Guides · Twin Cities
Twin Cities
32 places · 9 areas · any 7 stops free, then $4.99 for the whole city · offline map 17 MB
Try it free
Pick any 7 of Twin Cities's 32 places, free
- Browse all 32Every place, where it is and the basics are open to everyone.
- Pick your 7Add any 7 stops to your route. Each opens with its full guide and stays yours.
- Plan and walkBuild day-by-day walks from your picks, as many as you like, offline.
Drives: the first stage of every road trip is free.
An example half day
8 of the highlights, 1 day, about 2.9 mi (4.7 km), planned by the app's own engine and shown here with their guide. In the app you choose your own.
Day 1 · ~2.9 mi (4.7 km)
1
Basilica of Saint Mary
1600 Hennepin Avenue; Beaux-Arts church of 1907 to 1914, named the first basilica in the US in 1926
Look up at the dome from the street, then step inside under the 138-foot-high sanctuary dome.
2
Loring Park
Edge of downtown; 1883 park around a pond, linked to the Sculpture Garden by a footbridge
Walk the path around Loring Lake and look for the statue of Norwegian musician Ole Bull, then cross to the Sculpture Garden.
3
Foshay Tower
821 Marquette Avenue; 1929 Art Deco tower modeled on the Washington Monument, with a 30th-floor deck
Ride up to the observation deck on the 30th floor for the view across downtown.
4
IDS Center
Nicollet Mall; Philip Johnson's 1973 tower, the tallest in Minnesota, around the glass Crystal Court
Step into the Crystal Court under its glass roof and follow the skyways that branch out from it to the blocks around.
5
Nicollet Mall
Downtown; 12-block pedestrian and transit mall of 1967, the first of its kind in the United States
Walk the mile of Nicollet past the IDS Center, and use the skyways above it when the weather turns cold.
6
Saint Anthony Falls
Mississippi River by the Mill District; the river's only natural major falls, Owámniyomni to the Dakota
See the falls from the Stone Arch Bridge, then follow the riverside paths for a closer look at the water pouring over the apron.
7
Mill Ruins Park
Beside Mill City Museum; excavated ruins of about 20 flour mills and their water canals by the river
Walk down among the stone foundations and channels, reading the signs on how the canal fed the mills.
8
Guthrie Theater
818 S. 2nd Street; Jean Nouvel's 2006 theater with the 178-foot Endless Bridge over the river
Go up to the Endless Bridge, the cantilevered deck that juts out toward the river, for a free view of the falls and the Stone Arch Bridge.
More of the top sights
A few of the 32 places in the full guide. Each one has its own written guide in the app: what to do, what to notice, the history, and why it hits.
Stone Arch Bridge
Mississippi River at St. Anthony Falls; curving 1883 railroad bridge, the only stone arch bridge on the river
Cathedral of Saint Paul
Cathedral Hill; Masqueray's domed cathedral of 1906 to 1915, among the largest churches in the US
Bde Maka Ska
Chain of Lakes; the city's largest lake, given back its Dakota name in 2018, with a 3.2-mile walking path
Minnehaha Falls
Minnehaha Park; 53-foot waterfall made famous by Longfellow, frozen into ice columns in winter
Minnesota State Capitol
Saint Paul; Cass Gilbert's capitol of 1905, crowned by the world's second-largest self-supported marble dome
Summit Avenue
Saint Paul; 4.5-mile boulevard of Victorian mansions from the cathedral west to the Mississippi
Lake Harriet
Chain of Lakes; lake with a 2.75-mile path, a summer bandshell and a restored streetcar line
Historic Fort Snelling
Bdote, where the Minnesota meets the Mississippi; 1820s fort, site of the 1862 Dakota concentration camp
Minneapolis Sculpture Garden
Beside the Walker; free 11-acre sculpture garden of 1988 with about 40 permanent works
Areas
Mill District · Downtown · Loring Park and Walker · University · South Minneapolis · Chain of Lakes · Minnehaha · Fort Snelling · Saint Paul
Illustrations are drawn for the app. Place descriptions are written by hand and checked against a primary source; facts draw on Wikidata (CC0) and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA). Maps © OpenStreetMap contributors.