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Other stories in "North Shore"

• Cabin on a waterfall
  On Minnesota's North Shore, a state-park guesthouse is a prized hideaway.
• North Shore by snowshoe
  In winter, hikers find serenity and stark beauty on trails above Lake Superior.
• Skiing the North Shore
  On snow-laden trails, skiers glide on cloud nine.
• Lake Superior's greatest hits
  A nine-day Circle Tour itinerary takes in the highlights.
• Dog days of winter
  Deep in a forest, novice mushers tag along with some huskies.
• Chasing the Beargrease
  On the North Shore, the grueling sled-dog race enthralls onlookers.
• Artistic Grand Marais
  On Minnesota's North Shore, this once-rugged village is a cultural outpost.
• Gooseberries on ice
  In winter, the North Shore waterfalls turn into a big, frozen playground.
• Class on the slopes
  Alpine skiing is more fun when you learn how to do it better.
• Serenity at Naniboujou
  On Minnesota's North Shore, a Jazz Age lodge still inspires reverence.
• Dining on the North Shore
  Finally, the cuisine matches the scenery.
• Life on the Grand Portage
  Once, a corner of northeast Minnesota was the center of the fur-trade universe.
• Heirs to a hideaway
  High above Minnesota's North Shore, a spot at Tettegouche Camp is as prized as ever.
• Escape to Minnesota's North Shore
  For stressed-out city folks, it's hallowed ground.
• Seeking the old North Shore
  On Minnesota's beloved vacation spot, change is coming fast.
• Gales of November
  Along the North Shore, winter winds evoke visions of shipwrecks.
• Secret spots of the North Shore
  You’ve seen Split Rock and hiked Oberg. What next? Here are 10 great places the crowds tend to overlook.
• Quiet time on the North Shore
  Late fall is marked by stark beauty, cheaper stays and the gales of November.
• Hiking the North Shore
  For most, it's the preferred way to soak up the scenery.
• Summer's last resort
  On Lutsen Mountains, we find a sweet deal in late August.
• The near North Shore
  From Gooseberry Falls, a single stretch of highway is packed with Nature's spectacles.
• Five ways to walk the Superior Hiking Trail
  On a guided trip, you can pay a lot or a little.
• The Lighthouse Express
  Between Duluth and Two Harbors, vintage trains take passengers back to the past.
• Beaches of the North Shore
  Agate-hunters, storm-watchers, picnickers — they all want to be close to the edge.
• Walk 'n' roll
  Thanks to a bike trail, backtracking on the Superior Hiking Trail is a thing of the past.
• Ice capers
  Along rivers and lakes, it's fun to play with Jack Frost.
• Minnesota's scenic 61
  Lakeside bypass is a rustic remnant of the old North Shore.
• Father Baraga's cross
  Where the Snowshoe Priest outlasted Lake Superior.

Where to stay on Minnesota's North Shore

Whatever you pick, reserve early for summer and fall.

In summer and fall, don't rely on luck to get a reservation on Minnesota's North Shore.

In the heat of summer, everyone wants to bask in Lake Superior's cooling breezes. In fall, everyone wants to see the fall colors. On winter weekends, skiers flock in.

Below are a few of the many places to stay; reserve as far in advance as possible for popular dates, especially Minnesota's school break the third weekend of October.

Rates drop in late October and stay low until the holidays; check for deals. The best deals come in spring. Snow and ice can linger until late April, and traffic doesn't pick up until school lets out in June.

Traditionally, people go to the North Shore to hike, gaze at the lake and gather around  evening campfires, so not all cabins have televisions and phones, and only a few resorts have pools. If you have to have those things, ask in advance.

For a guide to sightseeing, see Escape to Minnesota's North Shore.

Traditional mom-and-pop resorts

Luckily, there are still small family resorts on the North Shore that have clean, tidy and updated cabins on lovely shorelines. Among them:

J Gregers Inn, across from the east border of Gooseberry Falls State Park and on the Gitchi-Gami Trail, has four rooms, all with fridges and microwaves, one with fireplace and two with two beds and kitchens, and a small cabin for two with fireplace. A full breakfast is served for $7.50. 888-226-4614.

Split Rock Cabins has 10 nice housekeeping cabins on flat, grassy Lake Superior shoreline. It's just off the Gitchi-Gami Trail and a half-mile west of the Split Rock River, 218-226-4735.

Fenstad's in Little Marais has 16 classic cabins on the lake, nine with fireplaces, plus a sauna and playground, 218-226-4724.

Lamb's Resort and Campground in Schroeder, bordering the Cross River, has 14 cabins, 218-663-7292.

Cobblestone Cabins in Tofte has eight cabins and a wood-fired sauna right on a lovely cobblestone cove. People who love the outdoors and the traditional North Shore experience love this resort, and its slogan is "For characters and common folk.'' In summer, it rents by the week. 218-663-7957.

Solbakken Resort in Lutsen is a friendly place with cabins that have a great location right on the lake, plus lodge suites and motel rooms, 800-435-3950.

Koeneke Shoredge in Lutsen has three cabins right on the lake, plus Slabsides, a small cabin without hot running water. There are swings where guests can watch the lake. Parking is a short distance from the cabins, an amenity to many people. 218-663-7588.

Gooseberry Trailside Suites, adjoining Gooseberry Falls State Park, isn't a resort. But skiers can get right onto park trails from the door, and it has four attractive two-bedroom suites, each with wood-burning fireplace, VCR, CD player, deck and full kitchen. There's a big sauna and a ski-waxing room outside, 800-715-1110.

