The Twin Cities area is considered the capital for the arts in the Upper Midwest. There is a very high per-capita attendance of theatrical, musical, and comedy events across the area, which some believe may be boosted by the cold winters but can be more realistically attributed to the large number of colleges, universities, and a generally strong economy, providing strong supply and demand for arts. There are more theatre seats per capita than in any other American city, besides New York City.

For spectator sports, there is an abundance of professional or top-level amateur sports to enjoy in the Twin Cities. The annual Twin Cities Marathon is held in the fall with a course running through Minneapolis and St. Paul. Several residents and faculty run the marathon each year. It is known as the "most beautiful urban marathon in America".

Club	Sport	League	Venue	Championships
Minnesota Twins	Baseball	Major League Baseball; AL	Target Field (new 2010 season)	World Series:1987, 1991
Minnesota Vikings	American football	National Football League; NFC	Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome	NFL/NFC Championship: 1969, 1974, 1975, 1977, 2010
Minnesota Vixen	American football	Women's Professional Football League	Varies
Minnesota Timberwolves	Basketball	National Basketball Association; Western	Target Center
Minnesota Wild	Ice Hockey	National Hockey League; Western	Xcel Energy Center
Minnesota Swarm	Indoor lacrosse	National Lacrosse League; Eastern Division	Xcel Energy Center
Minnesota Lynx	Basketball	Women's National Basketball Association; Western	Target Center
St. Paul Saints	Baseball	American Association; North Division	Midway Stadium	Northern League Championship: 1993, 1995, 1996, 2004
Minnesota Thunder	Football (soccer)	USL First Division	James Griffin Stadium	A-League Championship: 1999
Minnesota Freeze	Australian Football	United States Australian Football League;MAAFL(Mid-American Australian Football League)	Lake Nokomis Park	National Champions: 2007 Div II, 2005 Div III
Minnesota Ripknees	Basketball	American Basketball Association; White Conference	Gangelhoff Center
Minnesota RollerGirls	Roller derby	Women's Flat Track Derby Association; Eastern Division	Roy Wilkins Auditorium
North Star Roller Girls	Roller derby		Minneapolis Convention Center

There are a number of lakes in the region, and cities in the area have a very extensive park system for recreation. The Minneapolis chain of lakes are a couple miles from Abbott Northwestern hospital, and are accessible via the Midtown Greenway that runs next to the hospital complex. The Twin Cities are home to the Scenic Grand Rounds that manifests itself as America’s most important urban scenic byway. It is a system of scenic byways connected by over 50 miles of paths for running, biking, hiking, and cross-country skiing.

Northern Minnesota holds the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and great cities such as Duluth that are full of outdoor activities year-round. Hiking, camping, and backpacking is abundant in northern Minnesota, but also close to the metro area.

There are several local sports organizations such as City Sports Connection, that provides organized recreational teams and events.

Outdoor activities do not hibernate during the winter months in Minnesota. Winters are full of activities such as the Saint Paul Winter Carnival, snowshoeing, ice hockey, boot hockey, cross-country and downhill skiing, ice skating on many local lakes, ice fishing, and many others.

Owing to its northerly latitude and inland location, the Twin Cities experiences the coldest climate of any major metropolitan area in the United States. However due to its southern location in the state and aided further by the urban heat island, the Twin Cities is one of the warmest locations in Minnesota. What many people love about the state are its distinct 4 seasons. Our summers are hot and find the beaches full, fall is a great season in Minnesota, winter brings a full plate of new activities and beauty, and spring breaks a cold winter and brings a magnificent green blanket to the state.

Metro Transit, by far the biggest bus service provider in the area, owes its existence to the old streetcar lines that ran in the area. Metro Transit provides about 95% of the public transit rides in the region, although some suburbs have other bus services. The light rail system began regular operations in June 2004, and is run by Metro Transit. Current lines include the “Central Corridor” line will connect downtown Minneapolis and downtown St. Paul, the “Northstar Commuter” line that connects the northwest suburbs to downtown Minneapolis, and the “Hiawatha” line that connects downtown Minneapolis to the airport, Mall of America, and several other locations south of Minneapolis. The light rail system has been expanding and adding new lines and makes movement through the Twin Cities quite efficient.

The main airport in the region is Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP).