St. Louis

Outdoors & location

Forest Park, two great rivers, greenways and the Ozarks next door.

Forest Park, at 1,326 acres, is one of the largest urban parks in the United States — 57% larger than New York's Central Park. Wikipedia The Great Rivers Greenway network has already built 140 miles of paved trails across three counties, with a long-term vision of 600 miles. The network logged over 3 million trips in 2024 alone. Great Rivers Greenway

The Brickline Greenway is a $245 million urban transformation — over 10 miles of protected greenways linking 14 neighborhoods and four anchor parks. The Market Street segment (0.85 miles) opened in spring 2026; the North Connector (1.3 miles along Grand Boulevard) is under construction with completion expected spring 2027. The project was 64–68% funded as of mid-2026. Great Rivers Greenway · Great Rivers Greenway

The Katy Trail is the longest continuous rail-trail in the U.S., stretching 240 miles across Missouri along the Missouri River, effectively beginning at the St. Louis metro's edge. Missouri State Parks St. Louis sits near the confluence of the two largest rivers in North America, offering a designated 121-mile National Water Trail with island campsites, bluff-lined paddling, and sandbar-hopping just minutes from downtown. Mississippi River Water Trail

Nearby state parks within roughly two hours include Castlewood State Park (river bluffs, hiking), Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park (natural water slides), Hawn State Park (4,956 acres, waterfalls), and Meramec State Park (caves, river floating). Missouri State Parks · St. Louis Magazine

Lambert Airport handled 15.95 million passengers in 2024 — its highest total in over 20 years — with nonstop service to 60–75+ destinations including a Lufthansa transatlantic flight to Frankfurt. Passenger numbers dipped in 2025 to roughly 15.3 million, driven by nationwide airline capacity adjustments. FlySTL · Air Service One St. Louis is within roughly 500 miles of one-third of the U.S. population. FlySTL

St. Louis is increasingly cited as a climate-resilient inland city: it faces minimal coastal-hazard risk — zero hurricane risk, zero sea-level rise, and low wildfire risk — though national outlets caution that "climate haven" framing can be overstated and no city is truly a haven. The city adopted a formal 2025 Sustainability & Climate Plan. City of St. Louis · ClimateCheck · Washington Post

Caveats: Heat is the real climate threat — historically about 7 days per year above 96°F, projected to rise to roughly 44 days per year by 2050. ClimateCheck Riverine and flash flooding remain serious; roughly 18% of buildings face significant flood risk. ClimateCheck The Brickline Greenway is only 64–68% funded as of mid-2026, with completion targeted for 2030. Great Rivers Greenway