The Twin Cities – Minneapolis and Saint Paul
The twin cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul form the largest and most significant urban area on the banks of the Mississippi River and one of the most important in the Midwest. Minneapolis to the west and Saint Paul to the east have merged into a massive metropolis that makes up most of the population of the state of Minnesota, the Land of 10,000 Lakes. Saint Paul is the state capital and the seat of the legislature, but Minneapolis is the largest and most important city in the metropolis, known for its significant museums and industrial development (primarily flour production powered by the hydro-electric power of Saint Anthony Falls and as the base for Pillsbury).
How many days do you need for a trip to Minneapolis and Saint Paul?
For a complete tour of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, you'll need two to three days.
When visiting the Twin Cities, it's a good idea to find accommodation in the city centers or suburbs.
Click here to find accommodation in Minneapolis and Saint Paul…
15 Things You Must See and Do in the Twin Cities
- Shopping and entertainment at Nickelodeon Universe in the Mall of America
- Scenic views of St. Anthony Falls from the Stone Arch Bridge
- Minnesota State Capitol
- Cathedral of Saint Paul
- Minnehaha Falls Park
- Observation deck of the Guthrie Theater (with views of the Mississippi River, the falls, and the Stone Arch Bridge)
- A Timberwolves basketball game or a Vikings football game
- The economic engine of Minneapolis at the Mill City Museum
- Contemporary art at the Walker Art Center and stunning sculptures in the nearby Minneapolis Sculpture Garden
- Fáfnir the Triceratops at the Science Museum of Minnesota
- Art by the great European masters at the Minneapolis Institute of Art
- Cutting-edge modern architecture at the Weisman Art Museum on the University of Minnesota campus
- Culturally diverse food at Midtown Global Market
- The fortifications of Fort Snelling
- Chain of Lakes Regional Park
Click here to purchase online tickets to SEA LIFE at the Mall of America…
What are the Twin Cities – Minneapolis and Saint Paul?
The Twin Cities – Minneapolis and Saint Paul, are an amalgamation of two cities that have combined into one large metropolis. The Twin Cities metropolitan area is home to nearly four million residents, making up almost two-thirds of the population of the state of Minnesota (which is slightly smaller than Romania, for example). Minneapolis and Saint Paul are situated along the Mississippi River, with the former being considered the largest city along the major river route of the U.S. Saint Paul is officially the capital of Minnesota and contains the state's Capitol building.
- Both cities are located along the mighty Mississippi River, an area also rich with lakes, streams, and tributaries flowing into the giant river's drainage basin. Due to the abundance of water bodies, Minneapolis received its name (based on a Native American word for water + polis meaning city in Greek) and its nickname as the City of Lakes. This nickname also influenced the local basketball team's name, the Lakers, which later moved to Los Angeles.
- Minneapolis was established in the mid-19th century as a transit station near St. Anthony Falls on the Mississippi River. The falls powered many businesses like lumber mills, flour mills, and more. The city quickly grew as an industrial city processing agricultural produce in the vast area west of Chicago.
- The city's extensive flour industry led to the growth of several large companies. The most well-known is the iconic dough giant Pillsbury, which ran five flour mills in the city.
Today's Minneapolis and St. Paul are quintessential American cities, offering good quality of life, plenty of cold natural surroundings, and some attractions in their centers. Due to the winter weather that almost prevents outdoor activities, these cities boast huge malls with the Mall of America, the largest mall in North America, at the forefront. The metropolitan area has a significant population of German and Swedish descent and is culturally linked with Scandinavian immigrants to America. However, the current racial wound of America widened in Minneapolis, as George Floyd's death during arrest in Minneapolis sparked terrible racial riots across all US cities.
Map of the Twin Cities
How to Get to Minneapolis and St. Paul?
How to Fly to the Twin Cities?
Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport (MSP) – The international airport serving the Twin Cities is located in the southern part of Minneapolis, near Fort Snelling, by a bend in the Mississippi River. It's about 15 kilometers from both downtown Saint Paul and downtown Minneapolis. The airport features two terminals, the larger and central Terminal 1, and the smaller Terminal 2. The two terminals are separate, so it's wise to check in advance which terminal your flight departs from. They are connected by the blue line of the city's metro system, and you can travel between them for free (limited to the two terminal stations).
The airport is connected with major airports all across the USA and Canada and is easily accessible via transfer. There are several international routes to key European airports like Paris, Amsterdam, London, and more.
How to Get to Minneapolis and Saint Paul by Car?
