Minneapolis was the second stop of our Mother-Daughter Midwest road trip. Since we only had one weekend in Minneapolis, I wanted to make sure I have found fun things to do in Minneapolis with children.
Since Minnesota is the country of 10,000 lakes and we visit in summer, I wanted to spend time outside (when it was not frozen) and also hit some of the protruding facts that I knew it would be a great success with my adolescent.
Before leaving, I questioned a friend who grew up near Minneapolis on what we should do during our visit. Of course, she gave me a list longer than I could enter our two days, but I did our best.
Weekend in the minneapolis route
If you plan a weekend in Minneapolis with your family, let it be your guide! Start by exploring some of the main minneapolis sites along the river.
Day 1: morning in Mill City
Start your day with a visit to Mill City Museum. (Note: closed on Monday-Merdi). Built in the ruins of what was the largest flour mill in the world, the museum presents hand exhibitions on the history of Minneapolis.
When you finish at the museum, stroll next to the GUTHRIE THEATER. The building itself stands out with its modern design and bright blue color.
The building is open to the public and you can take the escalator to the fourth floor to go out on the Endless bridge. This balcony advances on the building side, offering a breathtaking view of the river, the horizon line and the bridges. While you are there, stop at the box office to see if you can get last minute exhibition tickets during your stay.
Then go down Mill Ruins Park For excellent views of the most famous monuments of Minneapolis, the Stone arc bridge. The bridge is currently under construction, so you cannot walk around, but you can always have a magnificent view of the piles and gold medal flour panels, explaining why it is called Mill City.
Now you will be hungry, so it’s time to cross the river and see the view of the horizon line on the other side. Consider lunch at Aster Cafe Near the electric water park. Located in a beautiful street brushstore street which is parallel to the river, Aster has a large outdoor patio, which is perfect for summer lunch and brunch with an assortment of sandwiches, flat breads and salads. Hat tip at the strawberry quinoa salad!
After lunch, you can then visit Water park. If you go out in the park, you can have a magnificent view of the falls of St. Anthony, as well as the stone bridge.
Day 1: Outdoor dishes in the afternoon
Once you have finished exploring the edge of the river, head to the city center Walker Art Center. This museum of contemporary art is the only art museum I have met which also offers a mini-golf. It’s true, their Skyline mini golf course Offer 10 holes designed by artists for the Minneapolis horizon line.
Even if you don’t want to play mini golf or explore the interior of the museum, the Walker Art Center Sculpture are very fun for children and Instagram fodder for adolescents. Here you will find famous sculptures such as the cherry on the spoon and the giant blue rooster.
When you are ready to get out of the city, plan half a day in Minnehaha park. You can rent bikes or a Surrey the size of a family, or walk along the path that leads from Minnehaha Falls to Fort Snelling State Park.
Bring your water shoes if you can because if it is hot, you will enjoy refresh yourself in the paddles, but the rocks are sharp and you will appreciate it much more with a little protection.
If you are hungry for a dinner early, you can try the sea salt restaurant in the main pavilion of the park, be prepared for a long line.
If you want more fun by the water, you can also visit Bde Maka Ska (formerly known as Lake Calhoun), which is the largest lake in Minneapolis.
Day 2: morning in Prince Paisley Park
Prince Paisley Park Can appeal to adolescents a little more to children, but it is worth the value of real music lovers and prince fans. Paisley Park looks like a suburban office park from the outside, but inside, she houses prince’s recording studios, offices, the sound scene, and even where he lived for a while (you do not see his accommodation.) There is a large part as he was died to be presented.
I really discussed it to add it or not to our itinerary, because we jumped the Graceland of Elvis when we were in Memphis last year, but I heard so many good things that we decided to do a tour. Simply check the age minimums for the visit you are selecting (the standard is 7, but other visits have higher age minimums.)
