What to do downtown U of M Minneapolis? (Nicollet, Isle: neighborhoods, mall)

[MN Man]

Next week I will be taking my daughter to visit the U of MN. I want to get a good sense of the area and what fun things there are to do. What things are a must when visiting this area? What areas/things are good to visit to get a good sense of the community and the Minneapolis scene? And anything else you think is a good things to do around there.

[uptown_urbanist]

Walking around the U campus will take up quite a bit of time in itself; it's a big place. Pop into the Weisman Art Museum (in campus) while you're there, then walk across the bridge from the East to the West Bank. It's a great view of downtown and the river. Visit Dinkytown, have lunch somewhere like Big 10 (in Stadium Village), sit on Northrop Mall and do some people watching; take the campus shuttle over to the Saint Paul campus and walk around there a bit for a totally different feel (I always enjoyed studying over there because it was such a change of pace from the Minneapolis campus; that campus also has a nice design museum that offers changing exhibits). The Stone Arch Bridge and the neighborhoods on both sides of it is a must-see, and pretty close to campus. I'd visit Uptown, too, and maybe have dinner there or walk around Lake of the Isles. It's a pretty popular neighborhood with a bustling commercial district. "Eat Street," a section of Nicollet Avenue in Minneapolis, is great for food options, too, and is located in an interesting neighborhood filled with some of Minneapolis's historic mansions.

One of these days I'm going to get around to putting a sticky on touristy things to do in the Twin Cities, but haven't done so yet. In the meantime, take a look back in the archives for some recent threads on similar topics.

Enjoy your visit!

[Astron1000]

Good suggestions by uptown_urbanist. If you want to hang out in downtown Minneapolis, explore (and get lost in) the extensive and unique Skyway System (http://www.minneapolis.org/page/skyways-minneapolis.jsp - broken link). Have fun among First Avenue's many nightclubs. Or watch a nice little video of the city here. (http://www.minneapolis.org/page/1/minneapolis-maps-guides.jsp - broken link)