Mini Vacay - St Louis or St Paul?

[nchulka]

The City Museum is very fun for pre-teens, teens and adults, but it is also great for little kids. We first went when my kids were 4 and almost 3. They loved it then and now at 7 and almost 9 it is still their favorite place ever. It is totally appropriate for young kids DD's Girl Scout troop spent the night there in 1st grade and had a blast!

 

[abcboys]

We also love St. Louis! Have never been to St. Paul so I can't comment on that. My favorite things are the city museum (not sure if I recommend it for a 3 year old, though...my son was 4 and I had a hard time keeping up with him. Luckily his older brother kept an eye on him) Grants Farm is another one of my favorites. Not as big as the zoo but a lot more quaint with some cute shows, the arch, the magic house, the zoo, the science center. We can easily spend a long weekend here and stay busy! We live about 3 hours so we will probably go back next year.

 

[kkmauch]

Come on MN! Where's the love?!?!?!?!?!

So much to do here! If you want to be downtown Minneapolis for the great shopping and dining, the MN Twins (amazing field and very reasonable tickets) and access to the light rail to get out to Mall of America.

And Saint Paul has all the noted attractions already listed too. Don't forget the History Museum in St. Paul as well!

There's plenty to do here and it's definitely a great place to take a mini break with kids.

 

[FanofWalt&Mouse]

Must make a bid for my hometown!

*You could spend a whole day easily at the Mall of America. Plenty to do there including Nickelodeon Studios, Legoland, the Underwater Aquarium, Amazing Mirror Maze, Flight Simulator ride,The Disney Store, tons of shopping (American Girl store & Build a Bear to name just two!), food & fun!

*The Science Museum is now featuring King Tut's Treasures.

*The MN History Center is first class featuring many kid-friendly exhibits.

*The MN Zoo is an awesome place with a new exhibit called Penguins of the African Coast. There is also an IMAX theater here that has awesome movies.

*Como Zoo & Conservatory is another fantastic zoo that is free.

*About a half-hour drive from MSP is Valleyfair amusement park that opens about mid-May.

*Paddleford River Boats cruise the Mississippi River on weekends in May.

*There is also Stillwater, which is called the birthplace of MN. Very quaint town 20 mn east of St. Paul that is on the St. Croix River & offers cruises, riverfront activities, lots of shopping, an old fashioned candy shop & much, much more.

*Not even mentioning the tons of lakes & parks offering all kinds of water fun including fishing & boating.

Whatever you decide, hope you & your family have a great time!

 

[bella77]

I've never been to St. Paul, but St. Louis is amazing. Feeding the baby goats at Grant's Farm alone is worth the trip. The Hill area where Yogi Berra grew up has great Italian restaurants. St. Louis is one of my favorite places to visit.

 

[MrsGoofyMitchell]

Is the City Museum in St. Louis good for older kids too- say 13 and 10? We plan on Branson next summer, but St. Louis could be a side trip combined with it.

Yes, for sure! And we love Branson so much!

 

[girlpenguin]

I live in St. Louis, and I also have to say it is AWESOME here. A couple of notes:

1. There's a 6 Flags in St. Louis, if your kids want an amusement park fix. It has a water park attached that is included in admission.

2. I would *not* go to City Museum if you have kids younger than age 6 or 7. As a previous person mentioned, it really is better for the pre-teen crowd. It's just so immense, and full of so many nooks and crannies that you can't follow your children into (unless you are less than 5 feet tall and under 100 pounds), that it is too easy to lose them. I took my then 3-year-old there and I was terrified the entire time that I was going to lose track of her. However, Magic House is PERFECT for kids in the 2-8 range. It is my daughter's favorite place, and she's 5 now.

Honestly, I'd skip the arch. It isn't that exciting.

 

[stl_figment]

I live in St. Louis too (in case you can't tell by my sn). And I went to grad school in Minnesota so I spent time exploring the twin cities also. I honestly was disappointed in the MOA and much prefer my home town.

I love St. Louis and 2nd what everyone else is saying. I don't have any kids but am a Big Sis in Big Brothers Big Sisters to an 8 year old girl. When we go out her #1 request of somewhere to go is the City Museum. Her #2 request is the Magic House.

Whats nice about STL is there tons of things are free (except parking), the zoo, the science center, the art museum, the history museum, etc. If you come in the summer we have the MUNY (outdoor musical theatre) which has free seats.

If you have any questions feel free to let me know.

 

[cafox85]

I'm a St Louis girl too so I have to go with the STL! There are so many fun things to do in St Louis and it is pretty affordable. And you can't go wrong with the zoo! And if you come during baseball season, Cards games are pretty much the best form of entertainment! GO CARDINALS! Magic house is always fun as is the Science Center and your kids seem the perfect age for them. I always like Grant's Farm as a kid and there is the Purina Farms as well in Gray Summit, MO where you can get up close and personal with some farm animals and they have dog demonstrations where you can watch dogs do some amazing tricks.

 

[MNmama]

I am from MN... twin cities and agree with all the above posters from MN on what to do here! So my vote is for MN Its getting gorgeous here weather wise too!

Dont forget there is Valley fair - amusement park, beaches, etc.... but the other posters covered so much! I have a little one and LOVE the Childrens museum, MN zoo, etc. They can be entertained for hours.

Good luck deciding!

 

[kjpotter]

Another vote for St. Louis. The City Museum is my daughter's favorite place on earth. Both girls (3 and 6) have a great time. As long as you are willing and able to keep up with the kids you'll have a blast.

We also love the zoo, science center, and Cardinal Games.

 

[SarahKate]

We live about 100 miles from STL and go there a handful of times each year. We love it there! It's easy to get around the city too. There are so many things to do there, and like other posters have mentioned, things that are FREE or low cost.

Here is an article I wrote last year with a culmination of some of the hot spots for attractions, dining, etc. I hope you can find it useful: http://springfieldmoms.org/st-louis-day-trips-and-attractions/

 

[jgates]

We are 2.5 hrs from the Twin Cities, so we would do that for a weekend vs. a 'vacation', but have done many of the items on there. It's a beautiful town (group of towns).

We spent many many years going to StL on vacation as the Arch was a source of fascination for my son. I may have mentioned these additional items in the other thread that is linked on here, but go to Ted Drewe's for frozen custard (the original location) & go to the National Museum of Transport if your kids have any interest in seeing trains. Also by St. Charles there is a vintage car dealership that probably has a couple of hundred vintage vehicles on display/sale. We weren't even aware of it until we saw a flyer at the train museum - it was a great couple of hours looking at all the cars.

Check the hours for Grants Farm in May - when it isn't high season they are only open on the weekends. But DEFINITELY worth a trip. The home is also next door I believe, but we have yet to get to that!!!

Also love Meremac Caverns - been there many times.

And the ????? Bryan Farm was interesting - Daniel Boone & wife are supposed to be buried there. I believe that is the name of it - I know we headed SW out of St. Charles one trip to go there. I see it was listed as being for sale in 2005- so don't know if it is still open to the public or not.