Had a blast during the architecture tour. They crew are very safety oriented and provided a great overview of how to kayak safely in the Chicago river before heading out. The tour itself was everything I hoped for, great history on some of the buildings and a great way to be active. Highly recommend!

This is a must. Went on sunset tour, it rain but made the best out of it.Staff is super friendly and helpful. They teach short class before headed out to water. They guide you to keep you safe from oncoming boats.

Very fun and relaxing. We saw deer, herons and othe birds. The staff were great. Super nice. They drive you up river to get in the kayaks. So you just float downriver. Easy!

Great rates, friendly staff, nice location on the north branch for a one hour loop of Goose Island.

Really enjoyed my architectural kayak tour. You really need to be in shape for this because you will be kayaking for approximately 2.5 hours.

The sunset kayak tour was incredible! Even though we did the big architecture boat tour that morning, this was a much more personal tour and view of the river. It was really neat getting to see all the city lights come on as the sun went down. Even though it heavily rained for a little bit of our journey, I think everyone still had a great time. The staff was fun, professional, and safety conscious the entire way.

Staff was great and over all amazing experience!!! Just wish we had done research on the distance of how much kayaking from North Ave & all the way to Navy Pier!! Took away the the excitement and super exhausted after almost 4 hours of kayaking to and from. Definitely prepare, eat light as a full stomach will make it difficult to move through the river and definitely stay hydrated and bring water.

We went on the fireworks tour and it was amazing! The guides were very helpful. One saw I was nervous (my first time kayaking) and made sure to check in and give me tips while on the water to make it easier and give me peace of mind. The fireworks tour is a little bit of a faster pace on the way there since youre trying to catch the fireworks at navy pier. Definitely recommend and will be looking into future tours!

I have done their architecture tour three times now and enjoyed ever one. This is an awesome way to see the city. I love to take friends visiting Chicago, its a tourist experience that most people dont think to do.

We booked the Fireworks paddle. This was hard work! 7 miles total and Im an experienced kayaker! Some in my group were not and it turned out really challenging for them.This should have been indicated in the description. Ive done shorter kayak tours on the Chicago River that proved to be much more leisurely. The guides were awesome and responded when we encountered a bit of trouble. I would do this again myself, but something easier and shorter if newbies were in my group.

Friendly, helpful staff. Choose either tours in small groups or solo kayak ($30.00 hr) or tandem ($40.00 hr). Out of the way location reduces the throngs of tourists.

Chicago has undoubtedly the most stunning city and night time is the best time to enjoy it, My group of 3 booked a City Lights tour and were expecting a leisurely paddle down the river to enjoy the city and lights. The day of our tour we received an email that the tour was changed to a Fire works tour, Not knowing much more about this tour we figured it would be an added thrill added to the city light tour, Big mistake, this was an 8 mile round trip frantic paddle until fatigue, and very little enjoyment. The group was way to large for the 2 guides and they lost control before we began. These guides had no people skills and constantly screamed at the group to keep up. There was not much time to take pictures or enjoy any of the fantastic city siites or even the fire works. Sorry Kayak Chicago you fell out of the boat on this tour 😪

What a great way to visit downtown Chicago!Kayak Chicago team members are really professional. The tour was amazing and educative.I definitely do it again!

20/10 EXCELLENT, EFFICIENT AND FUN. Went in without any reservations on a super busy Sat noon (and evening, I came back cos I loved it) - right from the entrance the staff went above and beyond to get us prepped and into the water efficiently. I was on-call and needed to bring my laptop backpack on the boat (living dangerously I know but it pays the bills) and they ALL were aware of it and accommodated. They seem to remember faces and would go up to you to answer something specific *you asked. Victoria, Bubba, David, Kyle and a whole bunch of others - YOU ROCK. If a friend or family is hesitant to get on the water, this is the place to start them. And prepare to go into The Canyon.

Matt and Hannah were exceptional. They were extremely knowledgeable about the city and were able to get even the most inexperienced kayaker (me), to have a great time on the water. I would highly recommend this to anyone. Was an absolute pleasure!

Took the architecture tour today and it was awesome! Great way to see the city from a different perspective. Not to mention, Bubba was a great guide! It was about a 6 mile long journey and took a little over 3hrs.

Our guide Scott was super nice and knowledgeable. I had great time on the water and would highly recommend this to anyone who might be interested in architecture tours in Chicago. It was a relaxed and educational trip.

