To close our our 89 Days of Winter series, here are ten cozy ways to curl up - literally or metaphorically - before the weather warms, evaporating the hygge.

A sauna in your own backyard

With Covid still upon us, you may not be ready to get cozy with a bunch of people outside your pod. The pandemic helped heat up - so to speak - a competitive local market for mobile sauna rentals. Stokeyard, Roam, Stonegrove, and Little Ember are among the companies that will deliver a sauna to your backyard, where you can stoke it up and sweat it out.

A restaurant igloo

Buckminster Fuller might not appreciate the faux-geodesic quality of the outdoor domes popping up at restaurants, breweries, and distilleries across the Twin Cities, but they’re totally a thing now, providing a new way to get up close and personal with the great outdoors while also enjoying the comforts of dining out - in a safer situation. Little Blue Backpack has a great roundup to get you started.

Your local library

Mask up and make your way to one of Minnesota’s superb public libraries, many of which have private study rooms available if you want to get out of the house without being completely out in the world.

A greenhouse

It’s been long enough since Christmas now that we’ve all had time to get over that devastating scene from Frosty the Snowman. Local spots to green up under glass include the iconic Marjorie McNeely Conservatory (a winter flower show is on display through March 20), the Minnesota Zoo’s Tropics Trail, and Bachman’s Lyndale Garden Center.

A theater

Having covered the Twin Cities theater scene for years, my informed opinion is that the coziest local space to see a play is the Jungle Theater: it feels like you’ve climbed into a secret nook in the elegant attic of your grandparents’ mansion. Redwood, a highly-anticipated production delayed two years by the pandemic, is onstage now and earning rave reviews. Masks and vax required, for safety’s sake.

A movie theater

To state it plainly, movie theaters are in crisis. If you love seeing movies in a cinematic setting and you’re ready to share some space, this is a good time to buy a ticket. Heck, you can have a whole multiplex screen to yourself for way less money than you might expect. In the Twin Cities proper, urban theaters including the Heights (which should be on your bucket list regardless), the Trylon, the Grandview, the Highland, the Parkway, and the Riverview offer distinctive experiences with a range of titles - and carry a cozy factor you can’t get with IMAX.

A castle

No one does winter like the Swedes - that’s not a judgment or a knock against Norwegians, I’m just saying - and the American Swedish Institute gives you the chance to enjoy princely surroundings as you gaze outward at the majesty of Minnesota winter. My favorite space is the sunroom overlooking the courtyard; you’re sure to find your own. The high-ceilinged FIKA cafe in the museum’s Nelson Cultural Center isn’t quite as snug, but you are still indoors - and they have aquavit.

A yurt

The Oxford English Dictionary defines a yurt, a word derived from Russian, as “a circular skin- or felt-covered tent with collapsible frame, used by the nomadic peoples of Siberia and central Asia. Also in extended use.” That use extends all the way to our own great Gopher State, where the DNR maintains seven such structures that you and yurts can rent year-round.

The “details” section on their website sets you up for a distinctive Siberian-style adventure. Heat? “All yurts have a woodstove.” Electricity? “None of the yurts have electricity.” Powder room? “Yurts do not have indoor plumbing. They are located near year-round primitive toilets.” Look at it this way: you’re really be ready to warm your buns by that crackling fire.

Hop in a hot tub

Here’s the thing with saunas: they’re dry. Hot tubs? Wet N Wild. As long as you meet some basic requirements (“the hot tub needs to be placed on fairly level ground”), you can rent a hot tub to stay nice and toasty while enjoying the blustery late-winter weather. If you’re not seeking an intimate experience, the marvelously named Captain Party Time has “the largest hot tub in Minnesota,” which sounds a lot more fun than the largest ball of twine. If you’d rather go to the hot tub than vice versa, the Hewing Hotel’s rooftop spa pool is open at night to 21+ registered guests.

Go see some live music

Some of the Twin Cities’ coziest live music venues include the Acadia Cafe (capacity 75), the Bryant-Lake Bowl (82), the Aster Cafe (120), and Mortimer’s (150). Some might even call the 7th St Entry cozy, despite its relatively sprawling capacity of 250 souls. Of course, if you’d prefer to avoid a cozy crowd and stay out of the snow, we humbly suggest turning on the radio and letting our DJs set the mood for a warm winter’s night.

Photo by David Poe (CC BY-ND 2.0)

This feature is part of The Current’s 89 Days of Winter series, helping you enjoy the best of the season with weekly guides to events, entertainment, and recreation in the Twin Cities.