8 Coolest Iowa Towns For A Summer Vacation In 2025
Iowa, just west of the Mississippi River, conjures images of the Midwest and other all-American scenes. Also known as the Hawkeye State for the iconic local bird, this land of rolling hills and picture-perfect farms has drawn visitors and longer-term settlers since joining the Union in 1846. These days, Iowa makes for a popular stop in warmer weather. Beyond its larger towns, like Dubuque and the capital, Des Moines, treasures await the visitor willing to make the trip. Come see what these overlooked Iowa towns have to offer as spring turns to summer.
Glenwood
Glenwood, in the state's northwest corner and not far south of Omaha, Nebraska, a summer festival in full bloom, welcomes visitors each year. At the town's Lily Fest, held in July at the Hillsdale Lily Garden just south of town, the event will bring together horticulture enthusiasts, a lily show, live music, food and drink and a sense of community. The event also serves as a fundraiser for local music programs for needy children, making a beautiful flower celebration part of a worthy cause.
Visitors can find fun in town at popular restaurants like El Porton Mexican Grill and Buck Snort, a sports-themed venue, or a sweet fix at candy-focused Sugar Makery Glenwood. The Keg Creek Brewing Company, named after the slim waterway at the town's southeastern edge, makes craft beer that warrants a drive along Hastie Hollow, considered one of the prettiest scenic drives in the state.
Mason City
Mason City, in north-central Iowa, will draw new crowds this summer ahead of the opening of Prairie Rock Trails Bike Park, a mountain-biking hub that thrill-seekers of all skill levels will enjoy. The town will also cut the ribbon on the High Line Trail, making another reason for cycling fans to come this way. Those developments will expand on a park that already has 20 miles of trails and a riverwalk, offering attractive choices at all speeds.
In town, the past blends with the present among historic buildings and attractive storefronts. Mason City's bikeshare program offers an easy, healthy choice for cruising past the many restaurants and bars that thrive here. For a step away from the ordinary, head for a skate at Roller City or take a look at bird enthusiasts in their element at The Basic Birder Wild Bird Supply, which sells feeders, bird seed, and garden decorations of many kinds.
Clear Lake
In Clear Lake, home of a sobering chapter in the history of rock'n'roll music, the legendary Surf Ballroom will open a permanent, immersive exhibit for the first time this July. The music venue, set at the edge of the town's namesake body of water, once anchored a Midwestern entertainment circuit of musicians and their legions of fans. In 1959, rock legends Buddy Holly and other rockers died together in a tragic plane crash. The museum will honor their enduring legacy in better-than-ever style. For more music sites, head to the plane crash memorial site — marked by a giant pair of Holly's signature horn-rimmed glasses — where the aircraft came to a final rest. The event was later immortalized in the 1971 song "American Pie" by Don McLean as "the day the music died."
While in town for the new exhibit, seek out the Clear Lake Arts Center, with its standout sculpture garden, as well as the Clear Lake Fire Museum, the state's first museum dedicated to firefighters and their public service.
Fort Dodge
Sometimes, nature is best experienced in ideal weather. This summer, when the sun is shining, the Matt Cosgrove River's Edge Discovery Center will allow for a one-of-a-kind learning experience while taking in Iowa's riparian ecosystems. Opened just last year along the Des Moines River, this site, in the northwestern town of Fort Dodge, will educate and excite students of all ages. The center's process of expansion will run this year through 2026 and will include a playground, a fishing jetty, a pavilion, and walking trails around the premises. For human creativity in town, check out Fort Dodge's Blanden Memorial Art Museum, where admission is free, or grab a meal at the Sports Page Bar and Grille in the north end of town.
Inwood
This year, the town called Inwood, a farm town in the state's far northwest, will notch its 140th birthday at the same time as the July 4th weekend. To celebrate, the town is putting on a full-scale party: a car show, a parade, a demolition derby, and a Miss Inwood contest to crown the town's fairest young lady of them all. The town's annual, large-scale July 4th event draws visitors and American patriotic types from across the state and region.
At other times of year this year or anytime, Inwood's taste for finer alcohols comes through at Calico Skies Winery and at Blind Butcher Brewery, both operating right here. Daytime draws include the Lake Pahoja Recreation Area, a 300-acre site for camping, fishing, boating, and enjoying the great Iowa outdoors.
Britt
The town of Britt, in north-central Iowa, stakes its fame on a title nowhere else in the world can claim: it is the host of the National Hobo Convention, celebrating 125 years this August. The associated Hobo Days festival includes live entertainment, good food, and the crowning of a King and Queen of the Hobos. Not only does Britt organize a convention every summer — the town's Hobo Museum stands as a permanent exhibit and remembrance of this unusual kind of life.
Other museums in Britt shed light on more stationary lifestyles. The Hancock County Agricultural Museum offers two floors and 180 exhibits detailing the farming efforts of Britt's present and past residents. The Armstrong House, a historic mansion painted in pink, also draws visitors in all seasons.
Clarinda
This June, the southwest town of Clarinda will be celebrating its world-famous native son: the trombonist and bandleader Glenn Miller. This year's Glenn Miller Festival, in its 50th year, will pay special tribute to the man's enduring mark on popular music, whether from the big band dance style of his time or the countless musicians and groups the Glenn Miller legacy inspired in its wake. At all times of the year, the Glenn Miller Birthplace Home and Museum honors his impact on the world's popular music.
For a touch of culture in the present, the Clarinda Carnegie Art Museum houses strong collections in a repurposed Carnegie Library building. In summer, the Clarinda A's, an amateur baseball team, takes the field, and has occasionally sent players to the major leagues.
Le Mars
Le Mars — which calls itself the "ice cream capital of the world" — puts on a festival each June known as Ice Cream Days. The three-day event, held in this small western town north of Sioux City, should be an easy sell for families traveling with children after the school year lets out. The engine behind the ice cream production here is Wells' Enterprises, the maker of the Blue Bunny Ice Cream brand. The company runs the Wells Visitor Center and Ice Cream Parlor, an ever-popular stop in town.
To work off some of that sugar, look out for the Alley Art trail, with historic murals brightening up 10 downtown alleyways. The Le Mars Recreational Trail follows the Floyd River, and interconnects with other trails for a longer, and always scenic, walk through Le Mars' prairie setting.
Iowa's Coolest Towns: Small Size, Big Appeal
For summer travel ideas, Iowa serves as a better-than-ever destination. Towns like Clarinda and Le Mars put the cool in cool ideas, either with their (literally) cold ice cream or Clarinda's status as the hometown of one of history's coolest, most popular music makers. Eccentric outings await at places like Britt's Hobo Festival and related museums, while more mainstream sensibilities might prefer Clear Lake, where rock 'n ' roll history and a new museum exhibit help keep the flame alive. Nature lovers will find their bliss at the lily festival in Glenwood or the new river-focused learning center in Fort Dodge. For travelers of all types and tastes, Iowa's new attractions merit a summer vacation or other visit soon.