Pretty amazing. The address was somewhat difficult to find because it was right around the corner and along the river. Had to use common sense where the kayak would be. Staff was super friendly and cheaper price available on Groupon. I will definitely go there again.

Very chilled and fun staff! Great prices. Relaxed rates.

View from water is spectacular. Guides are fun and well informed. A must for anyone!

My girlfriend and I did the architectual tour - it was great!Guide was very well knowledged, and made it funny and enjoyable for everyone.Tough work, but worth it.

This facility is great. They make sure that their customers know what they are doing, before they let them go on water. Great job. But, the Chicago river is dirty. Wish the city took measures to clean the river.

The guided tour was fine. I was disappointed that while they claim to require social distancing on land and on the water, there were 2 instances in which they asked our group to raft together which made me very uncomfortable.

Had a great time on our kayak tour! The guides were really nice and patient with those of us who were new to kayaking! Thank you.

Our tour with Kayak Chicago was awesome. The stories and fun facts we learned really added a great educational atmosphere. We felt safe and taken care of by our 2 guides. We would definitely recommend this as a must-do activity for those visiting Chicago!

Im glad I went for Urban Kayak, they are truly the best..!

Great spot for half country half city kayaking. You get a little rural greenery then alas the great skyline emerges and you are surrounded on every side by skyscraper. Loved every minute. We made it to kinzie st in two hours with leisurely paddling.Be aware the current changes directions around midday 2 / 3 ish so you may go against the current the whole time. Check with your kayak guides before booking if possible.Dont forget to stretch and bring water

Kayak tour hosted by Shedd Aquarium. Excellent narration about Chicago history and current ecological efforts. Kayak training and safety considerations included.

Bubba was a great guide, and it was an informative and fun . It was exhausting but really fun!

So I dont normally write reviews. But the experience I had warrants a posting. The guides for the fireworks paddle last night, 8/18/21 were straight up rude, obnoxious and frankly they need to be trained in their roles. They failed to communicate clearly throughout the trip and Ive never been yelled at so much in my life. Marren was the trip leader and started the trip by saying- I would normally ask peoples names, but I never remember so it doesnt matter. Ill just say- it does matter and the trip participants were very nice people who shared their names easily. During the trip, Nick or Nate, some 22 year old guide was yelling at us the entire time, telling us to go as fast as we can because he just wanted to go home. Marren actually told me at one point- stop taking pictures of the buildings, you can come back for the architectural tour. Ummm...no thanks Marren! She finished out the trip by saying - Im sure youre not coming back so dont tell anyone how bad it was. Well Marren, take it from a 16 year whitewater river guide with over 15,000 river miles - we wont be back and we will tell everyone how horrible your guiding is! Go to URBAN KAYAKS, their gear looked better, the guides we encountered were very nice and their location is super close to the fireworks so its a much more manageable time frame for the trip.So shout out to Urban Kayaks for being the obvious choice amongst the competition!

Had a great time kayaking down to the loop. Fun group overall.

Did the night kayak tour and it was AMAZING! It was perfect date night or fun activity to do with family and friends:) staff was so kind m, helpful and up beat! Be prepared for a small work out. Views at night are unbeatable

Okay for college students seasonal job, dont give your time card. They hide it pretty much. I enjoyed the kayaking at least I got that. Dont expect to get paid for training nope.

Kayak Chicago is the best! I felt like all of the guides were my long time friends as we were paddling through the Canyon of Glass and Steel in Downtown Chicago. The river location has free parking, lockers to store any gear, and everyone is just so nice. Definitely the best way to see the city and Kayak Chicago is definitely the company to go with!

Dave opened just for me, even though they had closed for the season two days earlier. I brought along my full winter paddling gear incl. drysuit and rented sea kayak, neoprene sprayskirt, PFD, paddle float, and pump. The tour to Downtown was absolutely rewarding. Highly recommended.

This was the best day ever!!! So much fun, amazing prices & some really cool people! I would 100% recommend. The views are unreal.

The tour was pretty good. The guides are knowledgeable and helpful. The river itself is pretty disgusting and polluted but theres not much they can do about that. Its a shame so many people treat that river as a dumpster. The fireworks show was pretty good and a break after paddling for an hour and half. We got a groupon and it was a pretty sweet deal. Lots of get views of the city from the water.

Loved how friendly the staff was, enjoyed the great weather on the River

Never kayak before great experience

25 dollars an hour was great and it was a blast. Still enjoy the experience.Im from a nursing home recovering from my mental illnessI have autism and trying to get over with covid 19.

