Vacation Ideas in Minnesota or Wisconsin Area

Lake Geneva has Timber Ridge Resort, which is a nice water park resort that we've been to. Not terribly expensive, and it's the on the property for Grand Geneva, so you get all of the amenities of that hotel, but none of the cost.

Have you been to the North Shore of MN? You could easily spend 3-5 days between Duluth and points north of there.

J.

Check out:

Lake City (Total marina town, everyone who lives there owns some type of water craft, so if you like boating and fishing this is your place. They have a really fun water festival (Water Ski Days) the weekend before or actually on July 4th (can't remember for sure, so check) and get live bands, craft fair, rides, and more.

Red Wing area (Historic St. James Hotel, antiques, Red Wing Shoe factory tour or Red Wing stone factory, Treasure Island casino, the 104 winery has tours, ski, hike, boating and biking trails, and plenty of great restaurants, pretty turn of the century architecture, lots of history and fun)

CrossLake (Exclusive luxury resort area in the Brainerd Lakes area with lovely trails, lovely lake homes, boating, hiking and more)

Brainerd - Paul Bunyon amusement park and trail is a blast for kids, resorts with fishing, camping, hunting, trails and more nearby.

Mil Lacs- Lots of great boating and fishing, some of the best resorts in the state, Grand Casino Mil Lacs/Hotel and Grand Casino in Nearby Hinkley are both popular stops. Be sure to stop by Tobies historic bakery and restaurant if you go to the Hinkley casino/hotel. They are world famous for their caramel rolls and breakfast goodies.

Duluth - Fun historic, college town (home to UMD) on the shores of the great Lake Superior. The harbor area is fun and has all the same nightlife amenities you'd find in the downtown Minneapolis metro area, but without the metro craziness.

Two Harbors - very close to Duluth, it has a very romantic view of Lake Superior! Lots of engagements happen at the famous lighthouse and it's nearby bed and breakfast resort. There is plenty of fishing, trails, and historical sites to see. The Grandma's Marathon goes through this north shore town in late June and they have a lot of hoopla for that. They celebrate "Heritage Days" the weekend of July 4th and there's a parade, street fair, and more.

Lutsen- Winter skiing and summer fishing are great, beautiful resort in the arrow head region of Minnesota, near the western edge of Wisconsin.

Stillwater (Lots of antiquing, a winery, a brewery, boating (marina town), bed and breakfasts and the famous Lowell Inn hotel are great fun. Their big summer event is Lumberjack days and it draws record crowds for it's live top act concerts (last summer was the Jonas Brothers) and everyone loves seeing the lumberjack competitions on the St. Croix river-- burly, muscle-bound men hacking down huge pines in record time or racing to see who can roll the most logs down the river.

BWCA - The area is huge. White water rafting, camping, hiking, fishing and more. True extreme adventure seekers go here for a challenging and fun outdoor experience. Many tour packages can be found for rafting and kayaking trips.

Second to the very beautiful and romantic Grand Marais, MN, Ely is a popular destination in the BWCA, and home of arctic explorer Will Steger, this is a nature wonderland, and ideal place for those who like camping, hiking and nature exploring. Museums and more can be found here. It is very remote, and you're guaranteed to have a real "Northern Exposure" experience if you find the right tour package, so prepare accordingly. Be sure to buy a pair of handmade mukluks from Steger while you're there.
http://www.willsteger.com.php5-13.websitetestlink.com/ind...

We like going to Duluth and heading further north to visit some State Parks (Gooseberry, Tetegouche, Split Rock). There are also a lot of things to see in Duluth and you can go to Park Point and swim in the beach.

Have you been to Grand Marais, MN? It is a beautiful, artsy little town that is easy to walk around. We went up with our 18 month old at the time and LOVED it. A 4 year old would have a blast. We went when they had Dragon Boat racing and that was a lot of fun. We went at the end of July and needed jackets. Kind of nice at the time. We also camped in the very close camp ground off the bay. You can visit all the other spots listed below on the way up and back. We stopped at the lighthouses on the way back. Very scenic and refreshing.

Since you aren't that far south of the Twin Cities, you can go up to Taylor's Falls, MN/St. Croix, WI on a weekend. There is the state park there to hike around and Taylor's Falls is a cute little town to walk around. It also has some old fashioned building to tour (we haven't done that). While you're there, there is Wild Mountain (maybe not with a 4 year old) and the ferry boat to take along the St. Croix river. I'd drive up 95 along the river and visit Stillwater on the way up or down.

We've also been to Door County, WI. That is a beautiful area and the town is quite touristy, artsy, and fun to shop.

Have fun!!!

Madeline Island, WI
Door County, WI

Apostile Islands / Bayfield WI beautiful area, hotels, camping lots to do.

I've never been to the Dells in Wisconsin. Friends of mine went who have two teenagers and a 3 year old. They had a blast and recommend that we go once our youingest hits 3 or 4. They said it was the best vacation ever for their family of 5 along with three other families that went at the same time. Best of luck in planning your vacation.

It isn't in Minnesota, but you could check out the Okoboji Area of Iowa.

Door County is a great place to go. Lots of cute little towns, beaches, a couple state parks, and island with wild horses, fish boils, etc. My husband and I went several years ago and had a great time!
We also love Bayfield, WI. If you go during cherry picking (you'd have to look up when this is) it is really fun!

Have a great time!

We love Duluth. Lots of choices of places to stay. It's fun just to walk around Canal Park and feed the birds, play in the park, etc. Lots of different types of restaurants to choose from. She's old enough to ride on the alpine coaster with a parent at Spirit Mountain and you can control your speed. She's probably a little young, but there is an indoor play area/arcade in Canal Park not far from Grandma's. Actually, I think it does have a play area for younger children. The train/transportation museum is fun. You can take a pizza dinner train ride up the shore. I'm sure there's more I'm missing, but we like it.

ETA: I know what I forget. The Aquarium! It's great for young children. It's not very big so it doesn't take a long time to go through it and it has interactive exhibits and play areas for the young ones. Beautiful view of the lake and there is a playground nearby. Back in Canal Park you can watch for big ships and just the atmosphere and scenery in Duluth make me feel like it's a different state from the Twin Cities area.

When people think of vacation Minnesota they think of the north woods. Which is awesome.

But remember the beautiful bluffland country in SE Minnesota. There are several awesome state parks, which rent out very nice modern cabins cheap! We loved going to Whitewater State park, biking the Root River trail, seeing Mystery Cave, etc. There's a lot of interesting karst geological features down there (caves), along with world class cold-water trout fishing.

The website to check out is www.mndnr.gov/state_parks

(You can also find info/cabin rental info on that same website for all state parks, including Split Rock, Gooseberry, etc.)

You have little kids-remember that kids don't need to be entertained 24/7. Nature provides a lot of entertainment--we just need to allow our kids discover it!

It isn't in MN or WI, but Sioux Falls is a fun place to go. There is a small zoo, a butterfly pavillion, a science museum, great parks, a fun downtown area, and Falls park is fun. They also have great bike trails and a minor league baseball team. There are a couple of hotels that have small waterparks.