Minneapolis & St Paul
Winter Carnival 2024

Minneapolis & St. Paul Winter Carnival 2024

Since 1886, the Saint Paul Winter Carnival has brought charming winter events and community pride to Saint Paul and the Twin Cities metro area.

• Stay close to the activities at Rice Park at the SpringHill Suites Downtown, rated “Fabulous” by guests with spacious modern rooms, highly-rated breakfasts and excellent location.

The Carnival

• Winter Carnival began as a response to a few misguided East Coast reporters who called Minnesota “another Siberia, unfit for human habitation.” But Minnesota knows one or two things about the cold and turned it into an advantage. Today Winter Carnival showcases one of the city’s busiest seasons in all of its glory, creating the “Coolest Celebration on Earth”.
• The festival attracts 250,000+ people from Saint Paul and beyond to celebrate winter in Minnesota.

Event Highlights

• Split your time between the stunning Ice Palace, the magic of Rice Park’s ice sculptures, ice rink music and city parade and the Vulcan Snow Park with a snow maze, snow sculptures and more.
• Winter Carnival runs for 11 days – all day on weekends and evenings during the week.
• Most of the events are free to attend, apart from the Drive-Thru Ice & Snow Sculpture Park. You can also purchase a Winter Carnival Button which helps support local charities and serves as a collectable moment of your visit.
• Stay at the Drury Plaza hotel, rated “Superb” by guests, close to all of the Carnival events and parades.

The Venues

• Landmark Center, located in the heart of downtown Saint Paul, the Minnesota State Fairgrounds, and businesses throughout the city play host to the festivities.

The Parades

• Saturday, January 27th, 2024 – 2 pm – King Boreas Grand Day Parade  -Don’t miss the St. Paul’s Winter Carnival King Boreas Grand Day Parade complete with the trampolining bouncing teams! The procession makes its way down West 7th at Smith to 5th Street to Washington to 4th Street and disassembly will start at Market on 4th.
• Saturday, February 3rd, 2024 – 5 pm – Vulcan Victory Torchlight Parade – Vulcanus Rex will use his wily ways to light up the streets of downtown Saint Paul for the Vulcan Victory Torchlight Parade. The evening parade route starts at West 7th at Smith to 5th Street to Washington to 4th Street and disassembly will start at Market on 4th.

Getting to St Paul

• St Paul is a 15 minute drive from the center of Minneapolis. You can also catch the Metro Green line which takes you to the center of downtown.

Recommended Hotels in St Paul/Mineapolis

The following hotels are close to all of the city’s top attractions and a 15-minute drive to the Carnival festivities.

Radisson Blul,  Hilton Hotel,  Loews Hotel,  Hampton Inn & Suites