Beautiful museum and lives up to its name : American Art!…read more Nicely curated objects representing people of all colors and different heritages - from native Americans to new Asian immigrants, and many more! From big names like Paul Manship (he did the Prometheus in front of the Rockefeller Center) and Grant Wood, to local artists like George Morrison, to new Hmong artists who are eager to make their works seen, this museum has a great collection and the juxtaposition of their works present a scene none less amazing than the American culture today! FREE!

Absolutely wonderful museum in an historical building with free admission. The staff were friendly…read moreand informative. The museum tour was excellent and the art collection wonderful. It was a great way to spend a winter day! Highly recommended!

Sis and I attended March 2024 Omnifest. 2 different…read moreshowtimes with 2 different experiences. The first show (12pm, Back from the Brink, 5 stars!) was sold out and filled with tons of middle school kids. The second show (3pm; Asteroid Hunters, 1 star...I fell asleep) was quieter, maybe only 20 people, and the majority were adults. Easy parking in the RiverCenter ramp (entrance down near Eagle St./ Chestnut, not Kellogg!). Take the elevator to the museum, and you're just outside the lobby. Pre-bought tickets online, so we didn't have to deal with the ticket counter. We walked right into the Omnitheatre entrance and didn't have to wait in line long for admittance. They were already seating. Be prepared to climb stairs if entering from the main floor. They are smaller than a standard staircase, and it's steep. Use the handrails because it's dimly lit. Halfway up, there is a 2nd entrance/exit for those that are handicapped or have trouble with stairs. To access this area, head towards the musical staircase near the gift shop. There is a set of elevators to get up to the 2nd floor. This floor also has the cafeteria and banquet rooms for special events. Seats are comfortable enough but not made for curvy girls with wide hips. Get cozy with your next-door person and squeeze in.

Who doesn't like big screen movies? Growing up, getting tickets to the Omni Theater were always a…read moremust. So cool to see documentaries on the big screen. The funny things is though, now that I have been getting older though I find myself falling asleep during the productions. =( Oh well, still a great experience. Become a member and you can go a bunch for little $ and don't forget about Omni-Fest!

The name, "Minnesota Transportation Museum" is an umbrella name for three locations: the Osceola…read moreand St. Croix Valley Railway, which gives 90-minute rides; The Minnehaha Depot, which was restored to its 1890s appearance, and this location, the Jackson Street Roundhouse, which is a museum with indoor and outdoor trains. The event I signed up for is called Tots and Trains is geared for ages two to five. It includes full access to the museum (but not actual train rides), Story Time readings, a small snack, and crafts ($11 for adults, $6 for ages 3 to 6). The normal adult admission is $16.05. I would say there are two audiences for this museum. If you have a small child and are looking for a 2 hours or so of entertainment, your toddler will have a blast playing with all of the levers and buttons on the actual trains, as well as watching the model railroad, the various play areas, and the built-in story time and snack. My toddler had a blast. The second very different audience would be older teen through adults who are train buffs. They are at least half a dozen (or more) actual train engines inside the museum and volunteers who are happy to give you as much detail as you could possibly want. If you are model railroad person, this is also a good place to check out their very large exhibit. I'm glad this part of history has been preserved by this museum and the hard-working volunteers.

Nice railroad historical museum with a short train ride included with entrance fee…read more Run by very enthusiastic volunteers. Had to say thank you four times and escape to the bathroom to get out of a couple lectures we didn't ask for. Love the enthusiasm but wanted to just look at stuff ourselves after 5 minutes. We're more readers and enjoyed the plaques and write ups discovering info ourselves. Interesting for kids a bit older but saw lots of toddlers exploring. Interesting for a couple hours. Some awkward stairs into some of the outdoor exhibits that could be difficult.

Drove 20 miles to visit and although the website said it was open when we arrived it was closed.read more

Historic 1855 home in Hudson, WI, just miles from the Twin Cities. With COVID restrictions lifted,…read morethe house is back open and ready to be toured. Come learn about the history of the Moffat family that built this unique home as a group, with friends or even solo! There is something to learn for all ages. The staff is very knowledgeable and friendly. The Octagon House also serves tea. Be sure to check out their website or give them a call directly to setup tea time. There is even a gift shop on-site where you can purchase glassware, ornaments, and garden decor. My family had a magical day out of the entire experience.

Whoever set this up has never been to the legit ones in Nuremberg or Berlin. Way too narrow for…read morepeople to shop on both sides while having room for others to pass by in the center; only a couple hot wine vendors with ginormous lines, didn't see any warm pretzels (and those are like every third stall in Germany), and the majority of the crafters sold overpriced junk. So: no heart, no space, no cheer, no festive atmosphere. Just angry hordes jostling to get through. And BTW, if you're going to have too-narrow thoroughfares you need to prohibit strollers and have an area for people to ditch them.

Came here for this years Christmas Market on a slightly warmer than lately Saturday…read more As usual it's a gorgeous setup. The small huts and lights are just so aesthetically pleasing, and fun to walk around and peruse. We haven't had something we disliked food wise. It's all very good. A little spendy, be prepared for State-Fair level prices, but hey it's an event and at least they don't charge you to get in! The mulled wine or Glühwein as it's called is great. if you pick up a mug you can get cheaper refills. I've had the red but didn't get around to getting a cup of the white but I'd still recommend it to people who like sweeter wines. The shops are all really cute and have alot of good products. Think art fair, you can buy art, clothes, knick-knacks, Christmas decorations and more, homemade and super bespoke. We might swing back but if not we'll definitely be there to check it out again next year!

