Drone Videos of Minneapolis/St. Paul

These drone videos show off the greatest places in Minnesota's Twin Cities. Explore Minneapolis and St. Paul by taking a tour of this dynamic midwestern metropolis. AirVūz created this compilation of drone videos featuring the best of the Twin Cities. From landmarks like the Stone Arch Bridge to state-of-the-art sports facilities like US Bank Stadium, you’ll see it all from a drone’s perspective. Fly over the lakes, museums, universities, theaters and neighborhoods that make it one of the best places to visit.

Top contributor Jay Christensen brings us this masterpiece of a drone reel from his home city of Minneapolis. The film uses a variety of drone footage to show the empty downtowns due to the 2020 Covid-19 lockdown, as well as the protests, rioting, and devastation following the death of George Floyd at the hands of four Minneapolis police officers on Memorial Day, which triggered some of the most serious racial unrest in the USA in decades.  Also seen are empty Target Field, US Bank Stadium, Target Center, Excel Center, and Allianz Field. 

Minneapolis, Minnesota is one of the largest and most dynamic cities in the American Midwest.  It's also the hometown of AirVuz, which produced this brief history of the city told largely with drone footage.  The video tells the story of the city's origins as a flour milling center on the Mississippi River to its growth as a large corporate center to its most recent transformation, which has been driven in large part by the construction of  numerous world-class sports venues in and around the downtown area.

Top contributor Gianlo created this beautiful drone video compilation from the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota.  The two cities sit just a few km/mi apart, both straddling the mighty Mississippi River.  The video opens with some amazing shots of the Cathedral of St. Paul and the state Capital building, as well as the downtown of the smaller (but older) city.  Then it shifts to downtown Minneapolis, whose modern skyline is one of the most impressive of any Midwestern city.    

New AirVuz contributor AirJourdanFPV brings us this haunting first person view (FPV) drone video of Minneapolis, Minnesota in the immediate aftermath of the civil unrest triggered by the death of an unarmed Black man named George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police officers.  Captured on video, the brutal killing caused international outrage and triggered massive protests which began in the Twin Cities and soon spread around the world.  While most protests were peaceful, Minneapolis and St. Paul saw considerable rioting damage.  

Prepare to be blown away by this magnificent one-shot FPV video from the USA's largest enclosed shopping mall, compliments of the legendary Jay Christensen.  Shot with a "cinewhoop" style FPV drone, the video plays off of the 1994 movie "Mighty Ducks: D2", which was shot at the giant mall in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington.  In a continuous shot, he flies through the giant structure, catches up with a roller-hockey "team" cruising through the mall, and heads into the Nickelodeon Universe amusement park in the center of the mall.   

The Minnesota State Fair is held annually in late August through Labor Day weekend in an area of St. Paul, the "twin city" to Minneapolis.  Widely known as the Great Minnesota Get Together, the Fair is one of the largest such gatherings in the country.  In 2017, AirVuz collaborated with the Fair to provide drone coverage of the event for the first time.  Using fully licensed operators, AirVuz created a series of videos showing the Fair and different events occurring there, from an aerial perspective.  

By any measure, Minneapolis, Minnesota is the coldest major city in the United States.  It's not a matter of latitude - Seattle, Washington sits considerably further north, and Boston, Massachusetts only slightly to the south. Rather it's a combination of northern latitude and being in the middle of the country, far from the warming coastal waters.  Despite the frigid temperatures, the city is generally sunny in the winter, allowing drone pilots to capture wintry scenes like this one by Sky Candy Studios.  

Check out this drone video tour of St. Paul, Minneaota, compliments of top AirVuz contributor Fit Lam Studios.  The video opens with a great shot of the Hill Mansion on Summit Avenue, just west of downtown.  Then it's on to the skyways of downtown, followed by an epic shot from the St. Paul Cathedral looking toward the Capitol Building.  At :47, there's a great shot of the giant sign atop the First National Bank building.  Other featured spots include the inside of Excel Center, Rice Park, 3M headquarters in suburban Maplewood, and more.  

Top contributor Sky Candy Studios was one of the first commercial drone companies permitted to film the US Bank Stadium in downtown Minneapolis.  Opened in 2016, the nearly $1.1 billion stadium became the new home of the Minnesota Vikings National Football League team, replacing the old Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome multipurpose stadium on the same site just east of the core downtown.  Here's some amazing night shots of the home of the Vikings, which hosted Super Bowl LII in February, 2018.  

Contributor and pilot Gopherdrone used a DJI Mavic Pro 2 to capture a cultural landmark in Minneapolis, Minnesota: the Walker Art Center and adjoining Sculpture Gardens.  Located in the Lowry Hill neighborhood adjacent to downtown, the Walker is widely considered to be one of the top 2-3 modern art museums in the United States.  The current structure was built in 1971, and doubled with a 2005 addition.  The Sculpture Garden, located on the same campus, is regarded as one of the country's finest. 