The employees are super friendly and did a great job going over instructions and registration. BUT we went to the Magnolia location. The river smells and it’s mainly industrial buildings until you get a little further down. I’d try a different location.

Amazing experiance will do it again. Book the evening tour. The guides were amazing, interactive and helpfull.

I had a wonderful experience here, my party and I were helped by Devin and it was clear he truly cared about everything. He was very thorough, patient, and knowledgeable.Prior to docking upon for our return of a 4 hour paddle, I asked a member of my party to hop up onto the dock and take some pictures of me in the kayak out in the water, Devin promptly suggested that I get out of the double and take a single out for my photos. This definitely was very kind.In addition to that, when Devin realized that we had gone out for 4 hours, he was excited that we had gone for a long paddle, he said it was his favorite when people did this! Will definitely be back!!

Great experience. Awesome view of the architecture of Chicago.

Great tour guides. Tons of fun and great exercise

We had such a great time with Kayak Chicago! We hopped on the sunset tour and were able to see how beautiful the city was from the water. We stayed together as a group, and even though we were a super large group, we didnt feel crowded or herded together and we had a lot of time to paddle at whatever pace we liked, relaxing and enjoying the views. Every employee was super kind and helpful and the rates were much cheaper than I expected. We had an amazing experience and will definitely be back!!

Wonderful moonlight kayak - great date night, totally safe and fun. Got to catch Art on the Mart, too!

This was a absolutely fabulous time, I enjoyed this tremendously! The people were amazing and super helpful!

Had a great experience at Kayak Chicago. Very friendly and knowledgeable staff. Relaxed digs. Free parking. Complimentary mineral water and Clif bars an unexpected bonus. Much more relaxing kayaking on the north branch of the river around Goose Island than downtown. Definitely recommend!

Great company. We did the 3-hours architecture tour and the time literally just flew by. It was really fun and the guide was awesome. Will definitely go back for the rental.

Breathing views, awesome history and a good workout!

Did the learn to kayak class today and they did a great job! Instructor was super friendly and informative, showed us everything we needed to know to feel comfortable getting in the river. Spent about an hour on land then an hour kayaking. All the gear was in great shape. Highly recommend for a first timer looking to learn. I’ll be back for the sunset tour.

Super nice experience and nice staff!

Unforgettable experience!

Fun times, but not very organized and they dont do a good job keeping track of how long you are on the water for their pricing

The staff was friendly and the rate was good, but my car got broken into. It was locked and I left my keys at the office. Nothing important was stolen, but they did take backpacks full of clothes. Really sucks, but the kayaks themselves were good quality and overall our trip was great. But wish there were cameras or more security in the area.

A waste of money and time!Worst customer service ever, got angry because of his lack of skill in service…. Not worth 40$. WASTE OF MONEY!

Outstanding business, great guys.

We had a great time. Staff was very friendly and helpful. Everything was cleaned and sanitized while still maintaining their laid back vibe! Would recommend a longer tour or rental to have time to explore the river and city!

Took a night tour which was fun, staff was super friendly everything with the business was great. Just wish they had a private parking or something.. my car got broken into and when we notified the staff member they said yea sorry its happened before which I wish they would of let us know in the beginning I guess then we could of made sure everything important was with us. So if you plan on going take an uber.ETA: so I bumped it down to 2 stars because the owner decided to reply to my review with its happened to me okay great so you know the feeling of being violated with your private property. My shoes and wallets were stolen, and from the other review where he offered the other persons car was also broken into a free kayak ride and gave the same b.s excuse.. instead of getting cameras or security they choose to do nothing. The staff never once told us anything about the vandalism that happens, like I said it was a night ride, so guess what else they dont have lights so what guess what signs i didnt see, yea the one they claim to have. Im sticking with 2 stars because the staff was great the one female guiding us was fun and cracked jokes with us i have nothing but love for her. But because of this careless owner I will be taking my money elsewhere

This is a fun experience. Just watch out for the boats and dont fall in.

Such a fun experience! I did the city lights trip and the views were insanely beautiful. the tour guides were all chill and it was overall an amazing night. perfect for a date!

Very beautiful location close to the river. Staff knowledgeable and friendly. Really a over all great time

1000/10 would recommend.You guys are amazing! They were extremely kind and went above and beyond our wildest dreams. Incredible service.

This was an amazing way to experience downtown Chicago. Highly recommend the city lights tour ....guides were great and it felt safe the entire time. Would do it again in a minute!!