My wife and I hit a new pub in St. Paul called the Blue Door before touring this cool old Victorian…read morehouse of one of the first governors of Minnesota. We had some awesome burgers and beer before our free tour the Historical Museum was giving of its properties this weekend. We entered the house feeling full and happy from a couple of Surly Furious pints and signed up for our tour. We entered the house with a great guide dressed in a top hat and suit of the 1800's when Ramsey would have lived in the house. The house was one of the few in old time Minnesota with gas lighting and running water. There was a bathtub and even an indoor water closet. It was interesting that there were chamber pots around the house because women did not like to remove all the bussels and stuff. They showed the bells and talking tubes for the servants to be called upon. They showed the kitchen and offered baked cookies from the oven. The children's' rooms were well adorned and Ramsey had a play room for the children up in the attic along with the servants' rooms. The whole layout was perfect, great character actors as guides and pretend servants. Even though they had a lot of people taking the tour, they kept it well run and you quickly became envious of such a large, cool house. Highly recommended for a crummy day outside when you're looking for something to do. Hey, and it's educational!

I had a bizarre experience here today. I walked into the Gift Shop and hung out looking at stuff…read morefor 20 minutes while people were talking in the back. I wanted to pay admission and walk around the house. Finally, I peeked in the back and some lady said, "are you Dustin?" Huh? When she saw I was just a member of the public she hurriedly hustled me out the door and told me they were closed for staff interviews and did I not see the sign, etc. I did see a small, handwritten sign on a dry erase board, but I was confused about why the gift shop would be wide open, lights on and merchandise unattended if the entire place was closed down. All the sign said was that there were no tours, not that the entire building was closed. I thought it was possible to take a self-guided tour even if staff were "busy." Honestly I haven't been to very many historical sites where self-guided tours are forbidden. Basically, the point of this weird experience is that whatever non-profit is running this place is extremely disorganized and unable to communicate something as basic as being closed to the general public, not to mention the fact it can't even secure its premises. It's pretty irresponsible to leave the front door open and an entire gift shop unattended. I could have walked off with half of their stuff and no one would have been the wiser. On her way to rushing me out the door, the lady acted very annoyed and mumbled something about what they can't do because of budget cuts, even as she was discouraging me from making a purchase from their gift store. To me, this illustrates exactly why non-profits are in dire straights. They want charitable donations from everyone even while turning down opportunities to become more self sufficient. A similar thing happened a week or so ago when I attended an evening lecture on 19th century spiritualism with a friend at the Ramsey House. We arrived late and didn't have the chance to pay for our tickets until it was over. I had to ask three people how and where to pay. No one made any effort to bother us for money, and had I not been extremely proactive, it would have been free for my friend and I, but not for the taxpayers. This is ridiculous, and perfectly illustrates why non-profits do not deserve financial support. This place can't even manage to collect money from people attending an event. It isn't like we slipped in quietly or secretly either. To many organizations, "non-profit" doesn't simply mean they don't make any money, but that they actively throw it away.

Went through this haunted house and was pretty good with the fog, lighting, and the crew's makeup…read more The rooms were fun to go through and had jump scares throughout. For the price, I expected the experience to last a bit longer. These cost $120 for 2 people (tickets and tax etc), unless purchased through Costco. Stopped at Elvira's afterwards for a spiced pumpkin cider and boy was that delicious!!!

This is such a fun activity to do as part of an outing to Lake Harriet, especially with kids! While…read moreit's only a 15 minute activity, it's a TON of fun, and both of our kids loved every minute. It was also really neat to learn more about the streetcar lines from the volunteers, and to see a little bit of the area that's hard to visit on bike or foot. The price is super reasonable at $3 per person (babies are free). While I would not make a special trip here just to ride the street car, it's an awesome additional activity to eating at Bread and Pickle, walking around the lake or kayaking/boating on it, or playing in the playground!

Disclaimer: I am an (unpaid) volunteer streetcar operator (i.e. driver) for the Minnesota…read moreStreetcar Museum. The actual Museum is in Excelsior, but there are two locations that have a streetcar you can ride. If you would like to be transported back in time, I recommend a ride on a streetcar at either Lake Harriet (the "Harriet-Como Line") or in Excelsior. I can speak to the streetcar experience at the location at Lake Harriet, since that's where I volunteer. The ride starts and stops near the lakeside pavilion, at 42nd Street and Queen Avenue South. There is train depot from which you can buy tokens (currently $2.50 for a round trip -- kids under four are free), souvenirs, and some candy. You can use a credit card to pay, but cash is not accepted. There are currently two Streetcars in operation. One was built in 1908 and was used until the Streetcars were discontinued in 1954 in favor of buses. The more "modern" streetcar was built in 1947. The Excelsior location has other models. The best part about driving a streetcar is to see the smiles on the faces of the children. Parents and grandparents delight in sharing this experience with younger people and also enjoy a cool breeze on a hot Minnesota day. This ride is something that routinely surpasses the expectations of riders. Round trip tokens can be purchased at the Depot (called the Linden Hills Station), and they are the original tokens used when the streetcars ran. Drop your token into the faire collector box by the driver and pick a seat. The trolly goes to Lake Bde Maka Ska and back. Feel free to depart at Bde Maka Ska and return later (no extra charge). You will then continue back past the Depot and stop at the "Car Barn" where the streetcars are parked at night). It will then return to the Depot for the end of the ride. A ride is approximately 20 minutes long.