Visiting Minny

[YogurtProducer]

Hi all - hope this is okay to post.

Coming to Minnesota for the Vikings / Packers game (and hopefully can make the Wolves game to!) end of December. Never been to MIN so need some help.

Hotels: what is my best bet here? We debated the Aloft across from the stadium but cant quite justify cost. What does the Hyatt Regency and Hyatt Place sound like? Are they walkable to the stadium / rail system?

Rail: coming from a city without rail and using it maybe once in a trip to Toronto... what do I need to know?

NBA/NHL: There is both a bball and hockey game that night. Friends wanna go see hockey, I would prefer NBA. Considering the football game game is at 12 (my time) and both NBA/NHL is at 7pm, what are the odds you would even be able to make one of them? Target Center looks close so NBA I think would be no issue, but the Wild out in St.Paul seems less likely?

Other stuff: we are 4 dudes flying in Friday afternoon, and leaving Monday, so pretty much half a day Friday and all of Saturday to do things. Suggestions? I assume we will tailgate the football game a bit, but what else?

[KGdaBom]

Hi all - hope this is okay to post.

Coming to Minnesota for the Vikings / Packers game (and hopefully can make the Wolves game to!) end of December. Never been to MIN so need some help.

Hotels: what is my best bet here? We debated the Aloft across from the stadium but cant quite justify cost. What does the Hyatt Regency and Hyatt Place sound like? Are they walkable to the stadium / rail system?

Rail: coming from a city without rail and using it maybe once in a trip to Toronto... what do I need to know?

NBA/NHL: There is both a bball and hockey game that night. Friends wanna go see hockey, I would prefer NBA. Considering the football game game is at 12 (my time) and both NBA/NHL is at 7pm, what are the odds you would even be able to make one of them? Target Center looks close so NBA I think would be no issue, but the Wild out in St.Paul seems less likely?

Other stuff: we are 4 dudes flying in Friday afternoon, and leaving Monday, so pretty much half a day Friday and all of Saturday to do things. Suggestions? I assume we will tailgate the football game a bit, but what else?

I haven't lived in Minnesota for 13 years so not much advice other than have fun. Mall of America is worth visiting. My favorite place in Minnesota is Minnehaha Falls.

[Worm Guts]

NBA/NHL: There is both a bball and hockey game that night. Friends wanna go see hockey, I would prefer NBA. Considering the football game game is at 12 (my time) and both NBA/NHL is at 7pm, what are the odds you would even be able to make one of them? Target Center looks close so NBA I think would be no issue, but the Wild out in St.Paul seems less likely?

Shouldn’t be any issue making either one, but Target Center is walkable distance from US Bank, while you would need alternate transportation to the Excel Center. I’m not all that familiar with the public transportation, although I’m sure you can get there without much problem.

[...]

Keep calling it Minny. That way we know you're visiting.

[shrink]

If you are concerned about a cold walk at the end of December between stadiums, much of downtown Minneapolis, including Target Center, is connected by a heated skyway system. It’s a little over a mile between US Bank stadium and Target Center.

There is also light rail you can take between the airport, Minneapolis, and Saint Paul, as well as cabs and buses. You might want to check out the Mall of America when you fly in .. it’s really just across the street from the airport.

[FrenchMinnyFan]

Thanks for the info guys. As I planned if my health is okay to come to meet Mike before he retired , I got some useful information here. Will look at the schedule soon and plan 1 week trip there. Go wolves!

[YogurtProducer]

If you are concerned about a cold walk at the end of December between stadiums, much of downtown Minneapolis, including Target Center, is connected by a heated skyway system. It’s a little over a mile between US Bank stadium and Target Center.

There is also light rail you can take between the airport, Minneapolis, and Saint Paul, as well as cabs and buses. You might want to check out the Mall of America when you fly in .. it’s really just across the street from the airport.

From Saskatchewan - quite used to those cold winters

Light rail - how does it work? My only experience was Toronto and I think we had to get cards and load money on them and tap? We met some people there we already knew to guide us around thought whereas in MIN it’ll be just us figuring it out

[thinktank]

Hi all - hope this is okay to post.

Coming to Minnesota for the Vikings / Packers game (and hopefully can make the Wolves game to!) end of December. Never been to MIN so need some help.

Hotels: what is my best bet here? We debated the Aloft across from the stadium but cant quite justify cost. What does the Hyatt Regency and Hyatt Place sound like? Are they walkable to the stadium / rail system?

Rail: coming from a city without rail and using it maybe once in a trip to Toronto... what do I need to know?

NBA/NHL: There is both a bball and hockey game that night. Friends wanna go see hockey, I would prefer NBA. Considering the football game game is at 12 (my time) and both NBA/NHL is at 7pm, what are the odds you would even be able to make one of them? Target Center looks close so NBA I think would be no issue, but the Wild out in St.Paul seems less likely?

Other stuff: we are 4 dudes flying in Friday afternoon, and leaving Monday, so pretty much half a day Friday and all of Saturday to do things. Suggestions? I assume we will tailgate the football game a bit, but what else?

Our rail system is fine on game days but you should be mindful of safety when you ride. Uber and lyft are also pretty cheap options, but if you take a lot of rides it will add up.

For things to do I suggest these:

Minneapolis Institute of Art
First Avenue / 7th Street Entry (famous rock clubs in the same building--see if you can go to a show there. There's also a new-ish bar they run called The Depot that is adjacent to the club and it's a decent spot)
Matt's Bar (if you like burgers--this place is famous for them)
Nightingale is another spot for good food that's reasonably priced and it's in Uptown so you could walk around there a bit.
Bryant Lake Bowl is another great place, especially for brunch: https://youtu.be/Tvkot4jGLWU?si=XwJMD1HbWwTaLLxE

[Colbinii]

If you are concerned about a cold walk at the end of December between stadiums, much of downtown Minneapolis, including Target Center, is connected by a heated skyway system. It’s a little over a mile between US Bank stadium and Target Center.

There is also light rail you can take between the airport, Minneapolis, and Saint Paul, as well as cabs and buses. You might want to check out the Mall of America when you fly in .. it’s really just across the street from the airport.

From Saskatchewan - quite used to those cold winters

Light rail - how does it work? My only experience was Toronto and I think we had to get cards and load money on them and tap? We met some people there we already knew to guide us around thought whereas in MIN it’ll be just us figuring it out

Light rail is really easy. Each stop you can buy a card that works for 2.5 hours from issue.

https://www.metrotransit.org/metro