Great little community event at Island Lake Park. It was super hot out yesterday, but still…read morebearable. Plenty of parking at Deluxe Check or the surrounding lots. Attractions: Smallish carnival- most of the rides are for younger kids which is nice for us. Fun Slide, mini cars, spinning dragons etc. Lake Johannah Fire Station open house with lots of freebies, fire tucks, water hoses, education etc. Nice little open house. Parade Vendors Food Vendors Jump Station for the kids- $5 Some of the prices are ridiculous for things. $7 for a lemonade and $3 for a refill. Good turn out. Nice community event.

Fun free event for the whole family...I was there yesterday and they had an AMAZING band playing…read morecalled THE POWER OF 10. I had so much fun dancing! Loses one star from me because of the expensive food truck items and lemonade...also everything is cash only...so bring cash! There is an ATM on the ground but there's a $3 fee!

Any art fair without a cover automatically gets five stars. Plus this particular one is massive,…read more second biggest to Minnesota state fair. It's also by lake of the Isles / up town area, which one can argue is the nicest part of town. Modern art is often a minimalist canvas that I'm supposed to draw meaning- 99% of the time, I don't get it. The Art here is easier to consume. Nothing to interpret for the most part. It's less snooty. Also food truck are present here and there. The fair also has food and drink give aways - it's a great way to spend your August - folks soon enough Winter is coming!

I love art. Stopped…read moreby to check out some art & get some inspiration!!! In the past I feel like the uptown art fair was much bigger & crowded. I went on the first day (Friday) and there was a lot of empty space on Hennepin. The fair did extend down a street going closer down to the lake. Friday was gloomy & had rain in the forecast, might be the reason people didn't come out. Back to the art. Seen a lot of dope pieces by a lot of dope artist from all over the US. It was amazing to see the things people come up with. Hopefully someday I'll be able to afford a nice 2k-3k piece. This year they had a really cool vendor, Studio Ink (Hallmark) where you could pick out greeting cards, fill them out, address them & they send them out! I love writing to people. Not as popular these days. Glad they are attempting to make a comeback. Indeed brewery was the drink vendor for this years event. They had 3 or 4 options to offer. I'm not wild about wheat juice (beer) but it's uptown, bars & restaurants everywhere which is nice. They also had a few familiar food trucks like Fro Yo Soul- Yum.

If you, like me, grew up in the Midwest watching the Mighty Ducks, attending the St. Paul Winter…read moreCarnival has probably been a long-held dream. We made my childhood dream a reality this past winter and visited Rice Park on the night of the parade. Getting to the park from Minneapolis was easy - we hopped a free light rail ride and then walked the short distance from the station to the park. The streets and park were packed - we ended up walking along the parade to get to the park and tried to snag a spot to see the storming of the castle or whatever the legend is. Sound was echoy and it was hard to follow but there's a lot of fire blowing and everything ended with fireworks. It turns out our spot along the square was the perfect vantage point for the fireworks; they were directly overhead. The lighted "ice palaces" and sculptures were probably the highlight, and we discovered after the fireworks that a seemingly endless line to nowhere was actually the line to sit on an ice throne and have your picture taken. The line was halted during the skit, presumably because the fireworks launch from behind the throne. The night we went there was a Prince cover band; they pulled a good crowd and you could still feel how much it united the community being so soon after the Purple One's passing. Refreshments-wise there wasn't a whole lot going on, though most people seemed to have a beer in hand. Lines were long and prices were high for any booth we passed. There's not a lot of information or signage so it was a little unclear if there were any activities to participate in or if there were costs involved. I think a lot of people grow up coming to this festival and it's mostly locals; you know what to do because you've been doing it your whole life. While we had a good night, it's probably something I don't need to do again now that I've crossed it off my list, but I'm glad it's such a hallmark for residents of the Cities.

