Twin Cities

Understand

The Twin Cities grew in the 1800s from its location at the intersection of two major rivers, the Minnesota and the Mississippi, and rail lines. For a period the point furthest downstream that the Mississippi could be bridged was located in the area, if only due to the fortuitous island placement. Contributing to its growth was St. Anthony Falls, a natural waterfall which provided energy to working grain mills located on the Mississippi River. Due to rapid erosion of its limestone underlayment, St Anthony Falls moved upstream until it was set in concrete by the Army Corps of Engineers.

Cities

Central cities

• Minneapolis, county seat of Hennepin County and Minnesota's largest city.
• Saint Paul, county seat of Ramsey County, Minnesota's second city, and state capital.

Suburbs and outlying towns

Hennepin County

• Bloomington
• Brooklyn Park
• Eden Prairie
• Edina
• Excelsior
• Hopkins
• Maple Grove
• Minnetonka
• Plymouth
• Richfield
• Rogers
• St. Louis Park

Ramsey County

• Arden Hills
• Roseville
• White Bear Lake

Anoka County

• Anoka
• Columbia Heights
• Columbus
• Coon Rapids
• Fridley

Washington County

• Afton
• Bayport
• Cottage Grove
• Forest Lake
• Stillwater
• Woodbury

Dakota County

• Apple Valley
• Burnsville
• Eagan
• Hastings
• Inver Grove Heights
• Miesville
• Rosemount
• South Saint Paul

Scott County

• Shakopee

Carver County

• Chanhassen
• Chaska — a suburb southwest of Minneapolis that is home to major companies such as TPI, to the Hazletine National Golf Club

Chisago County

• Chisago City
• North Branch
• Taylors Falls

Wright County

• Monticello

Get in

By car

Two Interstate Highways, I-94 and I-35, travel through the Twin Cities travelling east/west and north/south respectively. I-35 splits as it passes through the Twin Cities, with I-35W coming through Minneapolis, and I-35E making an eastward bow through Saint Paul. Several other national and state highways also travel through the area.

By plane

Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport (MSP) is the main airport in the region. Most travelers will arrive in Terminal 1-Lindbergh. Terminal 2-Humphrey serves primarily charter and low-cost carriers. The Lindbergh terminal (Charles Lindbergh was a Minnesotan, and one of his trans-Atlantic planes is suspended above the ticketing area) receives the bulk of renovation fees, however, and it is an attractive, modern, convenient, and well-designed terminal. Despite Terminal 1 getting most of the attention, Terminal 2 is also well maintained and quite attractive. The terminals share the same runways, have long- and short-term parking set between them, and are equally convenient for transportation. Take note of the terminal you are flying from, as driving and transit directions are slightly different.

The Metro Blue Line light rail serves both terminals as it runs between downtown Minneapolis and the Mall of America. Travel between the two terminals is free. The fare for traveling outside the airport is $2. The trains are fast and clean.

By train

Amtrak. Trains arrive at Union Depot in downtown Saint Paul. Daily service via the Empire Builder, trains 8/28 and 7/27, terminating at Chicago and Seattle or Portland.

By bus

Greyhound and Jefferson Lines buses arrive at the Hawthorne Transportation Center, 950 Hawthorne Ave (at 10th St, one block west of Hennepin), in downtown Minneapolis. It's a few minutes taxi ride away from most of the downtown hotels. It's 4-5 blocks away from a few major bus routes and the light rail. The depot is near a homeless shelter, so it's not uncommon to see a few homeless people hanging out nearby. The area is well-patrolled and quite safe. Greyhound and Jefferson Lines also offer limited service to Union Depot in downtown Saint Paul. Some routes make additional stops.

By boat

Mississippi River. The river runs through both downtowns, but passenger boats don't serve the area. Huck Finn fantasies aside, arrival via the Mississippi is not recommended. (Besides, Huck floated down river.)

Get around

Public transit

Minneapolis, Saint Paul, and some of the inner suburbs are all served by Metro Transit. There are also other transit authorities serving select suburbs, most connect with Metro Transit in either of the downtowns. Regular fare for light rail, local buses, and BRT routes is $2. These fares come with free transfers for 2½ hours. On local buses, a paper transfer will be dispensed from the validator, on light rail and BRT routes your ticket serves as your transfer.

Unlimited ride passes are available in 1-day, 7-day, and 31-day formats. Stored value passes (pay-per-ride) are also available. Day passes are $4 and can be purchased online, at a Metro Transit Store, from a bus driver, or a ticket machine at any light rail station. 7-day ($24) and 31-day ($65-120) passes must be loaded on a Go-To card, which can be purchased online, at a Metro Transit Store, or participating Metro Transit sales outlets. If you do not have a Go-To card, or do not want one, you can purchase passes in the Metro Transit app. Stored value passes can be loaded on a Go-To card in increments of $10 (up to $400). Once you have a Go-To card, reloading it with new unlimited ride passes is easy and can be done online, at Metro Transit stores and outlets, or at light rail ticket machines.