AirVuz' own Blaze created this drone video showing off the skyscrapers of Minneapolis, Minnesota.  At about the :35 mark you will get a great view of the two most well known.  In the foreground is the Foshay Tower, an Art Deco masterpiece which opened in 1929 and was, at the time, the tallest building west of Chicago.  In the background is the IDS Center; standing just over 240 meters (790 ft.), it was also the tallest west of Chicago when it opened in 1972 and continues to be the state's #1 in height.

Gopherdrone used a Mavic Pro 2 to create this beautiful aerial video of the Guthrie Theater, one of the cultural landmarks of Minneapolis, Minnesota.  Originally adjoined to the Walker Art Center, in 2006 the theater moved into its current site in the heart of the old milling district on the Mississippi River.  The new Guthrie Theater cost about $125 million to build, making it amongst the world's most costly and in keeping with the theater's reputation as being amongst the top 4-5 dramatic theaters in the USA.

A frozen downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota is the subject of this drone video by AirVuz's own Blaze.  Captured on the eve of the city's hosting of the Super Bowl in early 2018, the video opens with a shot of the $1 billion+ US Bank Stadium, opened in 2016 as the new home of the Minnesota Vikings and the venue for the NFL's 52nd championship game.  From there you'll get some shots of the skyline of downtown, which looms just to the west of the stadium.  The frigid temperature can be seen from the thick vapor plumes coming off the top of the city's skyscrapers.  

The Mall of America is probably the best known landmark of the Twin Cities area of Minnesota.  Located in the southern suburb of Bloomington, MOA has the distinction of being the USA's largest mall by floor area.  Opened in 1992, the mall records over 40 million visits per year, roughly 8x the population of the state of Minnesota.  AirVuz collaborated with the MOA management to create this drone production showing both the inside and outside of the mall, built on the site of the former Met Stadium.     

SkyCandy Studios worked with the Minnesota Timberwolves of the National Basketball Associate (NBA) to produce this awesome aerial view of the newly renovated Target Center, the team's home arena.  Located in downtown Minneapolis, the arena opened in 1990 for the expansion team's second season.  In 2017, Target Center underwent a complete renovation, a project which cost roughly 40% more than the arena's initial construction cost.  Its current capacity is almost 19,000 for basketball.  

The Stone Arch Bridge crosses the Mississippi River at St. Anthony Falls, the historic heart of Minneapolis, Minnesota.  It was built by railwayman James J. Hill in the late 1800's to provide transportation for the flour milling industry which turned Minneapolis into the USA's fastest growing city during its Gilded Age.  Now, the Stone Arch is a footbridge, providing the best views of the Falls and the adjacent downtown district.  See the Stone Arch from above in this drone video by contributor Gianlo.  

Contributor and pilot Gopherdrone used a DJI Mavic Pro 2 to create this dusk tour of the Uptown neighborhood of Minneapolis, one of the premiere residential and entertainment districts in the Twin Cities.  The video opens with a shot of the recently fire-destroyed pavilion at Lake Bde Mka Ska (formerly Lake Calhoun).  From there you'll see some shots of the iconic Uptown Theater marquee, the rooftop bars along Lagoon Avenue, the Calhoun Square building at Lake Street and Hennepin Avenue, and more.

Contributor and pilot FlightCreativeMedia created this stunning drone video of the Minnesota State Capitol in St. Paul, one of the state's great landmarks.  The building is situated on a campus which lies opposite Interstate 94 from downtown St. Paul.  The building houses both chambers of the Minnesota Legislature plus several executive offices, including that of the Governor.  The third state capitol of the Gopher State, it was completed in 1905 and underwent a major renovation from 2013-17.

Here's an amazing drone video collage of St. Paul, Minnesota, on a cold winter day, compliments of Fit Lam Studios.  The sister city to Minneapolis, St. Paul is the smaller and older of the two cities which make up the core of the Twin Cities area, the largest population center of the Upper Midwestern USA.  The video captures the winter beauty of this river city, including footage of the skyline, the Cathedral of St. Paul (the third largest church in the country), the mansion of rail baron James J. Hill, and more.  

AirVuz collaborated with the Minneapolis Downtown Council to produce this drone video of the fireworks celebration that caps off the city's biggest summer festival.  The Minneapolis Aquatennial occurs in mid-July and celebrates the aquatic heritage of the city, known as the City of Lakes.  The last night of the week+ long celebration is a large fireworks display over the Mississippi River near downtown, which for many years has been sponsored by the Minneapolis-based retailer Target.  

Gopherdrone created this aerial tour of the main campus of the University of Minnesota, located on both banks of the Mississippi River east of downtown Minneapolis.  The U of M is a major research institution, and with enrollment of over 50k it's one of the half-dozen biggest campuses in the USA.  The video includes footage from both the East Bank (such as the main athletic facilities, Walter Library, Scholar's Walk, and Coffman Union) and the West Bank (such as the Carlson School of Management).  

