Season Opening week - advice about travelling around?

Johnob2

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Dear All

Apologies for a self-indulgent post...

Travelling from England for my second visit to Minnesota the week of the season opener. Will have my wife, son and his girlfriend with me (son and girlfriend both in their early 20s).

Last time I visited we were pretty unadventurous in terms of site-seeing, staying mainly around the immediate Campus area. This time I have tickets for the Vikings preseason game against the Cardinals on the Saturday, the season opener against South Dakota State on Thursday evening (of course) but looking for other things to do in-between? Thinking of the State Fair? Trip to a Lake? Edging more towards outings that are pleasant/relaxing/fun rather than any high octane stuff (where they exist).

I've been on a few tourist information sites but very grateful for any advice on places we should visit and the easiest ways to get there from the Dinkytown area (I'd rather use public transport than hiring a car if possible).

Many thanks in anticipation.
 

I apologize for not giving you any advice, but I just had to say that I really love the phrase "hiring a car".
 

John, glad to hear you are coming back for a second game! I have to imagine you are Germany’s biggest gopher football fan.

Have you already booked a place to stay? If no then maybe a couple of nights Northshore of Lake Superior? And a couple of nights at the hewing hotel in Minneapolis (or someplace within walking distance of nightlife and restaurants.

If you end up staying in the twin cities the lakes in Minneapolis are really pretty and you can rent bikes or walk around them.

Food wise we have good Vietnamese, Thai and lots of good restaurants.

Maybe catch a twins game? Max Kepler from Berlin is one of the Twins best players.
 


St. Anthony Falls would be at the top of my list of casual visits, followed closely by either biking or walking around any of the nearby lakes. For a restaurant and bar hopping adventure I would say get dropped off pretty much anywhere in north loop and wander in and out of restaurants and taprooms. Stone Arch bridge is in that vicinity as are the Mill City Museum and Lock and Dam #1 on the Mississippi. Check to see if you can get into a show at First Avenue while your here, regardless of the type of music, it's almost always a good time and cost is pretty reasonable. We also have pretty good theater here and national shows tour through regularly.
 


Always enjoy a combo Foshay Tower observation deck visit (the building is historic and although it isn't considered to be extremely tall by today's standards, the observation deck is really fun, outdoors, and easy to combine with any other downtown MPLS activities. Also really enjoy what was mentioned above, St. Anthony Falls with a walk across the stone arch bridge and a potential visit to the Mill City Museum. It has a lot of great photo opportunities as well as great options for learning about the city's history.
 

Dear All

Apologies for a self-indulgent post...

Travelling from England for my second visit to Minnesota the week of the season opener. Will have my wife, son and his girlfriend with me (son and girlfriend both in their early 20s).

Last time I visited we were pretty unadventurous in terms of site-seeing, staying mainly around the immediate Campus area. This time I have tickets for the Vikings preseason game against the Cardinals on the Saturday, the season opener against South Dakota State on Thursday evening (of course) but looking for other things to do in-between? Thinking of the State Fair? Trip to a Lake? Edging more towards outings that are pleasant/relaxing/fun rather than any high octane stuff (where they exist).

I've been on a few tourist information sites but very grateful for any advice on places we should visit and the easiest ways to get there from the Dinkytown area (I'd rather use public transport than hiring a car if possible).

Many thanks in anticipation.

Apologies accepted.
 

I think it would be odd for you to be in town during the State Fair and not take advantage of the over-priced, over-commercialized, extremely expensive, food festival.

It's really your best opportunity to see Minnesotans at the worst. Overweight people just stuffing food in their faces, spilling stuff all over their shirts, using their hands as napkins, utilizing bathrooms with no doors on it while walking over animal feces on over-crowded streets.
It's really quite a spectacle watching people buy buckets of chocolate chip cookies at 3x the rate of what a chocolate chip cookies usually costs only for them to eat the WHOLE DAMN BUCKET and buy more to eat on their traffic-jammed ride home.

