Coastal of us generally discuss with Iowa as a flyover state. To reside in or have visited Iowa is to know all of the thrilling, stunning, and enjoyable locations throughout the Hawkeye State. What’s extra is that most of the actions and must-visit locations in Iowa are free. From caves and gardens to museums and historic websites, we record a few of our favourite free Iowa must-dos under. 

Maquoketa Caves State Park

9688 Caves Rd., Maquoketa, IA
Open 4 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. every day

Maquoketa Caves State Park stays a favourite park of Iowa residents and guests alike. The 370-acre park contains about 6 miles of trails and 13 caves to discover, together with the massive Dancehall Cave. The 1,100-foot cave is alleged to have been a music and dance venue some 150 years in the past. For extra details about the limestone formations within the park, you may as well go to their interpretive heart. 

Excessive Trestle Path Bridge

2335 QF Lane, Madrid, IA
Bridge lights are on from sundown to midnight

Working 25 miles by way of 5 Iowa cities and 4 counties, the Trestle Path is a favourite amongst hikers, walkers, and runners alike. The actual gem, nonetheless, is the 13-story Excessive Trestle Path Bridge throughout the Des Moines River in Madrid. It’s particularly enjoyable to stroll the pedestrian bridge at evening when the bridge shines blue making little ones scream in delight and offering the proper backdrop for a romantic stroll. 

Sanford Museum & Planetarium

117 E Willow St, Cherokee, IA
Open Mon. by way of Fri. 9 a.m. to five p.m., Sat. and Solar. 12 p.m. to five p.m.

The Sanford Museum serves as a one-stop store for all sorts of reveals, and it’s house to Iowa’s first planetarium. After you absorb a planetarium present, you possibly can discover archaeology, artwork, astronomy, geology, historical past, pure historical past, and paleontology reveals. Most of the museum reveals deal with Northwest Iowa and the Indigenous individuals who lived there, however additionally, you will discover Iowa native and astronaut Peggy Whitson’s spacesuit and different NASA-related objects on show.

College of Iowa Museum of Pure Historical past

Macbride Corridor, 17 N Clinton St, Iowa Metropolis, IA
Open Wed. by way of Sat. from 10 a.m. to five p.m. 

Photograph courtesy of College of Iowa Museum of Pure Historical past

Because the second oldest museum west of the Mississippi River, the College of Iowa Museum of Pure Historical past has a few of the largest collections within the nation. Guests can discover varied everlasting exhibitions—together with Range of Life reveals and Mammal Corridor—that home a wide range of specimens from aardvarks to zebras.

Dubuque Arboretum & Botanical Gardens

3800 Arboretum Dr., Dubuque, IA
Open every day from 7 a.m. to nightfall

The Dubuque Arboretum & Botanical Gardens has been rising because it opened in 1980. At present, you could find 60 kinds of gardens unfold over 56 acres. Guests can stroll, run, and bike the paths on the grounds to discover the kids’s gardens, the Japanese backyard, the prairie backyard, the rose backyard, and far more. 

State Historic Museum of Iowa

600 E Locust St, Des Moines, IA
Open Tues. by way of Fri. from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Positioned a number of brief blocks from the state capitol, the State Historic Museum of Iowa highlights Iowa’s wealthy heritage by way of varied exhibitions and collections. You may discover details about Iowa earlier than it turned a state, the realm’s pure assets, the position Iowans performed within the Civil Battle, Iowa’s legacy in motion pictures and tv (hey, Ashton Kutcher!), and far more. 

Des Moines Artwork Middle

4700 Grand Ave, Des Moines, IA
Open Tues. and Wed. 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Thurs. and Fri. 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Sat. and Solar. 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The Des Moines Artwork Middle is house to an enormous assortment of artwork, starting from the nineteenth century to the current, a lot of it falling underneath the umbrella of up to date artwork. As you stroll by way of the galleries, you can see pictures, work, and sculptures. The museum has a number of main works from artists comparable to Edward Hopper, Georgia O’Keeffe, and Francis Bacon. 

Union Pacific Railroad Museum

200 Pearl St, Council Bluffs, IA
Open Thurs. by way of Sat. 10 a.m. to six p.m.

You could find the Union Pacific Railroad Museum tucked away within the historic Carnegie Constructing in Council Bluffs. The 2-level museum has 4 predominant everlasting reveals. You could find the Lincoln Assortment and the Constructing America exhibit, the place you study concerning the historical past of the transcontinental railroad, on the primary degree. America Travels by Rail, on the second degree, showcases the golden age of American passenger journey. You may also interact with our practice simulator within the Engaged on the Railroad exhibit. 

Herbert Hoover Nationwide Historic Website

110 Parkside Dr, West Department, IA
Open every day from 9 a.m. to five p.m. 

The Herbert Hoover Nationwide Historic Website is a group of buildings, together with a customer heart, that showcase the early years of our thirty first president. Hoover was born in West Department in 1874, the place he and his spouse at the moment are buried. The positioning can also be house to the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum. You may go to the cottage the place he was born, the blacksmith store the place Hoover’s father labored, and the schoolhouse. If climate permits, go for a leisurely stroll on the close by Hoover Nature Path. 

by Jessica Lee
10/14/22

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