Small Towns Near Minneapolis
The best small towns near Minneapolis are Stillwater, for its river downtown and 1931 Lift Bridge; Red Wing, for Barn Bluff and a free pottery museum; and Lanesboro, for theater and the Root River bike trail. Stillwater and Red Wing make easy day trips, and Lanesboro earns a weekend.
The list runs nearest first, from Stillwater at about 25 miles to Lanesboro at about 110. Distances are straight-line miles from downtown Minneapolis, so the drive will be longer. You’ll find river towns, Swedish and German heritage, a Jesse James story, a pie shop and a bald eagle center.
| Town | Distance | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Stillwater, Minnesota | About 25 miles | history, river views, an afternoon |
| Lindstrom, Minnesota | About 35 miles | Swedish heritage, lakes, a festival |
| Northfield, Minnesota | About 35 miles | history, college town, a festival |
| Taylors Falls, Minnesota | About 40 miles | hiking, geology, river trips |
| Red Wing, Minnesota | About 45 miles | river views, pottery, hiking |
| Stockholm, Wisconsin | About 60 miles | pie, the Great River Road, a slow day |
| Wabasha, Minnesota | About 75 miles | eagles, river history, movie fans |
| New Ulm, Minnesota | About 75 miles | German heritage, beer, a weekend |
| Lanesboro, Minnesota | About 110 miles | biking, theater, a weekend |
Distances are straight-line miles from downtown Minneapolis, as the crow flies.
Stillwater, Minnesota
About 25 miles as the crow flies · Best for: history, river views, an afternoon
Stillwater, a city of about 19,400 on the St. Croix River, grew up as a lumber town in the 1840s. The Lift Bridge closed to cars in 2017 and reopened to walkers and cyclists in 2020. A territorial convention held here in 1848 started Minnesota on the road to statehood, so it calls itself the birthplace of Minnesota.
Don’t miss: the 1931 Lift Bridge, now part of a five-mile trail loop into Wisconsin, and the 1853 Warden’s House Museum
★ Good to know The Warden’s House runs guided tours Thursday through Sunday only, so plan around that.
Lindstrom, Minnesota
About 35 miles as the crow flies · Best for: Swedish heritage, lakes, a festival
Lindstrom, population 4,888, calls itself America’s Little Sweden. Swedish settlers built it, and the novels of Vilhelm Moberg about Swedish emigrants drew on this area. Statues of his characters Karl Oskar and Kristina stand in town.
Don’t miss: the Karl Oskar and Kristina statues and Karl Oskar Days, held in mid-July with parades, a street dance and fireworks
★ Good to know Pair it with Taylors Falls, a few miles to the east, for a full day.
Northfield, Minnesota
About 35 miles as the crow flies · Best for: history, college town, a festival
Northfield, population 20,790, is home to Carleton and St. Olaf colleges. On September 7, 1876, townspeople fought off the James-Younger Gang when it tried to rob the First National Bank.
Don’t miss: the Northfield Historical Society museum in the old bank building, with exhibits on the 1876 raid, and Defeat of Jesse James Days, held the weekend after Labor Day
★ Good to know The museum is closed Mondays.
Taylors Falls, Minnesota
About 40 miles as the crow flies · Best for: hiking, geology, river trips
Taylors Falls is a city of 1,055 on the St. Croix, platted around 1850. Minnesota and Wisconsin founded Interstate State Park here together in 1895, the first interstate state park in the country.
Don’t miss: the glacial potholes and basalt cliffs of Interstate State Park, plus a walk through the historic Angel Hill District
★ Good to know Fall color in the St. Croix valley is a big draw, and watercraft rentals are seasonal.
Red Wing, Minnesota
About 45 miles as the crow flies · Best for: river views, pottery, hiking
Red Wing is a Mississippi River city of 16,547 in Goodhue County. Local clay started a pottery industry in 1861, and Red Wing Stoneware was founded in 1877. The historic St. James Hotel still operates downtown.
Don’t miss: the free Pottery Museum of Red Wing, with more than 6,000 pieces, and a hike up He Mni Can-Barn Bluff above downtown
★ Good to know The pottery museum is closed Mondays.
Stockholm, Wisconsin
About 60 miles as the crow flies · Best for: pie, the Great River Road, a slow day
Stockholm is a Wisconsin village of 78 people on the Mississippi. Immigrants from Karlskoga, Sweden, founded it in 1854 and named it after their capital. The pie shop is the main reason to stop.
Don’t miss: Stockholm Pie & General Store, in a 120-year-old building on the Great River Road
★ Good to know The pie shop is closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays, and whole pies are by special order.
Wabasha, Minnesota
About 75 miles as the crow flies · Best for: eagles, river history, movie fans
Wabasha, population 2,559, sits where the Zumbro River meets the Mississippi. Its welcome sign reads Home of Grumpy Old Men, after the 1993 film, though the movie was shot in other towns.
Don’t miss: the National Eagle Center on the riverfront, and Grace Memorial, Minnesota’s oldest Episcopal church, with a Tiffany window
New Ulm, Minnesota
About 75 miles as the crow flies · Best for: German heritage, beer, a weekend
New Ulm, a city of 14,120, was founded in 1854 by a German land company from Chicago. In 2002 the Census Bureau reported 65.85 percent of residents had German ancestry, more per capita than any other U.S. city.
Don’t miss: August Schell Brewing Company, founded in 1860, with brewery tours, a museum, historic gardens and peacocks on the grounds
★ Good to know Schell’s outdoor Biergarten is open Memorial Day through Labor Day; the Bierhalle runs year-round.
Lanesboro, Minnesota
About 110 miles as the crow flies · Best for: biking, theater, a weekend
Lanesboro is a village of 724 in Fillmore County, platted in 1868, with much of its downtown on the National Register. It won a Great American Main Street Award in 1998.
Don’t miss: the paved 42-mile Root River State Trail through town, and a show at the Commonweal Theatre, a professional company founded in 1989
★ Good to know September 2026 rains flooded parts of the Root River Trail, so check the DNR trail page for current conditions.
What’s the closest small town to Minneapolis?
On this list, Stillwater, about 25 miles as the crow flies. Lindstrom and Northfield are next, each about 35 miles out.
What’s the best small-town weekend trip from Minneapolis?
Lanesboro is the classic pick, with the Root River bike trail and the Commonweal Theatre. New Ulm works too, built around Schell’s brewery and the town’s German heritage.
Which small towns near Minneapolis are on the Mississippi River?
Red Wing, Wabasha and Stockholm, Wisconsin, all sit on the river along the Great River Road. Stillwater and Taylors Falls are on the St. Croix.
Where can you see bald eagles near Minneapolis?
The National Eagle Center in Wabasha, on the Mississippi about 75 miles southeast as the crow flies, is built around bald eagles.