finhawk Report post Posted May 22, 2010 I plan on staying at the Casino Queen for about a week. I've heard that it is in a bad part of town and I'm concerned about security. Has anyone had any experience there? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest BillAdams Report post Posted May 22, 2010 This is the only place we stay when we visit St. Louis. You will enjoy the park and the close access to St. Louis via the Eads bridge. Yes, you are very close to a very bad part of town called East St. Louis, IL but we have never had any kind of a security issue at the park and the casino security patrols frequently. Of course, theft can happen in any park anywhere, but I would not have any more reservations about staying at this park than I would at staying at any other non-gated RV park. We have stayed here at least a dozen times over the years and the only bad part about it is when we have to leave! Enjoy! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tbutler Report post Posted May 24, 2010 Louise and I both worked for several years in the schools in East St. Louis, Illinois. The community is one in extreme distress and the crime rates showed this. We were in East St. Louis regularly during the day and dealt with many people in the community who were good people. At night I would be more careful about traveling East St. Louis. If you travel into Illinois, there are many communities nearby that provide shopping and dining excellence. You are also a short ride across the Mississippi River on the MetroLink to downtown St. Louis and Laclede's Landing with its many night spots. The sports stadiums, zoo and other attractions of St. Louis, Missouri are also directly accessible via MetroLink. We have never stayed at the Casino Queen but would take Bill's word that the security is good and you should have no problems there. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest BillAdams Report post Posted May 24, 2010 You would not need to travel into E. St Louis at all. You sit at the base of the Eads bridge when in the park. You leave the park turn right, turn right again and you are on your way across the river and in St. Louis in about 2 minutes. Driving in or out of the park with your RV you can take this route but personally I would rather avoid downtown SL and instead take the route that skirts the edge of E. SL and brings you in and out via Interstate. We have never had any problems in the area during the day and we simply don't travel in that area at night. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tomraub Report post Posted May 24, 2010 I stayed at the Casino Queen campground for several nights last fall. We felt very safe and Downtown St. Louis is just across the bridge, very convenient. I would stay there again. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
nick.lahni@precisionautobody.cc Report post Posted May 25, 2010 I have also stayed at the campground and felt very safe. They have a shuttle to the casino or you can drive your own vehicle if you have a toad. I would stay there again. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
milhaskelton@gmail.com Report post Posted September 30, 2010 I am looking for a good park in the St. Louis area, and have been told to look in Alton, Belleville, or Elsah for a place. Any suggestions? (I had reserved a spot at a KOA in Granite City- but have been advised by a local that this is a pretty tough area.) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest BillAdams Report post Posted September 30, 2010 See the info on the Casino Queen above. Great place. Very convenient to downtown STL. Clean, well run, plenty of security. I just left there (for the 4th time this year) last week. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tbutler Report post Posted September 30, 2010 We stayed at the KOA in Granite City many years ago when we first started full timing. We were there for about six weeks and found it to be a very nice park. The area is not a high crime area. I was in the habit of walking about a half mile to the barge canal bypass around the Chain of Rocks on the Mississippi. You can stand on the bridge and watch the barges pass under you. Granite City is a working community, not a bedroom suburb so you will see truck terminals, warehouses and factories around the area but none near the park when we were there. Cost $$ If you want downtown, the Casino Queen campground (mentioned above) is the closest. To the west, there is a campground in St. Charles right on the Missouri River at highway 370. Sundermeir RV is a very nice park. St. Charles is the first state capital of Missouri and the old historic riverfront area has many fine restaurants, shops, art, antiques and other stores. There is a very active bar/nightlife scene here as well. Cost $$$ Further south on the west side of the city is Babler State Park in Chesterfield. Just south of US 40/I-64 in a quiet rural setting but close enough to major thoroughfares to make city access easy. Cost $ There are several other parks around St. Louis but I don't have any personal knowledge of them. You will find reviews of all these parks at RV Park Reviews. See what others think of each of these areas. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