It's something that can only be seen 12 days a year and it's fabulous to see the greatest display of digestive gluttony one can set their eyes upon.

Where else can you see someone eat a whole meal of cookies with a dessert of deep fried french fries and cheese curds.
The only fortunate thing is the fair has re-labeled the Empire Commons / Dairy Building ever 7 years just to confuse many of the fair-goers from digesting a 3,000 calorie malt after they've consumed their various deep fried artery-cloggers.
If you go, keep your cellphone handy with 9-1- already dialed to save the next person who dies of heat related heart issues as they lodge another foot long hot dog down their throats.
 
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I too am NOT a State Fair fan but I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to someone visiting, or even bring someone there from out of town if I was hosting them. As an out of town visitor, it will be easy to get to, centrally located, and it could easily suck up the better part of a day. Some great food, as stated a lot of unhealthy food, and literally the best people watching opportunity on the planet. Someone within my family drags me there about every 5 years or so and every time I go I am happy I did although I have no desire to go again the next year. Just look it up on google and look at photos of it to get a feel for its size. It is massive and one of the best/biggest annual festivals in the country.
 



John, glad to hear you are coming back for a second game! I have to imagine you are Germany’s biggest gopher football fan.

Have you already booked a place to stay? If no then maybe a couple of nights Northshore of Lake Superior? And a couple of nights at the hewing hotel in Minneapolis (or someplace within walking distance of nightlife and restaurants.

If you end up staying in the twin cities the lakes in Minneapolis are really pretty and you can rent bikes or walk around them.

Food wise we have good Vietnamese, Thai and lots of good restaurants.

Maybe catch a twins game? Max Kepler from Berlin is one of the Twins best players.

You're really going strong with the Germany welcoming. But our Mate Johnob2 is from England. Those are different European countries, similar to how apparently North Dakota is a different state from South Dakota, as for some reason us American's need two Dakota's. :cool:

Go English Gopher Fans!!
 

Dear All

Apologies for a self-indulgent post...

Travelling from England for my second visit to Minnesota the week of the season opener. Will have my wife, son and his girlfriend with me (son and girlfriend both in their early 20s).

Last time I visited we were pretty unadventurous in terms of site-seeing, staying mainly around the immediate Campus area. This time I have tickets for the Vikings preseason game against the Cardinals on the Saturday, the season opener against South Dakota State on Thursday evening (of course) but looking for other things to do in-between? Thinking of the State Fair? Trip to a Lake? Edging more towards outings that are pleasant/relaxing/fun rather than any high octane stuff (where they exist).

I've been on a few tourist information sites but very grateful for any advice on places we should visit and the easiest ways to get there from the Dinkytown area (I'd rather use public transport than hiring a car if possible).

Many thanks in anticipation.

I think the Minnesota State Fair is a must-do if you're in town. It's the 2nd largest state fair in the country (amazing considering our population is nowhere near 2nd in the country). Just be prepared for crowds and not-cheap food prices. There's tons to see at the fair though (free concerts and many other free exhibits). Here's the fair website: https://www.mnstatefair.org/ I'm someone that normally doesn't like crowds, but I put up with them for one day a year at the fair.

Other great things to see that are near downtown and/or on the light rail line:
--St. Anthony Falls (downtown)
--Minnehaha Falls (in southeast Minneapolis, but very close to the light rail)
--Mall of America
--Science Museum of Minnesota (downtown St. Paul)
--Mill City Museum (downtown Minneapolis)
--Minnesota Twins but they are not playing a home game while you'll be here.
--We have two zoos, but both would require "hiring a car". Como Zoo is the zoo that's closer in to the city and would be a short Lyft ride from campus. It's smaller but also has a very nice conservatory, park, and also has a small lake in the park.
--Lake Hiawatha and Bde Mka Ska (formerly Lake Calhoun) are both in south Minneapolis and wouldn't be too far of a Lyft ride. You can walk from one lake to the other.
--Lots of restaurants but TripAdvisor is probably a good guide there so I won't try to list them all.
 

