Winter Survival Guide: Fun things to do in Minneapolis-St Paul in the winter
Couldn’t we all use a little help getting through the long Minnesota winter with our kids? Our Family Fun Twin Cities Winter Survival Guide is well-stocked with fun ideas for everyone, from those brave souls who want to get out and play in the snow to those who need a cozier place to plop the kids for a few hours for everybody’s sanity.
INDOOR WINTER ACTIVITIES
Keeping a list of indoor activities around town is key to making it through the winter months in our lovely but frigid state of Minnesota. Sometimes, during the coldest, darkest days we need the bright lights and bustle of a public place to be with our kids. Our outing ideas are well worth the effort to leave the house – and if you need more options, explore our FAMILY FUN CALENDAR for snug and warm indoor things to do.
Burn energy at Twin Cities indoor playgrounds
There are so many indoor play options around the Twin Cities that there’s no way you’ll be able to hit them all up before winter’s through. Take your pick from our master list of TWIN CITIES INDOOR PLAYGROUNDS & PLAY AREAS or search by region of the Metro. Also see our top playground picks:
TWIN CITIES NORTH METRO: Tropical Adventure Indoor Playground
4580 Victoria St N, Shoreview, MN 55126
Out of the frozen tundra and into the jungle: at Tropical Adventures kids an climb and slide through “wild” play apparatus. Only kids up to age 12 are allowed in the indoor playground, making it a good choice for younger kids. Big winter bonus – make a day of visiting the SHOREVIEW COMMUNITY CENTER by hitting TROPICS INDOOR WATERPARK. There are interactive water features to suit every age: slides, sprinklers, water sports and a zero-depth entry pool. All-inclusive Community Center fee of $9.75-$14.50 per person covers both the water park & playground OR $6.25-$6.75 for just the indoor playground.
BEST FOR TWEENS & TEENS: Zero Gravity Trampoline Park
2292 Woodale Dr, Mounds View, MN 55112
Warm up big time at ZERO GRAVITY ADVENTURE PARK with indoor attractions like a ninja obstacle course, laser tag, a climbing wall, wall-to-wall trampolines, and a bouncy dodgeball court. If you’re bringing little sibs along, know there’s a special area where they won’t get trampled. $17-$22 per person.
MORE TWIN CITIES NORTH METRO INDOOR PLAYGROUNDS
- ALBERTVILLE Peekabooboos Play Cafe
- BLAINE Little Play Date
- ELK RIVER Avery’s Adventures
- GOLDEN VALLEY Brookview Backyard
- MAPLE GROVE Maple Maze Indoor Playground
- MAPLE GROVE Playground Plaza
- MOUNDS VIEW Inner Active Playground
- NEW BRIGHTON Eagles Nest Indoor Playground
- PLYMOUTH Inner Active Playground
- PLYMOUTH KUBE Indoor Playground
TWIN CITIES SOUTH METRO: Good Times Park
3265 Northwood Cir #100, Eagan, MN 55121
The unique outdoor feel GOOD TIMES PARK with its jungle gyms, basketball court and open turf for family games helps combat cabin fever during the winter. Good Times is a self-use park, meaning guests purchase day passes online (or at the kiosk inside the park entrance) and receive a code to enter the building.
BEST FOR TWEENS & TEENS: Sky Zone Trampoline Park
2015 Silver Bell Road, Suite 195, Eagan, MN 55122
No winter blues here. The FFTC big kids are huge fans of the trampolines, ninja course and rock climbing tower at SKY ZONE TRAMPOLINE PARK. More heart-pounding activities are an inflatable obstacle course and dedicated play spaces for youngsters. Safety grip socks are required and can be purchased at the park.
MORE TWIN CITIES SOUTH METRO INDOOR PLAYGROUNDS
- BLOOMINGTON Kids Empire
- CHASKA Play Date
- EAGAN The Blast Indoor Playground
- EDINA Adventure Peak Indoor Playground
- MINNETONKA Be With Me Playseum
- MINNETONKA Williston Treehouse
- SHAKOPEE The Lookout Indoor Playground
Be creative indoors with winter art activities
All kinds of ideas for places in the Twin Cities where your kids can get super crafty with art projects (and super messy without YOU having to be on cleanup detail!)
Color Me Mine
Locations in Eagan, Maple Grove & Woodbury
Studio fees include use of paints, studio space to create your masterpiece and the firing of your choice from dozens of pottery pieces.
Heartfelt
4306 Upton Ave S, Minneapolis, MN 55410
“Drop-in Crafts” were dreamed up to invite you to come in and get cozy and creative on your own schedule. Click on the link to see what is being currently offered – you’ll find projects for all ages from toddlers to teens (and adults, too).
At home cold weather crafts
Gianna’s article shares activities to do at home when you don’t want to leave your house. These can be as simple as cutting out paper snowflakes to making adorable gnomes out of socks.
I didn’t have faux fur, but I had some white yarn.
Visit a local kid-friendly museum
Come in from the cold, hang up your coat and start exploring at any of these highly hands-on museums in the Minneapolis-St Paul metro:
Minneapolis Institute of Art
2400 3rd Avenue South, Minneapolis, MN 55404
The beauty of MIA with kids is that admission is FREE every day – meaning you can explore the art at your own pace without worrying about making a hefty investment. Read all about tips for taking a family trip to the MIA before you go.
Minnesota History Center
345 W Kellogg Blvd, St Paul, MN 55102
Nearly all the exhibits at the museum are hands-on and super family-friendly. Check out our top things for kids at the Minnesota History Center to find out why we keep coming back with our kids. $8-$15/pp.
