This is hands down number one must do experience when visiting Chicago. Adventure, physical exertion, architecture and sheer joy are the results of booking a kayak here. The staff are friendly and professional, the whole booking process seamless, the prices are fair, and the experience of kayaking down the canyon of skyscrapers and under the city’s bridges is genuinely overwhelming and beyond thrilling. You can rent small lockers to store your stuff so if you want to bring a change of clothes that’s easy, and a small changing room to boot! Do yourself a favor and book the earliest possible rental time in the morning, you will have the whole river to yourself and the feeling is simply magical.

I did a sunset kayak tour of the Chicago River just before they closed for the season, and it was fantastic! The guides are friendly and knowledgeable, and give you a paddling primer before you head out. Lockers and restrooms are available, too. I highly recommend this tour!

Urban Kayak along the lakefront it's the best, very clean Kayak , great staff. The guy that helped me was awesome the young ladies. The video is great, but I have one small recommendation, that the staff should point out on the map the perimeter of where you can kayak . Put a sticker says you are here. And show people I did it but didn't realize I can do more until I got back and saw the map. Other than that, great experience. 5 stars without a doubt.

We had a great experience. Staff was helpful and relaxed. We watched a short and easy to follow safety video and we were off.

One of the best tours I’ve experienced! We were a group of about 20 in both single and tandem kayaks. The guide was super knowledgeable and we also had 2 “helpers” to guide the group down the river. I felt extremely safe and would definitely do this again next time I’m in Chicago… maybe the night tour!

One of the best experience i had this summer. I did the bookings online and visited the location with the booking reference number. Bondie was extremely helpful to take care of us and guide us throughout the checkin process. With a brief safty demo and few practice strokes , Sid (Dad) helped us navigate safely into the water with all the boat traffic. We enjoyed it so much and Sid took photos of us in the river and made is so enjoyable. The weather was nice and so is the Urban Kayak ground team. I truly loved the experience. I am already planning to do it again and again.

10/10 recommend. We did the firework tour. Tour guides were very friendly and made sure we were safe. The city at the night is beautiful definitely something to experience. Will be back for the sunset tour for sure. So fun

Very nice experience as this is the first time I did kayaking. The instructor was so clear and encouraging. I am thankful for him and for the whole service

We had the best time ever!! We are a group of 6 and we had a blast. The staff were so helpful and made the process a breeze while also making us all feel very comfortable in the kayaks. Highly recommend to anyone who wants a laugh🤩

Had a great time on the Twilight Paddle! Quick check-in process (you can fill out the waiver ahead of time), good safety tips for beginners on the river — we were on the water within 20 minutes of the time. Matt and Sasha were awesome guides and took our pictures on the water. Highly recommend!

We loved the historic tour! This was my first time on a kayak and urban Kayaks made it fun and easy. After checking in at the kiosk, there was a quick training where our tour guides went over the basics. Once I got on the water everything they said made sense. While on our tour, the guides shared some historical facts while making the tour fun, safe and enjoyable. Seeing Chicago from this angle is a must!

We had the best time! After checking in, a tout guide will do a quick tutorial, just to make sure you have the basic skills on the water. My wife and I rowed in a tandem kayak, which was perfect, so we could be together and also boost her confidence in the water. We signed up for the sunset tour, so we were able to be on the water at golden hour and then see the beautiful city all lit up. Lastly, our tour guide was amazing. He was very knowledgeable, guided us down the river safely past the large boats, and was quite nice all while giving fun tidbits and kayaking backwards! Again, my wife and I had a magnificent time and highly recommend this adventure on the beautiful and clean Chicago River.

My best friend and I enjoyed our sunset tour on the river on Monday. It was such a breathtaking beautiful view of the city from the water. Joe and Chris were amazing guides and very informative. We learned quite a bit and felt safe in the busier parts of the river. Thanks so much!

Great experience! We did the intro paddle, and it was a lot of fun. Our guide was great - kept us safe and entertained. Great relaxing way to spend a morning in Chicago!

Everything about this was great from start to finish. All of the employees were super friendly and fun to talk with. I did the intro tour as I wanted to keep it easy since I was taking a 10 year old with me. The guide was super helpful and friendly. Luckily we just had one other couple in our group. We stayed close together and all talked to each other. Would love to do one of the longer tours next time.

My husband and I had a wonderful tour of the Chicago River today. This kayak experience was the most unique tour we have ever taken. Our tour guide Frank was very knowledgeable and kept us entertained throughout!

