A Trip to the World's Most Visited Mall

by Michele Cheplic | More from this Blogger

03 May 2006 11:00 AM

Mall of America is located in Bloomington, Minnesota, at the crossroads of Interstate 494 and Highway 77, just five minutes from the Minneapolis/St. Paul airport. Once or twice a year we make the 5-hour trek (from Northeastern Wisconsin) to the mall. In case you were wondering, Mall of America is not the largest indoor mall in the world (or even in the United States). It is, however, the most visited shopping mall in the world attracting more than 40 million visitors annually. So what's the draw?

When I was single, it was the variety and sheer number of stores. More than 500 stores. (Twenty-five of them are shoes stores, how could a single girl not love that?) There are dozens of specialty stores from Babushka, which sells those Russian nesting dolls to Al's Farm Toys, which sells nothing but farm-related toys. (The types of stores that you don't see at typical malls; which is exactly why I found myself browsing in them. Even though I had no intention of buying anything.) Of course, the 50 restaurants, 7 nightclubs and 14 movie theaters, didn't hurt either.

Now my focus has shifted. As a mother, I no longer leisurely walk from store to store, taking time to try on various items. Instead, I am grabbing on to a little body as it hurls itself towards the Mall of America's seven-acre theme park. Camp Snoopy is located smack in the middle of Mall of America. It includes a flume ride, roller coaster and Ferris wheel, and a video arcade. Admission is free, but you must purchase tickets for each ride.

But, that's just the beginning. Mall of America also houses a 1.2 million-gallon aquarium with more than 8,000 fish and other aquatic creatures (the sharks, stingrays, and giant sea turtles are my daughter's favorites.) The aquarium features a 300-foot-long curved tunnel with a moving walkway that simulates a scuba diving adventure. Or, you can take "The Plunge," a virtual submarine ride. (We usually skip it because each time we have been there the line has been extremely long.) Admission is $8.95 ($4.95 for children).

For your LEGO lover, Mall of America has a fantastic LEGO Imagination Center. It is a huge, multi-tiered play area with thousands of LEGO bricks and Duplo blocks just waiting for your little ones to stack them into whatever creation lies in their imagination. The fantastic part: admission is free.

If you are planning a trip, visit mid-week. No surprise, weekends are busy and you will find yourself waiting in long lines and knocking elbows with thousands of other mall-goers. The best part of visiting mid-week (besides not having to deal with crowds) is taking advantage of the mall's special programs. For example, "Toddler Tuesdays" is a program that provides free entertainment and discounts for toddlers. Events include character appearances (Clifford, Strawberry Shortcake, Spot the Dog), arts and crafts, story time and much more. "Toddler Tuesday" is free and takes place every Tuesday from 10 a.m. until 12 p.m.

Whether you are single or married with children, Mall of America has something for everyone. And for you single-but-dating types... did I mention Mall of America has a wedding chapel?

Learn more about Michele Cheplic

Michele Cheplic was born and raised in Hilo, Hawaii, but now lives in Wisconsin. Michele graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in Journalism.

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Lisa P (24013) 04 May 2006 12:53 PM

My husband is from Minnesota, so we like to take a trip to the Mall whenever we go back to visit. The last time we were there, we took our nephew (who had just turned 5) to Camp Snoopy for the day as a birthday present. He went on every ride he was tall enough to enter and had a blast! Then we took him to Hooters for lunch (we actually love the chicken there).

Come Monday, young Brady was the big man on the school bus because not only did he get to spend the whole day at Camp Snoopy, but he went to Hooters. Who knew?

Michele Cheplic (37349) 04 May 2006 04:41 PM

Lisa, what a great birthday present. And who knew Hooters had good chicken!