Check out this drone video of the St. Anthony Falls on the Mississippi River near downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota, compliments of gopherdrone.  Historically, this spot represented the highest navigable point on the USA's mightiest river.  In the late 1800's, the falls were harnessed to power the world's largest flour milling factories, driving the early growth of Minneapolis and giving it the nickname Mill City during its boomtown years when it was the fastest growing city in the land.    

Minneapolis, Minnesota has seen a multi-decade building boom in the downtown and adjoining areas which has greatly expanded the number of people who live in the central city.  Whereas the downtown district's workers were once almost entirely commuters, nowadays thousands of people live close enough to downtown where they can bike or easily walk to work. Contributor and drone pilot Skycandy Studios gives us an aerial tour of some of the newest architecture of Minneapolis. 

Contributor tylerjmason created this drone video of Allianz Field in St. Paul, Minnesota, a brand new stadium for the Minnesota United FC Major League Soccer team.  Built at a cost of $200 million, the 19,500 facility is situated on the light rail line connecting St. Paul to its "twin city", Minneapolis.  The stadium is the latest in a string of Twin Cities sports facility investments in which over $2 billion has been expended in the past decade, transforming the cityscape of the Metro area.  

Amongst the outdoor treasures of Minneapolis, Minnesota is a group of four lakes which run through the southwestern part of the city: Cedar Lake, Lake of the Isles, Lake Calhoun, and Lake Harriet.  Encircled by bike and walking paths, the lakes and their shorelines are controlled by the Minneapolis Park Board.  With no motorized boats permitted, the lakes offer some of the best canoeing, sailboarding, and kayaking spots in the state.  You can see all four lakes from above in this compilation by tylerjmason.  

The USA state of Minnesota is known as the Land of 10,000 Lakes.  While most of its lakes are in its less populated northern areas, there are some large recreational lakes closer to the state's main population center in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area.  The largest is Lake Minnetonka, a 14k acre lake in the western suburbs of Minneapolis that can accommodate thousands of boaters.  In this video, contributor Fit Lam Studios used a drone to capture the Lake Minnetonka boat scene over a July 4th weekend.

Twin Cities Marathon covers a route which begins in Minneapolis, Minnesota and ends in next door St. Paul, the "twin city" to Minneapolis.  Held in the early Fall, it is considered one of the country's top 10 marathons.  While the course has varied at times, it always includes downtown Minneapolis, the city's interconnected chain of lakes, and a finish line at the state Capitol building near downtown St. Paul.  Contributor Tyler Mason used a drone to film portions of this race in 2017, its 35th running.  

Check out these great aerial views of Target Field in Minneapolis, compliments of tylerjmason.  The 38.6k seat stadium opened in 2010 as the new home field of Major League Baseball's Minnesota Twins, who for nearly three decades were confined to indoor baseball at the multi-purpose Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome.  The Twins celebrated their tenth season here by winning 101 games, one short of the team record.  The stadium is located in the North Loop neighborhood on the downtown outskirts.  

Check out this drone video of the North Loop neighborhood of Minneapolis, Minnesota, compliments of contributor and pilot gopherdrone.  Situated on the northwestern side of downtown, the North Loop is considered a poster-child for what big-time sports venues can do for urban neighborhoods.  The North Loop includes both Target Center (home of the Timberwolves of the National Basketball Association) and Target Field, which has been home of the Minnesota Twins baseball team since it opened in 2010.  

Grand Avenue in St. Paul, Minnesota, is lined with some of the city's top restaurants and shops. Contributor and drone pilot dronempls gives us an aerial tour of this street, which spans for a long stretch between Minneapolis and St. Paul. While the street is best known for the annual Grand Old Day street fair held in the late Spring, there's always something for tourists and locals alike going on along Grand Avenue. Local favorites like Brasa, Dixie's, and Grand Ole Creamery are just a few of the great food options you'll find here.

The Northeast Minneapolis Arts District is the area where the Twin Cities' artistic community gathers. With many artist buildings and other galleries making up this portion of Northeast Minneapolis, the arts district is a popular place for locals and visitors alike. USA Today even named it "Best Arts District" in 2014. It's not just art, though. This are of the city includes many businesses, bars, restaurants and breweries as well — including the historiy Grain Belt Brewery, seen in this video by contributor landof10000drones. 

Contributor gopherdrone used a DJI Mavic Pro 2 to shoot this aerial video of TCF Bank Stadium, a world-class college football stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota.  The 51k seat facility opened in 2009 as the new home of the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers football team, which had spent the previous 25+ years sharing the HHH Metrodome with Minnesota's pro baseball and football teams.  The new stadium is located on the site of the old Memorial Stadium, the team's home field from 1924-1981.

