Start from 19 curated places around Grand Forks, ND, then choose the recommendations that fit your guests.
Restaurants & cafés
Skies 322
A downtown rooftop destination doing seasonally driven American plates and sharp cocktails with a view over the city. It is the dressed-up choice for a special dinner or a sunset drink above the prairie. Relaxed elegance with the best view in town.
Harry's Steakhouse
A classic downtown steakhouse with red leather booths and dark wood, plating well-aged beef sourced from the surrounding plains states. The room has a timeless supper-club feel that fits the cuts perfectly. The place for a proper steak dinner in the city.
Trails & outdoors
The Greenway
A broad ribbon of riverside parkland and paved path running for miles along both banks of the Red River through the heart of the city. Born from the floodplain left open after the great flood, it is now the city's outdoor spine for walking, biking and skiing. Flat, green and endlessly accessible.
English Coulee Greenway
A quiet paved path tracing the English Coulee waterway across the university side of town, linking campus, parks and neighborhoods. It is the calm, leafy alternative to the river path, popular with students and dog-walkers. Easy, flat and shaded in summer.
Things to do
North Dakota Museum of Art
The state's contemporary art museum on the university campus, a serious gallery whose collection and rotating shows reach to names like Picasso. It is a genuine surprise for a prairie city, thoughtfully curated and free to enter. The best rainy-day stop and a dose of real art.
Empire Arts Center
A lovingly restored historic theater downtown that hosts films, concerts, theater and a gallery that has shown work by the likes of Dalí. It is the cultural heart of the restored district, with something on most weeks. Check the calendar for an evening show in a beautiful old room.
Landmarks & sights
Sertoma Japanese Garden
A serene Japanese garden tucked into a riverside park, with waterfalls, arched bridges and stone lanterns arranged for slow wandering. It is an unexpected pocket of calm in a flat prairie city, lovingly maintained by local volunteers. Best in the soft light of early morning or autumn color.
Downtown Grand Forks Historic District
A handsome, walkable downtown of brick storefronts and the restored Empire Theatre, rebuilt with real care after the great Red River flood swept through. It is the heart of the city's dining and nightlife, compact enough to wander on foot. A small-city main street that punches above its weight.