Wow, what a cool train museum, ESPECIALLY for young kids. This place brings me back to my days of…read morehaving a train as a child, but watching my kids interact with the trains is the best part. If you have young kids (under 8 or so), this is a wonderful place to take them, and if you live nearby, consider a membership. Here's a summary of the cool aspects for kids: 1) Almost all the trains are interactive. There are buttons kids can press to start trains, and also start other aspects of the displays, like turning on lights, making cars go, helicopter blades spin, and even a roller coaster go (yes you read that right!). 2) There's so many trains, my kids would walk around for hours if I let them. 3) They change aspects of the displays often, so even if you visit a lot, there's always something new to look at. 4) There's three tables with large Lego trains and Brio trains, we always end here and my kids play endlessly with them. 5) There's a few other cool things like a scavenger hunt, a couple "racing" tables, and night trains (have not been yet but looks cool). 6) The bathroom is clean and set up for kids. All in all, this is a phenomenal place to bring kids, and even if you don't have kids, it's great for people who are kids-at-heart!

We came in time for the night train display. I have to say they "bring it" for this event. The…read moretrains are fun and they even had live music. There were many staff and volunteers on hand, including a train doctor. If you look closely at the displays, there are some (not literal) Easter eggs. They have a gift shop too with hats, whistles, books, and postcards. My kid actually lasted an hour and then it was too much. Many of the displays were hard to read in the dark, so if you're there for more of a museum experience, go during day hours. Overall a good experience. You can see the love and care put into the displays.

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.

I enjoyed my trip to the museum inside the Jackson Street Roundhouse, but I think I'd been…read moreexpecting a bit more... granduer? Ultimately it's a rather small museum with a handful of locomotives and a couple of cabooses and passenger cars. I thought it was neat you could walk through the restored passenger cars to get a feel for what it must've been like to ride in them across the country. I also enjoyed learning more about the history of the Great Northern Railway specifically, which was scattered about the museum along with artifacts from the rail line's operation in the 1900s. I did feel it could have been improved with some coverage of racial realities of the times (I saw many an old advertisement depicting happy white couples enjoying the passenger cars with black servers, with zero contemporary acknowledgement of this uncomfortable profiling, for example. To say nothing of the workers who built and maintained the industry. To conveniently gloss over this piece of the history seems lazy to me.) More stuff I liked was the small section about travelling circuses/carnivals by rail and the model railroad. I also thought the coloring pages in the kid's area were a nice touch. I wish there had been more to the outdoor "exhibits." Really that was just viewing for a couple more locomotives and the (admittedly impressively sized) circular train table. I was here on Wednesday, so I didn't get an opportunity to do the caboose ride; that would've probably been fun. I do intend to go at some point to the WI location and do one of their train ride offerings. There were plenty of staff members/volunteers there. I'm not big on interacting with folks, so I didn't utilize them much, but it's nice to see the community chipping in on historical preservation. The gift shop was lacking. I'm normally a big sucker for gift shops and often walk away with one or two little trinkets from an adventure like this. But nothing appealed to me. It would've been nice to see more stuff with the museum's branding on it (like pins or keychains). Restroom was acceptably clean. Water fountains are also available. They let me carry around my water bottle inside, which was nice. Good sized parking lot was only 1/3 full on a Wednesday afternoon. Probably sees a lot more traffic on Saturdays, if I had to guess. For $10 adult entry fee, this was a reasonable experience overall and I would recommend it to others who were curious, but I wouldn't call it a "must-see." I spent two hours there (which was way less than I'd budgetted for in my day, ha).

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.

Easy online ticket purchase and Union Depot is such a cool place to wait…read more There's an exhibit of the Historic Stairs that you shouldn't miss.

The trains don't run on time apparently. Some friends and i booked a train to chicago from…read moreminneapolis to go see one of our favorite bands. There was a 4 hour departure delay that pushed our arrival too late, so we had to cancel and drive instead. thankfully we got a full refund, but totally let down after looking forward to it for so long. TOTAL BUMMER.

If you build model trains then you know about this place. It's basically the oldest of the old…read moreschool hobby stores. It has pretty much all the stuff you might find in the Walthers catalog for the last several decades. It's the best place to get details in person because they have an entire wall full of them.

Hands down THE best store in the twin cities for plastic model kits, tools, and supplies. Nothing…read moreelse is even close. I'm not a model train guy, but am equally astounded by their selection and all of the supplies and accessories they stock for that hobby. Their selection of new kits is very deep and very well organized. The vintage kit selection is varied and reasonably priced. And bargains can be found in the back room if you know what you're doing. Staff is uniformly friendly; I am always greeted when I arrive. If I have a question or need help, it's always fast and efficient. if I just want to wander around and window shop, they don't seem to have a problem with that. This place is a real gem. A throwback to a time when shops like this dotted the twin cities. I haven't seen a shop like this since I used to shop at the old Moeller hobby shop in Robbinsdale. On the rare occasion I need something they don't stock, I will buy online. For everything else, there's no other shop anywhere who gets my business. This place is an absolute treasure.

Fun, no frills cruise down the Mississippi and back. Informative pre-recorded narration, but very…read morehard to hear from the back upper deck. Especially when there is a group of women talking loudly non-stop. LOL! A very good value and something different to do in the city. No outside food or beverages are allowed, but they do have snacks and sodas available. This would be even more fun in the fall when the leaves are at peak color.

