10 Best Things to Do for Family in Minneapolis

The Mall of America is among the largest malls in the world and one of the most famous, offering shopping, dining, entertainment, and even a full theme park. Your kids will be thrilled to shop at toy and gadget stores for games, action figures, and dolls. They can then head for a full indoor amusement park for rides and to play games. You can head for a multiplex theater to catch the latest Hollywood movies and choose from dozens of options for food at the gigantic food court or any of several sit-down restaurants.

The Mall of America is so large you can spend a whole vacation here. It's 15 minutes south of town.

The Science Museum of Minnesota offers 4 stories of hands-on, interactive fun for all ages, exploring the history of science and technology with unique exhibits. You can check out the quackery museum showcasing bizarre inventions created throughout the ages. You can head for the news center, where kids can get on TV as actual news anchors. You can also head for the IMAX theater on-site, which shows giant-sized, immersive documentaries about science and nature. A Mummy exhibit shows the science of mummification and lets you see a real one.

These are just a few of the opportunities for days of fun here. The museum is in St. Paul, about 16 minutes east of Minneapolis.

The Minneapolis Sculpture Garden offers endless walking paths filled with unique, beautiful, and outrageous works of art crafted by important local artists. This park spans 11 acres of ground, and the sculptures are nothing short of masterworks. Even better, the park is completely free to enter, a public art installation dedicated to exploring the culture of this region. The sculptures here are owned by the Walker Art Center, a renowned collection of contemporary art. It's a way you can experience an art museum without borders.

This sculpture garden welcomes adults and kids of every age. It's just 10 minutes southwest of downtown.

Boom Island Park along the Mississippi riverfront offers amazing views of the Minneapolis skyline, plus tons of green space for picnics, relaxation, and areas for kids to run and play. This picturesque park is one of downtown's important public spaces and cultural meeting spots offering acres of land to just kick back and escape from the hustle and bustle. The park offers walking and biking paths, a boat dock to get out on the river, grills and picnic areas so you can have a barbecue, and a unique playground area for the youngest kids.

This is a serene and free place to come with the family just to get away from things for a little while. Pay parking is available.

The Minnesota Children's Museum is a place where kids can let their imagination run wild while laughing, playing, and learning about science, history, and technology. The museum offers 3 floors of creative and interactive exhibits that are guaranteed to work kids' minds in a unique and fun way. They'll spend hours exploring and being inspired through dozens of different attractions. They'll get to know all about the ecology and habitats of Minnesota and the different types of plants and animals that live here. They can even head for a rooftop park to run and play.

The exhibits here are unique and fun, and adults just might learn something, too. It's 16 minutes east of downtown in St. Paul.

The Minnehaha Falls in the heart of the Minnehaha Regional Park offer the chance to see stunningly beautiful landscapes, lush green space, wildflowers, and public art. You can walk through the gorgeous scenery and breathe the fresh air to get away from the hustle and bustle of the busy city life for a few hours. At the heart of the park, the falls themselves offer a look at the true majesty of nature in action as they cascade down a rocky cliffside into a clear, clean pool below. It's a perfect spot for photos, a picnic lunch, or just relaxation.

If your family is into outdoor adventure, the falls are an easy jaunt. They're 15 minutes south of downtown.

The Bakken Museum offers exhibits, artifacts, and interactive experiences with science, technology, and the humanities designed to inspire passion and innovation in kids and adults alike. What makes this museum unique is that it looks at how science and technology interact with the humanities to make our society and the world we share a better place. This museum puts the arts back in STEM education and looks at STEAM as the way forward for the world.

The Bakken Museum is situated right on the shores of Bde Maka Ska lakeshores. It's only 15 minutes to the southwest of downtown Minneapolis.

The Minnesota Landscape Arboretum offers endless opportunities to walk among elegant and colorful horticultural gardens with perennial displays of colorful flowers as well as marshlands, woodlands, and prairies. This arboretum covers 1,137 acres of space and is free to explore. It's managed by the University of Minnesota's Department of Horticultural Science, and the plant life has been specially selected to thrive in northern climes. You can explore a gorgeous Japanese garden, unspoiled wetlands, and outstanding wildflower collections. If you want to learn more, an attached horticultural research library lets you read all about ecology.

Naturally, this park also includes miles of hiking trails to get back to nature. It's 35 minutes southwest of downtown.

The Foshay Observation Deck offers birds-eye views of Minneapolis from high above, as well as a museum detailing the entire history of the skyscraper. The deck is set inside the Foshay Tower, which rises 447 feet and 32 stories above the ground. It was built in 1929 as a tribute to the Washington Monument, so the tower itself is a historic landmark. It's among the most famed landmarks in the Twin Cities area. The museum teaches about its eccentric architect, how it was developed and built, with tons of photos and artifacts from its creation.

The observation deck is on the 31st floor and offers panoramic views of the city. It's in the heart of downtown.

The Children's Theatre Company is a regional theater that, for over 50 years, has offered plays, shows, and concerts for families and kids in Minneapolis. It was founded in 1965 as the Moppet Players by John Clark Donahue. It has, over the years, become one of the leading institutions in the local arts and cultural scene. It has even won a Tony Award for Children's Theater Company. It has put on productions of such famed shows as Cinderella, Peter Pan, Sleeping Beauty, the Wizard of Oz, and many other family favorites.

This spot produces plays all year long, so see what it has when you're in town. It's 8 minutes south of central downtown.