Is Mill City Museum Open Over Thanksgiving Weekend? Hours, Millers’ Tour Dates and Where to Stay

Thanksgiving weekend is a good time to go inside the ruins of a flour mill. The Minnesota Historical Society’s Mill City Museum sits on the Mississippi riverfront, built within what it calls the ruins of the world’s largest flour mill, and it is one of the few indoor downtown attractions with a real holiday-weekend schedule. Here is what is open, what it costs, and the dates worth circling, as posted on the museum’s own pages.

Is Mill City Museum open on Thanksgiving and the day after?

Not on Thanksgiving Day itself. The museum’s hours and admission page lists Thursday, Nov. 26 as closed, along with Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year’s Eve. It is open the day after Thanksgiving, Friday, Nov. 27, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and it is also listed as open Dec. 26 and 27 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

On ordinary weeks the museum is open Wednesday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. It is closed Mondays and Tuesdays.

How much does Mill City Museum cost, and can you buy tickets ahead?

Admission is $15 for adults, $12 for seniors 65 and older, veterans, active military and college students, and $8 for ages 5 to 17. Children 4 and under and MNHS members are free. Tickets are sold on site only; the museum does not sell advance tickets online or by phone. Groups of ten or more are asked to pre-purchase by calling (844) 667-8679, because groups without advance tickets are not guaranteed a time on the Flour Tower.

The white Georgian facade and wraparound porch of 300 Clifton, the historic Carpenter Mansion in Loring Park, Minneapolis, a base for a Thanksgiving weekend of downtown museums — 300 Clifton in Loring Park, a downtown base for a Thanksgiving weekend of indoor outings.

What is inside, and how long should you plan?

The museum’s visit page highlights the Flour Tower, a ride that, in its words, takes you on a trip through time to see scenes of the old mill in action. There is also a Water Lab and a Baking Lab for hands-on exhibits, rooftop views over the Mississippi, St. Anthony Falls and the lock and dam, a short film called “Minneapolis in 19 Minutes Flat!”, a museum store and a café. The museum asks visitors to allow at least two hours, plus time to explore the riverfront.

Which Mill City Museum events fall between now and Christmas?

The museum’s events calendar lists several dates in the next two months. Prices were not shown for these on the calendar, and the page was still loading when we checked, so confirm each one with the museum before you plan around it.

Millers’ Tour. A 60-minute guided tour of the nooks and crannies of the museum, listed on Saturday, Nov. 14; Sunday, Nov. 22; Saturday, Nov. 28; Saturday, Dec. 5; Sunday, Dec. 13; and Sunday, Dec. 20, each from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. The Nov. 28 tour is the one that lands inside Thanksgiving weekend.

“We Are the River” film screening and panel. A documentary about how the Mississippi shaped Minnesota, listed for Thursday, Nov. 19, 7 to 9 p.m.

Minnesota Cookie Creations. A family holiday-baking event listed for Saturday, Dec. 5, 1 to 3 p.m.

How do you get to Mill City Museum from Loring Park?

The museum is at 704 South 2nd Street and has no parking lot or ramp of its own; its page points visitors to nearby city-owned options. If you would rather leave the car at the mansion, Metro Transit’s trip planner will build the route for your day.

Warm lights glowing along the columned veranda of the 300 Clifton mansion at night in Loring Park, downtown Minneapolis — The veranda at 300 Clifton after dark, a quiet end to a day of museum-hopping.

Where should you stay for a Thanksgiving weekend of museums?

300 Clifton is the Eugene J. Carpenter Mansion in Loring Park, a boutique bed and breakfast with distinct guest rooms, including the Crystal Mansion, the Georgian Room and the Grand Edwardian. After a day of galleries and gears, there is a four-season garden hot tub, and the movie room for a cozy evening. Our museums guide covers more indoor options, and our Thanksgiving weekend stay guide covers the rest of the holiday calendar. For a rainy-day idea of a different kind, see our winter ice-skating guide.

Guests who book direct with 300 Clifton receive a $20 Pillsbury Club dining voucher per stay and a $20 Minneapolis Trolley voucher per stay, per our vouchers page; redemption is subject to availability, and vouchers expire at checkout. If the flour story hooks you, the Pillsbury History Journal follows the family and the mansion that flour built.

The white Georgian front of 300 Clifton at golden hour, reflected in the long fountain of the formal English garden — Golden hour at 300 Clifton, where a Thanksgiving weekend can start and end.

Planning a weekend that includes the river? Book your stay at 300 Clifton and let the mansion be your cozy base.

Keep reading: Where can you tour a historic mansion in Minneapolis? Two Gilded Age houses, one you can sleep in.