Minneapolis in June – when your best friend needs a +1

Blogger 1: Read my 15-day journey backpacking across Europe!
Blogger 2: Look at the adorable sprinter van we live out of to save on rent!

And then there’s me: I’m just trying to find the cheapest way to spend four days in Minneapolis for a wedding.

My best friend is in a wedding in June in Minneapolis, MN, and needed a +1. Due to my familiarity with everyone involved and my general extrovert-ness, I was the obvious choice (or maybe it’s just because I’m awesome).
There’s also the chance that he asked me because he knew I would do the leg work of finding us a flight, hotel and planning our itinerary but, nuances.

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Step 1 – Where is the ceremony?

Question: Where is this wedding? Saying “It’s in Minneapolis” is similar to saying “It’s in New York City.” Okay cool! – That’s vague. Which side? Is it uptown? Downtown? Near the college? On the outskirts where it’s only called Minneapolis because it falls in the same zip code so they get the name on a technicality?

Answer: It’s in Uptown.

On to step 2!

Step 2 – A hotel within stumbling distance

Going to a wedding with two Irishmen, one Irish lass, and a former Marine means a hotel that is walkable distance is a must.
There are five of us and we would need at least four beds so an Airbnb or VRBO rental seemed to be the most obvious choice.

Okay so, I don’t know if you’ve looked at an Airbnb in a major city during wedding season lately but let me just give you an idea of cost (per night):

That’s going to be a no for us.

My best friend’s father (one of the Irishmen) works for Marriott doing safety inspections so he gets discounts at all hotels owned by Marriot. So is there a Marriot nearby? There sure is.
With his discount – $60 a night for a room. Sold!

Moving on to Step #3!

Step 3 – How do we get there?

Gas prices are floating right around four dollars per gallon on our side of the world and our options for vehicles include a Jeep Wrangler, a Chevrolet Silverado, and a Ford Focus. In summary, two gas guzzlers and a roller skate that would barely fit us, let alone any luggage.
So we fly.

A Google search for flight hacks lead me to these wonderful articles from other helpful bloggers:

https://www.shegoesthedistance.com/cheap-flight-hacks/

https://www.myglobalviewpoint.com/travel-hacks-for-flying/

Some great resources were Google Flights, the Hopper app (it has a cute bunny!), and Skiplagged.
One of the cons for these sites is that some airlines (i.e. Southwest) do not affiliate themselves to keep their prices lower, so you have to check those airline websites directly.

I ended up using the Hopper app to find the best flight and then went directly to Delta to book it. Since I’m new to all this, this felt like a safer option just in case we were unable to make our flight and needed to make adjustments.

Read all about our trip to Minneapolis and the best things to do in Uptown Minneapolis.