Classic lodges

Cascade Lodge, between Lutsen and Grand Marais, has a nice variety of cabins, lodge rooms, motel units and a house, some with whirlpools and fireplaces. Some of the cabins are 1923 originals; for romance, try Cabin 11, which is reached by its own wooden bridge high above a small waterfall.

The resort faces the lake on the other side of the highway; it's a short walk to the trails of Cascade River State Park. In winter, guests can ski right onto the Deer Yard Lake-Cascade classical system, which the lodge grooms with a Pisten Bully.

There's a restaurant on the premises. In the shoulder seasons, the lodge offers excellent value; check for specials. 800-322-9543.

Naniboujou, 14 miles east of Grand Marais, is a striking 1929 lakeshore lodge across from Judge C.R. Magney State Park. Its rooms are simple but attractive, and the restaurant is stunning, 218-387-2688. For more, see Serenity at Naniboujou.

The 1953 lodge of Lutsen Resort is a classic, with picture windows overlooking the beach and an incredibly inviting lobby with a wood-burning hearth. The lodge rooms are small and old-fashioned, but there's a restaurant, a pool complex, the WatersMeet Spa and Wellness Center and a great beach for collecting rocks and driftwood.

Activities directors lead excursions and provide shuttles for guests who want to hike or ski. The resort also rents the Poplar River Condos, Sea Villas, Log Cabins and Cliff House Townhomes. 800-258-8736.

Vacation condos/resorts

In Tofte, Bluefin Bay has many kinds of units, from standard with hillside view to luxury suites with whirlpool and fireplace; its biggest assets are lake views, from its rooms and also from a large outdoor hot tub that is shielded from wind by a glass wall and an outdoor pool.

There's also an indoor pool complex, a restaurant, the Superior Waters Spa and Wellness Center and the popular Coho Cafe. The resort's activities staff is refreshingly competent, offering gear, shuttles and advice year-round. In the off season, it offers good deals, 800-258-3346.

On Lutsen Mountain, Caribou Highlands Lodge has a restaurant and attractive lodge rooms, condos and townhomes, 800-642-6036.

Also on Lutsen Mountain, Eagle Ridge is attractive and very convenient for skiing, 800-360-7666.

In Grand Marais, the East Bay Suites replaced the beloved East Bay Hotel but still allows pets and has the same great location on a pebble beach downtown. The small-town coziness is gone, but the suites are handsomely furnished. 800-414-2807.

Hotels

Cove Point Lodge in Beaver Bay is an attractive lodge on the lakeshore and within 10 miles of Gooseberry, Split Rock and Tettegouche state parks. It also has cottages. 800-598-3221.

The Americinn in Silver Bay may be a good place to take kids; it has a 110-foot spiral water slide and rates include breakfast with waffle bar. 218-226-4300.

In Grand Marais, the Grand Marais Hotel Company, 800-247-6020, manages five properties,  the Aspen Lodge, Shoreline Inn, Spruceglen Inn and Cobblestone Cove Villas, downtown, and Super 8, on the edge of town. The newly built Cobblestone Cove Villas, facing the harbor, are popular with well-heeled tourists.

There are still several old-fashioned motels on the periphery of Grand Marais, including Nelson's Travelers Rest.

Bed-and-breakfast inns

In Two Harbors, the Lighthouse B&B has three spare but tasteful rooms. They share one bathroom, and there's a half-bath in the basement. The Skiff House, on the grounds adjoining the visitors center, has its own bathroom and hot tub. The inn is run by volunteers from the historical society, 888-832-5606. For more, see The Lighthouse Express.

Near Tettegouche State Park, the new log Baptism River Inn B&B has four rooms, each with a double whirlpool, 877-353-0707.

Four miles north of Grand Marais, the Superior Overlook is a pleasant B&B on the lake, with two rooms and sauna, 877-387-9335.

In Grand Portage, Sweetgrass Cove Guesthouse and Bodywork Studio rents a three-room suite to one party at a time, and breakfast and use of the wood-fired sauna and outdoor hot tub is included. Spa services are available on site, 866-475-2421.

State-park lodgings

Tettegouche State Park has two highly prized places to stay. The luxurious Illgen Falls Cabin is atop 45-foot Illgen Falls on the Baptism River, off Minnesota 1. For more, see Cabin on a waterfall.

On the other side of the park, accessible only a ¾-mile gravel road over which guests must tote all their supplies, are the four rustic cabins on Mic Mac Lake. For more, see Heirs to a hideaway.

Camping

There's camping at six of the North Shore's seven state parks. Split Rock, which doesn't have very many sites, is the hardest-to-get reservation in the state, followed by Temperance River and Tettegouche. Gooseberry Falls, Judge C.R. Magney and Cascade River also are in the Top 10 most popular camping parks in Minnesota.

Campsites at the inland Crosby Manitou State Park, east of Finland, are easiest to get. Grand Portage State Park is for day use only.

Reservations can be made online or by phone up to a year in advance, starting at 8 a.m. on the first day of availability; after that, online reservations can be made 24 hours a day and by phone between 7 a.m. and 10 p.m., 866-857-2757. There's a nonrefundable reservation fee of $8.50. For details, check Minnesota state parks.

The municipal Grand Marais RV Park and Campground has 300 sites on the lakeshore and is next to the North House Folk School. There's also an indoor pool with sauna and whirlpool, which campers can use for $3.

In Two Harbors, the municipal Burlington Bay Campground has 102 sites with hook-ups and 10 tent sites. 218-834-2021.

Last updated on February 3, 2010