Plan Your Trip on the Minnesota Great River Road this September

The MN Mississippi River Parkway Commission invites you to make the most of Minnesota’s changing fall colors and hit the road! September is Drive the Great River Month, and the Commission is providing exclusive content on 700+ places to explore by vehicle, foot, bicycle, boat, train, and plane.

The Plan Your Trip interactive map can help you find your next adventure along the Mighty Mississippi River in Minnesota. It’s your one-stop shop for details on the Great River Road route (follow the green & white “pilot’s wheel” signs) and insider information on things to see and do, organized and searchable by category.

The interactive map includes: 

• The Great River Road route – follow the green line that shows you the exact location of the byway
• Interpretive Centers – 13 attractions that are part of a 10-state network of sites to learn specifically about the Mississippi River’s landscape, history and art
• Parks, Forests & Wildlife Areas – local, state, and federal parklands, forests, and wildlife refuges/areas
• History – history museums, historic sites, and interpretive markers
• Arts & Culture – outdoor art locations, art museums, and performance art venues
• Get On the Water – boat landings, river bridges, and fishing piers
• Minnesota Grown Members – a variety of farmers markets, garden centers, wineries, fruit & vegetable growers & more, all within 10 miles of the Great River Road
• Other Minnesota Byways – Minnesota’s other 21 State and National Scenic Byways
• Navigation capability to help you plan your travel between points of interest

The Great River Road - an All-American Road - runs through 20 Minnesota counties, 43 communities and three tribal nations from Lake Itasca to the Iowa border. And, the National Great River Road was named Best Scenic Drive in the 2025 USA Today 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards! September is the perfect time to check it out. 

For more information on the Minnesota and National Great River Road and to order maps, visit www.mnmississippiriver.com and www.experiencemississippiriver.com.

Minnesota’s Mississippi River Parkway Commission (MN-MRPC) is a statutory Commission, whose mission is...To preserve, promote and enhance the scenic, historic, and recreational resources of the Mississippi River, to foster economic growth in the corridor and to develop the national, scenic, and historic byway known as the Great River Road. The MN-MPRC is part of the larger 10-State National MRPC organized in 1938 to celebrate the Mississippi River by developing the Great River Road Scenic Byway. The ten states are: Arkansas, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Tennessee, and Wisconsin.