Minneapolis Skyway System

The skyway tubes are confusing for new users and occasional users. It is like a never-ending maze that connects buildings and keep you off the ice and snow.

Of course the tubes were less helpful for us after attending a wedding reception. We used them to get to the reception and when it was over, we couldn't retrace our steps back to the car park and this was with both of us being sober -- good luck being intoxicated and trying to navigate.

It is climate-controlled and pedestrian-friendly and it links sixty-nine full city blocks over eleven miles (18 km). If you've been here in the freezing winter or the hot, humid summers, you know climate controlled is a perk.

Get a map from a hotel, wear a lite back-pack with hot coffee, snacks and brandyJust in case. exhaustion or dead end impedes your trek.
On weekdays, between 11:30 and noon -- the vacant skyways bustle with humanity, great opportunity to view actual Minnesotans. Exceptional opportunity to gawk at the locals -- they are focused on food,
The epicenter of the skyway system is the IDS tower, which has an sky-lit indoor park -- still the crossroads to everywhere -- most good restaurants, bars and shops are on street level. If you are directionally challenged, stop in middle of skyway, see what's happening on the street. Don't hesitate to ask -- natives are rather shy, but love to give directions.
Normally the skyways are safe during day time, but it can get spooky North and west of Hennepin Avenue. Parking ramps may be blocks away -- with not much foot traffic.
Never hurts to be wary -- Minneapolis is a big small town. .
For most of this vast system, no worries, fun indoor exercise.
And no matter the weather, Minnesotans must get their Exercise!.

We stayed downtown to attend a Timberwolves game on Saturday, December 17. It was well below zero that night. Used the Skyway System to walk from the Hilton to the Target Center, all inside, nice, just wearing a sweatshirt. On the way back, got to the IDS Center, half way back, and the found Skyway System locked. Spotted a security guard on a segway, asked him why? His reply, "the doors should be open, sorry nothing I can do". You will need to walk the rest of the way outside. We walked the last three blocks outside with a -35 wind chill. This is one of their highlighted features of downtown, why the doors were locked on a game day, beats me!! Be aware, watch for early closing on the weekends and be prepared to walk back outside.

My grandson, who recently spent 5 months in Prague at University, wanted to see downtown Minneapolis having become a city lover. We took the tram from the Mall of America into the city to avoid having to cope with the traffic. You can park at the Mall for free and it takes about 40 minutes to get to Nicolette Mall in the centre of the city's downtown area. Nicolette Mall is one of the main retail streets with numerous street cafes and access to the Skyway system.

There is no comparison between Prague with all its pan-tiled roofs and historic buildings but Minneapolis is a sophisticated and clean city with the downtown area set between skyscraper buildings and lots of glass. Here and there are historic buildings such as the Westminster Presbyterian Church but they are few and far between.

We found a sidewalk café (actually a bakery) which provided good quality light food with an unusual gothic portico set against a concrete skyscraper. Nicolette Mall was bustling but a little noisy.Groups of very noisy black youths strutted their stuff and disrupted the peace. My younger grandchildren found them threatening, although I think they were simply showing off.

We left the street after lunch and entered the skyway system. It was 3.00 pm on a Saturday afternoon. The Skyway system is impressive and in the winter must be a real boon for getting around even when temperatures go below zero. You can access it from the numerous car parks so there is no need to venture out into the cold.

On this day the sun shone and it was 80+ F outside. There is a huge selection of stores from Macey's to Clarke's shoes to Best Buy and boutique clothing shops. But how sad it all was. The place was so quiet. Many shops had closed down and those that have survived were devoid of customers. Having just come from the Mall of America which was heaving with people Nicolette Mall was a shock. How do these retailers survive. This really demonstrates what America has done to its city centres by building these huge out of town shopping malls. However, if you want good quality goods provided by attentive staff and less of the mad rushing crowd, this is the place to come.

We didn't have time to stay on this visit as we were en route to the UK but the City has excellent restaurants and the Guthrie theatre which was presenting My Fair Lady at the time of our trip, puts on world class shows. Friends went to see My Fair Lady and said it was an excellent production.

So definitely worth a visit and next time we will stay over and enjoy more of the city.

The Minneapolis skyway system networks the second (and in one case, third) floor of skyscrapers dotted throughout the downtown. This is great when you are staying in an area hotel and is extremely useful to the thousands of corporate employees that work downtown, as they can leave their coats in the highway while seeking lunch in one of the many lunch-only restaurants open. There are a few hidden gems in the highway: Muddy Waters coffee, the food court on the fourth floor of Gaavidae Commons and the occasional pop-up art gallery or clothing boutique. The main disadvantage of the skyway is that the doors between buildings are usually locked by 9 pm and most of the businesses along it close at 5 pm. Also, watch out: there have been multiple recent thefts/muggings on LaSalle Avenue, right outside the downtown Target. There are unobtrusive emergency call buttons along the walls of the skyway paths - keep an eye out for them, just in case.

Wikipedia says that The Minneapolis Skyway System is "an interlinked collection of enclosed pedestrian footbridges that connects various buildings in 69 full city blocks over 11 miles (18 km) of Downtown Minneapolis." While that is true, that is NOT the whole story. If you are not a regular user of the Skyway, it is far too easy to get lost, turned around, or stranded, if you don't do some advance planning.

First the basics. The Skyway connects to most of the buildings downtown, making it possible to navigate almost all of Downtown without going outside. As a general rule, if the building is Downtown and consists of more than 2 floors, it is likely Skyway connected. Using the Skyway, you can technically get from the far west side of Downtown (at Target Field) and travel to the Convention Center (South) or soon to US Bank Stadium (East) without going outside. This is incredibly useful during a harsh Minnesota Winter, and very convenient when its raining or there's a heat advisory outside.

That being said, there are segments that take you up or down or even underground to keep the connectivity going. There are maps and apps available for the system, but they generally do not show when the connection between buildings is a 2nd story walkway, a ground floor connected lobby, or an underground tunnel.

There are no universal hours for the Minneapolis Skyway since each bridge is owned by the buildings connected to it - and their hours can vary. Generally, the entire skyway system is open Monday through Friday from 7 AM to 7 PM, with more limited hours for late night and on weekends. Some segments, particularly around the large parking structures and transit hubs on the west side of Downtown are open 24 hours.

What you should expect in the Skyways is best described as a 2nd level city street. Lots of small spots for food, dry cleaning, cell phone stores, retail shops, shoe shines, coffee shops, salons, and whatever else one would find on the street in a major city. A portion of the Skyway literally goes through the 2nd floor of Macy's Department store.

Since the Skyway is primarily used by the 9-5 office crowd, there is an overabundance of lunch-spots and coffee spots. NOTE: Starbucks is NOT the dominant coffee chain in Minneapolis. There are 8 Starbucks downtown, 4 of which are in the Skyway. However, Caribou and Dunn Bros are much more prolific in Minneapolis (with 13 & 12 outlets downtown, respectively), so if you're wed to Starbucks, expect to search a little harder.

There is one place downtown, the new Meet Minneapolis visitor's center, located at the corner of 5th & Nicollet by the Nicollet Mall light rail station, that has good information about how to navigate the Skyways. Also, if you're staying in a hotel in Downtown that is Skyway connected, likely the people who work there have some idea as to how to get around.

Overall, The Minneapolis Skyway System is incredibly convenient with some planning.