I've lived in Minnesota almost my entire life, and this was my first year at the winter Carnival…read more Always raved about, and I have to say I was a bit disappointed. It's in a small tight area with a ton of people. It's crowded and really not much going on. The huge ice castle this year was neat to see, other than that there were a few food stands with crazy long lines, low key live music, and a parade that consists mostly of people riding in the back of their trucks waving at on lookers, pretty boring. I think many people enjoy this 'carnival' as more of a nostalgic avenue. The people you go with is what will make or break your time here. If you can all have a good time together it will be a day well spent, otherwise you're kind of freezing yourself outside just to say you attended. However, the highlight of going would definitely be when the St Paul hotel sells their famous hot chocolate on certain days, and that was delicious - not super sweet, but smooth, creamy and chocolatey. ;)

At the end of September, I dropped by Lighthouse Artspace in Minneapolis after work to take in the…read moreDisney immersive experience. I had booked my ticket online a couple of weeks before I was in town. I ended up with a packaged deal that was discounted. I got to get a bracelet to wear during the immersive show that lit up, flashed during specific projected screens, and prompted you to make a wish at some stage. I also got a poster to take home and a cushion to sit on during the show. It was my first time getting a cushion. It was fine and felt fancy. You don't really need one, though. The downside was trying to find parking. There was a business next to Lighthouse Artspace on the left that clearly said that you couldn't park there. Around the corner on the right, there was another business that had signs everywhere that said don't park if you're coming for Disney. I figured out that there is parking for those with a disability pass in front of the entrance. Otherwise, you park on either side of a lane. I parked closer to the road. If I had parked horribly, there would have been a three-foot drop. Thank goodness I did not experience an immersive rental car drop. I had a lovely woman greet me when I walked through the door. She scanned my ticket that I had on my phone. She was great letting me know where to go and where the washrooms were. This experience was awesome. There was so much history to absorb. I loved seeing Steamboat Willie Mickey Mouse and learning about Walt Disney. I loved seeing figurines of various Disney characters, from Sebastian, to Elsa. It was cool reading up on each character, especially from a character legend. The immersive experience was excellent. It was beautiful and moving. I loved when bubbles were blowing everywhere. It was joyful seeing little kids running around, trying to catch them. It made me appreciate Disney and my love for various characters. There isn't a bad seat in the house. If you love taking photos, you have plenty of opportunities there. The downside was that you couldn't linger around to see the show again. You had to vacate, which was a bummer. You can typically stay longer at other locations, such as Toronto and Nashville. I hit the gift shop afterwards. Some things were super expensive, such as a full-zip Mickey Mouse hoodie for $80. I ended up getting a Mickey Mouse bag that came in handy as my personal item on the plane. It was bigger than my purse and was durable. I also got a Mickey Mouse plush. The staff at the gift shop were nice. I got my goodies in a paper bag. I paid with a credit card. Done! Other than the limited, weird parking situation, I had a wonderful time. I took in this Disney immersive experience a week before it closed for good. I used the washroom before I left. It was clean. No complaints. The coolest part was picking up Van Gogh magnets for free before I left. Nice! I look forward to returning with whatever immersive experience is next. I hope that parking improves by then. (417)

Disney Immersive…read more There is much to see including a photo op with Steamboat Willie Mickey Mouse, a gift shop and a museum-like area showing how Disney films are made. In addition, there are tables where adults and older kids can give illustrating Disney-style a try. There are the light-up wristbands (an add-on) that are functional as a flashlight and fun as a personal strobe light that illuminates to match projected scenes. In addition, a few times during the experience the mirrored center of the room brings forth a cascade of bubbles. This got the smallest of patrons racing to the center, giggling gleefully and jumping up to pop and catch the shiny treasures. The show may be best suited for elementary-aged children and older ones as some of the younger kids will have trouble sitting still. It's about an hour of immersive plus additional time in the ante chamber. Encourage the littles to move and dance during the show. Also note that the floor projections have moving stars and other images that anyone can "chase" around the room. Little ones should become part of the music around them, reacting to fluttery butterflies, sizable snakes and favorite characters they recognize. Others watching quietly from one spot seemed unbothered by younger viewers who couldn't sit still. My husband and I both enjoyed the immersive experience. Good to know about Disney Animation Immersive Experience: * There is plenty of free parking in the ground lot behind the venue. It's a hike if you're bringing small children. * You can keep your light-up wristband or leave it to be recycled. * Beware overpriced concessions. 2 waters $8.62