Digital tickets for single rides can be purchased in the Metro Transit app for their regular price. Please note that this is the only way to pay for single rides on local bus routes with a credit or debit card.

Light rail

The Metro is the light rail system in the Twin Cities. It has two lines. The Blue Line serves Downtown Minneapolis, the airport, the Mall of America, and all points in between, while the Green Line serves Downtown Minneapolis, the University of Minnesota, Downtown Saint Paul, and points in between. Although automobile transport is most useful for exploring beyond the two downtown areas of the Twin Cities (e.g corporate visitors, or people visiting any of the suburbs), tourists may find light rail the easiest, fastest, and safest transport between the aforementioned places. Crosstown bus lines also intersect the light rail system at most points, most visitors can use public transit exclusively to explore the cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul.

Bus

The Twin Cities have an adequate bus system, hobbled by confusing connections to suburban lines, and poor service during non-rush hours (and no service after 1AM except on a few select routes with "night owl" service). The Metro Transit site (linked above) allows you to search for the best routes between your current location and your desired location, and is as good as most such systems in providing good routes and connections. Bus stops are very nearly everywhere throughout the city, but some are served only very infrequently, and most are not labeled as to which routes serve them at which times, so take care, especially in sub-zero weather, as to which routes you choose. Buses on Hennepin Avenue, Nicollet Avenue, Central Avenue, Lake Street, Snelling Avenue, and West 7th Street are most consistent and provide transport to the greatest numbers. Express buses operate between the two downtowns regularly during rush hours, and buses to suburbs, or connecting to light rail are limited, and best used during high traffic times.

Skyways and tunnels

Minneapolis and Saint Paul have extensive second-floor ("Première étage") "skyways" that connect central city buildings with each other. Although Minneapolis is larger, the Saint Paul system, to this point, has more connections and is more extensive than Minneapolis' system. But you could walk from the Convention Center in Minneapolis to Washington Avenue (a block before the Mississippi) without going outside, and without stopping at a pedestrian traffic light. Highway 394 feeds into heated parking garages, so that a Wayzatan suburbanite could enter her Lexus, drive the length of 394 to the heated lot, go to work, shop at Target or Macy's, see a movie, have dinner, and return home - all without having to wear a coat or change clothes, even in -20°F weather.

Even in good weather, mid-day romps in Minneapolis or Saint Paul at street level will miss most of the citizen activity, despite the appearance of crowds and farmers' markets, as many folks will choose to get their lattes, sandwiches, takeout, or copy keys, copy documents, or visit their banks, on the second level, a floor above the apparent activity.

As if to confuse you, there is an extensive network of tunnels connecting several buildings on the University of Minnesota's Twin Cities campus. Good idea, only different.

Bike

The Twin Cities, despite unfriendly weather for bikes from about November to April, provides many resources for both recreational and commuting bicyclers. Most major, and primary one-way, and two-way, streets have ample bike lanes which are marked and visible during fair weather months. In addition, all Minneapolis in-city lakes have bike paths that are separated from pedestrian traffic (and from motorized vehicles), and offer one-way transit around the entire Chain of Lakes, extending to Minnehaha Parkway and into Saint Paul. As if that were not adequate, former rail line paths sustain two-way bike lanes following east-west routes just south of Highway 394 and into downtown Minneapolis, known as the Cedar Lake trail; and just north of Lake Street, following a path known as the Midtown Greenway; and are connected via a spur alongside an active freight railway just east of Cedar Lake and north of Bde Maka Ska (Lake Calhoun). It is possible to connect, via either east-west line, to bike trails that connect far into the Western suburbs and beyond, and recreational bicyclers can travel along historic rail lines for uncounted miles West.

Buses and light-rail trains are equipped with bike racks. It is not uncommon, though still shocking, to see bicyclers in sub-zero weather, and in deep snow. Visitors may find late March to late November as the best period to travel on bicycles, if cold and snow don't arrive or persist.

The Twin Cities regrettably no longer have a bike share program. Despite this, both cities are served by bikes and scooters operated by Lime and Lyft. Some parks (notably Minnehaha Falls and Lake Como) may offer rentals of regular and 4-person bikes for use around the park.

Stay safe

The Twin Cities are like most major American cities when it comes to crime issues, and all standard common-sense precautions should be taken.