I never knew the state fair was expensive. You learn something new everyday.
 

Anything listed in this thread other than the State Fair is a better idea than the State Fair. I couldn’t imagine coming from England and being happy with my decision to attend that.


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Anything listed in this thread other than the State Fair is a better idea than the State Fair. I couldn’t imagine coming from England and being happy with my decision to attend that.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

We all enjoy different things. Yes it can get crowded, but plenty to do and see. Plenty of exhibits and animals to see and visit. I don't think they have this sort of thing over in England so may be cool to do here. Yes by all means look at the web site that was indicated early. I'm not exactly positive, but the only reason Texas is classified bigger is that they have a huge campground that is attached to the fairgrounds. Otherwise as far as exhibits, animals, food stands, grandstand it is about the same in size. Speaking of the grandstand, check out the nightly shows to see if they have something that might appeal to you.
 

As mentioned Saint Anthony falls. Check out Mill City museum, stone arch bridge, Guthrie theater. Segway tours are available

Lake Harriet/Calhoun can be fun, or minniehaha falls
 



State Fair is a must. All kinds of craft breweries to check out. Surly is the big one in town but I would also recommend Insight, Black Stack, and Barrel Theory. If you are up for a little drive, head to Big Lake and hit Lupulin Brewing.

Hit the 5-8 Club or Matt's Bar and get a Juicy Lucy

Stub & Herbs on Gopher gameday.

St Paul Saints are in town...light rail over and catch a game at CHS field. Fun, laid back minor league baseball in a fantastic ball park.
 
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I never knew the state fair was expensive. You learn something new everyday.

It's nuts. Parking is expensive. Admission. Food prices are over-inflated.
Can't spend a day there for under $100. At the end of the day you go home feeling like you ate bad food, you stink like farm, and you watched people just stuff their faces all day long. You see these people who you think "There is no way they can eat all of those cheese curds and finish that malt", but sure enough, they just suck that malt right down eating those cheese curds. Then they get up from that park bench and get in line for a pronto pup. And you think "MY GOD, NO!!!" and sure enough, they wait in line for the pronto pop, and you hope they are getting it for their kid, but nope. It's for them. They order one, cover that baby with mustard and ketchup where it's just dripping on the sidewalk and they eat the hole darn thing. Then you wonder what they are going to get their kid, and it's the cotton candy stand. Kid barely finished his malt and they are topping it with some freshly made cotton candy and some Hawaiian Shaved Ice.

It's just the best.

The opposite of state fair is a free kale salad that smells nice.
 
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Thanks for the advice all. Plenty of ideas for us to pull together. Really appreciate your time.

A final few quick questions ...

- Having declined the opportunity to visit the State Fair last time we may give it a go one day this year (for good or bad, depending on opinion, it sounds as though it will at the very least give us something to talk about!). What is the best way to get to the State Fair from close to the University (I can't work out from the information the optimum transport link) and what time is it best to arrive?

- I'm guessing all football practices will be closed to the public the week leading up to the game? Is it possible to arrange a tour of the Sports Village through the U?

- My son's girlfriend quite likes the music of Prince. Is Paisley Park/Chanhassen quite easy to get to by Public transport?

Best wishes and thanks again
 
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Thanks for the advice all. Plenty of ideas for us to pull together. Really appreciate your time.

A final few quick questions ...

- Having declined the opportunity to visit the State Fair last time we may give it a go one day this year (for good or bad, depending on opinion, it sounds as though it will at the very least give us something to talk about!). What is the best way to get to the State Fair from close to the University (I can't work out from the information the optimum transport link) and what time is it best to arrive?

- I'm guessing all football practices will be closed to the public the week leading up to the game? Is it possible to arrange a tour of the Sports Village through the U?

- My son's girlfriend quite likes the music of Prince. Is Paisley Park/Chanhassen quite easy to get to by Public transport?

