Was in the area and stopped in for a visit. On site restaurant featured sandwiches and desserts.read more

I enjoy learning about the history of towns, so this was a treat to me. Watching the mule pull the…read moreboat up the channel was cool, but the best part was listening to the history of the canal and Illinois. The only downside on my tour was the other occupants. If you schedule a tour, please show up on time. The guide waited on people that was late. Also, don't take a tour if you plan to be disruptive and talk about non-related items the entire tour. The tour guide had a lot of patience with the audience, and we could tell that the constant laughter and cackling was a distraction to him.

It really pains me to leave a negative review about any business. We took the Graveyard Stories…read morewith our Park District Group on Tuesday, Oct. 28. The "tour" included 3 stops. At the first stop we saw the dried up I and M canal where the only mention of ghosts was that the workers who died building the canal were buried in the canal. The highlight of this stop was the washroom in the old toll house. Second stop was a tiny graveyard next to a truck weigh station. We saw where Tom's family was buried. Last stop we saw the grave of a Texan who had been killed in the Civil War. There was nothing ghostly about this tour. Either the Ottawa area has nothing to offer in this regard and this tour doesn't need to exist. Or this tour operator should rename this tour. Not sure what I'd call it. As a history buff, I have taken other graveyard tours and they were far more interesting. One tour I took had graveside reenactments of the people buried there. In this case, it's hard to believe they charge $35 per person for so little information. What may be a well meaning venture to promote Ottawa's history was not a ghostly graveyard tour.

What a Wealth of Knowledge…read more Had friends visiting for the day and booked an afternoon tour with Awesome Ottawa. Some of the people could not walk long distances and Tom tailored the entire tour to be accomodating to them. We all learned so much and the time flew by. We all would do it again to see and learn even more.

We had a lovely family outing tubing, swimming, and boating with Starved Rock River Adventures. The…read morepontoon boat was in good shape and our route was easy to find with the map Tony gave us. The water was a little gross but we had a fun time and made good memories. Worth it!

It was bad. The boat was not in good condition and had the seams on the seats popping out. The…read moreowner charged us for damages that were cause because of false information and water depth. They did not correctly explain the water and its ranges and then got upset when we asked them about it. Would never rent from them. I would give it a 0 if I could. They also tried to charge $50 over if you were late by any minute.

They made sure they moved the bachelorette groups to different buses to avoid any issues. We…read moreappreciated the thought. Our tour guide Kenney was great. He made sure we were taken care of. This is the only tour company that includes lunch I believe. Lunch was pretty good as well! I would book with them again.

We were fortunate to get truly excellent weather to head out onto the lake for a boat ride with…read moreHarbor Country Adventures! We went on the Classic Lake Tour. Our tour guide was a retired high school history teacher and football coach with all sorts of interesting stories about the region. We passed Mount Baldy, the "living" sand dune that moves, at Indiana Dunes National Park and made it all the way down to a good view of the Century of Progress homes before making our way back. We also got to hear all about the ship, the Emita II, which is a historic ship from the 1950s, and about how it reached its current home. It was also very cute that Captain Jan had the kids come up and take turns at the wheel on the way back. There is a snack bar on the lower level of the boat, and there are restrooms on board. Free parking is available a little walk away - walk towards the Lighthouse Museum, as the dock is behind there. Definitely a great adventure!

My daughter and I had a spectacular time out on the Vermilion River in a two-person kayak delivered…read moreto a boat ramp right on time by Stacy and Andy . They provided everything including life jackets . Will do it again !

From the owner: Looking for a unique outdoor experience in Pontiac, IL? Vermilion River Adventures has you covered…read morewith kayak, canoe, and tube rentals.

Definitely one of the must do while visiting Chicago!…read more Great boat tour with excellent docents. I ended up with a much great understanding of the Chicago buildings I was walking around or through.

