Milwaukee is the largest city in Wisconsin and we needed to explore it before we could really claim to be a true Wisconsin resident. We’ve lived practically everywhere in the Midwest and we’ve chosen Wisconsin as our home. So to fully indoctrinate ourselves into our new home state, we took a weekend vacation to Brew City to explore Milwaukee. Keep reading for our full weekend in Milwaukee itinerary.
But first, we’ve all heard not-so-nice things about Milwaukee so we were hesitant to visit. You may have heard the same things. But we’ve also heard the same things about other cities (think Detroit, San Francisco, etc.) and have had amazing time in those cities. So being willing to try anything once, we planned a weekend trip to Milwaukee. We went with low expectations and left with high spirits. The city was so much better than we assumed – and so much better than it is portrayed. Give it a try!
When To Visit Milwaukee
First, one bad rep Milwaukee has is bad weather. And sure, if you visit November-March – it’s gonna be cold. However, Milwaukee actually makes a great cold weather destination as many of the activities on our Milwaukee itinerary are indoors. However, if you do want to spend more time outside the best months to visit are May-September.
We visited in April and it was a delightful destination for that time of year. For those of you familiar with Wisconsin, you know that April can bring snow storms, rain showers or 70 degree weather. Milwaukee was a great destination that had activities that you could do in all these different weather conditions – and we’ve put all of those activities in our Milwaukee itinerary below.
Getting There and Around
Milwaukee has a large airport with flights coming from around the country. Flights in to this airport can be pricy but you can also get great deals last minute. Being flexible with dates will help you to snag a good deal.
You’ll need a car for this Milwaukee itinerary. Milwaukee is actually a pretty sprawling city and this Milwaukee itinerary takes you to several different areas of the city.
You could do it on a bus but you’d waste a lot of time waiting for them and making transfers.
You could also complete this Milwaukee itinerary using ride share apps. Price out ride shares vs. car rentals + parking if you’re flying into town. Depending on the weekend and events planned in the area, the cheaper option does vary.
Milwaukee Itinerary
Day 1 – Public Market, Downtown and Art
Start your morning at the Milwaukee Public Market. This is a great place for a few late morning snacks. It’s also a great place to stock up on any Wisconsin snacks you want to bring home for later. There are plenty of local vendors with stalls here – and most of the stalls involve food, our favorite kinds of stalls.
Afterwards, wander the Historic Third Ward. This neighborhood is a fully revitalized Milwaukee neighborhood. Shops here are unique and charming and the architecture is historic. Additionally, one of Milwaukees nicknames is “Cream City”. Not because of the milk products on the menus but because of the unique light colored bricks that the city was built with. The Third Ward is a great place to see these beautiful brick buildings. Next, take a stroll along the nearby riverwalk to get great views of downtown Milwaukee.
Afterwards, spend the afternoon exploring the Milwaukee Art Museum. Surprisingly, this is one of the largest art museums in the USA. There is lots of modern art – we don’t get it – in addition to lots of recognizable masterpieces. The building itself is also a work of art worth a visit, even if you don’t go in.
Lastly, visit Lakefront Brewery for one of the best and funniest brewery tours in the USA. The tour guides here are famously hilarious. We spent all of the tour laughing out loud and just having an overall good time. Plus, we learned a lot.
Day 2 – Nature, History and Beer
First, start your morning with a visit to Mitchel Park Domes. And yes, you are not the only one laughing at their shape. These domes dot the Milwaukee skyline – did no one realize what they look like from afar? But inside the domes designed by what I can only assume is a teenage boy are three different microclimates with distinct plantings. First, there is a tropical dome, Second, there is a dessert dome. And third, there is a rotating designed dome. This last dome changes with the seasons and is generally meant to show off some landscape design instead of focus on a particular plant region.
Next, visit the Pabst Mansion for a very interesting tour of the Pabst family mansion. This mansion is in an area of town that was once dotted with mansions. Milwaukee was a very wealthy town due to all the lumber industries. Now, a majority of the mansions are private residences, destroyed or converted to other use public buildings. However, Pabst mansion is beautifully restored. And the guided tours are excellent and tailored to the group. The tour was supposed to last an hour but ours lasted an hour and a half with all of our questions.
