**We partnered with Meet Minneapolis to experience kid-friendly venues in the MSP area. All opinions are our own.
Going to Minneapolis with kids is a great way to have family fun. There are multiple opportunities for fun, nature, and memories.
We spent three days exploring many of the kid-friendly venues and outdoor areas. I hope you find the recommendations helpful in planning your trip to Minneapolis with kids.
Learn and listen at the Science Museum of Minnesota and Omnitheater
We always love spending time at Science Museums. The Minnesota Science Museum is 4 full floors of exhibits and activities.
Our favorite part of the Minnesota Science Museum is the OmniTheater. This is a full screen that will put you right into the show. Your admission pays for one showing of your choice. Reservations in advance is recommended.
We saw an amazing film about deep diving through underwater caves and caverns. It was like being right inside the earth without leaving our seat. The cinematography was incredibly realistic. With the screen going from the floor to ceiling and wrapped around the walls, it’s hard not to feel like you are right in the scene. Even my energetic and active 3-year-old sat mesmerized through a 45-minute documentary without moving a muscle.
Play the day away at the Minnesota Children’s Museum
The children’s museum of Minnesota is a must when traveling to Minneapolis with kids. The kids will love the hours spent at a museum designed with them in mind. The Minnesota Children’s museum has 4 floors of activities. The museum welcomes visitors with a noodle forest and obstacle course. From there you can head upstairs, downstairs or into the next room.
Next door, you’ll find a car wash and bubbles. The kids will most likely get wet here, so bring an extra set of clothes. At least take off the socks and shoes for maximum enjoyment. The scrubbing bubbles will entertain the kids for hours. We only left to see what else the museum offered
The play area extends through all 3 floors as you can climb up and then slide down. The slide and the stairs are on level 2, but you can see this fun play area from all the levels.
A family favorite area was the small town just for kids. The kids mimicked adult jobs at the post office, hardware store, taco shop, picnic/park area and fire station. Kids love to imitate and imagine in an adult’s world. with all the supplies they needed in their size, this is a creative’s dream.
We were ready to go find some food, but the arts and craft room screamed out to stop and create. This room has rotating art activities. The day we were there we each received a block of clay. Multiple tools were available to create the sculpture of our imaginations. Our entire family loved molding and creating for over an hour. The clay became a treasured souvenir from our trip to Minneapolis.
Get outdoors and see Minnehaha Falls Regional Park
In south Minneapolis area is the beautiful nature preserve Minnehaha Falls Regional Park. The waterfall can be viewed year-round (frozen in the winter).
We were in Minneapolis with kids in the spring, the waterfall was just thawing out. The snow and ice covering the trails and part of the falls added to the unique beauty of the area. Since our kids have rare encounters with snow, walking on the snow and playing with icicles here was a real treat.
Walk over the Mississippi on the Stone Arch Bridge and see the Falls of St. Anthony
Minnehaha Falls is a natural phenomenon, but St. Anthony Falls looks more man-made, but is equally impressive. It was a natural falls in the Mississippi river, but due to erosion, concrete was added to keep it in place. Spanning the Mississippi river, the Stone Arch Bridge offers a beautiful view of St. Anthony Falls. With paths for walkers and bikers, this is a popular spot for locals to visit when the weather turns nice.
My kids loved walking over the Mississippi river. It added more to the fun to compare the river with what the Mississippi river looked like in several other locations where we saw it in earlier travels (Spoiler alert: It’s smaller up north).
Rock and Roll through the Mall of America
When you are in Minneapolis with kids you must go to the Mall of America. It is so vast and expansive. Yes, it is actually a mall (unlike the National Mall in DC). They offer every store you can imagine right within walking distance and inside! Even the parking structure surrounding the mall will give you an idea of the size of the building and the fun inside.
You can read all the details about our favorite parts of the Mall of America on this post. You can easily spend several days at the Mall of America, so pick your favorites and plan to visit for an extended period.
Our family favorite attractions at the Mall of America are listed below
Nickelodeon Universe
Nickelodeon Universe is an indoor amusement park with rides for all ages. The ride coordinate with lovable Nickelodeon characters such as Dora, Bubble Guppies and Sponge Bob. With an all-day ride option or pay-per-ride, your family will love hurtling through the mall on a roller coaster.
FlyOver America
Hawaii is near and dear to our heart, so we relished the chance to Fly Over in a 4D ride. Climbing mountains, dropping down water falls and even swimming with the dolphins made this ride unforgettable.
SeaLife Aquarium
Without having to leave the protection of the Mall, you can head Under the Sea (literally take the escalator to the basement) to spy and touch unique fish, coral and under water creatures.
Entertainment
On top of the Amusement Park and the SeaLife Aquarium, the mall had so many entertainment options.
While walking the mall I saw so many entertainment options, for young kids up to adults. You could easily spend a week just at the Mall of America and not run out of things to do.
Fly into the MSP Airport
We flew into the MSP airport. The kids enjoyed the play area. I liked that it was fenced off so no one went wandering off. At the airport, you can find all the food you want.
Rental cars are obtained through a shuttle system, but is it quick and efficient. There is a light rail train system that easily connects the airport all around the city. Many people just use the bus system that comes straight into the airport and takes you all over the city. The kids would love a train ride. If you are in Minneapolis with kids a rental car, train or the bus would work great.
More Family Fun in Minneapolis with
Kids
We had so much fun at all of our destinations we ran out of time to try other venues. If we had more time, I would visit more venues.
For more fun, food and adventure look up ideas on Meet Minneapolis.
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