The trail here is so pretty, plenty of climbing, streams, bridges rock formations. We love it. There's also plenty of photo opportunities!!! We do our family pictures here every year.
Ledges State Park - Iowa Department of Natural Resources
Beautiful garden right in town , kids love this place
Reiman Gardens-Iowa State University
Restaurants
Amazing pizza! Friendly service and great atmosphere
Jeff's Pizza Shop
Pricey but soo good! Perfect for date and special occasions!
Fuji Japanese Steak House
Our top favorite place for barbecue! The sampler has a decent amount of variety of meat!!
Hickory Park BBQ – Hickory Park BBQ
There's so many great Chinese places in Ames. We love Panda Express because it's convenient but plenty of sit down places
THE BEST 10 Chinese Restaurants in AMES, IA - Yelp
The food is so good! The staff is friendly and super helpful. Great place in a small town
LAS MARGARITAS, Glidden - Restaurant Reviews, Photos ...
Other Food & Drinks
Amazing coffee!! Not bitter and very smooth. Other non coffee drinks are super tasty too! Their bagel sandwiches are amazing too. And ALWAYS great interaction with staff!
Scooter’s Coffee Opens Second Location in Ames, IA
The best ice cream cones, and they're big! They have flavors of the week and lemon is the absolute best one. They have amazing tenderloin sandwiches and their burgers are one of the best ones around, don't forget the cheddar balls with ranch! Great p...
Dairy Mart
Pricey but sooo good! Right on the outer side of ankeny
Ankeny Seafood Restaurant - Waterfront Seafood
Arts & Entertainment
Nice clean and updated theatre! Has an arcade attached that's super fun for the kids
B&B Theatres Ankeny 12 & B …
Always a fun time! Tons of fun rides, a newish water park you could literally spend the whole day in.
Adventureland Park
It's not inside Iowa but this is an amazing zoo, make sure to check before to see when all animals are out so you can get the best viewing. Very big zoo you will need all day to get around
