Family-Friendly Home near Mall of America & Minneapolis
House • Eden Prairie MN United States
7 Guests
4 Bedrooms
5 Beds
2.5 Bathrooms
3 Car spaces
Primary home
Exchange types accepted
Simultaneous
Non-Simultaneous
Non-Reciprocal
Statistics
Listed November 2019
Views 2579
General Overview
Our home is located in Eden Prairie, a western suburb about 30 minutes (20mi/30km) from downtown Minneapolis. Eden Prairie has frequently been ranked as one of the top US cities to live in, including in 2010 being Money Magazine's #1 Best Place to Live. Eden Prairie has wonderful nature parks, lakes (swimming and boating), playgrounds, shopping, and easy access to the many entertainment and leisure activities that the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St Paul have. What we enjoy most about living in Eden Prairie is knowing that we live in a safe community that offers easy access to nature, trails, and parks for us to enjoy without living too far from Minneapolis.
We live in a unique place on our block as there is no house in front of us or behind us, which means that since the house faces east, you see the morning sunrise out the front windows and the sunset out the back windows. We can have amazing, colorful skies each day. It's our favorite feature of the home.
The Space
On the main floor, we have a family room, eat-in kitchen (no formal dining room), an office, laundry room, kids playroom and 1/2 bath. Upstairs, we have a master bedroom and 3 kids bedrooms. The master bedroom has a queen size bed, a walk-in closet, and a bathroom with both a shower and a soaking tub. There is also an additional full bathroom with a tub/shower combo for the other bedrooms. Bedroom #2 has a twin antique bed with a trundle bed underneath (best for children due to a low profile mattress on the trundle). Bedroom #3 has a full sized bed with a twin mattress underneath that can be used on the floor of any of the bedrooms. Bedroom #4 has a twin sized bed.
Outside, we live on a 1/2 acre property with neighbors on both sides who are trustworthy, kind, and helpful. We have a large vegetable garden and fruit trees (not yet producing fruit), depending on when you are here may have organic vegetables and herbs for you to enjoy. On the patio, we have a table with seating for six, 4 Adirondack chairs for relaxing, an in-ground fire pit (with wood on the side of the house), a Weber gas grill, and toys for kids. There may also be a swingset in the backyard, depending on when you come. There is lots of room for kids who love to run around or play games.
Guest Access
Our home is 2 floors with the living areas on the main floor and the bedrooms on the 2nd floor. The basement is unfinished and is used for storage.
Notes
The Minneapolis/St Paul metro has a ton to offer travelers. There are art/science/history museums, a large number of theaters, professional sports teams, music venues, a renowned park and lake system, and restaurants for any taste. We have the largest mall in the US, the Mall of America, where you can shop, eat, and play for days. In the summer, you can spend your days biking, hiking, and at the lakes. During the winter, you can cross country and downhill ski as well as ice skate on groomed lakes and at parks. Our summer days are long and full of sunshine. Our fall is full of color especially along the rivers such as the Mississippi or St Croix. Our winters are typically blanketed with lots of snow for magical views and winter sports. Our spring is like the whole city comes alive with activity and color. The tulips and crabapple trees during springtime are stunning at the nearby MN Landscape Arboretum.
After staying in the Minneapolis area, we highly recommend you travel about 5 hours north to the "North Shore" of Lake Superior where you will see unimaginable beauty. You will want at least 3 days there to hike and explore the natural beauty of the waterfalls, cliffs, forests, and lakes. In addition, Minnesota is known as the Land of 10,000 Lakes. Travel anywhere and you will see a lake within just a few minutes. However, to experience the MN lake life, head to the Brainerd Lakes area or the Boundary Waters Canoe Area. You will want at least 3 days in each of these locations as well. You can also see the start of the Mississippi River at Lake Itasca State Park. Traveling to northern MN is where the state really shines! You must take time to visit our state parks and enjoy our lakes, rivers, prairies, and forests.
Features
Washer
Dishwasher
Clothes dryer
Oven
Microwave
Coffee machine
Fridge
Iron
Hair dryer
Heating
Air conditioning
TV
WiFi
High Speed Internet
Bathtub
First aid kit
Wheelchair accessible
Smoke alarms
Fire extinguisher
Bed sheets
Towels
Workspace
Fireplace
Home cinema
Toys
Gym
Sauna
BBQ
Pool
Hot tub
Balcony
Garden / yard
Deck / patio / courtyard / terrace
Covered porch / verandah
Kosher home
Meat-free kitchen
Gated community
EV Home Charger
Bikes
Camping gear
Kayak
Tennis court
Standup paddleboard
Travel Styles
Long term
Weekend
Family
Relaxing
Water
House Rules
Suitable for infants under 2
Suitable for children ages 2-12
Pets not allowed
No smoking
Allergens
Cat free
Dog free
Smoke free
Fragrance free
Dates of Availability
Click on availability periods to see exchange types and descriptions.
Neighbourhood
Our neighborhood is filled with mostly 2 income families with children. All the homes are single family homes of a similar style and size to ours. Within walking distance, there is the Homeward Hills Park where there is a large playground, tennis courts, a basketball court, sand volleyball courts, and in the winter, a flooded ice rink. Also within walking distance are paved sidewalks for walking, running, and biking. There is also a hidden gem of a hiking trail that will take you back and forth on bridges over a swift creek that runs through the woods. It's one of our favorite spots to walk in.
Getting Around
To access our home and most activities, you will need your car. There is a Park-and-Ride a few miles away where you can park your car for free and take the SW Transit bus to downtown Minneapolis (and a few other locations) primarily on weekdays during rush hour.
This member has not yet received any home feedback.
Hosting Bethany, Tony and their kids at our home was absolutely perfect. This was our first time hosting and I cannot imagine a better experience. Bethany and Tony were very communicative so that we knew everything was going smoothly. They took wonderful care of our two cats, so that I don’t think they even noticed we were gone!
When we returned, they had gone above and beyond! Our place was cleaner than we’d left it and all the linens and towels had been washed and folded. They had left info about the many many things they had seen and done while staying at our place - I was astounded by their adventurism and energy! Their kids each left a note for my daughter, telling her their favorite of her toys to play with. She loved this so much. They also left her a lego set as a gift - so so kind and thoughtful! They left us some home grown squashes, which was perfect for us as I love to cook!
We really just had such an amazing experience hosting and look forward to keeping in touch with them. I can only hope all our exchanges will go this perfectly!
Staying at Leah's home was absolutely wonderful. Before we came for our non-reciprocal exchange, she had great communication about her place and taking care of her cats. We communicated via a video chat as well as by emailing and texting. She was very responsive and answered all my questions. She provided us with a very detailed document of everything we needed to know to stay there. Our family found her home to be perfect as it was clean, well-appointed, and had everything we needed for cooking, working, playing (good selection of kids toys and games) and relaxing. Her cats were such a joy to us and were fun to care for. We also enjoyed the area of her home and found it easy to get around the city of Chicago from her home. She provided us with wonderful suggestions of what to see and do around her home, so that was really helpful.
Leah was very easy to work with and made us feel so comfortable and accepting into her home. She truly went above and beyond to welcome us to her home. We would definitely recommend exchanging with Leah and her family. We have nothing but wonderful things to say about Leah and her home.
We'd love to stay in your home in the city (Chicago, Boston, DC, etc) or your home near amazing nature (either western US or eastern US). We are also open to Latin America. Feel free to contact us about any swap if you are interested in the Minneapolis/St Paul area. We work and school remotely, so we can travel anytime!
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