Chicago River & Lakefront Boat Tours

Awesome tour! Breathtaking views, friendly crew, boat with a history. Highly recommend

Unique and fun Took a group of out-of-town friends on the noon tour. After easy check in and free group photo, we sat at the very front. The smaller size and history of the boat were very relaxing and intersting. Since the boat is docked on the lake, you first get a great view of the skyline, then enter the lock for a trip up the river to the Kinzie Street bridge. Friendly bar and additional seating in back. Narrator Cliff does a wonderful job combining history, trivia, and humor. The friendly crew make this a great option to the bigger tour boats. Use the nearby DuSable Parking Lot, hidden under the overpass.

An informative, fun, and unique tour experience! In an oceans worth (or Lake Michigans worth, as it were) of river tours, this particular group offers the unique experience of touring the architecture along Chigago River on an historic vessel- one of the cities own retired fireboats! This veteran-owned, veteran-ran company provided an experience that was one of the highlights of my multi-day visit to Chicago.

Informative, fun, and unique tour experience Was one of the highlights of a multi-day leisure trip to Chicago! Our tour guide, Cliff, was extremely informative and engaging. He called out items of note for those seated at the bow and the stern, no one in the crowd felt left out. The cost was comparable to other tours, but with the added historical significance of the tour vehicle and the business being veteran ran and veteran owned, the Chicago Fireboat Tours was an easy first choice.

Amazing tour. So glad we found this one. The information provided was interesting and shared with personality. Well worth the cost. Thank you for a great time!

A Chicago gem! What a wonderful tour! So much information about architecture and Chicago history. Cliff was a phenomenal tour guide, so knowledgeable and fun! Ten stars for him! Will definitely be booking one of the sunset tours in the future!

Fun tour w/great informative guide Great overall experience. Loved the vintage boat. The guide was very informative with all his enthusiastic description of the various buildings, sites, and Chicago history. Especially loved the experience going through the lock. Highly recommend this tour!

Architectural tour Fantastic tour! Cliff's commentary was interesting and funny. Got a free flyover from the airshow as a bonus! Highly recommended!

Great experience We had a great time. The crew was very friendly and the guide was very informative.

Such a great experience! Packed of historical information that I think many overlook or don’t bother to learn about when visiting Chicago! Great staff! Thank you from Indiana!

5⭐️ Cliff and his crew were excellent! Beautiful boat, less ‘touristy’ feeling & lots of great history with splashes of humor. 😉 (Ask Cliff about the Dave Matthew’s incident) 🤪 The meet up location was a bit confusing but luckily they reached out to us to see where we were. Very grateful for their customer service. 😁 Thank you! 💌

Please determine your price This is a wonderful tour and the guide was absolutely fantastic. However, we started on a confused and disappointing note as I was asked to pay an additional $15 after having fully paid on Trip Advisor. No explanation, I was just told I had to pay an additional $15 for my family of 3 to board the boat. Not sure if this was Trip Advisor's or boat's mistake, but hope they will get it together and not embarrass another customer as happened to me.

Amazing view of the fireworks! Great variety of classic rock. Good mellow vibe.

Beautiful Informative Cruise This was a great 2-hour cruise which included the Chicago River, the river locks and Lake Michigan. Staff was friendly, organized and helpful. They explained the boat layout and assisted people with boarding as needed. We left the pier on time. Boat was full but did not seem overly crowded. Seating was open or covered - your choice. Cliff, our narrator, was outstanding. His presentation combined in-depth knowledge with genuineness of delivery. Not boring or rote. The cruise covered history, maritime info and architecture. As a lifelong Chicagoan, I thought I knew a bit about landmarks and past events along the route, but I learned a lot!

Fire boat It was a great experience. I have done other architecture cruises before . This one was by far the best .

Fun, different Chicago boat tour! Had a great tour with the fireboat crew. We've been on the Wendella Architecture Tours, which are excellent. This one is fun because we actually went through the locks, twice. We heard different stories about different buildings and learned new historical facts about Chicago. Nice bar on the boat, too. Definitely recommend!!!

Excellent Excellent. You get the lake, river, the locks, a bar and a great time!!!

Best Tour of Chicago Absolutely wonderful tour all around. The boat is amazing and the crew was fantastic. We learned so much about the area and history, with lots of laughs from the amazing Cliff. Magic Manny the bartender quenched our thirst the entire time. Great seating options with sun and shade, and plenty of space to walk around the boat. It was our first time to Chicago so we highly recommend this tour to get a great view of the city and learn about the architecture of the amazing city. We loved going thru the lock and river, as well as getting the skyline view from Lake Michigan. 10/10!! Read more about - Historical and Architectural Chicago Fireboat River & Lake Cruise - https://www.viator.com/tours/Chicago/Historical-and-Architectural-Chicago-Fireboat-River-Cruise-F-Sun/d673-447367P1?m=65553&nid=VR.64886b75-af2c-4a61-a47c-82bcdb6c64f9.VT_EMAIL_TRV?mcid=56757