The Minneapolis Institute of Art is considered one of the USA's top fine arts museums.  Situated since 1915 in the Whittier neighborhood south of downtown Minneapolis, its permanent collection includes nearly 90,000 objects with art from a variety of eras.  With 17.5k square meters (188k square ft.) of gallery space, it's the sixth largest art museum in the United States as of early 2019.  As seen in this drone video by dave drones tc, the building's exterior was done in the neoclassical style.

Gophedrone used a Mavic Pro 2 to shoot this aerial video of Wayzata, Minnesota, a western suburb of Minneapolis.  It sits on a bay of the same name on Lake Minnetonka, the state's ninth largest lake and the largest in its southern half.  Situated 18 km (around 11 mi.) from downtown Minneapolis, Wayzata has a long history; it became a major summer resort area in the 1870's when it became connected by rail to St. Paul.  It's considered one of the most desirable (and expensive) areas in the Twin Cities.    

Here's an aerial video of one of the oldest golf courses in Minneapolis, Minnesota, compliments of contributor gopherdrone.  The Minikahda Club is located just to the west of Lake Bde Maka Ska (formerly Lake Calhoun), the largest of the city's Chain of Lakes.  Founded in 1898, the 18-hole private course hosted the US Open Championship in 1916.  It later hosted the US Amateur Championship (1927), the Walker Cup (1957), the US Amateur Women's Championship (1988), and the Curtis Cup (1998).  

For those looking for good shopping and restaurants in the Twin Cities, look no further than the 50th & France neighborhood of Edina, Minnesota.  Edina is an inner-ring suburb of Minneapolis, just southwest of the city's Chain of Lakes.  With updscale shopping and some of the metro area's top-rated restaurants, the artsy Edina Cinema, and other attractions, it's a hot spot for locals. Check out this upscale neighborhood from above in this drone video from AirVuz contributor dave drones tc.

Minneapolis, Minnesota is often regarded as one of the best cycling cities in the United States. Among the most popular trails in the Grand Rounds Scenic Byway System. Seen in this drone video by dronempls, the trails span 51 miles and also have space for pedestrians who prefer walking to biking. This path circles some of the city's most notable lakes, including Lake Harriet, Lake of the Isles, Lake Bde Mka Ska, and Cedar Lake, and also runs along the bank of the Mississippi River near downtown Minneapolis.

Top contributor and DVA nominee Gianlo created this beautiful aerial video of Lake Bde Maka Ska (formerly Lake Calhoun) in Minneapolis, Minnesota.  It's part of an interconnected chain of lakes which run through the western part of the city, giving Minneapolis its nickname: the City of Lakes.  All these lakes are under the control of the Minneapolis Park Board, which does not permit motorized watercraft.  This leaves the lakes, of which Bde Mka Sa is the largest, to sailboats and windsurfers.

Contributor Gopherdrone created this drone video of the Dinkytown neighborhood of Minneapolis, just north of the University of Minnesota campus.  The neighborhood revolves around campus life.  Its live music scene helped to launch the career of a young singer-songwriter named Robert Zimmerman, who was a UofM undergraduate in 1959-60.  He lived in the Dinkytown building that now houses the Loring Pasta Bar before dropping out, moving to New York, and (officially) changing his name - to Bob Dylan.  

During America's Gilded Age decades of 1880-1900, Minneapolis was the fastest growing city in the country.  The city's main growth engine during these years was the flour industry, the epicenter of which was the gigantic Washburn A Mill, seen here in this drone video by gopherdrone.  The world's largest flour mill when it opened in 1880, it replaced an earlier version which exploded catastrophically in 1878.  The mill's operator eventually became General Mills, which shut down the facility in 1965.

Check out this beautiful drone video of one of the most well known parks in Minneapolis, Minnesota, compliments of contributor dave drones tc.  Theodore Wirth Park sits just to the northwest of downtown Minneapolis.  A portion of the park actually is part of the neighboring suburb of Golden Valley, although it's entirely managed by the Minneapolis Park Board.  The largest of the city's parks, Theodore Worth is home to two golf courses, numerous lakes, and many km/mi of hiking and cross country skiing trails.  

Although it's been three years since the untimely death of Prince, the music legend is still very much on the minds of many people — especially in Minnesota. AirVuz pilot Tyler Mason traveled to Paisley Park in Chanhassen, a southwestern suburb of Minneapolis, to collect some aerial views of the building that served as Prince's estate and recording studio.  The scene of numerous tributes after his death, it serves as a reminder of the late musician's importance to the state — and the world.

In Minnesota, in the northern USA, the short summer months are packed with outdoor festivals.  Given the growing reputation of the Twin Cities as a "foodie" city, it's not surprising that one of the fastest growing summer gatherings is the Food Truck Festival in Minneapolis.  Based in the city's trendy Uptown neighborhood, a gentrified area south of downtown, the festival features hundreds of food trucks, live music, food, and plenty of beer.  AirVuz collaborated with the organizer to film the event in 2017.

