Discover Iowa

Tour Iowa
A monthly travel itinerary that highlights new, classic and just plain different Iowa destinations

On a visit to the Villages of Van Buren you won’t find a stop light, but you may see Amish buggies tied up at the hitching posts.  You’ll also find plenty of specialty shops, artisans, outdoor adventures and unique dining.  Take a step back in time for a relaxing and memorable experience.

For assistance in booking a tour to the Villages of Van Buren, contact Stacey Reese at 800.868.7822 or info@villagesofvanburen.com.
This itinerary features the following:
• Dutchman’s Store
• Lunch at an Amish Home
• Lacey Keosauqua State Park
• In dian Artifact Museum
• Greef General Store
• Iron and Lace
• Bonaparte Pottery
• Addie Mae’s Fudge Shop
• Amish bakery – Sunrise Bakery
• Amish Produce Stand
• Amish Greenhouse – Lengacher’s Greenhouse
This is just a sampling of activities in Iowa.   To learn more about Iowa’s opportunities, contact Colleen Murphy at 515.725.3089 or colleen.murphy@iowa.gov.
Make your first stop the Dutchman’s Store in Cantril.  The Dutchman’s Store is filled with bulk food items and dried goods.  It’s also known as “a quilter’s paradise” with thousands of bolts of quilting material and supplies.

Dutchman’s Store
103 Division Street, Cantril
319.397.2322
Enjoy a unique lunch at theAmish home of Clemence and Amanda Bontrager.  Everything is home-raised and home-cooked.  You’ll enjoy a full meal with homemade bread, butter and jam.  Save room for dessert because they serve everyone two – strawberry shortcake and hickory nut pie!

Villages of Van Buren
902 4th Street, Keosauqua
800.868.7822
Before your next stop, take the scenic route with a drive through Lacey Keosauqua State Park.  Bordering the great horseshoe bend in the Des Moines River, the rolling hillsides of this 1,653-acre park are home to an abundance of wildlife, wildflowers and other natural features.

After departing the park, visit the Indian Artifact Museum.  This museum features more than 4,000 artifacts found in southeast Iowa by collector Tony Sanders and they are displayed against native Iowa wood patterns.

Villages of Van Buren
902 4th Street, Ke osauqua
800.868.7822
Next visit the village of Benton sport. Most of the buildings are original structures from the 1800s that are now home to a variety of specialty shops.  Be sure to visit the Historic Greef General Store to see a broad spectrum of handmade gifts from weaving to woodcarving and antiques.  In Iron and Lace a skilled blacksmith and potter provide demonstrations and sell their work.  Enjoy the scenery with a stroll across an old iron pedestrian bridge spanning the Des Moines River, or wander a historic rose garden.

Greef General Store
21964 Hawk Drive, Bentonsport
319.592.3579

Iron and Lace
Corner of Hawk Drive and Walnut Street, Bentonsport
319.592.3222
Next enjoy a guided tour of Bonaparte Pottery.  Bonaparte Pottery, originally established in 1865, has been recognized as a National Historic Archeological Site.  It produced a variety of stoneware until 1896, but digging continues and several original pieces and molds have been unearthed.  Purchase a piece of pottery made from an original mold.

Bonaparte Pottery
411 1st Street, Bonaparte
319.592.3620
Enjoy a late afternoon stop in Bonaparte’s National Historic Riverfront District.  You can indulge at Addie Mae’s Fudge Shop or try a variety of delicious baked goods at Sunrise Bakery, a new Amish bakery.

Addie Mae’s Fudge Shop
707 1St Street, Bonaparte
319.592.3139

Sunrise Bakery
31154 210th Street, Bonaparte

Before heading for home, travel County Road J-40 just west of Keosauqua and pick up some produce from an Amish produce stand, or stop at Lengacher’s Greenhouse, an Amish garden store loaded with flowers, plants, baskets and more.

Lengacher’s Greenhouse
22583 Heather Avenue, Keosauqua

Tour Iowa

A monthly travel itinerary that highlights new, classic and just plain different Iowa destinations

When we saw this group tour itinerary from the Manning Hausbarn-Heritage Park, we knew we had to share it with you.  West central Iowa has been the home to unique sites revolving around politics, Prohibition, preservation and, well, poop.  For the politics, you can learn about the 1959 visit from a Soviet leader.  For Prohibition, visit a distillery that uses a recipe that was used to make illegal rye whiskey during the 1920s..  Learn about the preservation of the past at the German Hausbarn in Manning. And tour a state-of-the-art manure manufacturing site located in the heart of Western Iowa.  Each location has an unusual story to tell, making a memorable Iowa tour.     &nbs p;

For assistance in booking this itinerary, contact Freda Dammann from the Manning Hausbarn – Heritage Park at 712.655.3131 or heritag@mmctsu.com.

This itinerary features:

• Whiterock Conservancy
• Templeton Rye Distillery
• Santa Maria Winery and Vineyard
• German Hausbarn
• Puck Custom Enterprises

This is just a sampling of activities in Iowa.   To learn more about Iowa’s opportunities, contact Colleen Murphy at 515.725.3089 or colleen.murphy@iowa.gov.

Spend your morning at Whiterock Conservancy in Coon Rapids.  The Whiterock Conservancy was once known as the Garst Farm, which hosted a 1959 visit from Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev, and your group can listen to a talk about the Khrushchev v isit and the relationship between an Iowa farm family and the Soviet l eader.  Now the beautiful land surrounding the farm is preserved and open for visitors to enjoy.  They offer many activities like nature tours, environmental programs, farm/seed/plant tours, hayrack rides, bird watching, fishing and more.

