Neighboring Cities - AmericInn^® of Wabasha, MN

Welcome to the Cities Neighboring our Wabasha Minnesota Hotel

Wabasha is located in one of the most scenic and historic areas of Minnesota and the Upper Midwest.  Looking for the scenic route?  Click here to check out a map of the following routes :

• Great River Road: a portion of the national scenic  byway following the Mississippi River
• Historic Bluff Country: 88-mile national scenic byway through Minnesota's "driftless" area
• Apple Blossom: short byway highlighting apple orchards along Mississippi River valley bluffs

Red Wing Minnesota

Red Wing is located just 30 miles northwest of Wabasha. It's nestled amidst river bluffs on the sharpest navigable bend on the Mississippi, Red Wing presents the perfect mix of river town history, artistry, theatre, crafts – and great shoes, of course.

Red Wing is an antique and pottery lover’s paradise, and also is home to dozens of one-of-a-kind clothing, gift and craft stores. From the beautiful downtown to the historic Pottery Place Mall, you’ll find unique treasures to warm your heart and make you smile long after you’ve left. Culinary confections, candles, hand-blown glass and Scandinavian and German keepsakes all await personal discovery. And the famous Red Wing Shoes and Red Wing Stoneware are purchased and collected across the country.

The town boasts one of the finest small theatres in the Midwest. The community is devoted and beloved to the beautifully restored Sheldon Performing Arts Theatre (built in 1904), and welcomes the draw of nationally known acts.

In the Arts, the Red Wing Arts Association Gallery gives you your first glimpse of works by talented local artists. Natural history buffs and young history protégés are fascinated by the Goodhue County Historical Center’s exhibits, and welcome our recent addition to our long list of activities, the Falconer Vineyards Winery, now open for tours and tasting.

Red Wing’s lodging leads the league in small-town lodging. The St James Hotel has provided the finest accommodations since 1875. None of its 61 guestrooms are alike, and each is named after a riverboat that used to pass through Red Wing.

More importantly, Red Wing is much more than good shoes. It’s great people.

Lake City Minnesota

Lake City is located 15 miles northwest of Wabasha. Lake City is located along the shoreline of Lake Pepin, an outwash formation of the Chippewa and Mississippi River, approximately 3 miles wide and 21 miles long, with the magnificent Mississippi running through it.

Lake City is a beautiful historic river town where you can enjoy all the natural splendor of the surrounding bluffs, the lake, and numerous parks and vistas our city has to offer. Our largest park, 250-acre Hok-Si-La Park, has walking trails, an interpretive center, tent camping, screened shelters, a dining hall, and a beach.

Attend one of our annual festivals including the 100-Mile Garage Sale in May, Tour De Pepin Bike Tour and Water Ski Days in June, Fourth of July Fireworks in July, and Johnny Appleseed Days in October, along with our Street Markets in late summer.

Enjoy a scenic cruise on the Pearl of the Lake Paddleboat, a modern day replica of the grand riverboats that traveled the Mississippi River in the 1800’s, and enjoy the spectacular views from the lake or take a ride on the S.V. Quintessent Sailboat and feel the relaxing breeze of the waters. Lake City has two of the largest small-craft marinas on the Upper Mississippi River, with some of the greatest boating in the Midwest on these waters.

For lunch or dinner, eat at one of our many restaurants that offer a variety of different menu items and shop at one of our unique small town shops for all your shopping needs.

Stay in one of our hotels, condominium rentals, cottage-style house rentals, or bed and breakfasts, you’ll enjoy it all, and many have beautiful Lake Pepin views.

Whether you want to fish, sail, motorboat, swim, golf at one of our three golf courses, just relax, or partake of our birthright, the sport of water skiing invented by Ralph Samuelson in 1922, we promise you that you will not want to leave this magical place. Whatever you choose to do, there is something for everyone.

Winona Minnesota

34 miles southeast of Wabasha, Winona is the southernmost of Minnesota's great Mississippi River towns on the scenic Great River Road. Founded by steamboat captain Orrin Smith in 1851, Winona's gateway location on the Mississippi River made it a primary transportation hub – also making it one of the nation's richest cities by 1900. Many historic buildings and beautiful vintage homes echo this legacy, portraying Winona’s ongoing harmony with the river.

Today, Winona continues to be a renowned for its stunning beauty and breathtaking bluffs. It has also become a center for arts and culture, hosting the annual Great River Shakespeare Festival, the Minnesota Beethoven Festival, Gilmore Creek Summer Theatre, Frozen River Film Festival, Lake Park Jazz Festival, Theatre du Mississippi, the Winona Arts Center, galleries plus one of the most stunning displays of stained glass collections in the country. Known as the “Stained Glass Capital” of the United States, the city has studios that restore, repair, design, and create stained-glass pieces for buildings nation-wide.

But it’s not all about glass. Historical and cultural memories abound at the Winona County Historical Society Museum, Watkins Museum and Store, Polish Museum, and the Minnesota Marine Art Museum. In addition to the arts and cultural attractions, Winona offers many outdoor leisure activities including golf, boating, fishing, bicycling, hiking, disc-golfing, horse-riding, and wildlife-watching.

Winona State University, Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota, and Minnesota State SE Technical gives Winona a college-town feel with big city resources.

Winona truly is a treasure-filled destination, so what are you waiting for? Come discover this great town for yourself.

Lanesboro Minnesota

Just 56 miles south of our Wabasha hotel is Lanesboro. Nestled in the valley of the Root River, Lanesboro offers tourists invigorating outdoor activities, rich artistic experiences, unique shopping, a local winery, fine dining and lodging to fit every taste.

Besides receiving the Great American Main Street Award in 1998, Lanesboro was named one of 100 Best Small Art Towns in America by author John Villani.

In Lanesboro, the arts thrive. Extraordinary exhibits appear year round at the Cornucopia Art Center, featuring a variety of regional artists. The Lanesboro Art Council programs more than a half dozen musical concerts a year in the St. Mane Theatre. More than 20,000 people attend live professional theatre at the acclaimed Commonweal Theatre Company, and when summer comes back around Lanesboro’s own homegrown radio variety show, Over the Back Fence, is broadcast live on Sunday nights.

Biking lovers rave about the spectacular paved Root River State Bike Trail that winds 60 miles through the valley with Lanesboro at its heart. It runs along an abandoned railroad bed through high bluffs, forestlands, rolling fields and pure inspiration.

Enjoy the beauty and charm of downtown Lanesboro in class with a romantic horse drawn carriage ride, or relaxing Trolley Tour.

For old-fashioned fun and tradition, attend one of our annual festivals including the Stand-Still Parade each May, Art in the Park on Father’s Day, Buffalo Bill Days in August, Fall Fest in October, and Winterfest each February.

More recent immigrants to the area are the Old Order Amish. When driving our back roads, watch them working their fields with horse drawn equipment. In Sylvan Park, you may find the Amish selling produce, baked goods, traditional woodcrafts and quilting. Look for them in their black horse-drawn buggies, moving briskly through town.

Come and see for yourself why people return time and time again to slow down and take in the rich life of storied Lanesboro.

For more information on all five cities, visit http://www.exploremississippibluffs.com.