Adventure in Comfort When You Explore Minnesota by Train

The train runs daily in both directions, with many of the Minnesota stops happening in the wee hours, shown below. That can work just fine as long as you back up your love of adventure with solid plans for transportation and lodging. A good first step is to contact visitors bureaus in towns you plan to visit along the route, also shown below.

Bicycle enthusiasts have a major advantage here. The Empire Builder recently installed bike racks in its luggage cars, reservable when you buy your tickets. That way you have the option of biking to your reserved lodging at any hour, whether that’s a few blocks or a few miles from the train station. Plus, all of the towns have lots of trails and options for recreational biking while you’re in town. (Make sure you have lights, reflectors and other safety equipment for your bike, doubly important if you’re arriving at night.)

Alternatively, with prior arrangements, most towns along the route have options for hotel shuttles to and from the train station, car rental nearby, or taxi service. Bike rentals are easy to come by; again, the visitors bureaus listed by each town below can fill you in on how to make those arrangements.

Ride the Amtrak to These Minnesota Cities & Towns

Detroit Lakes

In case the name doesn't give it away, Detroit Lakes is lake country, with hundreds of lakes and many lakeside fishing resorts, plus a popular sandy mile-long beach on a city park on Little Detroit Lake, right in town. Other popular parks nearby include Dunton Locks County Park with biking and hiking trails and picnic areas, and Sucker Creek Preserve, with more than a hundred acres of woods, prairie, swampland and a trout stream.

Miles of great mountain biking trails can be found at Detroit Mountain Recreation Area, 3 miles east of town, and Mountain View Recreation Area nearby. Summer festivals include the Street Faire at the Lakes with art, music and food, and the White Earth Reservation Celebration, both in June. The biggest event of the year is the Northwest Water Carnival in July, with 10 days of concerts, parades, beer, food and activity tents, games, sports, a water ski show, and all manner of celebration.

St. Cloud

St. Cloud is a thriving city on the Mississippi River, blessed with beautiful parks and gardens, arts and entertainment, historic attractions, and great shopping and restaurants. Just across the river across from St. Cloud State University, Munsinger Clemens Gardens is two gardens under one name, the first being 14 acres of flower-lined paths under tall pines, with a lily pond, fountain, greenhouses and more. The adjacent Clemens Gardens has six sections covering 7 acres with perennials, more than 1,000 rose plants, a long trellis, and one of the tallest outdoor fountains in Minnesota.

Beautiful spots for biking and hiking include the Beaver Island Trail, the 46-mile Lake Wobegon Trail, and the 684-acre Quarry Park and Nature Reserve, with dramatically deep granite pits filled with clear water, reminders of the area’s importance as one of the nation’s most productive sources of granite. The park features hiking trails, mountain bike routs, trout and bass fishing, and scuba diving sites.

Red Wing

Perhaps best known for the pottery and boots that bear the town’s name, Red Wing is also home to the classically historic St. James Hotel with 67 distinctly decorated rooms, plus many charming bed and breakfast inns and motels. Right in town, Barn Bluff offers a short but steep hike to some of Minnesota’s most magnificent views of the Mississippi River valley. Other recreational highlights include the 19.7-mile Cannon Valley Trail, great for bicycling, running from Red Wing to Cannon Falls; the beautiful Colvill Park on the riverbank, with a water park, one screened-in and several open-air picnic pavilions, a marina, and a walking trail.

Red Wing Stoneware, first opened in 1877, offers tours of the facility where they make classic Red Wing pottery, and a separately owned Pottery Museum in town has thousands of examples of Red Wing pots over the years. The Red Wing Shoe Company Museum, inside the large shoe store, features the world’s largest boot, and a variety of displays from the the company’s 110-plus years in business.

Popular festivals include the Prairie Island Indian Community Pow Wow on a weekend in early July; the Plein Air Art Festival in late June, and the Summer Celebration of the Arts in early July.

Winona

The last Minnesota stop on the eastbound train, Winona is one of state’s most scenic river towns, nestled between high, lushly wooded limestone bluffs and a beautiful, island-studded stretch of the Mississippi. Parks include Garvin Heights with magnificent views of the town and river valley; Lake Winona with a 5.5-mile paved bike path around the lake; Levee Park and Prairie Island Park on the riverfront; and three fine Minnesota state parks within 25 miles of town.

It’s a college town, which helps support a fine arts scene, including the renowned Minnesota Marine Art Museum with works by masters such as Monet, Renoir, Van Gogh and others. In June and July, the Great River Shakespeare Festival present works by the Bard with concerts on the green, symposiums, conversations with the theater company, and more. In fact, music and arts festivals are what summers in Winona are all about.

Winona State University offers theater and music performances, as well as two art galleries: the Paul Watkins Gallery features national and regional artists; and the Weber Gallery features student work.