If you’re staying at Oakland’s on 9th for a season near the University of Minnesota — a rotation at HCMC, a semester visiting a student, a research stint at the U — Dinkytown is worth the trip even though it isn’t next door. It’s the campus neighborhood’s old commercial strip: diner breakfasts, a used bookstore that’s been there for decades, and a Friday-night energy that downtown doesn’t really have. Here’s how to actually get there without a car.
Getting From Downtown to Dinkytown Without Driving
The METRO Green Line is the easiest way there. Board downtown — Nicollet Mall and Government Plaza stations are both an easy walk from Oakland’s on 9th — and ride east through West Bank station to East Bank station, which sits on Washington Avenue right on the University’s East Bank campus. Dinkytown’s main strip, centered on 4th Street SE and 14th Avenue, is a walk north from there through campus, or a short hop on one of the campus connector buses if the Minnesota weather isn’t cooperating. Either way, it’s a one-transfer-free ride with no parking to find and no meter to feed.
Why Make the Trip
Dinkytown has survived as a genuinely old-school college neighborhood — narrow storefronts, family-run restaurants, a bar or two that’s been serving students since before most of them were born. It’s a different pace than downtown’s skyway-and-high-rise version of Minneapolis, and if you’re visiting a student, meeting a family member on campus, or just want an evening that doesn’t feel like a business trip, it’s an easy half-day out. The University of Minnesota’s own visitor guide is a good starting point for what’s happening on campus during your stay, and Gopher Athletics is worth checking if a home game lines up with your dates — East Bank station also serves Huntington Bank Stadium.
Coming Back to a Furnished Studio, Not a Hotel Room
The appeal of Oakland’s on 9th for anyone spending real time near the University — a travel nurse on a 13-week HCMC contract, a visiting researcher, a family in town for the semester — is that you come back downtown to a full kitchen and your own laundry instead of a hotel room you’re living out of a suitcase in. No lease, no utility setup, and a stay that can run a night, a week, or the whole term.
Downtown itself still has everything day to day — groceries, the skyway system a block away, and quick access to HCMC — so Dinkytown stays what it should be: a good change of scenery, not a second home base. Check availability for your dates, or call (612) 314-5124 to talk through a longer stay.
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