Location: Lutsen
Top Things to do in Lutsen
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What to do and see in Lutsen, Minnesota (MN): The Best Things to do
Lutsen is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Lutsen Township, Cook County, Minnesota, United States. As of the 2010 census, its population was 190.
Restaurants in Lutsen
1. Cascade River State Park
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 317 reviews
Northshore park known for its breathtaking waterfalls.
Reviewed By Trav_LN_now - Crystal Lake, United States
Parking right on Route 61. Between a 1/4 - 1/2 mile hike you can see the Cascades. A group of five Water Falls. Great trails. Wooden stairs and lookouts. Nice Water Falls.
2. Cacade River
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 42 reviews
Waterway running through Cascade River State Park on Minnesota's North Shore.
Reviewed By TomB639 - Charlotte, United States
Excellent trails and well marked...great place for an easy hike. Parked right off hwy 61. we hiked about two hours and once you get down the trail a bit the crowds lessen
3. Lutsen Mountain Tram
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 206 reviews
You won't find a better vantage point from which to view the Sawtooth Mountains and Lake Superior's dramatic coastline. This aerial gondola is one of the North Shore's most popular attractions, taking you on a scenic ride to the top of Moose Mountain, rising 1,000 feet over Lake Superior. The gentle ride at treetop level is an experience not to be missed if you're visiting the North Shore! Stop at the Summit Chalet at Lutsen Mountains, a beautiful mountaintop chalet welcoming guests for gorgeous views, relaxation, or for lunch, snacks, and beverages. Inside and outside deck seating is available overlooking Lake Superior. The Summit Chalet at Lutsen Mountains also hosts our Summit Chalet weddings, our premier destination wedding facility. Enjoy the mountaintop hiking trails, scenic overlooks, and fresh air. The Mountain Tram makes Moose Mountain the most accessible year-round mountaintop destination in Mid-America.
Reviewed By Norwegian-at-Heart
This ride came highly recommended by a Romanian-student waitress working at a local restaurant. She was right about the 7-minute ride over the valley to the top of Moose Mountain and the view overlooking Lake Superior from the Summit Chalet. Spectacular! We were especially blessed with fantastic fall colors and blue skies.
4. Superior National Golf Course
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 64 reviews
Superior National at Lutsen is on the North Shore, overlooking Lake Superior and nestled into the Sawtooth Mountains and the Poplar River Valley. Experience spectacular and untamed natural beauty paired with unparalleled golf. Superior National is a public resort course, named among Minnesota’s Top 10 Destination Golf Courses. $4.6 million in renovations and improvements on the renowned River & Canyon 18 are now complete. Jeffrey Brauer designed the course to provide an enjoyable and challenging experience for all, from beginners to scratch golfers. Playing a round on the newly renovated River & Canyon 18 promises to be the highlight of your North Shore adventures. On the Mountain 9, golf at the foothills of the Sawtooth Mountains, enjoy breathtaking Lake Superior Views, and experience nature’s soundtrack at this Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary. This course is perfect for a quick game of 9 holes or a full 27. FootGolf It’s like golf, with a soccer ball! Play on the Mountain 9
Reviewed By ErikAustinWAXX - Eau Claire, United States
This course is so notable...first off, it's located in the most beautiful part of the Midwestern US. Amazing scenery abounds in the hours it might take one to get to here. People talk about the UP of Michigan, and it is indeed great, but the North Shore is just better. Recently renovated less than 5 years ago< this course offers one of the coolest tracks one could ever expect to play. I like terrain on my golf course. This one plays up and down in one of the biggest mountain ranges in the Midwest. The Poplar River (like all North Shore rivers) is a cascading waterfall at all time of the year due to the geology of the area. You get views of the Giant Lake, and you get tucked away corners of canyons to try and fit your ball through without losing it (I lost many!)...playing 18 on the River and Canyon 9's are a shade spendy (like everything else up here...it's the Door County, WI of Minnesota)...but I do feel like you'll come away happy that you did it. River and Canyon are both in excellent shape, with some signature holes (14, 15 and 16 on Canyon) that will make your jaw drop at the challenge. Can't wait to finish my journey with 9 on the Mountain! Which will likely make me wanna play River and Canyon again! DO IT. You won't be disappointed.
5. North Shore Winery
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 109 reviews
We make Wine and Cider on site in Lutsen MN. Stop by for tastings, bottles or a glass of wine! We do host private events as well.
Reviewed By bryant8142018 - Elk River, United States
Stopped in to check out this treasure with friends on a Friday afternoon. Staff was awesome!! Friendly, fun and informational! We tried a flight of reds as well as a flight of ciders. The reds were great. And if you like dry English styles of cider...you’ll love these. I challenge you to not walk away with a few bottles. And believe it or not...their root beer is a must! The only down side is they don’t bottle the root beer at this time.
