Hi,

I am going to be attending a conference in Chicago next April. I want to extend my trip so that I can spend a few extra days exploring. I'll have time during the conference to see Chicago so I want to head further afield. I've always wanted to visit the Twin Cities, so am thinking of heading that way. The one thing that stops me is the weather. I have 5 days in total. Is this the best way to head? I have been reading about the wonderful countryside in Minnesota, but am thinking that it might be pretty bleak in winter. I will be travelling alone, so getting stuck in a snowstorm is not the kind of fun I'm looking for!!

I like quaint towns, museums, and shopping. Anyone any ideas? Or, should I just hop on a plane and go somewhere warm?? I'm over in Ireland, so I want to make the most of my few days vacation.

Many thanks,

Laura

I was just glancing through the responses you got to your previous posting. Doesn't look like you got much info about Minnesota.

I'm wondering whether you realize that it's about an 8 hour drive from Chicago to the Twin Cities. Certainly, with five days, you have time to do it. But I think you're probably right about April not being the best time. If you're driving, you could very easily wind up hitting snow. Then again, it could be fairly warm. It's a very unpredictable time of the year.

Hi Laura,

The thing I can tell you for certain is that there is no guarantee that the weather will be nice. However, this past April we had records breaking 80 degree weather, it was gorgeous. It was warmer in April this year than in May.

Minneapolis/St. Paul does have wonderful museums, Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Walker Art Center (Mpls) and The Science Museum (St Paul) to name a few. We have great plays and restaurants. (Guthrie, the Orpheum and the State usually have something fun playing.)

As far as quaint little towns close by I would name Excelsior off Lake Minnetonka as one. Stillwater, east of St Paul. The Grand Avenue area of St. Paul. Hip, fun artsy area would be the Uptown area of Minneapolis. Redwing is further away but quaint and rich in history.

I am not sure how far you would want to drive but the North Shore area (in fact we just spent our Fourth of July weekend there) is very beautiful. Grand Marais, Lutsen, Tofte. May be more "outdoorsy" than you are looking for though, and indeed it would be colder, so may not be a fit for you.

Just let me know if you have any questions, happy to help.

Best wishes, Tiff

We there are some quaint towns such as:
Cedarburg, WI, New Glarus, WI and Galena, IL that are all within 2-3 hour drive of Chicago. The touristy but interesting Wisconsin Dells is 3 hours or so from O'Hare.

Unfortunately not much is going on in these places in April. April in these states is brown and plain. Go further North and you may indeed find some snow.

The drive to the Twin Cities is all of 6 hours of interstate driving. On the way more or less, LaCrosse, WI and Winona, MN are pretty river towns with rolling hills.

I love living in the Midwest but April is a pretty blah month, unfortunately for you.

Guess we all jumped to post at once!

I believe CAP is right, probably closer to 8 hours to the Twin cities.

Lauradublin, as the previous posters indicate, the weather can be pretty iffy, especially if you are here at the beginning of April (not sure from your post).

However, what I'd strongly recommend is from Chicago to travel to Galena, IL (about 4 hour drive) and spend the night in Galena. Galena sits on bluffs above the Mississippi River. Please make sure you take Stagecoach Trail just before you get into Galena. You won't be disappointed with the lovely scenery.

Spend the afternoon exploring the little shops and the night there in Galena in one of the historic B&Bs. (Galena was the hometown of Ulysses S. Grant.)

Then the next morning continue on along the Great River Road on the Mississippi River up to the Twin Cities.

I did this exact trip years ago and enjoyed it greatly.

One other thing, you'll have to check if there is any flooding along the River. I had wanted to do this trip starting in Galena but going SOUTH several springs ago, only to have to cancel it due to spring floods.

Have fun!

Hi all,

Many thanks for all the replies. It looks like that given the weather could be iffy I might be better off heading south. Any ideas? I'll be there from 11-15 April.

Laura

If you're a fan of American history, Springfield has a new museum dedicated to President Abraham Lincoln, also his home/museum. But it's a bland, flat, 3-hour drive from Chicago (and you haven't seen flat till you've seen Midwestern prairie FLAT).

Are you sure you'll have enough time to "explore" Chicago while balancing it with your conference "to-dos." There is plenty to see - with such a wealth of museums, shopping, funky neighborhoods, etc.

If you're after some Midwestern flavor, you might enjoy driving north from Chicago (take the slow way, along Sheridan Road through the posh North Shore suburbs that hug the lake), on up through Milwaukee with a day's stop there (they have a breathtaking new art museum) and continue on up to Manitowoc (about 3 hours straight driving time from Chicago). At Manitowoc, you could take the 4-hour ferry across the lake to Michigan and drive south back down to Chicago, with stops in some interesting towns (others will have to pitch in here with specific info though) and a visit to the magnificent Indiana sand dunes.

Depending on the weather, I'd suggest Door County, WI It's penisula sticking out into the great lakes and consists of 6 or 7 pretty towns/villages. Its truly the gem of WI.

You could consider the Amana colonies in Iowa, just north of Interstate 80 in the east-central part of the state.

It's a collection of Amish settlements that is charming, low-key (and the food is fabulous!)

Many thanks for all the great replies!

Laura

Great suggestion, WorkToWander. I went to the Amana colonies as a child and had completely forgotten about it.

I bought a little candle in the shape of a cartoon mouse with my OWN spending money that I had saved for the trip (see I was even saving then to travel, lol). On the drive home I went to "check on him" and he had MELTED and was now most distorted, his little face all sideways, and now in the shape of a mouse that had a most unfortunate accident.

Tragic! (lol)

Lauradublin, could cha get me another?

>- Tiff