Best wishes and thanks again

Paisley Park is not accessible by Public transport, it's about 30 minutes out from twin cities. Arboretum is out that way if you do go, but would have other options

The Mn history center has their 1st Ave exhibit, which has prince stuff, but other exhibit are geared kids, can't 100% say worth it. http://www.mnhs.org/historycenter Up to you. Is right by Mn state capital building you can tour and few other things
 

There is some information here regarding parking on campus and transportation to the state fair: https://www.pts.umn.edu/park/state-fair

I do not remember if either requires payment or not. As a former member of the marching band o didn't behave to worry about that when I was at the U. Perhaps someone else can elaborate.
 

Thanks for the advice all. Plenty of ideas for us to pull together. Really appreciate your time.

A final few quick questions ...

- Having declined the opportunity to visit the State Fair last time we may give it a go one day this year (for good or bad, depending on opinion, it sounds as though it will at the very least give us something to talk about!). What is the best way to get to the State Fair from close to the University (I can't work out from the information the optimum transport link) and what time is it best to arrive?

Free shuttle buses from the surface lots near the University Football stadium, run constantly every few minutes from whenever it opens til whenever it closes.
 

Visit the Walker art museum and the sculpture park, rent canoes or kayaks at Lake Calhoun and follow the waterways to Cedar lake and back, take a walk around Lake Calhoun and stop in at the Bakken museum (museum of medical devices created by a founder of Medtronic), take in Reggae band at the lake Harriet bandshell on Friday night (other bands sat-mon)
 

Unfortunately Paisley Park does not have public transportation out that way and it is about a half hour out of town. But as was mentioned, it is very close to the Landscape Arboretum which would be a very good two-for-one if you did venture out there.

It is amazing to behold the power of Prince. My college-aged son works for the Three Rivers Park District, mostly out of the Lake Minnetonka Regional Park during the summers and just yesterday he was approached by two out-of-towners asking how best to see Lake Minnetonka because "it was in Purple Rain" and they wanted to see it as they were on a self-tour of everything related to the movie. He had to explain the lake itself was actually NOT in the movie but helped them get to the best public viewing location of the lake and did mention Prince at one time lived next to the lake.
 

Paisley Park is not accessible by Public transport, it's about 30 minutes out from twin cities. Arboretum is out that way if you do go, but would have other options

The Mn history center has their 1st Ave exhibit, which has prince stuff, but other exhibit are geared kids, can't 100% say worth it. http://www.mnhs.org/historycenter Up to you. Is right by Mn state capital building you can tour and few other things

I second a visit to the MN History Center. Yes, lots of exhibits for kids, but also interesting things for adults. Very interactive. The WWII exhibit and the house that's gone through each immigration wave may be interesting to someone from England to get an US point-of-view.

Also, if you live in MN and have never been, it really is a must. They do a great job. Exhibits like First Ave make you proud to be Minnesotan.
 

You're really going strong with the Germany welcoming. But our Mate Johnob2 is from England. Those are different European countries, similar to how apparently North Dakota is a different state from South Dakota, as for some reason us American's need two Dakota's. :cool:

Go English Gopher Fans!!

Haha my bad! And my apologies to John. I was thinking here is another German person with a better command of the English language than myself and a few other Gopherholers.

And I think Paisley Park or the First Ave at the Minnesota history museum would both be great. My wife took some out of town guests to Paisley and they loved it. You could probably do Lyft or Uber to it. You could take light rail to the Minnesota history museum.
 
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Uber or Lyft might be your friend for getting to some of these places and events.
Paisley Park, State Fair, etc., if you aren't renting a car.
 

I second a visit to the MN History Center. Yes, lots of exhibits for kids, but also interesting things for adults. Very interactive. The WWII exhibit and the house that's gone through each immigration wave may be interesting to someone from England to get an US point-of-view.

Also, if you live in MN and have never been, it really is a must. They do a great job. Exhibits like First Ave make you proud to be Minnesotan.

This is true, I undersold it a bit
 




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