What to say about this except that it is fantastic! I love the simplicity of being able to just rent a kayak and check out the beautiful architecture of the city! The staff are so friendly and knowledgeable with a sense of humor; and the location is right in the heart of downtown. It's a win win. If you are new to kayaking or are nervous, this place makes sure you are prepared before giving you a kayak and sending you on your way. They have a cute video about proper rowing techniques and what you should do when kayaking on the river. I'm hooked on this company and have recommended it to many people who I encounter. It is such a cool way to experience the city with friends or solo! Give this place a shot if you are debating between the other kayaking places in the city, look no further! You won't regret it at all.

Everyone said to take an architecture cruise on the river while in Chicago, and I’m SO glad I opted for the kayak version! Honestly one of the best tours I’ve ever been on. Nate was super knowledgeable beyond what he’d been planning to talk about - he was able to rattle off facts about the random buildings I pointed out. He also had great energy, and a fun sense of humor. Highly recommend anyone who prefers activity to sitting around on a boat take advantage of this super cool way to see and learn about the city.

Great tours with enthusiastic guides. Also, just super great customer service in general. They are quick to reply to emails and are really accommodating. The first tour i did was supposed to have fireworks but the city pushed the time back last minute so we weren’t able to see the fireworks. They gave me a voucher to come back and the process of rebooking was seamless and I can’t say enough good things about the staff here! I’ve done a tour with Joe 2x now and he’s awesome. The fireworks one is super fun although the groups are so big it can be frustrating when people are constantly running in to you with their boats, so I’d be interested to see how a daytime tour is if the groups are any smaller. Such a fun place! Would recommend for both visitors and locals. I’m local to Chicago but these tours have been one of my favorite things to do when I have friend visiting from out of town! Would recommend.

Superb event! Super fun kayaking around, enjoying the sights, and loving the conversation. Joe, our guide, was super knowledgeable and shared some great information and random tidbits that were both fun and hilarious. Got to enjoy a wonderful light show before looping back to enjoy the fireworks. Always loved gazing at all the beautiful skyscrapers Thoroughly enjoyed it and highly recommended!

Absolutely love Urban Kayaks! We brought a large group of college students and had an amazing experience! The guides were great storytellers who brought the architecture AND the colorful history of the city to life in a way that felt safe and supportive every inch of the way. Unforgettable!

I had a great experience renting a single kayak here for solo paddling. Pre-booked online and showed up probably 5 minutes late. Lots of staff around, friendly and helpful. $3 locker rental is a very reasonable price for riverside in Chicago! Security video is brief and compelling -- you have to see it to know why. 5 basic rules with very clear explanation. Very nice launch set-up, super easy to get in and out of the kayak. I pre-paid for 90 minutes and actually paddled at least 20 minutes over that -- no up-charge. And the tacos next door are really good!

If you are thinking about doing any guided kayak tours you should 1000% only do it with Urban Kayaks. My husband and I had such a great time taking the Fireworks tour last night! It was the last fireworks show of the summer and the river was packed with kayaks and boats. We saw so many people from other companies groups that were left behind and had no idea what they were doing. The Urban Kayak guides were in constant communication with us and made sure our group was together despite all the stray kayakers we picked up. Our main guide, Sammy, made it fun regardless of the chaos. She is AWESOME! All of the other guides were helpful and kind. We will absolutely book with them again in the future!!!

The staff were the best! They were very patient and encouraging to my 4 step kids and helped make a fun family experience!

This was such a great experience! Had so much fun kayaking the Riverwalk with a few friends. Shout out to our amazing guide, James for making this extra fantastic. Great dude!

My sister and I went to Chicago for the first time and we HIGHLY recommend this kayak tour to see the city!! Our tour guide Nate was super funny and we even made friends with kayak tour goers like ourselves and hung out afterwards for a bite to eat. Thanks Urban Kayaks for the awesome memories!!

Historical Tour was an easy paddle and informative. Scott was an engaging guide and added lots of fun facts along the way. Maybe a few less kayakers in the group might have been better but doesn't change the 5 stars or my recommendation.

Booked a solo kayaking excursion with some hesitancy and once on the tour I realized it was an incredible decision. Matt was a super knowledgeable and helpful guide, with help from other instructors we made it all the way down the river during a beautiful sunset. This was easily the coolest thing I did during my stay in Chicago and probably in the top 5 coolest things I’ve done in my life. Can’t recommend enough.

My best experience in Chicago, I was on the Sunset Tour, I can only recommend it, you start in daylight, you finish in dark with the city lights. Our guide Joe was so much fun, you could see he loves his job and Chicago. He was well versed in the history of the architecture and added many many jokes in his anecdotes to make them extra special. Thank you guys for an amazing 2 hours!