Minneapolis and Saint Paul are pretty remote in terms of the USA's highway network. The northernmost metropolis of the Midwest is located north of Interstate 90, the highway connecting Chicago with Mount Rushmore, Yellowstone, and Seattle. Most visitors coming to the Twin Cities by car arrive from Chicago via the 90 and 94, with a travel time of almost 7 hours.
When is the best time to visit Minneapolis and Saint Paul?
The extreme weather in Twin Cities is a major factor in deciding when to visit the cities. Winter as a whole (actually from mid-fall to mid-spring) is very harsh and it's really not advisable to go there unless you have to. Although winter is very dry, the temperatures are extreme even by USA standards. On the other hand, summer is quite pleasant, ranging from slightly cool to warm, with a fair amount of rainfall.
- The best time to visit Twin City is summer, from July to September. During these months, there are long sunny hours and the weather is usually comfortable (it can also be rainy but less so than in late spring months).
- The spring months from mid-April to June are characterized by generally comfortable weather (it can still be really cold in April and May) but with plenty of rain.
- Winter in Minneapolis is extremely white and frozen, so if you love the atmosphere, it's really fun. Just make sure to dress appropriately even if you're just stepping out of the car for a moment. In January and February, the cities can experience extreme cold, with temperatures plunging dozens of degrees below zero. The winter is very dry (if it snows once, it simply stays for several months) and can also be sunny. Minneapolis and Saint Paul know how to handle winter and snow, with fleets of snowplows and lots of salt spread on the roads. Residents of the metropolitan area are used to these extreme weather conditions, but for tourists, it can really dampen the mood.
Click here for a guided afternoon tour of Minneapolis' most groundbreaking restaurants…
How to plan a travel itinerary in Minneapolis and Saint Paul?
The Minneapolis itinerary mainly focuses on downtown and key locations in Midtown (south of downtown and the Mississippi River towards the metropolitan international airport).
- The downtown tour begins at St. Anthony Falls, the industrial and residential core of the city. Above the falls on the Mississippi River is the Stone Arch Bridge connecting Father Hennepin Bluff Park on the north bank with Mill Ruins Park, where the Mill City Museum is located next to the Guthrie Theater.
- From downtown, it's worth moving to separate sites in Midtown, the closest of which to downtown is the Walker Art Center and the nearby Minneapolis Sculpture Garden.
- Further south is the Minneapolis Institute of Art with its vast collection of art pieces and historical artifacts.
- A short drive will take you to the Midtown Global Market, the city's largest food stall market, and the Mall of America, the largest mall in the USA.
- For those who want to see Frank Gehry's architectural masterpiece, it's worth crossing the river to visit the Weisman Art Museum on the University of Minnesota campus
- When traveling from Minneapolis to Saint Paul, or from the Mall of America or the Midtown, it's a good idea to stop by the historical site Fort Snelling and the charming Minnehaha Falls Park
- The tour in downtown Saint Paul includes the beautiful Saint Paul Cathedral, the Capitol Building, and the Science Museum of Minnesota near the banks of the Mississippi River
Everything You Need to Know About Hotels in the Twin Cities
The lodging in the Twin Cities metropolitan and Minneapolis is almost distinctly based on the hotel layout of major American cities, featuring downtown hotels in towers and motels along the highways and near the airport. The metropolitan area has two downtowns about five kilometers apart, both in Minneapolis and in Saint Paul.
The downtown areas of both cities are small in size and feature many of the major American chains such as Hilton, Hyatt, and Westin, usually in urban hotels with three or four stars. Minneapolis also offers luxury hotels downtown, like the Canadian Four Seasons hotel near the city's central library building. Downtown Saint Paul has fewer chain hotels, but prices there are often a bit more reasonable.
The Twin Cities metro area has several central clusters of motels:
- Along Route 494 south of the international airport, there is a strip of motels and a few business hotels with representation from all the American Inn chains. The hotels and motels near the airport are generally of high quality and very convenient for reaching any place in the metro area, including the Mall of America, which is very close by.
- On the western part of the 494, the airport hotel strip extends to the junction with the main Highway 100. Further west, there's another cluster of great motels in the suburb of Eden Prairie, near the Asia Mall at the junction with the 212.
- Two more clusters of good motels can be found close to one another on the 394 route, just a bit west of downtown Minneapolis, near the intersections with the 100 and the 169.
Click here to find accommodation in the Twin Cities metropolitan area…
Map of Accommodation in Minneapolis and St. Paul
Everything to See and Do in Minneapolis
Minneapolis is one of the most important and central cities in the Midwest and the Great Plains. The largest city on the Mississippi River (and the largest metropolitan center in the Great Plains north of Texas) is a classic American northern city, with a big downtown, industrial history, plenty of quality museums, and large parks. Minneapolis is the largest city in Minnesota and forms a large urban continuum with its neighboring city Saint Paul, the state capital.
