Midwesterners often want to escape to warm weather locations during the winter months, but sometimes we’re in need of a quick {and affordable} family getaway. A location our family loves to frequent is none other than the Minneapolis and St. Paul area. There are so many fun things happening in the Twin Cities year-round.
We’ve put together a holiday-inspired travel guide to help you plan your own family stay-cation. You’ll find information on where we love to stay, where to eat and what to do in Minneapolis and St. Paul. We’ve also included some additional resources that are sure to give you plenty of options to keep you busy in the cities.
| WHAT TO DO |
Even though it’s around or well below freezing in Minnesota this time of year, the family-friendly activities don’t stop! The Minneapolis community makes the best of the cold and has created events like Holidazzle. This family-centered event series takes place every Thursday through Sunday after Thanksgiving through most of December.
The activites are centered around outdoor winter enjoyment including ice skating, Santa visits and even a fireworks display. There are countless things to do at the Holidazzle and each weekend features something different for the whole family.
Our family checked out the Holidazzle for the first time this year and we loved every minute of it. It definitely won’t be a last time we partake in this holiday event!
The St. Paul Convention & Visitor’s Bureau and Minneapolis.org both have some wonderful lists of things to do all year long. A few “winter things” that stood out to us that we just didn’t have time to do this time around were the Saint Paul Winter Carnival, Winter in Bloom at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum and the North Pole Express at Union Depot.
| WHERE TO EAT |
Because this is a family-centered travel post, we’ve only included locations that are easy to take kids to. Not only does this list include some of our favorite spots, we’ve also asked a few friends who are from the area to weigh in on the places they recommend.
The Lynhall – Minneapolis
Mickey’s Dining Car – St. Paul
BauHaus Brew Labs – Minneapolis
Burger Jones – Minneapolis
Lake Monster Brewing – Minneapolis
Buca di Beppo – Minneapolis
| WHERE TO STAY |
We stayed just a short drive outside of the Minneapolis and St. Paul metro in Apple Valley. We love staying at GrandStay Hotel & Suites whenever we travel as a family. We know we will always get a delicious breakfast, an amazing pool, free Wi-Fi and a great night’s sleep on their Serta mattresses.
During this particular trip, we had a full night at Disney On Ice at the Xcel Energy Center on Friday {another great place to check for indoor events in St. Paul} and then a busy Saturday at the GrandStay pool and the Holidazzle.
On Sunday, we made the quick drive from GrandStay in Apple Valley to the Mall of America where the boys hopped on the METRO Blue Line to watch the Vikings game at U.S. Bank Stadium, and the girls explored the mall to knock out some Christmas shopping and a few rides at Nickelodeon Universe.
Not only was GrandStay close to the Mega Mall, but it was just a few miles from our family’s favorite outlet mall in Eagan. Between the Twin Cities Premium Outlets and the mall, Blakely and I got all of our gifts purchased before the boys got back from the game.
We hope this Twin Cities travel guide gives you a good start to planning your own winter getaway! If you have other great Minneapolis area travel tips that should be added to this post feel free to share them in the comment section below!
xo
-M
This post was created in collaboration with GrandStay Hotel & Suites. As always, all opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting Midwest In Style and the businesses that make this blog possible.
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