If you're in Chiago you have to do the Architecture tour at least once. If you're in Chicago…read moreduring the Summer as I was you can seek sanctuary in the air conditioned lower level. I wish the audio was a little bit louder on that level due to the sound of the fans and people talking. If you like my reviews, consider "following" my profile for reviews all across the SF Bay Area . Why "follow" someone? It causes the person you follow's reviews to tier to top when you pull up a business. I find this very handy when researching venues. Rod's Review grading scale explained. Essentially I personally base it on the likelihood of a return visit and I try to be stingy with 5 star reviews since they should be "special" in my eyes. Price/Value also play a role obviously but there are $ and $$$$ littered across my grading scale. 5 stars - "I'll go out of my way" (approx 6 % of my reviews) 4 stars- "If I was in the area I'd go here and would recommend", (approx 38% of my reviews) 3 stars "Maybe if was nearby", (approx 37% of my reviews) 2 stars -"Would likely not return, Only if you want to go", (approx 16% of my reviews) 1 star -"No thanks, even if I was hungry", (approx. 3 % of my reviews)

This review is long overdue. Last year for Christmas I purchased for my grandmother and myself a…read morecruise to Starved Rock. We boarded in Peoria and spent the day cruising to Starved Rock. What I didn't know when I booked was that this was also a murder mystery cruise. The cast was on the boat the whole time. Once we arrived in Starved Rock we had dinner at the lodge and stayed at the Lodge. The next morning was breakfast at the Lodge and back on the boat to cruise back to Peoria. Everything about this trip was fantastic. The murder mystery outfit was fabulous. As it was flowing throughout the two days it became really interesting. It was better than any murder mystery dinner I have ever done. The ragtime music was enjoyable and the food was also really good. My grandmother LOVED this. She keeps asking me when we are going to go again. If you are looking for a different thing to do, try this!

Very nice paddleboat ride. We had all the elements of a great ride: perfect weather, calm water,…read morenot many people on board so we got a good seat, boat departed and arrived on time. It was a 90 minute trip. Parents, think twice before bringing the kids. Or if you bring them, make sure they have an activity they can do during the cruise. The kids i saw were all bored either from the start or shortly after. They ran around the deck and emptied out the ice water container. Restrooms were clean.

First time on the architecture boat tour on the recommendation of a bunch of friends who had…read morealready taken the tour in the past. Personally, I was pleasantly surprised. The words "architecture" and "boat tour" don't immediately spell a fun time in my mind. But this tour is 1) a pleasant way to see the center of Chicago from the water, 2) actually interestingly informational, as the tour guides are extremely on top of their game, 3) much more dense that you expect (these guys are talking non-stop), and 4) surprisingly good views, especially when you get all the way out into the edge of the harbor! Finding the place was a bit roundabout, but once we got there, staff were super friendly, and it was easy to get on the boat and off to our next stop afterwards. Parking suggestions on the site are solid too. I'm not sure whether I'd do it again, but I'd definitely recommend it as a must-do stop on any visit!

90 minute Architecture tour…read more It was a cloudy, windy, and cold day in June. Even with the clouds rolling in & out and blocking a lot of the views it was still interesting and our awesome guide, Bobby, was knowledgeable, funny, and kept it interesting and flowing for adults and kids. The tour starts on the river heading towards Lake Michigan. The ride into the lock was a little lengthy as we had to wait for them to fill it with boats first. Once we made it onto Lake Michigan it was very chilly, but I'd rather be freezing than sweating like crazy on a hot humid day. We were on a smaller boat which was nice. - upper deck: Seats long the outside and chairs in the middle. Only wish they had cushions. - lower deck: had some small seating outside and standing bar tables - lower deck: indoor restrooms and bar area - snacks, drinks available for purchase If rain is in the forecast bring paper towels to clean off your seats. I also saw some people with Wendella rain ponchos, but not sure where to get them? Really fun and beautiful way to see the city! Highly recommend!

Very Welcoming and friendly. The woman at the front end walked us outside to show us the way to the…read morecanal . She mentioned the mule named Mo and said we would have a good time on the boat .

Café situated in at the I&M Canal Gift Shop. Everything (except for a couple bakery items) are made…read morefrom scratch in house by the chef. Food was phenomenal of course, and the servers were super helpful and accommodating! The place had wifi so you can connect and study/do work. Prices are extremely reasonable, I'd even put it in the "one dollar sign category".

I learned so much today! The mansion history was very interesting and the history about Ottawa was…read morefascinating too. The tour was ten dollars and was well worth it. I was told Christmas is a really great time to visit. I didn't even know about this mansion until a few days ago. I searched for other things around Starved Rock and foind the mansion. It was the best part of the day.

Beautiful turn of the century home. The docent was very knowledgeable (maybe a bit too…read moreknowledgeable). She shared the history of the home, it's pervious uses and work being done to restore it to the time of the Reddick family's occupancy. We stopped as an activity during a road trip but had to leave a before the end of the tour to get back on the road. The home had beautiful plaster detail, original wood work, windows, doors, and fireplaces. Definitely worth visiting to appreciate the architecture of days gone by.