Rea’s favorite Minnesota places
1. Eat Street, Minneapolis
2. District Del Sol, St. Paul
3. Kabetogama Lake, Voyageurs National Park
4. Ely
5. Roseau
6. Lanesboro
7. The Museum of Russian Art, Minneapolis
8. Hinckley Fire Museum
9. The Minnesota River Valley
10. The Willmar-Spicer area

Eden Prairie author Amy Rea’s new comprehensive guidebook covers the state, both the well known and the obscure
By John Molene
Asked to name her top 10 Minnesota attractions, Minnesota guidebook author Amy Rea admits – with only a slight hesitation – that she prefers the Hinckley Fire Museum to the Mall of America.
Her top 10 also includes Kabetogama Lake, Pioneer Village in Roseau and the Museum of Russian Art in Minneapolis.
“Everybody knows about the big famous places,” said Rea. “There are other places to go.”
That should be a tip off right there that Rea’s new guidebook, “Minnesota: Land of 10,000 Lakes,” isn’t the typical guide to the state. And, yes, she knows that Minnesota has almost 15,000 lakes. She didn’t pick the title, and like it or not, that’s the moniker the state is probably stuck with.
Rea writes about all of Minnesota’s best known destinations in her new 300-page book of explorations. But in her heart of heart she prefers many of the lesser known spots to the more familiar icons.
Rea’s book, published in May, covers Minnesota from A (the Aurora A&W Drive In) to Z (Zorbaz on the Lake in Detroit Lakes). It includes peaks at all of the sublime places in the state, and a few of the ridiculous.
That’s part of its charm. It covers the familiar ground, and is especially good at ferreting out the lesser known spots worthy of attention. It’s a guide designed to aid both the newest visitor to the state, as well as the longtime Minnesota resident who might be seeking out new places to explore.
The book offers advice on how to get to places, as well as what to see and do once you’re there. It reviews where to stay, where to eat, what local attractions to take in, entertainment options, family friendly choices, shopping and special events.
There’s information directly written for couples, families, history buffs, nature lovers, budget travelers and those looking to splurge. In the North Shore lodging section, for example, Rea highlights both the swank Temperance Landing cabins (which start at $195 a night) and Solbakken Resort, down the road at a more modest $50 a night.
It’s the first book for Rea – a freelance writer and editor who moved to Eden Prairie from Chanhassen in 1999. An English major at the University of Minnesota, Rea first managed a retail store and then worked as a travel agent, while doing some freelance writing on the side. She then left the travel business to pursue writing and exploring the state, as well as raising a family. She and her husband, Jim, have 15- and 12-year-old sons, and two dogs.
Rea has been a writer and editor for numerous corporate and consumer publications before trying her hand at guidebook writing. She had been writing some online travel articles, when she saw an online ad seeking a guidebook writer for the state. She sent in a proposal and a sample chapter and was accepted.
And then the work began. Like most Minnesotans, Rea already had a working knowledge of the state, but nowhere near the level of detail that would be needed for the new guidebook. She did her preliminary research online to weed down what she wanted to explore and write about, then set out to explore those locations by car.
Rea did all of the research, writing and photography for the guidebook, with the exception of the cover photo.
“I actually set foot on all the properties,” she said, “all the nooks and crannies. Some days I did 500 miles a day.”
While aiming to be comprehensive, Rea freely expressed a preference for the unique attractions. For example, there’s a mention of the iconic Betty’s Pies in Two Harbors, as well as hundreds of lesser known eateries. But she felt no need to include information on the local McDonald’s.
“I wanted the focus to be more independent and stay away from the chains. There’s no Applebee’s,” Rea said.
Rea also relishes in highlighting spots that visitors may overlook, while giving gentle nudges that some attractions aren’t all they’re cracked up to be. Her editors gave Rea a certain degree of latitude to include subtle hints on what she considers the things to do, and perhaps the things to skip.
In writing about the much hyped Great Lakes Aquarium in Duluth, for example, Rea slyly noted that “Given that most regional fish are fairly monochromatic, the exhibits may be of more interest to people with a strong interest in marine biology than for families with kids who want to see colorful tropical fish.”
While some may question the need for another guidebook to Minnesota, Rea explained that the number of comprehensive guidebooks to the state is actually very small. And none are as up-to-date as her new book.
For her first guidebook, Rea said one mistake she made was gathering all of the information, then doing the writing.
“My office was filled with brochures, notes and mountains of paper,” Rea said. “If I do it again, I’d do it chapter by chapter.”
The guidebook will be updated in two years, so that old information can be disposed of and new locations included.
The present guidebook can be found online and at most area bookstores. Rea also has an extensive blog with lots of additional information about Minnesota’s best at www.flyover-land.com.