6. Woodlands Spa At Caribou Highlands
7. Lutsen Mountains Ski & Summer Resort
Overall Ratings
4.0 based on 313 reviews
World class scenery and terrain. The ancient Sawtooth Mountains rise 1000 feet above the coast of Lake Superior-topography unlike any other Midwest locale. And that brings more of what you want in a ski trip. More runs. More elevation. More epic days. You'll find the very best Mid-America has to offer-the highest mountains, the most snow, and the breathtaking beauty of the North Shore. Lutsen offers 95 sweeping runs over four mountains with a lift-serviced vertical rise more than double that of other regional resorts.
Reviewed By 978DanW978 - Portland, United States
I grew up in Minnesota but lived most of my adult live in the Pacific Northwest. I only skied at Lutsen once when I was younger, but just spent a week there with my family (staying at Eagle Ridge Resort, which is on location). What a blast! Fun times whether you spend a lot of money there, or absolutely zero. During the summer the Lake Superior shoreline gets all the action and crowds, so Lutsen itself doesn't get terribly busy. But the lake is only TWO miles away, so it's not like it's difficult to zip down there and get your beach time in. The main draw of Lutsen is the skiing (it is the largest and tallest ski area in the Midwest), but it is lots of fun in summer too. The mountain gondola is spectacular, giving you a fantastic overlook of Lake Superior nearly 1000 feet below, amongst nearly-mountainous terrain. It takes you to a the top of Moose Mountain, with a nice viewing platform and restaurant. The gondola is the only way (other than hiking) to access the restaurant. Didn't eat there, but the menu looks decent and prices reasonable for what it is. Gondola rides aren't cheap, however, but you can also get an unlimited ticket or combo it with alpine slide rides for more value. For a slight discount, you can also buy a one-way gondola ticket and hike the other way. If you plan to do this, be aware that it is a 4.5 mile one-way hike from the Lutsen base area, so allow 2-3 hours. Also be aware the 1-mile segment nearest the gondola is quite rugged, with a lot of up and down and plenty of big roots and rocks in the trail. It's considerably more challenging than the Superior Hiking Trail that makes up the rest of the hike to Moose Mountain - which itself is more rugged than (for example) the relatively groomed Pacific Crest Trail. Just be sure you know what you're getting into. It is absolutely a lovely hike in what feels like primeval forest. Speaking of hiking, with the Superior Hiking Trail running along the back edge of the resort, Lutsen's a great base for longer hikes on this trail, and smack dab in the hilliest segment of the SHT. The upper falls of the Poplar River are lovely, and just 100 yards from the parking lot as you start hiking west on the SHT. You can also hike on many of the ski slopes and sno-cat tracks, depending on how recently they've been mowed, and I covered quite a few of these last week. Just check VERY carefully for ticks afterward, as the longer grass on the slopes is good habitat for them. A short hike from the base area down Bridge Run to leads to the lowest part of the ski area and another stretch of the Poplar River, very lovely with lots of rapids. I am a mountain biker but didn't bring my bike, so I'll have to go back later and do that. Supposedly there are 20ish miles of MTB trails at Lutsen. They don't provide a map, so you're on your own exploring them, but the upside is the trails are free. I don't think you even need to be a guest at one of the lodges to use them. Some of the MTB trails appear to be well maintained, with built berms. The other summer highlight of Lutsen is the alpine slide. This thing is a blast! I think it's about a 400' drop from the top of Eagle Mountain (not the same Eagle Mountain that is the high point of Minnesota) back to the base area. I bought my kids unlimited passes for both the gondola and alpine slide, and it was expensive but we had an absolutely thrilling day. An alpine slide is a semicircular concrete track tumbling down the mountain, which you ride on a small plastic sled. We saw several other guests with scraped-up elbows during our stay, so be aware in advance that as with skiing, it's easy to get hurt a bit if you go too fast and get the sled sideways on a curve. The good news is YOU control the speed: push the handle forward, and you ride on wheels and pick up a lot of speed. Pull it back to brake. If you're anxious, just leave the handle in the middle and you will ride down the track on the sled's skids - fast enough to have fun, but absolutely zero chance of flipping the sled and getting hurt. Take a couple more rides and pick up however much speed you're comfortable with. If you do get hurt you have no one but yourself to blame, because it's easy to avoid. The slide is incredibly fun. On my hikes I saw deer, a fox and a fisher (looks somewhat like a pine marten or otter). Black bears, timber wolves and moose also inhabit the area, so you have at least some chance of seeing them. Don't worry, these animals pose almost no risk to you (except maybe bull moose in rutting season), but seeing one on the trail is a thrill you won't soon forget. By far the biggest wildlife hazard out there, as is now the case in most of the country, is Lyme-carrying deer ticks. Fortunately I didn't see any of those.
8. Lutsen Recreation
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 2 reviews
