Travel in Twin Cities
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The Twin Cities area of Minnesota consists of Minneapolis, Saint Paul, and their associated suburbs, although the boundaries of the "seven county mosquito control district" are rather vague. Most of the population of Minnesota lives and works in this area.
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Cities
Other destinations
- Afton
- Fort Snelling
- Lake Maria
- Minnesota Valley Rec. Area
- William O'Brien
Understand
Located where the Minnesota River joins the Mississippi, the Twin Cities grew in the 1800s from its location at the intersection of two major rivers, the Minnesota and the Mississippi, and rail lines. For a period the point furthest downstream that the Mississippi could be bridged was located in the area, if only due to the fortuitous island placement.
Get in
By car
Two Interstate Highways, I-94 and I-35 travel through the Twin Cities travelling east/west and north/south respectively. Several other national and state highways also travel through the area.
By plane
- Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport, MSP.
By train
- Amtrak, 1 (http://www.amtrak.com/). There is a station in Saint Paul, Midway station. The 16 busline comes within a block. Daily service via the "Empire Builder", trains 8/28 and 7/27, terminating at Chicago and Seattle or Portland.
By bus
- Greyhound, 2 (http://www.greyhound.com/).
Get around
Minneapolis, Saint Paul, and some of the closer suburbs are all served by buses run by the Metro Transit (http://www.metrotransit.org/) (Metro Transit). There are also other transit authorities serving the outlying suburbs.
A Light Rail (http://www.metrotransit.org/rail/index.asp) line runs from Downtown to the airport and Mall of America.
The downtowns of Minneapolis and Saint Paul both have extensive skyway systems for walking from building to building without having to go outside, allowing people to avoid the cold winter weather. There are also tunnel systems connecting several buildings on the University of Minnesota Minneapolis campus.
The Twin Cities is relatively bike-friendly, with a high number of bike commuters, especially in the summer. There are some bike paths in both cities, especially around the University of Minnesota. Both buses and light-rail are equipped with bike racks.
See
- Science Museum of Minnesota, 120 W. Kellogg Blvd, St. Paul, 651 221-9444, 3 (http://www.smm.org/). Open 9:30am-5pm M-W, 9:30am-9pm Th-Sa, 10am-5pm Sun. The Science Museum overlooks the Mississippi River and has a permanent exhibit devoted to the river. The museum also has a dinosaur fossils gallery and an experiment gallery with various hands-on activities. The collections gallery includes several quack medical devices from the now-defunct Museum of Questionable Medical Devices.
- Minnesota Children's Museum, 10 W Seventh St at Wabasha, St. Paul, 4 (http://www.mcm.org/). T-Th, Sat-Sun 9pm - 5pm, F 9 pm - 8 pm; Mon (Memorial Day - Labor Day) 9 am - 5 pm. Consistently rated among the top ten children's museums in the US, with lots of hands-on activities.
- Minneapolis Sculpture Garden, Walker Art Center, 725 Vineland Place, 5 (http://www.walkerart.org/). Open daily, 6am-Midnight. The Sculpture garden is an outdoor exhibition of sculptures from many different different artists, including the famous Spoonbridge and Cherry.
- Mill City Museum, 704 S. 2nd St, Minneapolis, 6 (http://www.millcitymuseum.org/). Open 10AM-5PM Tu-Sa, Noon-5PM Su. This interactive museum, an arm of the Minnesota Historical Society, recounts Minneapolis' history as the flour milling capital of the world. The eight-story "Flour Tower" ride describes life in the mills, and leads to an observation deck atop the Washburn A Mill, formerly the world's largest flour mill.
- Minneapolis Institute of Arts, 2400 Third Ave S, 7 (http://www.artsMIA.org/). Tu-Sa 10AM-5PM, Su 11AM-5PM. "The Minneapolis Institute of Arts houses more than 100,000 objects from diverse cultural traditions spanning 5,000 years of world history." General admission is free.
Do
Being located in the Land of 10,000 Lakes, the Twin Cities offers many aquatic activities. Many lakes offer swimming beaches with on-duty lifeguards. Fishing and ice fishing are popular activities, but be sure to purchase a fishing license first. Licenses are, unfortunately, rather expensive if you live outside the state, but can be purchased at most sporting goods stores, bait shops, and even some gas stations. Short-term licenses are also available.
- Como Park, 1294 Lexington Parkway N, St. Paul. A 100-acre park with a huge glass-domed Conservatory built in 1913, a lake with paddle boats, small but world-class free zoo, an amusement park with rides, and the beloved Cafesjian's Carousel (http://www.ourfaircarousel.org/).
- Minnesota Zoo, 8 (http://www.mnzoo.com/), in Apple Valley, MN about 10 miles south of the Mall of America, is Minnesota's large world-class zoo. Open every day but Thanksgiving and 12/25, from 9am - 4pm or 6pm seasonally, $7 - $12 admission (plus $5 for IMAX theatre); parking $5 (cars) - 15 (motorcoaches).
