St Charles Paddlewheel Riverboats

Saint Charles, United States

3

5 reviews

Accepts Credit Cards

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Telephone:
+1 630-584-2334
Website:
www.stcriverboats.com
Address:
2 North Ave, Saint Charles, IL, 60174
Nearby public transportation stops & stations:
2.7 miGeneva
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Bussiness info

Accepts Credit Cards
Yes
Accepts Bitcoin
No
Good for Kids
Yes

Today

Today –
Local time (Saint Charles) 01:22 Tuesday, 24 June 2025

Business hours

Monday –
Tuesday –
Wednesday –
Thursday –
Friday –
Saturday –
Sunday –

Description

Specialties

Celebrating 70 years of cruising the Fox River!

Our classic replica paddlewheel riverboats have been a St. Charles summer tradition since 1945. Proudly operated by the Anderson family throughout their entire lifetime, the modern «St. Charles Belle II» and «Fox River Queen» churn the same historic waters that helped Saint Charles, Illinois to become the charming city that it is today.

Our boats are open to the public from May until mid October. We provide guided historical tours of the scenic Fox River valley departing from Pottawatomie park on weekends at 2,3, and 4 PM, and weekdays at 3:30 (June 1-​August 31). A great way to enjoy the outdoors and learn a little more about our history-​rich area!

We also specialize in providing group charter cruises. Our boats can accommodate groups of 30 – 100 people with ample seating for your guests both indoors and outdoors. We receive many bookings from a wide variety of groups including weddings, rehearsal dinners, school and church groups, business parties, and many more! We aim to provide an unforgettable experience for your guests.

Feeling hungry? Ask about getting your private cruise catered by our professional crew! We provide a highly popular southern pan-​fried chicken dinner complete with cole slaw, baked beans, rolls, and more!

We hope to welcome you aboard and share the family tradition of our boats with you!

History

Established in 1945.

Chet Anderson was working at the Pottawatomie Park concession stand in the-​mid 1940’s when the idea of buying a boat and offering rides to the park picnickers began to take shape. Before long, he made his dream a reality when he bought his very first boat, the Honeymoon Queen for $ 200 in 1945. The boat started making routine trips up the Fox River from Pottawatomie Park, and a business that has endured for more than 70 years was born.

Chet continued the boat tours every spring, summer, and fall. His wife Barbara still runs the office business as she has from the beginning. Over the years, several newer boats have replaced the Honeymoon Queen and others. In the mid 1980’s, the boats that are currently in service, the St. Charles Belle II and Fox River Queen, were built. These boats have spacious enclosed lower decks and open upper decks, ideal for watching the sunset and enjoying the beautiful river views. Chet’s son Rich now mans the helms of our boats.

Nearby

Browse nearby places:
1
ft
Anderson Enterprises
2 North Ave
70
ft
Pottawatomie Park
8 North Ave
70
ft
St Charles Park District
8 North Ave
770
ft
Pottawatomie Golf Course
845 N Second Ave
770
ft
St Charles Park District
845 N 2nd Ave
1
mi
Ace Roofing Services

5 reviews of St Charles Paddlewheel Riverboats

No registration required
Place rating: 4
Chicago, IL
This might be slow and boring for some but I found it to be great. Its and hour cruise and you get history facts about St Charles. I only hope that they stay open when the colors change. Will be calling as soon as color change on trees.
Place rating: 3
Elgin, IL
I attended a corporate event on one of their boats. We provided our own catering and drink service so that is an option if you want to rent out the whole boat. The staff was friendly and courteous and it was a nice jaunt up and down the river. I’d say a one-​hour cruise is plenty as we did the two-​hour option and it was just repeated the same route up and down the river twice in between dams — but it was still lovely scenery.
Place rating: 1
Schaumburg, IL
Well went with family yesterday and was not pleasantly surprised. Many, many bees were swarming the top deck along the benches! We had 5 kids and all of them were afraid. Secondly they sell drinks on board for only $ 1, BUT you cant get up to get one otherwise they give your seat away. I had the kids wanting to go with me to pick out drinks and employee told me if we leave the top deck someone else can go take our seats. I told children to go back and I would go myself, and the employee actually told someone else that there is MY seat available up top! I told them that my family was saving my seat and they said you cant save seats for anyone. THUMBS DOWN! I will not go back here. It was boring, very monotone fact giver and young guy standing at stairwell was more worried about his phone or telling people my seat was open than to rather take the money for the drinks we purchased. Because there was no one doing that either.
Place rating: 2
Chicago, IL
This was one of the most boring hours of my life. If you want to be put to sleep with noxious diesel fumes than this is for you. If not, then don’t waste your time or money. The captain did give some interesting facts about the area but not enough to keep anyone entertained. Good concept. Bad execution. The brochure says that they do charters for parties which I could see being a lot more fun but not the 1 hour cruise.
Place rating: 5
Skokie, IL
These boats are just great for group charters. Sure, there may be fancier boats and prettier rivers elsewhere, but once our group boarded, this didn’t matter. The boat was immaculately clean and you could roam around. Smooth jazz played on the speakers but they sometimes have a keyboard musician.
During our leisurely 1−½ hour cruise along the Fox River, we enjoyed a buffet-​style fried chicken dinner with all the trimmings. The food was professionally catered, fresh, and portions were generous.