Today the James J. Hill house was the starting point for the Summit Avenue Walking Tour by the…read moreMinnesota Historical Society. Thoroughly informative and enjoyable. Josef was knowledgeable and a charming storyteller. The tour lasts 90 minutes and covers 1.5 miles of walking. One of the highlights was seeing the park where F. Scott Fitzgerald grew up playing baseball and the Commodore Hotel behind it where he and Zelda were often socializing. We saw multiple Victorian era architectural styles including Queen Anne, Romanesque, and Tudor Revival. Lots of historical stories, an enjoyable walk, highly recommend!

Very cute historical house. The tour was really informative and you got to see parts of the house…read morethat you can't see by walking through yourself. The kitchen and boiler room were especially cool to see.

Beautiful historical building with grey photo opportunities and a few small but exquisite museums…read moreinside! I walked into this center while attending a conference in the Saint Paul hotel across the street. I was so pleasantly surprised by how beautiful the inside is, how nice the two museums (a musical instrument museum, with amazingly beautiful old pianos, and a woodwork museum with a great collection of carved wood items) are, and how friendly and helpful the staff/volunteers were inside the center. And all of that is free to the visitors! What a wonderful opportunity to see the region's history and culture , and meet some friendly locals! I can't recommend this place enough!

Gorgeous historical building with a variety of exhibits and restored courtrooms. The woodwork…read morethroughout the building was all hand-carved, as was the stonework. A wonderful space in which to wander!

- Historic Fort Snelling…read more Historic Fort Snelling is an excellent place to visit for anyone interested in American history, military history, or history in general. The site is fairly large, but parking was easy and cost about $6. Payment appeared to operate largely on the honor system, with instructions posted near the visitor center. Admission was around $15. Guided tours are offered at the top of the hour and last approximately 15 minutes. The tour is brief, but it provides a helpful overview of the fort and gives you enough background to explore the rest of the site on your own. Afterward, you can visit the different buildings and areas discussed during the tour. Costumed interpreters are stationed throughout the property and provide more detailed explanations about the fort, its residents, and daily life during different historical periods. There are also large informational displays throughout the site for anyone who wants to learn more independently. Some of the highlights included live blacksmithing demonstrations showing how items such as nails were made, as well as exhibits covering the quartermaster, sutler, physician, pharmacy, library, enlisted soldiers, officers, and the commanding officer's residence. The medical exhibits were especially interesting and showed how medicine and the role of physicians changed over time. The different sections of the fort represent multiple periods in its history and appeared to be carefully presented with period-appropriate details. Visitors can also see areas such as the ammunition magazines and the spaces where enslaved African Americans lived. I appreciated that the site did not ignore or minimize that part of its history. There was also a live rifle demonstration using blanks, which was interesting and added another interactive element to the visit. How long you spend here really depends on how deeply you want to explore. You could move through fairly quickly or spend several hours reading the displays and speaking with the interpreters. A large school group was visiting while I was there, and the children seemed engaged and excited. Between the costumed interpreters, demonstrations, and hands-on style of learning, this would be a great place to introduce children to history. Overall, I am very glad I stopped at Historic Fort Snelling. It was educational, engaging, and well worth the visit.

Immersive experience with staff to guide you at the entrance for an overview of what you'll see in…read morethe various buildings as well as at various exhibits such as the fort hospital, the blacksmith forge, the commissary, and the barracks. All the staff are to be commended not only for their knowledge but also their friendliness and willingness to answer questions. I especially enjoyed the blacksmith's explanation and demonstration of the work he does there. In the gift shop they sell actual nails and hooks they forge on site! The museum at the visitor center has an excellent exhibit of the history of the fort that's worth visiting!

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.

Love that they turned the old swing bridge into a park. I remember my grandparents driving across…read morewhen I was a child. I was always excited to pay the man in the booth the toll fee. The light show at night is pretty cool .

A very scenic and historical park that's not too well known. Easy parking and there are heated…read morerestrooms. If you like to read about where you are there are a few interpretation points. Catch some great views of the ol' Mississippi and look for the climb up lookout point. If dad gets bored with the whole thing he could head over to the ah 'gentlemen's' club at the corner of the highway turn.

Even though it's a little drive from where I live, Fredrick-Miller Spring was perfect and the water…read moreis clean and refreshing. Located in Eden Prairie, this spring is set in a very pretty setting and the water flows continuously out of a pipe so it's easy to fill up your bottles. If I had more time, I would have hiked a little since there are some trails and it was a beautiful, chilly day. There's a nice little place to pull up and park near the spring, the day I went, it was fairly busy with about 4-5 people filling bottles and this was right before all of the craziness with coronavirus. My only advice would be to go early, that way you might be able to avoid the rush, if there is one. I recommend the spring not only for the water but it's always good to get out and see some of the marvels of nature.

We've been coming here for quite a few years and it's the only water that we drink. We use it for…read moreour dog and for ourselves. The best thing to do is to come early in the morning and preferably not on the weekend and there won't be a line. But most of the time when you do come, people are willing to take turns. The water is inspected by the city and there is never been a problem with it being bacteria or anything at all like that.