It's a nice 90 minute trip where you can enjoy the River while enjoying a beverage of your choiceread more

Download the Metro Transit app. Really easy to set up the profile & buy tickets instantly…read more The metro is a straight shot to the downtown area. It is pretty cheap ($4.50 for 6 hours per person)! It is very punctual as well. It has two lines: blue & green! Two of the exits are perfect for customers staying at the Marriott at the Mall of America as they are terminals for the Minnesota/St. Paul International Airport.

Rode the T Metro Train in Minneapolis for the 1st time on Saturday June 11th, as a friend and I…read morewere in town for a baseball game at Target Field. We parked at Mall of America, found a kiosk very easy, bought a 6-hour pass for the Blue Line to Target Field, and waited for the train. Trains and markings were easy to see and, it was hard not to miss other Twins fans milling around in the area waiting like we were. Took the train about 35 minutes or so to make it in to town and drop us off at Target Field, but we didn't have to look for a place to park, and pay a high price for parking. So, we were both very happy. You couldn't beat the price for the 6-hour pass for seniors ($2.00) and we got a nice ride back to the Mall with our drop off about 100 yards from the car. How sweet is that? Now ... if only the Rays would have won!

Review is just for comp town only. Plenty of free parking nearby or you can opt to take a shuttle…read morealso. No entry fee but a donation is encouraged and honestly to keep the facility this way, I always pay the recommended amount and then some. Every year, we come to Como Town at a minimum 1-2 times per summer. I would highly encourage people to walk up to the ticket booth to see which rides are not operational and then assess whether they want to buy the ride bands or not. This was our 2nd time this summer and unfortunately the rides that were not operational in early June were the same rides still out of commission in late July including the roller coaster so docking a star for that. Plus, pro tip: hold your breadth when using the bathrooms here! On the positive side - this amusement park is very affordable (see ticket price pic). Staff is friendly even with them clearly being short staffed. Lines are always short with the longest wait time that I've ever observed is less than 10 minutes. Free (see above) entry. A couple of concession stands with all the sugary delights plus you can walk into the welcome center where there are more food options.

Ok, let's start with the good: it's small, easy to walk with little kids, you can choose whether to…read morego on a ride or two, or get an unlimited wristband (currently $24-30 for kids depending on height, $14 for adults). There are lots of rides that are good for toddlers. The place caters to young kids, so there are no rides really intended for older kids and adults, which is fine. Now, the bad: the past few years when I've come here, a solid chunk of the rides are closed (we're taking ~30% consistently. I've never seen Hodge Podge Park or the Splash Zone open. Today the swings, roller coaster, and bumper cars were also closed. And that makes the unlimited band feel like not such a good deal. It almost feels like a scam when they make zero mention of what is closed at the ticket booth. Other places for improvement: no seating in the shade. No water refill stations or drinking fountains whatsoever (you have to go into the zoo, which is free, but inconvenient). All in all, this is a great spot for toddlers who can't handle long days, and willing parents. Once your kid is about 6, you may be better off at Nickelodeon or Valleyfair.

James J. Hill House is spectacular. It is a feat of ingenious to see all the beauty that went into…read morethis home. I have been on a tour here twice and have enjoyed each one. The tours were in different seasons, so we were able to see different parts of the home. Thank you to everyone that works on the upkeep of this magnificent home and spreads the history of how it came to be. Go support them and learn more about MN history!

Visiting my college roommate in St. Paul. She's a member of the Minnesota Historical Society so she…read morebrought me to this amazing historical landmark for free today. We enjoyed our docent-led tour by Peter, who mostly told stories, about James and Mary Hill and their family, while interspersing interesting historical facts throughout. My favorite rooms were by far the library/study where I would've chosen to sit on a sun bench to read by natural light and gaze out at Summit Street to people watch and admire the magnificent Cathedral of St Paul across the street; and the art gallery which houses a grandiose organ with pipies up to the ceiling. I also appreciated the ingenius laundry drying rack system they had contrived back then. If you're in the area, it's well worth a visit and 1 hour 15 min of your time!

We had previously used the great services of Chey Cab so when we were planning our most recent…read moreextended vacation, Chey Car was one of our first tasks. Reservation process is completed online with a follow up email to confirm your appointment. This time we were able to meet Chey who picked us up and met us at the airport when we returned home. Always a professional and enjoyable experience with Chey Cab. A great way to start our trip and a great way to end our trip.

I have enjoyed getting to and from the airport many times with Chey because ultimately Chey Cab is…read morereliable. She and her drivers are always early and always excellent drivers. They're also very patient while waiting for late flights! Chey always has a treat for my dog and isn't offended when he turns up his nose at it. One time when we pulled into the driveway, she led him over to the back yard to do what comes naturally - without being asked - while I was getting my act together with the carrier and the luggage. The dog and I were BOTH very grateful! I told her I felt like she deserved another tip for that extra service, and she laughed and said "for just standing here holding onto a leash?" Yup, for holding onto a leash when and where it counts - it's a BIG deal after the dog has been "holding it" too for hours and hours! GREAT service!