A few things to keep in mind. First, visits are by appointment only. You have to buy tickets in advance for a special time slot (Note: we have been organized for a VIP visit.) You must also arrive early to register, so give yourself a lot of time. The last thing is that no phone or camera is authorized. The phones can be left in the car where they will give you a locked pocket to put your phone which will be unlocked at the end of the tour.
The VIP Tour is two hours, so a little long for children, but it brings you to additional rooms and studios. Given the cost and time, unless you are a big fan, I would opt for the general admission visit. You can always see the sound scene, which for me was one of the best parts of the tour.
I hope that the tour speaks more about her life and her history, but she has only really focused on her musical career and has touched a little controversy on the change of her name and motivation behind. I don’t know if the family is just very private or too early, but I felt like a piece in history was missing. A creative genius like Prince has demons or motivations leading him and I would have loved the best understand after our visit.
Although I can go in both directions to visit Paisley Park, according to what you like Prince, I went out and I immediately downloaded three albums and listened to his music constantly for the next few days. Hannah kept saying: “I didn’t know it was a prince song.”
Day 2: afternoon at the Mall of America
THE Mall of America is not only the largest shopping center in America, it is one of the few to have an amusement park inside the shopping center. What distinguishes the America shopping center is not only the stores (although they have great), but really its entertainment offers. Families can actually make an entire weekend to visit the shopping center with attached hotel packages.
But although a shopping center is a shopping center, it is always worth visiting this local attraction for funny inner pleasure. The list of entertainment options is growing again and again. First there is the amusement park of the universe of Nickelodeon, then the aquarium of marine life, the experience of Crayola and much more. You can play mini-golf, climb through an adventure course, find your way out of a mirror labyrinth, and the list continues.
Our favorite is the family adapted to the family “Flyover America.“If you’ve even climbed from Soarin to Disney, you know exactly what this driving is. When we visited, you can really choose between Flyover America or Flyover Canada. It is a 3D experience where you curl and you feel the wind against your face and spots or speech, everything that is in silent I have to wait in a long line!
When you have finished shopping and playing, there are tons of food options, including restaurants seated like Cadillac Ranch, Bubba Gump Shrimp and Margaritaville, as well as many fast service options. You can spend a few days here, but at a minimum plan for three to four hours.
Where to stay in Minneapolis
Publisher’s note: our stay was organized by the Westin Edina Galleria and Meet Minneapolis. We have received additional accommodation and attraction tickets. All opinions are mine. This message contains affiliation links. If you click on a link and make a purchase, I can receive a small commission.
Although there are many options to stay in the city center, when you visit Minneapolis, you will probably want to explore twin and surrounding cities. Therefore, we found it practical to stay just outside the city in the upscale Edina district.
THE Westin Edina Galleria is located right next to the luxury shopping center Galleria Edina. It is a few minutes from the highway and located in the center of all the attractions we have visited. In addition, there are restaurants and shops a few steps away. Perfect for adolescents (and mothers) who like to shop!
We were hosted at the Westin Edina Galleria and they generously put us in a luxurious suite of a room. It was such a welcome surprise to enter after a long day of travel and a beautiful indulgence before more rustic accommodation later in the trip.
Upon entering the separate room, we collapsed on the comfortable King bed and we had no trouble sleeping that night (especially thanks to the lavender spray left by our pillows.) I want us to stay more than two nights to better use the large cupboard.
Of course, Hannah was delighted to find another soaking bathtub (because she loved her bath so much at Kimpton in Milwaukee. We had so much conviviality during our two -week trip that it was a treat to have a space for the size of a beautiful Manhattan apartment to spread.
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Tamara Gruber is the founder and publisher of We3Travel. Former director of marketing and travel advisor, Tamara is a award -winning and expert travel writer recognized in family trips. Tamara is a member of Satw, Natja, Ifwtwa and Adventure Travel Trade Association, and headquarters to the Board of Directors of the Family Travel Association. She is also the publisher of YourTimeTofly.com and the co-host of the Mavens Travel Podcast Podcast.