and some fun high speed cruising out on Lake Michigan. Our tour guides were Ian, Tony and Kat. The crew was amazing and Ian really educated us on some interesting Chicago facts. He is a native of Chicago and he and the crew represented the city to us all wonderfully. Good job! Would highly recommend this cruise! read more

Had a wonderful time with Billy! He was knowledgeable and friendly and so willing to take pictures!