Northwest Iowa Tourism

In a 1930s style building is located an art gallery that has changing exhibitions. The gallery gift shop offers original artwork from mid-western artists. The facility offers arts type workshops and special events for children and adults. Space is also available for the presentation of various types of performances, poetry readings, and films. Because of a disastrous fire in 1931 that virtually destroyed the downtown, Spencer now can boast of the largest and most diverse collection of 1930s architecture in the Midwest of a downtown business district. 

Arnolds Park Amusement Park - Arnolds Park, Iowa

Today, HistoricArnoldsPark still features many timeless rides and attractions – the Queen II excursion boat, live concerts, special events, dining, shopping, water rentals, sandy beaches and the IowaGreat LakesMaritimeMuseum – all nestled on the shores of LakeOkoboji.

The wildest woody in the Midwest is located in ArnoldsParkAmusement Park. Built in 1927, the Legend roller coaster is actually the 13^th oldest wooden roller coaster in the U.S. Other classic park favorites include go-karts, bumper cars, the Tilt-a-Whirl, the Tipsy House and the Mirror Maze.

The park opens daily at 11:00 am. Closing times vary. Go to www.arnoldspark.com for a full listing of hours, pricing, a calendar of events and concerts plus other detailed information.

The hours for the park change so be sure to check for the day you want to be there.  Rates subject to change so be sure to check these too.

Credit Cards – American Express, Discover, Mastercard, Visa

Phone – (712) 332-2183 or (800) 599-6995  

 

There is a simple two-story white frame house overlooking a junction in Wall Lake, Iowa, that is “note-worthy” to those who like the tunes made famous by singer Andy Williams—it is his birthplace and childhood home.

Built in 1890 by his great-grandfather, it has been restored to reflect the late 1920s and 1930s when Andy’s family lived there. Andy’s father worked for the Chicago and Northwestern Railroad and was also the choir director at one of the local churches; his mother played piano at the church, too. 

This 138-acre park near Algona, Iowa, contrasts quite strongly with the gently rolling farmland in the nearby area for it has rugged hills heavily wooded with virgin timber. It is near the east fork of the Des Moines River. Call and his brother Asa were early settlers in the area. 

Algona was the site of a World War II prisoner of war camp that was constructed in 1943 and 1944 and was used until the war ended. The second group of prisoners came from Germany. One of them, Edward Kalb, came up with the idea of building a Nativity Scene. When completed by Kalb and five other prisoners, it contained more than sixty figures that are half life-size. 

This museum complex in Albert City has quite a collection of artifacts of what pioneer, late 1800s, and early 1900s life was like.

Here visitors can look at a depot, 1900s-era home, 1875 furnished schoolhouse, 1900s cars, tool shop, laundry facilities, and small grocery store. It has a room with military displays. 

This log cabin in Arnolds Park, originally built by Rowland Gardner in 1856, has been restored and contains furnishings that were typical of pioneer life in Iowa.

Most of the Gardner family and many of their neighbors were killed in 1857 by members of the Dakota Sioux Indian tribe during what has come to be known as the Spirit Lake Massacre. 

The Iowa Great Lakes - Dickinson County, Iowa

The three principal lakes of the group are Spirit Lake, West Okoboji Lake, and East Okoboji Lake. They are the largest natural lakes in the state of Iowa. The largest, Spirit Lake, is 5,684 acres (23 km²).

The opportunities for fishing, swimming, boating, summer theater, amusement park or any number of other activities the Iowa Great Lakes is an ideal place to be.