One of the best things you can do in Chicago.The city is incredibly beautiful during the sunset paddle. You spend the first part in a calm part of the river and get to just enjoy the water; once you make it into downtown you get fantastic scenery with the sunset/city lights.Our guide, David, was extremely fun to hang out with! He was very professional and gave us some Chicago history lessons along the way. We will definitely be back!

I had a AWESOME time but feel bad because, I kept drifting from the crew and kept having to be saved at least 5x. But, Bubba and his the other tour guide made sure that although, I was behind that they didnt leave my side. I cant wait to come again and hopefully I will keep up and have Bubba again.

Booked a kayak rental for 4 pm based on price and positive reviews. Arrived a few minutes early and then stated we would have to fill out waiver and then come back in 30 minutes and we would be able to get on the water. We complied and came back at 4:30. They got us vests and oars but stated we needed to take a ‘lesson’ and then wait in another line where people had been waiting for > 30 minutes.We requested a refund which they agreed to because they were not able to honour our reservation after > 1 hour of waiting.Will not be coming back. Gave 2 stars rather than 1 because they refunded us. We will try another company next time

We just got done with the 3 hour architecture river tour and had a blast! The guides are very thorough with teaching basic strokes and safety measures. I felt totally comfortable with the pace of the tour. Zorro our tour guide was very knowledgeable and hilarious. 😂😂 These tours are for any skill level and you will see so many beautiful buildings (and boats) and you will learn so much about the city. Highly recommend.

Its fun

The sunset kayak tour was the biggest disappointment. For starters, the sun had completely set by the time we got in the water, over an hour after the time we were told to arrive. If we wanted to do a nighttime tour, we would have booked that. The only time we saw the sunset was in the parking lot waiting around for them to start the instructions, which didn’t happen until almost 40 minutes later than was specified in the email. The groups were way too large, even by pre-Covid standards, causing all the kayaks to get bunched up in the water multiple times. Additionally, the life vests we were given were soaking wet.Do yourself a favor and skip the tour, and just rent a kayak somewhere else.

Really nice staff, lots of available kayaks. Reasonably priced. Fun afternoon with friends.

Overall, It was a pretty fun and exciting experience. The staff was very friendly but once we got in the water, we began going the wrong direction and no one bothered to tell us the right way to go. The staff watched us go the wrong way and didn’t say a word. We were going down the river (still the wrong way) for a long time until we finally checked the map on our phones. We had to paddle back and wasted 2 hours. I’m quite bummed we missed the actual route :(

Instruction was great, staff was very friendly. I cannot stress enough how great the kayaking lesson was, I drove 90 minutes to take this class and I will do it again! Dave is great! Highly adaptable instructor who can explain things in a way anybody can understand. Friendly, fun and very helpful! :D

Sorry about the poor rating, its not for Kayak Chicago, but its for their route to the downtown, its far from the downtown, the route is through City river where it is heavily polluted with sewage water, its filthy and stinky. Chicago City needs to take care of these kinds of small businesses, or the citys cleanliness in general.

What an incredible experience! We kayaked at night through the city of Chicago to watch the fireworks. By the end I was too pooped to row anymore and falling behind the rest of the group, so lovely Griffin helped me out and gave me a tow! What a charming man. Thanks Griffin and everyone at Kayak Chicago! You gave me some incredible memories.

Our Guides, Mark, Mike and Vicky ROCKS!

Kayak Chicago offers a one of a kind experience in one of the coolest ways to see the city. Their friendly and experienced tour guides provided a fun and safe passage on the river through downtown and to the lake. I especially liked the starting location. Free parking and a nice distance to paddle. The other companies seemed like a shorter tour for the price. It was a unique way to see the fireworks at Navy Pier from the water and super fun. I highly recommend this tour company!

These guys do it right! Ive paddled for over 20 years on my own and Ive never come across a more professional outfit than Kayak Chicago. Their guides are ACA certified. Their equipment is in great shape. Their tours are incredibly insightful and entertaining. AND THEY TEACH YOU HOW TO KAYAK PROPERLY. So many other outfitters just give you the gear and set you out on your own. KC cares about your experience. They care about your safety and they care about the quality of service they deliver. With so much traffic on the river and the lake, its really important to know what the heck youre doing. After a tour with Kayak Chicago, youll feel confident, capable and ready for more.

Friendly and helpful service. Convenient location to downtown Chicago. Easy on-street parking. Modest fee to use the launch for your own boat ($11 per canoe/kayak).

