It is ten miles (16 km) south of Lake Carlos State Park.

The form of the name alludes to Alexandria, Egypt, a center of learning and civilization.

The city is located along a chain of lakes, which makes it a popular resort destination for water and land activities.

Water sporting activities include motorboats, wake surfing, sailing, paddleboarding.

[17][18] Local tourism events include: The city has a museum housing the Kensington Runestone.

Outside the museum stands Big Ole, a 25-foot-tall statue of a Viking built for the 1965 World's Fair in New York City.

County Road 82 SE connects Alexandria to Nelson, Osakis and western Minnesota.

Minnesota State Highway 29 connects Alexandria to Glenwood and Parkers Prairie.

Highway 52 passes through the south end of Alexandria, which allows access to Minneapolis-St. Paul and Fargo-Moorhead.

During KCCO and KSAX's time as semi-satellites, they broadcast local news, weather, and sports through ten-minute cut-in segments during their parent station's newscast.

In June 2012, cost-cutting measures at KSAX resulted in the layoff of all but two employees and the ending of local cut-in broadcasts by any Alexandria television station.

[25] The Alexandria area is also served by Selective TV, Inc., a non-profit, viewer-supported organization which transmits several cable channels free-to-air over standard UHF television frequencies, viewable in any area home without subscription.

Selective TV operates under low power television rules of the FCC and as such was not subject to the analog to digital conversion in 2009.

The city's unofficial mascot "Big Ole" is featured on the cover of the debut album of the National Beekeepers Society.

The city hosts the annual Vikingland Band Festival parade marching championship.

In the 2000s, Justine Harman, an employee of Glamour and the host of the Broken Harts podcast said, "It was a bit more progressive than rural South Dakota, but it wasn't exactly the most tolerant of places, either" in regard to LGBT people.

From 2006 to 2012, the organization had a Tier II team in the North American Hockey League.

Viking Speedway hosts weekly Saturday night dirt track racing from April–September and also periodic special, weekend events throughout the year.

One night per summer, a Northwoods League baseball game is held at Knute Nelson Memorial Park.