I love music festivals. I love them even more when you have perfect weather like we had on…read moreSaturday. Thanks Mother Nature. So, I am giving 4 stars instead of 5 simply because there was a lack of signage/information regarding where to park and where to enter Canterbury as well as food/drinks and wristbands. We ended up wandering a bit, but eventually found our way. So quick tips for newbies to save you some time and frustration next year: 1. Park anywhere you can find a spot, VIP parking is separate and gated off 2. Enter the main gate 3. Get your 21+ wristband immediately to your left when you enter 4. Drinks and food are inside, food trucks are just outside, and even more food/drink on the festival grounds 5. Drinks and food outside of the main building are ticketed, and yes you will have to buy more tickets than you need or have extra tickets leftover after you get what you want 6. Check out all the food/drink vendors before you make a decision on how many tickets to buy 7. Check out the non-food/drink vendors, some pretty cool stuff 8. VIP has some pretty sweet digs, I recommend getting it if you can spend the extra money 9. Bring cash 10. Backpacks and towels/blankets to sit on are allowed in the venue Even if you don't know the acts it is quite easy to be sucked into the fun everyone else is having, so if you are wavering, just go! Perhaps you will have some fun nature happenings like we did...the amazing pink/orange sunset during Dr. Dog and the flock of geese the flew directly overhead the sage just as they ended a song (and the crowd erupted into cheers, it was so hilarious and wonderful). The people watching is wonderful, young and old alike having a great time together. Everyone is there for the same reason, a love of music and fun, and it was awesome to watch the small children dance it out along with their parents (and everyone else). Shout out to Blue Goose Photo Booth, a cool photo booth with props that is in an old van. So. Awesome. They were offering free photos (4 on a strip) for everyone at the festival. It even printed two copies. The booth with the cigar box guitars was pretty rad, too. If I had more disposable income I would've purchased one to hang on the wall (because I can't play guitar). Side note - If anyone can remember the name of the vendor with the "Hooray" MN shirts, please let me know, I want to get one. So, all-in-all, a great festival that I would totally go back to year after year.

For the record, I am a HUGE Trampled by Turtles fan. Trampled is my favorite band. I go to pretty…read moremuch any show I can get to and travel routinely just to see them play. So obviously, a Trampled by Turtles-organized festival less than an hour from home is a no-brainer for me. So, while it may be tough for me to be completely objective, I shall try my best. This was year two for Festival Palomino, and I've attended both years, so I guess I have an educated opinion at this point. Here's what I liked: -The music. Duh. Not only did my favorite fellas headline, closing the night with bagpipes on the stage, but the lineup of other acts kept the action moving and introduced me to some new music, which is always a good thing. -The side-by-side stage setup. Last year, there were two stages, but they were situated opposite each other. The dual stages allowed for music to continue throughout the day without much break between sets for breaking down and setting up of gear. But last year, you had to do a kind of sprint to the opposite stage for the next act. This time around, the side-by-side setup allowed you to either migrate more leisurely or just pick a prime spot further back with a view of both stages and stay put. -The branding. Maybe it's the communications professional in me, but I thought the branding was much better this year. The Palomino banners on top of the stages and of course the Palomino sign were good visual cues that this is going to become a big branded event over the next few iterations. Plus dammit, I love the Palomino owl and think it should be on more stuff. -The inclusion of more merchants. Was delighted to see the Duluth Pack folks this year and hope to see this area of the festival grow. -The people: Not only great people watching but also just a general relaxed and positive vibe all day despite being packed on a field with 9,000 of your closest friends. -The festival T-shirt. Props to whoever designed it! -The VIP bathroom. Gift from heaven. To the girl who clearly dropped an entire pack of smokes in the toilet: Damn, that sucks, dude. Here's what I didn't like: -The food. There was more food than last year. That was good. It was more logically centralized on the field than last year. That was good too. Several of my friends and my husband and I all ate from the Mexican stand. The food did not taste good and we ALL got ill after the show. Like a few of my friends left in the middle of the Trampled set because they weren't going to make it through. We're pretty sure it was the burritos. Food safety, people! Taco mix should not be served cold, like ever. -The ticket system for food and beverage. I'm not sure why but both years now, you've had to purchase tickets in sets of 10 for $1 apiece and then use those to buy drinks and food. Seems like an extra step and extra work to get beer and food. Also, I hate that you can't buy anything other than 10 tickets at a time. You always end up with extra tickets you paid for but didn't use, or you wind up wanting one more beer but not willing to pay for a new set of $10 tickets. Why can't the stands just take cash??? -The prices. I have to say... $7 for a 12 oz beer seemed a bit much. And I know there was a deal with Summit, but the beer options were underwhelming both years. -Speaking of... This is a really cash-intensive festival. My husband and I were only there for half the day and dropped a good amount of money on just food and drink. If you are coming for the full day, come packing some real cash. Things to know: -Yeah, it's at a racetrack so the layout can be kind of confusing. When you park, come in the entrance and then immediately turn to the left to get wristbanded. Then you walk right through the building and out to the racetrack. -Wear comfortable shoes suitable for tromping around in a field. Ladies, I'd leave cute heels and wedges at home. Maybe flipflops or sandals but more practically? Sneakers or hikers wouldn't be out of place. -There are also options inside the casino for food and drink. We discovered that the draft beers in the casino were bigger and better-priced. Also a good place for refuge if it rains, as we learned in year one. -The VIP tickets were $140. If you have the cash, it would be a nice perk. There are exclusive beer stands = no waiting. The bathrooms, as mentioned above. You get drink tickets and some other swag and access to the VIP area, which was pretty cool. If you can afford it, splurge. So here's where I get all biased again... I think this was an incredibly adventurous project and one that only a few bands could have pulled off this well in just two years. I was encouraged that this year there were many improvements made and good thoughtful changes. I am confident this event will continue to grow and improve each year. Looking forward to year three and maintaining my perfect attendance record!

