Photo: Mollie Krengel
Top picks for a mini vacation.
Plan a staycation this summer with a handful of our favorite places to stay, eat and explore near the lake. Book a room at Hotel Landing or rent a vacation home via Cabin Life or Minnestay. If you don’t already have your own lakeshore, enjoy a few days pretending you do! Wake up to enjoy coffee with your gorgeous lake views. Rent a boat from Howard’s Point Marina and spend the day on the water. This is one of our favorite things to do when we have out-of-town family visiting. Bring your swimsuit, a picnic lunch, your fishing rods and start exploring on the open water. We’ve spotted many eagles and always enjoy the sights of the gorgeous lake houses. Prefer to sail? Charter a sailboat with Northern Breezes. With kids, try Big Stone Mini Golf. Take your time golfing and walking around the sculpture garden. They even have farm animals and a fire pit where you can roast s’mores. Stroll through Excelsior. This is a must in our book. Visit the shops, and pack a picnic to enjoy at The Commons by the water or enjoy one of their summer concerts. Get an ice cream cone. Take a boat ride on Paradise Charter Cruises. To explore the outdoors, geocache at Lake Minnetonka Regional Park and enjoy the flowers at Noerenberg Gardens.
Mollie Krengel is the founder of adventure-based business Wild Bum. Roy Krengel owns Krengel Dental. They share travel tips and insights in this column, writing with their globetrotting kids Liam (12), Ella (12) and Rafi (8).