The city center's heart is Saint Anthony Falls, the engine of the city's growth and the fuel that powered the flour mills upon which the city was built. The iconic American brand Pillsbury was born here, based on those flour mills. Minneapolis is tough when it comes to weather, with a cold and dry winter and a wealth of surrounding water. Its chilly northern character made it a hub for Scandinavian and German immigrants settling there.
Click here for the complete travel guide to Minneapolis…
Everything to See and Do in Saint Paul
Saint Paul is the capital of the state of Minnesota and the seat of its capitol. The city is home to about 300,000 people, but that’s just a statistical figure, as the city has merged with neighboring Minneapolis, and the sprawling Twin Cities metropolitan area encompasses more than four million residents. Saint Paul was established years after neighboring Minneapolis and began flourishing from the mid-19th century, primarily due to its connection to the railway system heading to Chicago and being designated as the capital of the Minnesota Territory. Unlike its neighbor Minneapolis, downtown Saint Paul rests on the north bank of the Mississippi River, about eight kilometers downstream.
Click here for a guided tour of the Minneapolis and St. Paul sites and attractions…
Minnesota State Capitol
Just like the stunning dome of the cathedral that dominates the downtown from the west, the impressive dome of the Capitol Building stands over St. Paul's downtown from the north. The grand Capitol Building of the State of Minnesota was completed in 1905, in a Neo-Renaissance style, based on the Capitol buildings across the USA (originating in Boston). This is the third Capitol building erected in St. Paul since the mid-19th century.
The inspiration for building the monumental dome is Saint Peter's Basilica in Vatican City, Rome, and indeed the dome of Saint Paul's Cathedral is the second largest marble dome in the world, after Saint Peter's. At the foot of the dome and above the building's entrance is a golden statue of four horses leading a chariot, the known Quadriga element which spread around the world based on the Propylaea at the entrance to the Acropolis in Athens.
To check visiting hours and register online for a free tour of Minnesota's Capitol, click here…
Cathedral of Saint Paul
Saint Paul's Cathedral is one of the most beautiful churches in all of North America. The church is constructed as a blend of a Greek cross structure and a basilica, topped by a monumental bronze dome. The cathedral was designed in the Beaux Arts style by French-American architect Emmanuel Louis Masqueray and was completed in 1915. The length of the church is approximately 95 meters, and its width is about 65 meters. The tower above the dome reaches a height of around 93 meters. The cathedral is situated on Cathedral Hill, overlooking the downtown of Saint Paul and the Mississippi River from the west.
The interior of the cathedral is also impressive, although you can tell everything is relatively new. Inside, you'll find stained glass, sculptures, and paintings befitting a Catholic church dedicated to Paul the Apostle, but it's worth taking a look at the phenomenal dome from inside. Also take a drive down the avenue where the cathedral stands on Cathedral Hill. Summit Avenue boasts a stunning array of Victorian mansions, including the Germanic-American Institute.
Address: Selby Ave. 239, St. Paul
Downtown Saint Paul
Downtown Saint Paul isn't very large. It's made up of about 11 numbered streets running from Union Station to Highway 94, and ten named streets from Landmark Center to CHS Field baseball stadium, which mainly hosts local college teams. The small downtown features several city parks, cultural institutions, upscale residential buildings, and of course, office skyscrapers. It includes attractions like the St. Paul Farmers' Market near the baseball stadium, the beautiful block of Mears Park, the Minnesota Museum of American Art, and the modern Minnesota Children's Museum.
The Landmark Center at the eastern end is the most impressive of the downtown buildings, originally served as the city's official customs house and post office, and was built in 1902. The building stands out with its unique Neo-Romanesque style, featuring a red sloped roof, green spire roofs, and a giant clock tower above it. The building houses several local institutions and associations, including the American Association of Wood Artists who bring impressive rotating exhibits. The rest of the building spaces are used by associations and the city for events as a convention center.
Science Museum of Minnesota
The Science Museum of Minnesota is located in the western part of downtown Saint Paul, near the banks of the Mississippi River. This large museum was founded in 1907 and moved to its current location in 1999. The museum focuses on topics of natural science and technology, offering an interactive and engaging exhibit that’s great for kids of different ages. The star of the museum is the almost complete skeleton of Fafnir, a nickname for a Triceratops dinosaur that became a local celebrity.
