4 Best Sights in Duluth, Minnesota

America's only all-freshwater aquarium, on the harbor at the foot of Fifth Avenue West, has been open since 2000. In addition to fish native to Lakes Superior and Erie, it houses—all under one roof—a natural-history center, science center, and cultural exhibits covering regional topics like Great Lakes shipwrecks, management of water systems in national forests, and the invasion of zebra mussels. Classroom space hosts educational programming for children and adults, and typically sells out during the summer months. There's also a café and a gift shop.

Operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, this center is at the foot of the aerial lift bridge in historic Canal Park. Among the highlights is the Fresnel lens, installed in 1901 to light the south pier of the Duluth Ship Canal across the street. It was refurbished 100 years later. Although the center is self-guided, dialing 218/213–9069 from a cell phone provides a recording of historical facts about the tug Bayfield, Duluth Ship Canal, the aerial lift bridge, local lighthouses, and the shoreline anchor display.

Regular events at this planetarium include Saturday films in the full-dome theater, aired episodes of Carl Sagan's Cosmos on Wednesday evenings, and live shows presented by staff or members of the Arrowhead Astronomical Society. These shows cover niche topics like NASA projects or "astronomy lessons" from Star Wars movies. Dark-sky shows are a highlight as they simulate the sky conditions that early Native Americans would once have seen.

On the University of Minnesota Duluth campus, this museum has 8,000 works of art in its collection. Established in the middle of last century by Alice Tweed, and born out of the collection she'd amassed with her husband, the museum's extensive holdings of 19th and early-20th century European and North American art include a unique collection of paintings and illustrations of Canadian Mounted Police. Examples of the French Barbizon School and American landscapes influenced by the impressionists are also on display.