Sun Country is starting seasonal Minneapolis service to my home airport of Monterey, CA on August 8th and I am planning to book the inaugural. Via the Empire Builder, this would be a perfect way to tick off N Dakota on my 'states visited' list. Flights are scheduled Thursdays and Sundays, so if I do this, I'd have one week to see St Paul and do the N Dakota side trip, with first and last nights at a MSP airport hotel.

Fargo and Grand Forks are the larger cities with more going on culturally and hotel options-wise. I don't mind one horse towns at all, but the hotels are quite far from the stations, way out at the highways. Though, the further west I go, the easier the return times - ie, easier to board at midnight than 3 am.

I don't drive anymore, so renting a car is not an option.

WWYD?