As an older adult I was a little nervous to kayak for the first time. My daughters and I were given a 15-20 minute intro and in no time we were on our way. I especially like this location on the river as there is ample time to get comfortable with technique before meeting any river traffic. It was great fun and gave us a whole new perspective of the city. I cant wait to do it again!

This was my first time doing kayaking and turned out I was not that good at it. But the staff there were so kind and helpful, as one of them helped me so much all along the way. For beginners who would like to give it a try, you should definitely come here!!! Their staff will make you feel at ease, coaching you kindly all alobg the way and ensure your safety. I highly highly recommend!!!

What an awesome day we had! A kayak is the perfect way to experience the city. My inexperience with kayaking made me nervous at first but the quieter location let me practice before I was with the busier boat traffic. The guides were right there encouraging me on the entire paddle. A must do for anyone living in or visiting Chicago.

Great tour and the guide was very knowledgeable on the architecture!

All of the employees were extremely nice and helpful . All covid restrictions were followed . Highly recommend!!

It was super disorganized and social distancing was not enforced whatsoever. We arrived 15 minutes early and it took nearly an hour to actually get in a boat in the water. Would never recommend to anyone.

Fantastic outfit and excellent instruction and organization! Even with a large crowd... I plan on bringing my team back here the next time we’re in Chicago! It’s an amazing way to experience the night lights of Chicago! A MUST do!

Awesome experience! SO glad this is here in our city. Fun work out and easy to book.

Wonderful experience. The wind made it a little tough, but you are provided a quick briefing, some waterproof box, a kayak, and a paddle and you are sent off to go explore Chicago by water. Everybody was nice and helpful to this newbie. Will go again.

Best kayaking experience I have ever had! I have been kayaking for 10+ years and very much appreciate the courteous, knowledgeable staff that initiated my trip. I was with several others that had not kayaked before, and the instructors were extremely patient and informative when explaining the basics and the route we would be taking. We kayaked for 2 hours down the river and back, into the city amongst beautiful skyscrapers and unbelievable architecture. The river was surprising calm and we were able to navigate easily around other river traffic. If you prefer a guide in a larger group setting, they provide an architectural and fireworks tour as well. In addition, I have rented paddle boards with my family on the lake, which is another one of my favorite things to do while in Chicago. Breathtaking views of the city from Montrose beach. I highly recommend Kayak Chicago if seeking out something new to do while in the city!

Did the night kayak tour tonight had an awesome time! The view of the city from the river was gorgeous! Our instructors hootie and Vicky were so cool and helpful.(even got to snack on some gummy worms together) Would highly recommend giving this tour a try!!!!

Had an amazing time today, the staff is one of a kind! Just far enough from the loop to make for a perfect hour and a half paddle. My 3yo son loved the dog there. They seemed to have all the time in the world, and didnt rush a thing. It was my first time being on the river in a two person kayak. We made it down to around the lake Street bridge and back would highly recommend starting here if youre looking for a place to start!

We did the 8-11 night tour. Traveling by the city lights was amazing.

I worked across from this place for years and never followed through on patronizing until this past Sunday. This was a great experience. Shout out to Cory, Bubba and Hootie for a great experience. The weather was great, the scenery was great and our guides were perfect. We did the sunset tour. If you are going with a significant other please don’t do doubles if you really love them, listen to the guides and get your own kayak. Highly recommend this place.

Fantastic fun. Relaxing and entertaining.

You gotta try this !! We had an awesome experience, our guide was so patient with us and knowledgeable about the citys rich history. I highly recommend their architecture tour. To kayak through the city of Chicago is an experience youll always remember! It drizzled the entire time we were on water but I still wouldnt trade it for anything.

A great experience. Scott our guide was a top man, with some great facts and really interesting. A great way to see the city

Guides were awesome, friendly, and helpful.Recommend you wear water friendly clothes and bring a towel because you will get wet. Its unlikely you will flip or anything but you will surely get wet from paddle splash or other peoples paddles.Its a good tour on a busy stretch of river.

I took Architectural History Tour on cold and rainy Saturday. My tour guide David was very knowledgeable on the local buildings and stories behind them. I recommend this kayaking tour to anyone who is little adventurous and wants to enjoy the different perspective of Chicago.

10/10 would recommend. Had an amazing tour with enthusiastic and well-trained employees. I made an error when booking my kayaking tour and Dave was extremely understanding and allowed me to re-book my reservation hassle-free. Staff was incredible and highly recommend!