The area just east of central downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota spent years in the shadow of the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, a multi-purpose sports facility built on the cheap in the early 1980's which was an eyesore surrounded by surface parking lots.  In recent years, the area has been completely transformed by over $2 billion of new investment, led by US Bank Stadium.  Now called Downtown East, you can see it from a bird's eye perspective in this drone video by contributor and pilot gopherdrone.  

Here's a bird's eye view of City Hall in Minneapolis, Minnesota, courtesy of contributor gopherdrone.  The landmark building on downtown's 5th Street was completed in 1909 and was the city's tallest until topped by the Foshay Tower in 1929.  Its most famous occupant was a fiery orator named Hubert Humphrey: elected Minneapolis mayor in 1945, he won a US Senate seat 1948 and was elected as Lyndon Johnson's Vice President in 1964.  In 1968, he narrowly lost the Presidential election to Richard M. Nixon. 

The Basilica Block Party began in the 1990's as a single two day music festival to benefit the Basilica of St. Mary, which sits on the outskirts of downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota.  The Block Party is now an annual event featuring dozens of musical acts attended by tens of thousands.  Since 2017, AirVuz has served as an official media partner of the Block Party, enabling it to create amazing videos of the event which combine drone and ground footage of the center city at the height of its summer splendor.

Here's a drone video of the Mill City Museum in Minneapolis, Minnesota, compliments of contributor Minneapolis Flyer.  Opened in 2003, the museum celebrates the formative role of flour milling in the early growth of this Midwestern city.  It's situated in the heart of the historic milling district along the Mississippi River, which was the largest flour milling center in the USA for nearly half a century.  The museum sits next to the remains of the Washburn A Mill, once the largest flour factory in the world.  

Minneapolis, Minnesota, has long had an active live music scene, in keeping with its reputation as a major arts city.  The center of gravity of its music world is the First Avenue & 7th Street Entry Nightclub, shown here in this video by Gopherdrone. Located downtown, the club has served as the launching pad for numerous Minneapolis musicians and bands.  It's most famously associated with the career of the late international pop star Prince, whose 1984 movie Purple Rain extensively featured the club.  

Take a first person view (FPV) tour of one of the USA's top science museums, compliments of contributor and FPV pilot Intent2bHuman.  He used an FPV micro-drone to show off the Science Museum of Minnesota.  The museum is located in downtown St. Paul, the sister city to Minneapolis.  The museum dates to 1907 and it's been in its current facility overlooking the Mississippi River since 1999.  In 2015, the museum was ranked third in the National Geographic survey of the USA's best science museums.  

Gopherdrone created this aerial video of Interlachen Country Club, one of the most well-known golf courses in the US Midwest.  Opened in 1911, the private course is located in Edina, an inner-ring suburb of Minneapolis.   It's the only Minnesota course to consistently rank in the influential Golf Digest annual ranking of the top 100 US courses.  In 1930, Interlachen hosted the US Open, in which Bobby Jones emerged victorious and went on to become the only Grand Slam winner in history thus far.  

In 1956, Southdale Center became the first indoor shopping mall in the United States when it opened in the Minneapolis suburb of Edina, Minnesota. The mall has changed since then — the number of stores has grown from 72 to 120 — but it remains one of the more popular shopping destinations in the Twin Cities. It currently includes department store Macy's as well as many specialty stores, an AMC movie theater, several restaurants and more.  It's currently the second-largest mall in the Twin Cities, after the Mall of America.

Here is a bird's eye view of a prominent church in Minneapolis, Minnesota, compliments of gopherdrone.  The Basilica of St. Mary is situated just west of the city's central downtown area.  In 1926, Pope Pius XI granted the church basilica status, making it the first minor basilica in the USA (there are roughly 1,750 minor basilicas in the world today; the four major basilicas are all in Rome).   The Minneapolis basilica is also the site of a large two-day music festival every summer to benefit the landmark.  

Check out this drone video of the Minneapolis, Minnesota landmark Orchestra Hall, compliments of contributor dronempls.  Opened in 1974 and situated on Nicollet Mall in downtown Minneapolis, Orchestra Hall is the home of the Minnesota Orchestra.  In keeping with the Twin Cities' reputation as a leading arts center, the Minnesota Orchestra is generally considered to be at a level comparable to the so-called Big Five orchestras of Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Philadelphia, and San Francisco.  

Despite the winter weather, Minneapolis, Minnesota is considered one of the nation's top cities for bikers.  Critical to this is its network of biking paths.  One of the newest is the Midtown Greenway, a roughly 9 km (5.5 mi.) east-west path which connects the Uptown area near the city's Chain of Lakes to the Mississippi River to the east.  As this drone footage by dronempls shows, the Greenway runs underneath many busy streets, offering cyclists (and pedestrians) a safer way to get across the city. 