Address: W Kellogg Blvd. 120, St. Paul
Click here for the museum's updated operating hours…
Fort Snelling
Fort Snelling State Park is a significant historical site located at the confluence of the Minnesota River with the Mississippi River, just east of the Twin Cities International Airport. It is a fortified complex built in 1819 that has since been used by the U.S. military, including the Confederate Army during the American Civil War. The fort is shaped like a diamond, with a wall featuring round guard towers and barracks inside.
Address: Tower Ave. 200, St. Paul
Click here for the latest site opening hours and entrance fees…
Minnehaha Falls
Not far from Fort Snelling is the charming urban park of Minnehaha Falls. The park runs along a stream channel that flows into the Mississippi River. Along the stream are rapids and a single, popular low waterfall with beautiful walking trails around it. The area around the falls features several scenic viewpoints. The entire area is preserved as a park, with various preserved historical sites scattered around.
Chain of Lakes Regional Park
The regional park is a stunning example of Minnesota and its nickname, the Land of 10,000 Lakes. The park encompasses about six small lakes, out of dozens within the metropolitan area. The park is located ten kilometers north of downtown Minneapolis and features hiking trails, parks, and forests open to the public. The park is bisected by the main street of the suburb Centerville, and you can simply drive between the lakes and stop for scenic views.
Sports Teams in Minneapolis and Saint Paul
Minneapolis and its metropolitan area is one of a dozen elite cities in the U.S. with representation from all four major American sports leagues: the NBA (basketball league), the NFL (football league), the MLB (baseball league), and the NHL (hockey league). Basically, all these teams represent the state by name but all play in Minneapolis, except for the Wild in hockey, whose home stadium is in Saint Paul.
Despite the grand representation, only the Twins have managed to win the championship twice. However, the other teams certainly generate interest and their games are often packed with spectators. The city's history also records four championships by the legendary basketball team, the Minneapolis Lakers, before they moved to Los Angeles in the early 1960s. The most decorated team in the Twin Cities is the WNBA team, the Minnesota Lynx, which has won four championships since its founding in 1999. The city is also home to the young soccer team in the MLS, the Minnesota United FC.
Basketball in the Twin Cities
Minnesota Timberwolves
The Timberwolves, the wooden wolves, are the basketball team of the Twin Cities. The team was founded in 1989 and has since made it to the playoffs quite a few times, but not beyond the regional finals. In recent years, the Timberwolves have weakened a bit, but they usually manage to reach the playoffs, including the Western regional finals in 2024. The team plays at the Target Center in downtown Minneapolis, which seats nearly 20,000 spectators.
Home stadium address: N 1st Ave. 600, Minneapolis
Click here to purchase tickets for Timberwolves games online…
Baseball in the Twin Cities
Minnesota Twins
The Twins are the baseball team of the Twin Cities and the most decorated sports team in the metropolitan area. The team has won three championships, first after its establishment in Washington D.C. and twice more after moving to Minnesota in 1961. The team plays at Target Field Stadium in the western part of downtown Minneapolis, near the Target Center, the home court of the Timberwolves. The stadium holds nearly 40,000 spectators and there is usually no problem getting tickets (unless the team has advanced to the later stages of the playoffs).
Home Stadium Address: Twins Way 1, Minneapolis
Click here to purchase tickets online for the Twins games…
Football in the Twin Cities
Minnesota Vikings
The Vikings are one of the most well-known icons of the Twin Cities and the most beloved team in the city. Much like the fanaticism of the Green Bay Packers fans in neighboring Wisconsin, the Vikings bring a vibe of bone-chilling cold to games held in the snow during the winter months. The hallmark of Vikings fans are the hats with horns and blond braids. The name naturally derives from the Scandinavian origin of many city residents.
The team was founded in 1961 and has never won a Super Bowl. It plays at the U.S. Bank Stadium in downtown Minneapolis, three blocks from the Stone Arch Bridge. The stadium can accommodate 67,000 spectators, relatively few in football stadium terms, but its central location ensures a special experience for tourists as part of a city tour.
Home stadium address: 401 Chicago Ave., Minneapolis
Click here to buy tickets for the Vikings games online…
Hockey in the Twin Cities
Minnesota Wild
The Wild is the hockey team of the Twin Cities and unlike others based in Minneapolis, the Wild is located in Saint Paul. The team joined the league only in 2001 and hasn't achieved remarkable feats so far, except now and then making it to the playoffs. The team plays at Xcel Energy Center near the Minnesota Science Museum in the western part of downtown Saint Paul. The stadium seats 18,000 spectators and there's usually no problem getting tickets for the games.
Home stadium address: 199 W Kellogg Blvd., St. Paul
Click here to purchase tickets for the Wild's games on the NHL website…
