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Voykit pocket guide · United States
Excelsior
Excelsior, Minnesota
Go for one afternoon, not a night: Water Street, the lake beach and a $2 heritage trolley ride fill 3–4 hours. Sleep in Minneapolis or Saint Paul.
Excelsior is a 2,300-person lake town on the south shore of Lake Minnetonka, about 20 miles west of Minneapolis. It was built as a summer resort in the 1850s and still works that way: a short walkable Water Street of shops and restaurants, a public beach at the Commons, boat cruises, and a restored 1920s streetcar line run by the Minnesota Streetcar Museum. There is one small inn in town, so most visitors come for a half day and return to the Twin Cities.
- Country
- United States
- Local name
- Excelsior, Minnesota
- Best months
- Jun–Sep (lake season); late Sep–Oct for fall colour
- Avoid
- Jan–Feb (deep cold, lake frozen); muddy March
- Stay
- 0–1 nights
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- USD
- Money
- Currency is the US dollar (USD, $). Cards and phone payments work almost everywhere; carry a little cash for tips and small vendors.
- Daily spend
- Budget $40–70 excl. bed (day trip from the Twin Cities) · Mid $80–140 excl. bed · High $180+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile cover the country; prepaid SIMs at their stores and Walmart/Target (passport required), or an eSIM before you fly.
- Emergency
- Police, fire, ambulance 911
- Plugs
- Types A, B · 120 V · 60 Hz · Chargers are dual-voltage; hair dryers and straighteners from 230 V countries need a converter.
- Tipping
- Sit-down restaurant: 18–22% of the pre-tax bill.; Bar: US$1–2 per drink or 20% of the tab.; Taxi / ride-hailing: 15–20%, in the app.; Hotel housekeeping: US$3–5 a night.; Porter / valet: US$2–5 per bag or car.; Tour guide: US$10–20 per person for a day tour.; Counter service / tablet prompts: Optional; 0–15%.
- Water
- Tap water is drinkable nearly everywhere; boil or treat water from streams in parks.
- Toilets
- Free public toilets are scarce in big cities; use cafés, department stores, libraries, stations. Rest areas on highways are free.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Coffee | $4–6 |
| Casual lunch on Water Street | $14–22 |
| Ice cream cone | $5–8 |
| Dinner, mid-range, per person | $25–45 |
| Draught beer | $7–9 |
| Heritage trolley single ride / day pass | $2 / $5 |
| Lake cruise | $25–40 (check) |
| Rideshare, Minneapolis to Excelsior | $35–55 (check) |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- MSP · Minneapolis–Saint Paul International
- About 20 miles / 30–40 min by car via MN-7 and I-494; no direct rail link to Excelsior
Typical fares
- Trolley single ride / day pass
- $2 / $5, seasonal (check)
- Rideshare Minneapolis → Excelsior
- $35–55, 30–40 min (check)
- Metro Transit express bus Excelsior → Minneapolis
- about $2.50–3.25 off-peak (check)
Get around
Downtown Excelsior is walkable end to end in about 10 minutes. Metro Transit runs express buses between Excelsior and Minneapolis; a car is easier for the lake towns, the regional trails and the surrounding suburbs. Metered parking on Water Street, free public lots off 3rd Street.
See and do
Known for
- Lake Minnetonka and Excelsior Bay
- Water Street shops and restaurants
- Excelsior Commons beach and park
- Minnesota Streetcar Museum trolley
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Minneapolis | Car via MN-7 east, or Metro Transit express bus | 30–40 min by car |
| Saint Paul | Car via I-394 and I-94 | 40–50 min |
| Bloomington, Minnesota | Car via MN-7 and I-494 | 25–35 min |
| Apple Valley, Minnesota | Car via MN-7 and I-35E | 40–50 min |
| Hopkins, Minnesota | Car via MN-7 east, or the express bus | 15–20 min |
| Afton | Car via I-494 and I-94 east | 1 h 15 min |
Sleep
- Water Street / downtown Excelsior
- The only real option in town: one Victorian inn plus a few short-term rentals within walking distance of the lake. Book weeks ahead in summer.
- Minnetonka and Wayzata (nearby lake towns)
- More hotels 10–20 min by car; useful if you want a lake base rather than a Minneapolis one.
- Minneapolis or Saint Paul
- Best value and the default for most trips: 25–35 min by car to Excelsior, and the express bus runs to Minneapolis.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Where is the beach? | Where is the beach? |
| One ticket, please | One ticket, please |
| Can I pay by card? | Can I pay by card? |
| Is this seat free? | Is this seat free? |
| Thanks, keep the change | Thanks, keep the change |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: Handshake and 'hi, how are you?' — reply 'good, thanks'; avoid: Treating the question as a real health enquiry
- Restaurants: Tip 18–22% and wait for the check; avoid: Leaving without tipping
- Personal space: Keep an arm's length in queues; avoid: Standing close to strangers
- Politics and religion: Listen more than you speak; avoid: Opening with hot-button topics
- Smoking: Smoke only in marked areas; avoid: Smoking near doors or in parks where banned
Scams and watch-outs
- Summer weekends and holiday Mondays: Water Street parking fills by late morning and restaurant waits run long.
- The trolley and the lake cruises are seasonal — most run roughly May to September or October only; check dates before you build a day around them.
- Winter is genuinely cold (lows well below freezing) and the lake freezes; the beach and boat season is over.
- Some Water Street shops keep short or irregular hours outside summer.
- Lake Minnetonka is busy with boat traffic in July and August; swim only at the marked Commons beach.
Very safe: this is a low-crime lakeside town and the main risks are summer heat, boat traffic on the lake and icy pavements in winter. Lock your car and keep valuables out of sight at trailheads.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Excelsior yet. Suggested stay: 0–1 nights. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Lake Minnetonka and Excelsior Bay
- Water Street shops and restaurants
- Excelsior Commons beach and park
- Minnesota Streetcar Museum trolley
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Metro Transit: www.metrotransit.org
- Explore Minnesota: www.exploreminnesota.com
- Wikivoyage: Excelsior, revision 5213389 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5213389
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
ExcelsiorExcelsior, Minnesota
To this address, please
To this address, please
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
- Police, fire, ambulance911
No embassies in Excelsior; consulates-general sit in Chicago and Minneapolis (check), embassies in Washington, DC.
Tipping is expected: 18–22% at sit-down restaurants, $1–2 a drink, 15–20% taxis.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/excelsior). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.