Contributor tylerjmason created this beautiful drone video of the marquee of the Orpheum Theater, a landmark of downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota.  Built in 1921, it was originally known as the Hennepin Theater, in reference to the well-known thoroughfare on which it sits.  The Orpheum seats 2600 and is one of the primary venues for top musicals that schedule performances in the Twin Cities.  Now owned by the City of Minneapolis, during the 1980's it was owned by Minnesota music icon Bob Dylan.  

Founded in 1874, Macalester College is a private college in St. Paul, Minnesota.  With a student body of around 2,000 (about a quarter of whom are generally foreign citizens), it's considered one of the top liberal arts colleges in the Midwest.  Its alumni ranks include former Vice President and Democratic Presidential nominee Walter F. Mondale.  Contributor dave drones created this drone video of Macalaster's picturesque campus, which is  located near the intersections of Snelling and Grand Avenues.  

Former AirVuz employee Jay Christensen hit the big-time with this fantastic first-person view (FPV) drone video from a famous bowling alley in Minneapolis.  In a single shot, the "cinewhoop" style quad flies into the front door of Bryant Lake Bowl (located just a few km/mi. south of downtown), follows the course of a ball down an alley and then provides a look at the equipment behind the pins.  In the days following its release, this piece became one of the most-viewed FPV videos of all time and was the subject of countless news stories.  This video was a DVOY finalist in 2021. 

Valleyfair is a large amusement park located in the Twin Cities area of Minneapolis and St. Paul, MN.  Opened in 1976, the park is situated in Shakopee, a southern suburb of Minneapolis.  The park is particularly known for its rollercoasters, which number eight (8) as of early 2019.  The park is owned by Cedar Fair, the operator of Cedar Point in Ohio, the second oldest amusement park in the USA.  In 2016, AirVuz collaborated with Valleyfair management to aerially film an "All Wheels Extreme" show.  

Summit Avenue in St. Paul is lined with hundreds of historic homes and some of Minnesota's most impressive mansions. Five buildings on Summit Avenue are on the National Register of Historic Places, and three more — including the 36,000-square-foot James J. Hill House — are National Historic Landmarks. This drone footage from pilot landof10000drones shows parts of the street that boasts the longest stretch of Victorian-era homes in the U.S., where writer Sinclair Lewis once lived.

Minneapolis, Minnesota got a huge boost to its national stature when it became the setting for a hit TV program called the Mary Tyler Moore Show.  Broadcast on CBS from 1970 to 1977, the pathbreaking comedy depicted the life of a TV news producer named Mary Richards.  In 1999, Entertainment Weekly ranked the show's opening sequence as the second most iconic in the history of television.  In this drone video by gopherdrone, you'll see some of the spots shown in that memorable 60 second introduction.

Canterbury Park in Shakopee, Minnesota (an outer ring southern suburb of Minneapolis) first opened in 1985, following an amendment to the Minnesota constitution to permit parimutuel betting.  While the 1.6 km (one mile) race track — seen in this drone video by content creator dave drones tc — is the main attraction for most people, Canterbury Park also has a 20,000-square-foot casino. On occasion during the summer, the track will also host unique races like ostriches and wiener dogs.

The Weisman Museum is one of the landmarks of the main campus of the University of Minnesota, just east of downtown Minneapolis.  Situated on the banks of the Mississippi River, the building was designed by renowned architect Frank O. Gehry and completed in 1993.  Founded in 1934 and named after collector and donor Fredrick R. Weisman, the museum's first home was in the Northrup Auditorium building on the UofM Campus.  Home to over 25,000 images, you can check out the Weisman from above in this drone video by contributor dronempls.

Take in the beautiful spring views from a horticulture garden called the Minnesota Arboretum, compliments of contributor Sky Candy Studios.  It's situated in Chaska, a southwestern suburb of Minneapolis.  The Arboretum is operated by the University of Department of Horticultural Science.  It's the largest public garden in the Midwest, and a major attraction in the western part of the Twin Cities area.    It's also a significant research facility and is credited with the development of the Honeycrisp apple.  

The greatest tragedy to strike modern Minneapolis, Minnesota occurred on August 1, 2007, when the I-35W Bridge over the Mississippi River collapsed during evening rush hour.  The structural failure killed thirteen people and injured 145 (including dozens of children on a school bus), dominating international news headlines for days.  In this video, gopher drone gives us an aerial view of the replacement bridge, which was (improbably) completed by the first anniversary of the collapse.

Top AirVuz contributor Sky Candy Studios brings us this fantastic "fly-through" first person view (FPV) video of some of the top theaters and live venues in Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota.  Shot with a "cinewhoop" style drone, the work was undertaken as part of a campaign by the city's to get the public to resume its patronage following the long shutdown induced by the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic.  The featured venues include First Avenue, the Palace Theater, the Fitzgerald Theater, the Parkway Theater, and the Dakota Lounge.  