As a fair fanatic, I was just thankful to get a ticket. I went on a Sunday at 9am (first time slot…read moreof the day) and you can expect a line of cars waiting to get in but show up about 10 minutes before your slotted time and you should be great. Right before you enter, you have the opportunity to join the 'Friends of the Fair'. There are different levels/monetary amounts you can be involved with the MN State Fair Foundation. I chose the $50 level which included two 2021 tickets to the fair, 12 commemorative pins that outline the state of MN (so cute! I arranged them on the back of a denim jacket and love them!!) and a 20% off discount at the fair merchandise booth at the end of the drive thru. Limited amount of state fair vendors present but great setup- total time was 1.5 hours and, honestly, I wish it was longer because all of the food was pretty close together towards the latter half of the parade. Setup was great- two lanes (both of which you can order food from). Vendors have someone standing to collect payment and then a few car lengths later someone else will deliver your food. Only vendor that we ordered food from that did not accept card was the Pronto Pup booth- cash only. It was awesome getting that taste of our beloved state fair. We were a little over-prepared with bibs, napkins, paper plates, trash bag, Tupperware, silverware, etc. I was impressed with how many of the booths presented the food in a way that you could store it. The Tupperware was unnecessary unless you actually wanted to take food home or were ordering entrees by yourself. Our car of three was sharing all of the food and we didn't need much of it. The booths will provide you with napkins and there are trash bins sprinkled throughout the fairgrounds. I shared lots of the usual foods: cheese curds, mini donuts, French fries, pronto pup, corn dog, Sweet Martha's cookies. The ones I was impressed with were the walleye cakes (like crab cakes but with walleye) and walleye fries (walleye breaded with bread crumbs) which I'll be adding to my every year food list from now on. Don't get the fried Oreos (too rich and are worse leftover) or the tater twister (more of a novelty- it's just a hot dog with a potato chip wrapped around it). Seeing the fairgrounds empty and unlit was a little sad and made me miss the fair bit next year will just be that much greater. Only reason I'd rate the drive thru below five stars is that I was upset that tickets were so difficult to get.

Made it to the MN State Fair today. Beautiful day at the fair 70' couldn't ask for nicer weather…read more We ate a bunch walked a lot watched the parade got our flu shots and had a nice day.

Beautiful day at the Hopkins Food Truck Festival! My husband enjoyed the craft beer while I kept…read moreto my current restrictions, but the sunshine, food trucks, and fun made it a perfect afternoon. I even won a $1 scratch ticket from the Minnesota Lottery. Thanks, Yelp!

The day was absolutely beautiful! The crowds, of course, we're pretty long. Thankfully most of the…read morefood we tried ended up being worth it at least! There was live music, and a lot of "yard" style games to play for families. One of the best parts was being able to see all of the doggos! Made me wish I could have brought mine along. Definitely a great way to spend an afternoon!

Fun but not really worth the price for the time you spend. Some very interesting illusions that are…read moremind scrambling! Fun pictures though!

It's not a huge space, and you can get through it fairly quickly if it's not too crowded. If little…read morebusy, you may have to wait your turn for certain exhibits or to get your photos. Also, while it's cool, the price point might feel a bit high for the length of the visit. Overall, it's a unique stop if you're at MOA and looking for something different and interactive. Great for families, quick entertainment, and fun photo ops for insta influencers or grandmas looking to be hip - just go in knowing it's more of a short experience than a half-day outing. Big shout out to Kimberly. A very kind staff member for helping to understand displays and take pictures.