milhaskelton@gmail.com Report post Posted September 30, 2010 Just checked online reservations for Casino Queen and they close for the winter on Sept 30. My next option is a KOA west of St. Louis: St. Louis West / Historic Route 66 KOA 18475 Old Route 66 - PO Box 128 Eureka, MO 63025-0128 Has anyone stayed there? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
milhaskelton@gmail.com Report post Posted September 30, 2010 We stayed at the KOA in Granite City many years ago when we first started full timing. We were there for about six weeks and found it to be a very nice park. The area is not a high crime area. I was in the habit of walking about a half mile to the barge canal bypass around the Chain of Rocks on the Mississippi. You can stand on the bridge and watch the barges pass under you. Granite City is a working community, not a bedroom suburb so you will see truck terminals, warehouses and factories around the area but none near the park when we were there. Cost $$If you want downtown, the Casino Queen campground (mentioned above) is the closest. To the west, there is a campground in St. Charles right on the Missouri River at highway 370. Sundermeir RV is a very nice park. St. Charles is the first state capital of Missouri and the old historic riverfront area has many fine restaurants, shops, art, antiques and other stores. There is a very active bar/nightlife scene here as well. Cost $$$ Further south on the west side of the city is Babler State Park in Chesterfield. Just south of US 40/I-64 in a quiet rural setting but close enough to major thoroughfares to make city access easy. Cost $ There are several other parks around St. Louis but I don't have any personal knowledge of them. You will find reviews of all these parks at RV Park Reviews. See what others think of each of these areas. Thanks very much for your response- great info- esp the Park Review site! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest BillAdams Report post Posted September 30, 2010 Just checked online reservations for Casino Queen and they close for the winter on Sept 30. My next option is a KOA west of St. Louis: St. Louis West / Historic Route 66 KOA 18475 Old Route 66 - PO Box 128 Eureka, MO 63025-0128 Has anyone stayed there? I called Casino Queen to confirm. Who knew! Tonight is the last night the RV park will be open. How stupid is that! Heck, with Global Warming it could be a nice place to stay right up to December! To the OP, which part of STL did you want to be near? If you can stay in the St. Charles, MO area there is also a very nice and very safe RV park there. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tbutler Report post Posted October 1, 2010 Just checked online reservations for Casino Queen and they close for the winter on Sept 30. My next option is a KOA west of St. Louis: St. Louis West / Historic Route 66 KOA 18475 Old Route 66 - PO Box 128 Eureka, MO 63025-0128 Has anyone stayed there? Check RV Park Reviews they have reviews from many people who have been at most every park in the US. The site is well organized, if you don't find something you like at one site it lists a number of others that are nearby. There are over 112,000 reviews on line. I'm adding mine as we travel. I'm betting that lots of people have stayed at St. Louis West KOA and you'll find plenty of reviews there. There should be enough to let you know what the pluses and minuses are! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dva1101@yahoo.com Report post Posted November 1, 2010 I dont think Casino Queen closes for the winter. They never have in the past. If so, then it is new for this year. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest BillAdams Report post Posted November 2, 2010 I dont think Casino Queen closes for the winter. They never have in the past. If so, then it is new for this year. You might think that, but you would be wrong. I called the park to confirm this information before I made the earlier post. If you go to their website today it reads: RV Park is Closed for the season. The RV Park will open Memorial Day weekend - Labor Day weekend 2011 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Wayne77590 Report post Posted November 3, 2010 FYI - We just recently (two weeks ago) stayed at the KOA in Granite City. I'm not sure if you have made your trip yet, but the KOA is only a 15 minute or so drive into town. The reviews on it are correct. It is a nice enough park for traveling about and the one item in the review about truck noise is correct. The park has been there for 30 years, and a trucking company located a staging point right behind it. We were in the spot exactly next to the road the trucks used. At night, I just took the hearing aids out, and DW put in ear plugs. We stayed there for 4 nights. Having looked at the other CG's in the area, we feel that we made the right choice in selection. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