Contributor landof10000drones created this aerial view of the Chanhassen Dinner Theater in a southwestern suburb of Minneapolis, Minnesota.  Opened in 1968, it's the largest dinner theater in the USA.  It's part of a Twin Cities cultural scene which includes the Guthrie Theater, the Walker museum, and other nationally-known arts organizations.  However, this was the only one which made an appearance as a filming location in the 1996 classic Fargo, a product of the Minnesota-born Coen Brothers.

This 3-minute aerial video by drone pilot tylerjmason shows off plenty of reasons why he loves being from Minnesota. From views of some of the state's 10,000 lakes to footage of Prince's famous Paisely Park studio to overhead shots of sports stadiums like Target Field and Allianz Field, the compilation highlights some top destinations in Minnesota. Paired with a rap song that's all about Minnesota from popular group Atmosphere, this video offers a bit of nostalgia to anyone who calls — or has called — Minnesota their home.

AirVuz's own tylerjmason created this beautiful drone video of Stillwater, Minnesota, a historic town on the St. Croix River about a half-hour drive northeast of downtown Minneapolis.  Now considered part of the Twin Cities area, Stillwater is sometimes called the Birthplace of Minnesota, a reference to a meeting held here in 1848 to begin the process of having Minnesota apply for statehood.  It's known for its thriving arts scene and its bars and restaurants along the river, a major tributary of the Mississippi.  

Content creator landof1000drones shows us an iconic bandshell located on one of Minnesota's 10,000 lakes. Nestled on the north side of Lake Harriet in Minneapolis, the Lake Harriet Bandhsell hosts live music, movie screenings and more throughout the beautiful Minnesota summers. It's an ideal place for anyone in the Twin Cities looking for a free activity, and it often shows kid's movies, making the bandshell a great destination for families.  Lake Harriet is part of the city's Chain of Lakes and is controlled by the Minneapolis Park Board.

Top contributor Fit Lam Studios created this video from the 2016 All-Star game of the American Association of Independent Professional Baseball (AAIPB), a professional baseball league not affiliated with Major League Baseball.  The venue for the event was CHS Field, a 7,000 seat open-air stadium situated just east of downtown St. Paul, Minnesota.  The stadium opened in 2015 as the home field of the hometown IAPB team St. Paul Saints as well as for the baseball team of nearby Hamline College.  

The University of St. Thomas is the largest private non-profit post-secondary institution in the state of Minnesota.  The main campus of this Catholic affiliated school is in St. Paul, a bit west of downtown.  The school has total enrollment of just under 10,000, of which about a third is graduate and professional school students.  Founded in 1885, the school opened a satellite campus in downtown Minneapolis in 1991.  You can check out the main campus from a bird's eye view in this drone video by dronempls.

Located next to the Minneapolis Institute of Art, the Children's Theater Company is recognized as one of the top theaters for children in the United States. Originally founded in 1965 as the Moppet Players, it eventually became the Children's Theater Company in 1975 when it moved into the space at MIA. Located just 3 km (around 2 mi.) south of downtown Minneapolis, the Children's Theater Company is part of a vibrant performing arts scene in the Twin Cities, considered one of the most active in the USA.  

Check out the giant Cathedral of St. Paul, Minnesota in this fantastic 30 second drone video by AirVuz contributor iosefa03.  The church stands atop a hill just west of downtown St. Paul, the "sister city" to Minneapolis.  Dedicated to the city's namesake St. Paul the Apostle, the church is distinguished in part by its copper-clad dome.  Along with the Basilica of Minneapolis, it is the co-Cathedral of the Archdiocese of Minneapolis and St. Paul.  Consecrated in 1958, it's one of the largest and well-known Catholic churches in the USA.  

Contributor and pilot gopherdrone created this aerial tour of St. Louis Park, Minnesota, an inner-ring western suburb of Minneapolis.  St. Louis Park served as home to some of the more famous living Minnesotans, such as Pulitzer-prize winning writer Tom Friedman, moviemakers Joel and Ethan Coen, and former Saturday Night Live writer and U.S. Senator Al Franken.  The video features a dozen different spots, including the newer-vintage Excelsior-Grand and West End mixed use developments.  

Minneapolis, Minnesota is notable for its large Scandinavian population, principally from Norway and Sweden.  Not surprisingly, the city is home to the American Swedish Institute, an entity devoted to Swedish-American culture.  Its original building is in the Turnblad Mansion south of downtown, which was built by a wealthy Swedish immigrant who donated it to start the museum in 1929.  Contributor dave drone created this drone video of the Institute, which added an additional building in 2012.

