St. Louis kept the 1904 World's Fair Palace of Fine Arts and turned it into an encyclopedic museum that still charges nothing. Add a Byzantine cathedral with 41.5 million mosaic tesserae, a Cass Gilbert library, and Chuck Berry's Blueberry Hill stage.
The 1904 World's Fair Palace of Fine Arts by Cass Gilbert holds 34,000 works — the largest Max Beckmann collection anywhere, plus Monet's Water Lilies and Oceanic art. Free general admission, open Tue-Sun 10:00-17:00, Fridays until 21:00.
Begun 1907, the Byzantine-Romanesque interior carries 41.5 million glass tesserae across 83,000 square feet — the largest mosaic collection in one building on earth, installed over 76 years. Open daily 07:00-17:00.
Tadao Ando's first free-standing US building (2001) — board-formed concrete, a water court, and a Richard Serra torqued ellipse next door. The adjacent CAM by Brad Cloepfil shares the Grand Center block. Both free.
Cass Gilbert's 1912 Renaissance Revival landmark reopened in 2012 after a $70 million restoration. The barrel-vaulted Great Hall, Steedman Architectural Library and rooftop terrace are open to anyone. Free, closes 20:00 weekdays.
The 4,192-seat 1929 Siamese-Byzantine movie palace on Grand Boulevard runs guided tours Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday at 10:30, covering the lobby's gilded elephants, the Wurlitzer console and the star dressing rooms.
Home since 1968 to America's second-oldest orchestra (founded 1880), inside a 1925 French Baroque vaudeville house. A $130 million renovation added a new lobby wing; matinee and open rehearsal tickets start around $15.
CAM shows no permanent collection — only rotating commissions, roughly 12 exhibitions a year in Brad Cloepfil's 2003 wedge-shaped building. Kranzberg Arts Foundation venues and the Sheldon Concert Hall sit within two blocks.
An acoustically celebrated 702-seat 1912 hall on Washington Boulevard, plus free art galleries upstairs. Jazz, folk and Notes from Home series run most weeks; the hall's plaster shell needs no amplification.
Housed in the 1913 Jefferson Memorial Building — funded by 1904 World's Fair profits — it holds Lindbergh's Spirit of St. Louis trophies and the definitive 1904 Fair collection. Free, open daily 10:00-17:00.
A 1900s Lombard and Sicilian enclave of shotgun houses with fire hydrants painted green-white-red. St. Ambrose church anchors it; Missouri Baking Company has sold cannoli and prosciutto bread since 1924.
Bob Cassilly's 1997 conversion of the 600,000-square-foot International Shoe Building into a salvage sculpture you climb — repurposed bridges, aeroplane fuselages, and the world's largest pencil. Admission $22, rooftop extra.
Joe Edwards' 1972 bar where Chuck Berry played 209 consecutive monthly shows in the Duck Room from 1996 to 2014. The St. Louis Walk of Fame's brass stars run along Delmar outside, honouring 150-plus locals.