The World Chess Hall of Fame has resided in the Central West End neighborhood of St. Louis since September 8, 2011 and being an avid fan of chess, I’ve been longing to go! Ridiculously enough, I never made it till a couple weekends ago but let me tell you what, it was WELL WORTH the wait!
I absolutely LOVED it! Prior to going, I was unaware that the World Chess Hall of Fame is home to both the United States and World Chess Halls of Fame, making St. Louis a distinguished national and international chess destination. Being a HUGE fan of St. Louis, I LOVED hearing that people come from all around the world to this fine nonprofit institution in our spectacular city.
The three story museum does an EXTRAORDINARY job at presenting exhibits that explore the rich history of the game, as well as its remarkable impact on arts and culture. I was honestly expecting it to maybe be a bit stuffy and perhaps even slightly dull, but that was NOT what I got whatsoever! EXPECTATIONS EXCEEDED! As you’ll soon see from all my photos, this place caters to both the chess novice and expert, ensuring that there really is something for everyone!
The World Chess Hall of Fame is located at 4652 Maryland Avenue, Saint Louis, Missouri 63108 and can be found online at worldchesshof.org. Admission is always free, but they do suggest donations of $3 per person or $5 for families. They’re open seven days a week from 10:00 a.m. till 5:00 p.m. Saturday through Tuesday and 10:00 a.m. till 9:00 p.m. Wednesday through Friday.
We were able to find free parking in the residential area about a block away, but metered parking is available all around the complex. There’s also a paid lot adjacent to Kingside Diner, which is located right next door on the corner of Euclid and Maryland.
I feel disappointed in myself that it took me all this time to get here, but now that I’ve been, I’ll MOST DEFINITELY be back! Like so many other museums, they rotate their exhibits, so a few months from now it’ll be like a whole new world! If you haven’t been to this true jewel in our great city, then I suggest making the same life-changing maneuver as Ron Weasley and moving your knight to H3! I promise after you go you’ll be thanking me!
As always, THANK YOU so much for viewing! Please feel free to leave me a comment below if you’ve ever been to the World Chess Hall of Fame or have been wanting to go! I LOVE reading and responding to any and all comments and am more than happy to answer any questions! I’ll be back next week with an all-new blog post, so until then, I wish you all, all the best!
This place looks incredible! I too have been wanting to visit – especially after watching The Queen’s Gambit last year. Stunning chess boards! Beautiful designers outfits / dresses. Cannot wait to make this a summer outing!
I’ll happily tag along & go back! Plus, the Central West End is so cute! Love it down there!
I’ll go too! I really want to see the Alexander McQueen dresses!!!!!
Like Jessica Simpson, it’ll take your breath away!
Love a good game of chess. Never realized a place like this was out there definitely want to go and check it out sure looks cool!
You should give it a visit! You’ll love it!
Looks like a neat little place! I’m ashamed to admit I didn’t even know this place existed! I’ll definitely be bringing my boys to check it out though! Great pics!
Thank you & glad you now know! Trust me, you’ll be so happy when you go!
Wow! This is so cool! I love all of the different chess sets, the one with pink, gray and white was of course my favorite 🙂 Super cool idea for an exhibition, love it!
When you come visit us in STL we will definitely be going here!
Well this place just looks neat! When you going to take me Ben?
Let’s go! You’ll love it!