Opened in 1975 in an old mansion just west of Lake Bde Mka Ska (formerly Lake Calhoun) in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the Bakken Museum is the world's largest devoted to the field of medical electricity.  It's named after the late inventor Earl Bakken, who developed the first successful cardiac pacemaker.  He founded the company Medtronic and is considered the father of the burgeoning medical device industry in the Twin Cities.  Landof10000drones created this drone video of the Smithsonian-affiliated museum.

In 2015, the city of Minneapolis, Minnesota commissioned Brazilian artist Eduardo Kobra to create a mural of musical legend and Minnesota native Bob Dylan, who was one of the Big 3 musical acts of the 1960's along with the Beatles and the Rolling Stones.  The mural celebrating this cultural icon and Nobel Laureate, nearly 20 meters tall and 45 meters wide (60 ft. by 150 ft.), was painted in 2015 on the side of a downtown building.  It's  captured via drone in this video by top contributor Sky Candy Studios.

The city of Minneapolis has a wide array of cuisines, and many different styles and nationalities of food can be found along what is affectionately known as Eat Street. Technically comprised of several blocks of Nicollet Avenue just south of downtown Minneapolis, Eat Street has food ranging from German to Thai to Vietnamese to Jamaican to Mexican, and so much more. This aerial view of Eat Street by contributor and drone pilot landof10000drones gives an idea of the scope of this restaurant-laden corridor.

Each June Minneapolis, Minnesota celebrates Gay Pride. What began as a 50-person protest march down Nicollet Mall in downtown Minneapolis in the early 1970's has grown to a weekend-long celebration capped off with a parade attended by over 300,000 people.  The popularity of the festival is testament to the fact that the Twin Cities is home to one of the (proportionately) largest gay population in the United States.  This video is the product of a collaboration between the event organizer and AirVūz in connection with the 2018 event.

AirVuz Official was proud together to put together this video of the history of AirVuz hometown Minneapolis, Minnesota, told largely through drone footage.  The video traces the city's roots as a grain milling center on the Mississippi River to its emergence in the 20th century as one of the leading Midwestern Cities.  The last part of the video shows, largely with aerial footage, how the city has been transformed in the early part of the 21st century with billions of dollars of investment in massive new sports venues.  

Minnesota is the heart of hockey country, and when the Minnesota North Stars National Hockey League team departed for Dallas in the early 1990's, it was a huge blow to Minnesota's pride.  Fortunately, the pro hockey drought lasted less than a decade; by 2000, the Minnesota Wild expansion team was in action at the new Xcel Energy Center in downtown St. Paul.  AirVuz collaborated with the team to produce this drone video of the 20,500 seat arena in connection with the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs.  

The Twin Cities of Minneapolis/St. Paul are home to a plethora of major professional and collegiate sports teams.   Since the mid-2000's, the area has seen a number of massive new stadiums constructed to host these teams, including Target Field, US Bank Stadium, and TCF Stadium, as well as a full renovation of 1990's era Target Center.  AirVūz created this video reel to showcase the aerial videography work it has done with a number of the local teams and sports venues to show off these amazing sporting facilities.

AirVuz has been proud to be a media partner of the Minneapolis Zombie Pub Crawl, the first and largest of its kind, which draws tens of thousands each year to enjoy a variety of musical acts.  Held in mid-October in deference to the (sometimes early arriving) Minnesota winters, in 2018 the Minneapolis Zombie Pub Crawl decamped from downtown and returned to Northeast Minneapolis, the rapidly-redeveloping part of town from which it arose.  The Minneapolis ZPG holds a Guinness-certified record for the largest zombie pub crawl.  

Just for the heck of it, the AirVuz staff put together this video that shows what it would like bounding around Minneapolis, Minnesota on a superball.  The ball is vfx but the footage is very real, and it will take you around some of the highlights of this cosmopolitan Midwestern city: the Guthrie Theater, the Stone Arch and Hennepin Avenue Bridges, First Avenue (the metaphorical home of Prince), Target Field and Center (home of the Minnesota Twins and Timberwolves, respectively), and much more.  

On this episode of Droning America, host Angie Avestruz teams up with local sportscaster Eric Perkins in the Midwestern city of Minneapolis, Minnesota.  Together they give us aerial views and commentary on some of the most well known sites in this city on the Mississippi River, which is also the hometown of AirVuz.  The show includes shots of sports venues Target Field, Target Center, and US Bank Stadium (home of Super Bowl LII); the Stone Arch Bridge; the Guthrie Theater; the Uptown area; and more.  

St. Paul, Minnesota lies east of Minneapolis, just a few km/mi downstream on the Mississippi River.  Older than Minneapolis, Minnesota's capital city was surpassed in population by the newer city late in the 19th century.  In this episode of Droning America, host Angie Avestruz meets up with AirVūz contributor Mike Welsh from Sky Candy Studios to give you a tour of this historic city. Using a DJI Inspire drone, they explore Grand Avenue, Lowertown, Rice Park, Xcel Energy Center, and other spots in this Midwestern river city.