Things to do in Des Moines
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Des Moines
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Often the single best month, with near perfect weather, the market running and crowds gone.
Late April and May bring tulips, reopened trails and the best value before summer crowds.
The summer sweet spot, with long days, perfect trails and lakes and sweet corn arriving.
State Fair month and a furnace, with heat and Fair week prices to plan around.
Peak fall colour at Ledges, Winterset and Brown's Woods, plus the market's final Saturdays.
The worst months, cold and quiet with many seasonal closures.
What's on
- Iowa State Fair Usually 11 days in mid August
The year's defining event, drawing over a million visitors.
- Drake Relays Late April
America's Athletic Classic, fills hotels.
- Pella Tulip Time Early May
Hundreds of thousands of tulips in Pella, 45 minutes away.
- Downtown Farmers' Market Saturdays May through October
Opening Saturdays in May, with an 8 a.m. start in October.
- Des Moines Arts Festival Late June
A top ranked national art fair in the Western Gateway, free.
- Yankee Doodle Pops July 3
Symphony and fireworks on the Capitol grounds.
- RAGBRAI Late July
The week long bike ride across Iowa, a cycling carnival when the route passes through.
- National Balloon Classic Late July / early August
Dawn and dusk balloon launches in Indianola, 25 minutes away.
- Hinterland Music Festival Early August
Music festival in St. Charles.
- 80/35 Music Festival Summer
Downtown indie and hip hop festival named for the I-80 and I-35 junction, no fixed month given in prose.
Best things to do in Des Moines
Iowa State Fair
The biggest state fair in the country, with the Butter Cow, livestock shows, concerts and food on a stick.
Downtown Farmers' Market
A huge Saturday market with 300 plus vendors, street food and live music across the Court District.
John and Mary Pappajohn Sculpture Park
A free downtown park of major sculptures, including the walk inside Nomade lattice head.
Des Moines Art Center
A free museum with O'Keeffe, Picasso and Hopper in landmark Saarinen, Pei and Meier wings.
Iowa State Capitol
The only five domed US capitol, with a gold leaf dome and a stunning Victorian law library.
Principal Park
Triple A Iowa Cubs baseball on the riverfront, with skyline views and Friday fireworks.
Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden
A riverbank garden with a tropical geodesic dome that is a refuge in an Iowa winter.
Historic East Village
Independent boutiques, vintage shops and some of the city's best restaurants below the Capitol.
Where to stay in Des Moines
Downtown - Court District / Western Gateway / Locust Street
first trip, all-round base
Walk to the market, Civic Center, sculpture park and the densest restaurant cluster.
Historic East Village
character, couples and food-focused trips
Boutique streets with the best dining density per block, below the Capitol.
Ingersoll / Sherman Hill / South of Grand
local-feeling stay, groups renting a house
Leafy historic streets by Hoyt Sherman, Ingersoll dining and the Art Center.
West Des Moines - Jordan Creek / Valley Junction
families, groups and value chains
Newer chain hotels with free parking and pools, plus the Valley Junction main street.
Altoona / Ankeny
Fair overflow, Adventureland and north or east trips
Newer mid range hotels at the metro's best rates when downtown sells out.
Think twice about
- Fairgrounds-adjacent motel strip, east side
Isolated and bleak outside Fair dates, with nothing walkable at night.
- Near-north and northeast residential districts
Unreviewed ultra cheap rentals here have poor lighting, no visitor infrastructure and require driving everywhere.
- Drake neighbourhood east of 25th Street at night
Local student guidance urges caution at night, with boarded up houses noted in reporting.
Best restaurants in Des Moines
Oak Park
The current pinnacle, a Wright inspired room with dry aged steaks and a famed banana split.
Harbinger
Joe Tripp's vegetable forward, Asian influenced tasting and small plates on Ingersoll.
801 Chophouse
A classic Prime steakhouse in 801 Grand, where Des Moines celebrates and closes deals.
Prime & Providence
A polished modern steakhouse and seafood room, the West Des Moines occasion dinner.
Aposto at the Scala House
Seasonal Italian cooking in an 1880s Victorian mansion, the romantic pick.
Centro
Formaro's flagship for coal fired pizza, gnocchi and cavatelli with Graziano's sausage.
HoQ
Farm to table cooking sourcing about 90 percent of ingredients from named Iowa farmers.
Alba
New American sharing plates in a handsome East Village room, a date night standard.
Outdoor things to do in Des Moines
High Trestle Bridge
A half mile bridge 130 feet above the river, lit at night with blue LED ribs.
Raccoon River Valley Trail
An 89 mile paved loop linking leafy small towns west of the metro.
Principal Riverwalk
A downtown river loop linking trails, bridges and the city's core sights.
Neal Smith Trail
A 26 mile riverside ride from downtown to Saylorville Lake, car free.
Gray's Lake Park
A 167 acre lake with a 2 mile loop, a lighted bridge and sunset skyline views.
Saylorville Lake
A vast reservoir for boating, beaches and fishing 15 minutes north of downtown.
Jester Park
Trails, bison and elk viewing, a playscape and rentals on Saylorville Lake.
Big Creek State Park
The metro's biggest swimming beach, with boat rentals and picnic shelters.
Best hotels in Des Moines
Surety Hotel Des Moines Downtown, Autograph Collection
Des Moines' best hotel, a restored 1913 bank headquarters with vault doors and mosaic floors.
Hotel Fort Des Moines, Curio Collection by Hilton
The grand 1919 historic alternative, with a ballroom and a hidden basement speakeasy.
Des Lux Hotel
A 51 room boutique on Locust Street, moody, quiet and intimate.
Hilton Des Moines Downtown
The reliable full service pick, connected to the Iowa Events Center.
Renaissance Des Moines Savery Hotel
A 1919 historic hotel on the Skywalk, often priced below the luxury pair.
Des Moines Marriott Downtown
A corporate dependable, Skywalk connected hotel on Grand Avenue.
Staybridge Suites Des Moines Downtown
All suites with kitchens and free breakfast, the East Village longer stay base.
Hampton Inn & Suites Des Moines Downtown
Consistently the best reviewed select service downtown hotel, on the river.
Is Des Moines expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | $75 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | $160 a person |
| Splurge | $350 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Iowa State Fair: months ahead
- Des Moines Civic Center: weeks ahead
- Hoyt Sherman Place: weeks ahead
- Science Center of Iowa: a few days ahead
- High Trestle Bridge: a few days ahead
- Tournament Club of Iowa: weeks ahead
- Jester Park Golf Course: a few days ahead
- Oak Park: weeks ahead
- Book hotels months ahead for the State Fair, caucus season, Drake Relays and arena weekends.
- Book Oak Park, Harbinger and weekend prime time at Centro, Django and 801 two to four weeks ahead.
Is Des Moines safe?
- The real risks are weather and roads: tornadoes in spring, August heat, winter ice and deer at dusk.
- Downtown has a small visible homeless presence near the Central Library and river bridges, not a reason to avoid basing there.
Des Moines travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Do not build an adults weekend around Adventureland, and do not eat at Jordan Creek chains in a farm to table capital.
- Many top kitchens close Sunday and Monday, so schedule splurge dinners Thursday to Saturday.
Getting around Des Moines: public transport and more
- A car is needed for most of Des Moines, but downtown and the East Village form a walkable core.
- Use the Skywalk in winter, DART Park & Ride for the Fair, and expect free or cheap parking almost everywhere.
Who Des Moines suits
| Solo travellers | Good |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Great |
| Couples | Good |
| Bachelor parties | Good |
| Families | Great |
| Bachelorette parties | Good |
Make Des Moines your trip
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