malcolm w martin memorial park

We went there at 4 pm. Easy to access with the GPS and lots of packing available.The views to the arch and the river are extremely nice BUT there was nobody there except for the 3 of us (all women). Since the surrounding area was not nice and there are no stores around we stayed there for like 5 minutes, took some pictures and got out of there.There was a security guard on duty.If you want to get nice pics, go, but during the day and try to go with somebody else.

The view of the arch and downtown St. Louis is the best you will find anywhere. Go to the park website for directions to get here, as the GPS may take you down roads that are filled with potholes. Parking is ample, and the park itself is well maintained. There is a nice restroom available at the MetroLink Station across the grassy area. While the preferable time of day to photograph the arch is in the morning with the sun to your back, it is worth taking the time to watch the geyser go off at noon, 3 p.m. or 6 p.m. It shoots 600 feet in the air, reaching the height of the arch.

I love the view, best view of St Louis and the Gateway Arch. There is a ramp that takes you about 3 stories above the ground to get a better view!! The water fountain is in the same park and erupts 3 times a day! Lots of parking spots too. However that is all that is there. Nothing else to see or do. The drive there was a little weird, no signs directing visitors. I just wish more people knew about it! I felt very safe there!!

I enjoyed the view of the Arch from this park more than I did from being at the foot of the Arch. You can get some wonderful photos, with the river in front of the Arch, and if you're lucky as I was, a barge will sail by while you are there. The observation tower is handicapped accessible. One of the people in my party was on a scooter and had no trouble at all getting to the top, where the best views are to be had. There is also a webcam at the top of the observation tower, so if you turn your back to the Arch, your friends at home can see you waving at them, with the Arch in the background. The Geyser, which is said to be the tallest in the world, goes off at noon, 3pm and 6pm. We were there in the morning and didn't get to see it. It would be nice if it could run continuously. We used a GPS to find the park and, coming from Fairview Heights, IL, it took us into St. Louis where we made a circle and came back over the bridge and could get to the road leading to the park. I would not have found it without the GPS. The area surrounding and leading to the park is not a good area. The road is full of potholes and garbage litters the sides of the road. It's a shame the City of East St. Louis doesn't take better care of this area, as the park is a gem. I wouldn't go into the area at night.

The fountain is tall! The view of the Arch is great for pictures. It is in a difficult to get to location, please use a GPS, and understand you are not in the most well maintained area of Illinois. It is worth a little trip.

This is a beautifully, well-maintained park. It has bathroom facilities and its main function is to provide visitors with an excellent view of the St. Louis skyline and the Arch. The park has a 43 foot tall concrete viewing platform with ramps to the top that visitors can easily climb. The viewing platform is free, as is park admission.The park also has a geyser fountain which is the tallest man made freshwater fountain in the world.We had some difficulty finding the park and had to drive through some seedy-looking sections of town and wait for a passing train, but it was well worth the inconvenience.We arrived in time to see the geyser fountains shoot their water, which was an added bonus.The views of the arch are nice, except for all the power lines in the line of view, taking away from a perfect picture.

I went on a Friday night and felt terrified. Only afterwards did I find out that East St. Louis has the highest crime rate IN THE COUNTRY. Look it up on wikipedia. I must be living in a cave or something because as soon as I told my friends that I didn't feel safe they all screamed at me for even going to East STL in the first place. Apparently it is well known that it's a bad area. I wanted to turn back before I even got to the park - you turn down 3 or 4 streets before you get to the park and there are NO streetlights and they are full of potholes. I got there and there were no other cars even though it was open until 10pm and it was only 7 or so. I turned back around and go the heck out of there. The next day, I asked the front desk at the hotel I was staying at and they said I shouldn't go there during the day either.

This park provides the best land view of the Gateway Arch, and is located across from downtown St. Louis, in East St. Louis, Ill. The St. Louis side is too crowded with buildings for a real good view, and after some 40 years of trying, a park opposite the Arch, across the Mississippi River, has been opened. The park's centerpiece is a five-story zig-zagged, ramped observation platform, which elevates you above the Mississippi River floodwall, and the industrial railyard directly in front of the park. This is not the most scenic place on the ground you'll ever find, but after the hike to the top of the platform, you have the best land view of the Arch available. I say land view because the absolute best view of the Arch is still from the tourist riverboat rides, loading in front of the Arch. But on the boat you have to be ready, for this same view will go by in a few seconds as the boat floats quickly by. Here on this platform, you can take your time and enjoy it, framing up the Arch for camera shots as often as you like.The biggest drawback to seeing the Arch here is that large powerlines will come between your view and the Arch. Nothing you can do about this, but it is not that big of a distraction. The easiest way to find this park is to cross the Mississippi River, via the Eads Bridge (closest one on the north side of the Arch) and follow the signs to the casino on the Illinois side. Once at the casino entrance, continue on straight until you come upon a stop sign at the railyard and river wall. This will be Front Street. Turn left, go past the front entrance to the casino, past a couple of industry sites, over a spurline railroad, and you'll see the park on the left at the next corner. East St. Louis has NO signs as of this writing directing you to this park from the casino entrance. Just go toward the casino you see from the Arch, go past it, turn left onto Front Street, and keep looking on your left. It's a short drive past the casino.You can park in front of the tower, but the best parking is along side, near the end of the entrance ramps. The rest of the park is rather standard, with play areas and walkways, but three times a day a fountain in the park blasts water 630 feet in the sky - the height of the Arch itself. Check the park's website for a schedule. This park is worth a trip just to see the view. Just don't expect to enjoy the view on the way to see the other view.