Mill City Museum
704 S 2nd St, Minneapolis, MN 55401
The museum was carefully designed to include exhibits that appeal to a wide range of ages. Kids will love the water play room and other activities they can get their hands on. Check our list of 10 Things for Kids at Mill City Museum beforehand. $8-$12/pp.
Jackson Street Roundhouse
193 Pennsylvania Ave E, St Paul, MN 55130
Got a little trainiac in the family? Make this museum – a branch of the Minnesota Transportation Museum – a must on a cold winter day. Explore train cars and tinker with railroad exhibits. Real train rides on Saturdays are included (and they’re heated!) $6-$16/pp, family bundles available.
Bell Museum of Natural History
2088 Larpenteur Ave W, St Paul, MN 55113
The museum has an entire room dedicated to getting kids up close and personal with objects from the natural world. Every inch of the museum has been “plussed” up from its former location – including the animal dioramas and thee 120-seat planetarium. Membership to the Bell Museum would make a terrific holiday gift! We’ve added it to our running list of Memberships: The No-Clutter Gift of Time Together.
We’re always adding to our list of TWIN CITIES MUSEUMS & HISTORIC SITES – browse it for something unexpected!
Kid-friendly Twin Cities coffee shops & cafes
Bring your little one(s) for both a cozy indoor play space and a decent cup of joe or hot chocolate. Our favorite coffee shops with a space set aside just for kids to play is SOVEREIGN GROUNDS in Minneapolis – browse our list for more. Don’t want to leave the house? Make your coffee break and snack time into an indoor picnic on the living room floor. Browse our listing of KID-FRIENDLY TWIN CITIES COFFEE SHOPS & CAFES.
Top preschool storytimes in the Twin Cities
Warm up in a cozy book shop while the snow flies outside; we’ve got a story time for each day of the week on our list of TOP PRESCHOOL STORYTIMES IN THE TWIN CITIES. Don’t forget the library! There are tons of special winter break activities going on at metro area libraries to combat any boredom.
Twin Cities indoor open gyms & tot times
Indoor play at an open gym can be a savior when you’ve got squirrelly kids who need a space to run off their pent-up wintertime energy. Quick! Reach for our list of TOT TIMES, OPEN GYM & SWIM 
SPOTS FOR TOTS IN THE TWIN CITIES – and find some relief.
Indoor (and outdoor) scavenger hunts
Gianna shares her ideas for creating scavenger hunts in the summer – these same suggestions can be incorporated indoors for a winter scavenger hunt. Hide things in books and under carpets, etc. Or if you do want to take it outside, check out our TWIN CITIES QUESTS, SCAVENGER & TREASURE HUNTS GUIDE for park-sponsored nature scavenger hunts and searches for medallions, gnomes, yetis and more.
Host a family game night
When we were all in the early years of parenting, we created a list of INDOOR GAMES FOR KIDS OF ALL AGES to keep kids occupied when we can’t get outdoors. There is something for the whole family on this list and many of these games are self-directed so kids can entertain themselves.
FUN OUTDOOR WINTER ACTIVITIES
Ahhh! The fresh air of winter! December brings chilly temps and that frosty blanket of snow to the ground that makes the month both so pretty and so functional for outdoor play. Just getting started taking your littles out for winter sports? With a few exceptions, TWIN CITIES SLEDDING HILLS and OUTDOOR ICE SKATING RINKS are always going to be easy to locate and gentle on the pocketbook. Most Twin Cities communities maintain free ice skating rinks throughout the winter (some simple frozen puddles, others far fancier), and free hills to throw a sled down are staples in most larger parks. If you can’t beat it, join it, right? Outdoor activities make up the second half of our winter survival guide suggestions. The more you get outside, the less you hate it. Trust us on this! If the weather cooperates, you can take advantages of these different outdoor ideas:
Go ice skating on an outdoor rink
We’re sure, as hardy Minnesotans ourselves, that you’re dying to strap on your skates and hustle the kids out to the rinks! That’s why we’ve rounded up this list of local places to skate –and, as nearly all are located in city parks, there’s no charge for the skating.
Go sledding or snow tubing: the best hills in the Twin Cities
Teens and tweens embrace our Minnesota winters by throwing themselves down steep slopes at top speeds. Whatever gets them outside and active works for us! TWIN CITIES SLEDDING HILLS are free and abundant and fun activities for mild thrills (find our suggestions at the link.) TWIN CITIES TUBING HILLS can be a fun family splurge.
- BURNSVILLE Buck Hill
- EAGAN Trapp Farm Park
- HUDSON, WI Badlands Snow Park
- LAKE ELMO Green Acres Snow Tubing
- MAPLE GROVE Elm Creek Winter Recreation Area
- MINNEAPOLIS Trailhead at Wirth Park
Try your feet at snowshoeing
Snowshoeing (essentially winter hiking with some footwear assistance) can be a lot of fun and good exercise! Listed are some places around the Twin Cities to go snowshoeing – all with rentals available.
Break out the skis & snowboards
You don’t have to visit a ski resort to enjoy skiing in the Twin Cities. We share the best places for FAMILY SKIING AND SNOWBOARDING IN THE TWIN CITIES.
Faced with a sudden snow day or temps too cool for school? In Minnesota, this is not at all uncommon. Get all your burning questions answered in our SNOW DAY SURVIVAL GUIDE including where to find school closing information, how to get groceries delivered to your home, and the details on your city’s parking restrictions.
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