- ValleyFair amusement park. Most common amusement park fare is available, including thrill rides, kiddie rides, and a waterpark. The roller coster called "Wild Thing" is the most exciting and thrilling ride in this amusument park. Also, there is a place where you can dress up in old-fasioned clothes and take neat pictures, which is very fun and not so expensive.
Buy
The Twin Cities have many shopping centers, the list gently spoofed by radio humorist Garrison Keillor in his list of imaginary malls ending in "-dale":
- Brookdale, Brooklyn Center.
- Rosedale, Roseville.
- Ridgedale, Minnetonka.
- Southdale, Edina, 9 (http://southdale.com/go/history.cfm). Considered the first modern shopping mall, is the first fully-enclosed shopping mall.
- Mall of America, Bloomington, the largest shopping center in the United States, second largest in the world. Too huge to see in one visit. Take the kids to "Camp Snoopy" or visit the world's largest underground aquarium. A definite destination for the international tourist bent on shopping.
If you prefer a more old-school shopping experience, try:
- Nicollet Mall pedestrian street, downtown Minneapolis
- Uptown area, centered on Hennepin Avenue and Lake Street, south of downtown Minneapolis and extending East to the Lake/Lyndale avant-garde theatre district.
- Grand Avenue, 10 (http://www.grandave.com/), west of downtown Saint Paul between two of the liberal arts colleges that sprinkle the region. Parking on Grand can be difficult during peak times; try Summit Avenue, one block north.
- Midway Shopping Mall, University Avenue and Snelling, St. Paul.
Eat
Also see Minneapolis and St. Paul.
- Famous Dave's Barbeque & Blues, 3001 Hennepin Ave S, Minneapolis, 612 822-9900, 11 (http://www.famousdaves.com/). There are other locations, but this is the place to come for live music. Great BBQ and great music, every day. Noisy atmosphere, even when the bands aren't playing. Family-friendly. $5-$19.
- Fasika Restaurant, 510 Snelling Ave N, Saint Paul, 651 646-4747. Located one block north of Snelling Ave and University Ave. This is an Ethiopian wonder. You can get spicy lentil or lamb dishes served without utensils on top of a very edible sponge bread. A sure destination for an adventurous, spice-friendly diner. It is open late. $6-$11.
- Black Sea Restaurant, 737 Snelling Ave N, Saint Paul, 651 917-8832 for cheap Turkish food. It's about three blocks north nearby Hamline University. Most of the non-combination entrees, $6-$11.
- Khyber Pass, 1571 Grand Ave, St. Paul, 651 690-0505.
- Green Mill Restaurant & Bar, 57 South Hamline (at Grand Avenue), Saint Paul, 651 698-0353, 12 (http://www.greenmill.com/). There are many locations in the Twin Cities as well as some throughout Minnesota and surrounding states but it all started here. They tout themselves as "Minnesota's most awarded pizza". Order your deep-dish Il Primo with the Walleye Strips and a pitcher of fresh beer right when you sit down because the pizza take 30+ minutes to cook. Family-friendly. $7-$17 per entree.
Eating vegetarian
The Twin Cities is extremely vegetarian-friendly, with a large concentration of vegetarian and vegan-friendly restaurants. The website http://www.vegguide.org features reviews of the many options available. There are also a number of natural food coops. For example in Minneapolis alone, one can choose to shop at the North Country, Linden Hills, Eastside, Wedge, or Seward Coops. There are also options for raw foodies, including Ecopolitan Restaurant. Last, there are a number of worker-owned collectives, including the Hard Times Cafe, Seward Cafe, and Spokes Pizza Collective, that serve mostly organic, vegan food.
Drink
- Great Waters Brewing, 426 Saint Peter St, downtown Saint Paul, 651 224-2739, 13 (http://greatwatersbc.com/). Ten beers (some rotate) brewed on site. Good variety and overall quality.
- Green Mill Brewery, 57 South Hamline (at Grand Avenue), Saint Paul, 651 698-0353, 14 (http://www.greenmill.com/). Fair but fresh beers.
Sleep
Contact
Read
- Minneapolis Star Tribune. Also known as the STrib', it is Minneapolis' daily paper.
- St. Paul Pioneer Press. Perhaps not as widely read as the Strib, but has a larger Pulitzer Prize-to-staff ratio keeping it well in place as a solid regional and world news source.
- City Pages, 15 (http://www.citypages.com/). The local metro weekly, with theatre and music listings, and an annual "best of" issue well worth checking out.
- Pulse of the Twin Cities is the local alternative weekly.
Stay safe
Minneapolis' crime rate is below average for American cities, and it's a pretty safe place. Both the downtown and the "Uptown" area are busy late into the night. Minneapolis has some neighborhoods that are considered more dangerous, but compared to larger cities, there are no areas of the city that are truly decayed.
The Minneapolis police force has a history of poor relations with members of the city's black and native american residents, and travelers from these ethnic groups should be aware of this.
Saint Paul's crime rate is higher, and the downtown, while not necessarily at all dangerous, is relatively empty at night, except in a limited area near a few restaurants, the Xcel Energy Center (an arena), and the Ordway Center (a performance venue).
Get out
External links