Lastly, visit Miller Brewery for another brewery tour. This is the largest brewery in Milwaukee and will be different from any other breweries you tour, due to its size. We think this is one of the best breweries to tour in Milwaukee simply because it gives you a great idea of how beer is produces on a massive level. Some of our favorite parts of the tour were the massive packaging operation and the giant conveyor belts used to move beer from one building to another in the course of the brewing process.
Where To Stay In Milwaukee
We would recommend staying in the Historic Third Ward, Juneau Town or Westown. These areas are all easily walkable and have lots of restaurants and shopping nearby. These areas are considered the central business districts and have lots of hotels and rentals to stay in.
- Budget – Drury Plaza – great location with great staff
- Mid-Range – Homewood Suites – you know what you’re getting with this common hotel chain in a great location
- Luxury – Saint Kate – The Arts Hotel – This hotel is luxury done Milwaukee style. With rooms decorated in local art.
Where ever you stay, make sure it comes with free or affordable parking. While the hotels downtown are reasonable, the parking prices are not. It’s great if you can park at your hotel and explore the downtown area on foot without having to move about from one metered garage to another.
Want To Adjust The Itinerary
With More Time
We have heard great things about the Harley Davidson Museum from Milwaukee locals – even ones who aren’t interested in motorcycles. However, with our limited time and the expensive admission ticket, we didn’t go. But this would definitely be on the list if we visited again or had more time.
Milwaukee is aptly named brew city. This Milwaukee itinerary takes you to two very different but well renowned breweries. However a town that was once home to Miller, Schlitz, Pabst and Blatz has so many more breweries to explore. With more time in Milwaukee, you could explore plenty more local breweries – and even some wineries and distilleries.
With even more time, you could attend a pro spotting event. In winter, check out an NBA game and in the summer check out an MLB game.
Psst – we saw tons of bachelor parties exploring Milwaukee and we think this would be a great bachelor party trip. In addition to all the beer, there are several professional sports teams here and the Harley museum – if we’re being stereotypical.
With additional time, you could spend time soaking up the sun on a nearby Lake Michigan beach. Lake Michigan is just like a sea – except better – because there is no salt and no sharks!
Lastly, Frank Lloyd Wright has plenty of buildings in Wisconsin and there are three in Milwaukee. Wright designed three different small and affordable housing plans in Milwaukee, known as the Burnham Block. Tours are only available on Saturdays.
With Less Time
We’re a “save the best for last” kinda travel couple. So day 2, in the Milwaukee itinerary above is our recommendation if you’re just in town for the day. It gives a great taste of different types of things to do in Milwaukee and avoids the overly commercialized areas.
What To Budget
Milwaukee was a relatively inexpensive city vacation with lots of deal available. We cashed in a bunch of loyalty rewards and basically had a free vacation. However, if we had paid for everything, we would have spent $461 for two people to spend two days in Milwaukee.
- Accommodations – $240 for two nights in a downtown hotel
- If you’re flexible with dates and not visiting in the summertime, you can save a lot on hotel prices. Check out prices here.
- Food – $50/person for the weekend
- This is one of the cheapest food bills we’ve had on vacation, partially because we were constantly full of beer so we only really snacked and partially because you can find really inexpensive food in Milwaukee – think bar food.
- Activities – $101/adult
- Gas – $20/vehicle
- We drove all over Milwaukee on a half tank of gas and brought our own car.
What To Pack
Wear layers. I cannot stress this enough, especially to those coming from a more temperate area or coastal region. First, it is not uncommon for weather in Wisconsin to vary by 30-40 degrees Fahrenheit in a day. In addition to the unpredictable Wisconsin weather is the unpredictable lakeshore breeze. Close to the lake, you’ll generally experience cooler weather than inland. So layers, layers, layers!
Safety
Milwaukee felt like a relatively safe place, especially in the tourist areas. The thing that felt most dangerous to us were the potholes in the roads – good gracious I felt like we’d fall to the center of the earth on some roads.
However, it is a large city so be aware of petty crime and make sure not to leave valuables in your car. Additionally, be aware of events happening in the city. We went walking around on the evening of a concert and saw lots more crime happening in the large crowd than we did the following evening in the same area without the crowds present. Overall, we’d say exercise general caution like you would in any city.
We hope this has helped you to plan your own Milwaukee itinerary. We had a great weekend in Milwaukee and we think you will too. If you want additional information on planning a vacation to Wisconsin, check out all of our Wisconsin posts here.
