Monroe Harbor, the Chicago Harbors

Good launch service but prepare to provide your own mooring pendant if you pick up a mooring there.

This 5 star review has nothing to do with the facilities, it has everything to do with a couple of Suntex/Westrec employees who worked very hard to correct a problem that was not of their making. I had a reserved a mooring ball for Air & Water show weekend and confirmed the reservation the Wednesday before. On Friday when I arrived at my assigned ball there was a boat on it. My heart sank and my plans for the weekend with family coming in from both coasts were sinking fast. I called the Harbor Master’s office and spoke to Ose. After some back and forth she directed me to the touch and go area they use by the tender service docks. (Side note, DO NOT try to moor there without several large fenders and someone on board watching the wall at all times). When I walked into the Harbor Master’s office Ose was on the phone trying to figure out what went wrong and how to fix things for me while being unable to reach anyone at the administrative office. She finally concluded that they ball must have been leased to the boat currently on the ball and that the Dockwa reservation system and the mooring leasing system don’t communicate very well. So, I was stuck, no other balls available with sufficient swing room. Ose then started calling the other Harbor Masters and had some luck with “Tiny” at DuSable. “Tiny” thought he had a cancellation and sent someone out to verify that the dock was open. It was! Weekend plans back on! My thanks to Ose and “Tiny” who really do know the meaning of customer service. Now, if only the weather gods had been as kind.

We had a wonderful stay. Thank you for your help and flexibility.

The location of the mooring balls in proximity to Chicago was great! The balls are difficult to grab on to as they are super heavy and do not have a pigtail to grab on to; just the ring itself. The tender service was amazing and usually very prompt to pick us up.

Tenders were awesome!

The location was fantastic and the tender service was great. Anchorage was very rough in a east southeast wind and it was tough staying on the boat the second night.

The whole experience was really nice. Friendly, helpful staff and I never had to wait for a tender

Calm water on Lake Michigan, however the mooring field was very uncomfortable. Lots of wake from the water taxis. We left early in the morning, to get away from the rocking.

Beautiful harbor and great tender operators.

It was very easy to find our mooring ball and once secured we had a million dollar view of the Chicago Skyline at a very reasonable rate. The tender service is excellent, all of the staff is friendly, helpful, and courteous. We enjoyed 4 nights in the harbor which included Saturday night fireworks at Navy Pier which we could see perfectly from our boat.

Great view of the lighted boat parade from our mooring assignment.

A good service with tenders.

Clean comfortable and a great view, tender service is good. Short walk to the most exclusive restaurants you can think of.

Overall good marina

Monroe Harbor has the best view in Chicago. And because it's all mooring, you are dependent on the tender for transportation to and from your boat. The Tender drivers are THE BEST! The tender ride is an awesome opportunity get to know your harbor neighbors and have an authentic Chicago boating experience.

We loved the mooring and tender service. Great views of the city. Staff all super helpful.

The moorings at Monroe Harbor are very very rocky. However, the views and the location are amazing. Everyone should try it at least once.

Awful!! Rough bounce up and down!!

There was much good in our stay: easy, less expensive access to downtown Chicago, free tender service, beautiful views, kind and responsive workers. However the bad rocking of the boat beginning in the middle of the night overshadowed all the good. We had checked the weather to make sure we were not there on a windy night, but the consistent 7 knot wind from south and east created rollers that ricocheted around the harbor. It was unsafe to move around the boat. Things fell over that usually don’t move even in rough seas or big wakes. We would not consider staying there again.

5 stars for the tender captains and marina staff. Zero stars for the incessant traffic circling and blasting music late into the night (let alone the swarm of PWCs weaving in-and-out at 1a.m. yesterday).

Strategically located in the heart of Chicago! We were on a mooring, the tender service staff was great! Only hiccup was the ladies shower had a broken shower head…it was rough for a trawler but it’s the boat, not the marina.

Friendly people, great tender service, well maintained mooring ball . Only reason I give it less than 5 stars is we rocked a lot the first night. Second night was rolly and the 3rd night the harbor was like glass. No fault of the marina's - just not completely protected.

Excellent facility and customer service!

Quick tenders,we enjoyed our stay.

We were very disappointed in our Mooring location. There were several mooring locations that were empty and very near the parade path. Additionally, we we're surprised and confused to find our mooring ball was untethered as we were unassisted by any of the Monroe harbor team.