Lunch Suggestion:  Following your tour, enjoy a delicious lunch at the Whiterock Conservancy with side dishes that have been on the Des Moines Register’s list of “100 Iowa Foods to Eat Before you Die”.

Whiterock Conservancy
1390 Highway 141, Coon Rapids
712.684.2964
www.whiterockconservancy.org

After lunch, a short trip to Templeton will take you back in time to the 1920s, when Prohibition outlawed the manufacture and sale of alcoholic beverages.  Many enterprising residents of this small town chose to become outlaws by producing the much sought-after whiskey known as Templeton Rye.  The infa mous whiskey is even said to have been Al Capone’s whiskey of choice and was distributed to speakeasies in Chicago, New York and San Francisco.

Today visitors can learn more about “the good stuff” at the Templeton Rye Distillery.  The famous whiskey is produced from the original Prohibition-era recipe and aged in charred new oak barrels.  Guests can see the fermentation, distillation and bottling process.  Tours also include a walk through the production area, barrel warehouse, bottling line and tasting room.  Guests may have the opportunity to sit with the Templeton Rye team and help label a few bottles.

Templeton Rye Distillery
209 E. 3rd Street, Templeton
712.669.8793
www.templetonrye.com

Travel to Carroll and enjoy a little time shopping before checking in at an area hotel.  Explore gift sho ps and greenhouses like Enchanted Gardens, home décor shops lik e Room Service or vintage shops like Little Brown Store.

Carroll Chamber of Commerce
407 West 5th St., Carroll
712.792.4383
www.carrolliowa.com

Enjoy dinner at Santa Maria Vineyard and Winery.  The winery is located on the historic Lincoln Highway in a vintage building that once housed a car dealership and has been transformed into a winery and restaurant.  This eatery was ranked as one of the top 10 places to eat in the Midwest by Midwest Living Magazine.  Guests can pair a wood-fired pizza or delectable pastas with one of more than 10 award-winning wines.

Santa Maria Vineyard and Winery
218 West 6th Street, Carroll
712.775.2013
www.santamariawinery.com

Overnight in Carroll.

Travel to nearby Manning to see the preserved German Hausbarn.  Bui lt in 1660 in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, and reconstructed in Manning in 1999, the museum-quality architecture of the thatched-roof barn intrigues visitors with its depiction of an era when farm animals and families shared living quarters.  Visitors will also enjoy a 1917 farmstead on the National Register of Historic Places, and a century-old church.  Before taking time to tour the community’s Bavarian-themed storefronts and brick Main Street, groups can enjoy a special German themed lunch.

Manning Hausbarn – Heritage Park
12196 311th Street, Manning
712.655.3131
www.germanhausbarn.com

Next travel south to Puck Custom Enterprises, a master manure haulers’ operation.  From its start as a small company servicing hog operations, it has grown into an innovative, creative, and successful business known nationally and internationally. Have no fear!  There is no smell at this state-of-the-art manufacturing facility, and tours are available for prearranged groups.

Tour arrangements must be made through Manning Hausbarn-Heritage Park.

Depart for home.

Tour Iowa
A monthly travel itinerary that highlights new, classic and just plain different Iowa destinations  

Travel the back roads through the heart of Iowa for a tour that involves romantic bridges, movie stars and much more.  Your group will love the beautiful rolling hills and unique history of Madison County.

This itinerary features:
• Bridges of Madison County
• John Wayne Birthplace
• Howell’s Greenhouse and Floral
Keep reading for a complete itinerary, but remember this is just a sampling of activities in Iowa.   To learn more or receive assistance in booking this itinerary for your group, contact Colleen Murphy at 515.725.3089 or colleen.murphy@iowa.gov.

Begin your day traveling the countryside and stopping at the six bridges of Madison County.  Five of the six bridges are on the National Register of Historic Places.  Your group will travel with an expert step on guide who will share the stories behind the bridges’ construction,  history and preservation.

Madison County Chamber of Commerce
73 Jefferson St.  Winterset
800.298.6119
www.madisoncounty.com

After the bridge tour, see the birthplace of American icon, Marion Robert Morrison.  If the name doesn’t ring a bell you may know him by his stage name, John Wayne.  Visitors can tour the humble four room home where the Duke was born in 1907.  The home features the largest public collection of John Wayne memorabilia available.  Groups will also enjoy the beautiful garden and John Wayne gift shop.

Birthplace of John Wayne
216 S. Second Street, Winterset
877.462.1044

www.johnwaynebirthplace.org

Enjoy lunch at the Northside Café.  Operating since 1928 this café is located in the main square of Winterset and offers great ambiance along with home style cooking and daily specials.  One of the scenes from the “Bridges of Madison County” movie was filmed inside this charming café.

Northside Café
61 Jefferson Street, Winterset
515.462.1523

After lunch relax and take in the beautiful scenery of Howell’s Greenhouse and Floral.  Groups can take a tour of gardens and enjoy a wagon ride or tour the flower drying process.  Their delightful gift shop is housed in a 1910 barn.

Howell’s Greenhouse and Floral
3145 Howell Court, Cumming
800.210.1415
www.howellfloral.com

Enjoy one of Madison County’s three wineries for a tour and tasting.  Each winery offers
a beautiful setting and handcrafted wines.  The Madison County Winery is also home to one of Iowa’s newest breweries, The Twisted Vine.

Covered Bridges Winery
1899 Kiowa Court, Winterset
515.729.9463
www.coveredbridgeswinery.com

Madison County Winery and Twisted Vine Brewery
3021 St. Charles Road, St. Charles
641.396.2220
www.madisoncountywinery.com

Two Saints Winery
15010 20th Avenue, St. Charles
641.396.2102
www.twosaintswinery.com