Quick Itinerary

This is a quick itinerary I wrote for a friend with a 4 year old, who had 2-3 days to get away, driving from Des Moines:

In the Quad Cities, there's the Bettendorf Family Museum and Channel Cat river rides; Splash Mountain is a great afternoon break with shade and zero-entry pool as well as a sandbox. Or if you don't have the time but want to cool off, try the free splash pad at Centennial Park just south of the ballpark, along the river. Across the river, you'll find the John Deere Tractor Pavilion in Moline, IL--it's a free one where you get to climb all over the tractors and has a little interactive museum on the side. Also fun gift shop next door. Out by the airport, you'll also find the very walkable and charming Niabi Zoo--which also has an affordable train tour of the zoo and a beautiful carousel. There are several programs and themed days.  Hungry? We loved the farmers' market near the ballpark (complete with eateries and playground); otherwise, our carseat-friendly dining choice is Sonic, which delivers 50's style treats to your car.

Going up to Le Claire, there's the Twilight Riverboat cruises and the Buffalo Bill Museum next door with a kid's room and old river boat to check out. You can also see live buffalo in a pasture at the Buffalo Bill homestead just north of Le Claire. Further up the road, just south of Follets and Camanche, is the Rock Creek Marina and Campground which has an awesome Turtle Island kids' exhibit (crawl under the aquarium!), camping, eco-tours of the river, or overnight in a tree house cabin. In Camanche along the river is a cute library with an observation deck out onto the river; this is a great place in spring to see pelicans. Next door to the library is a train caboose and station which is open in summer.

Then up to Clinton, which has both the Children's Discovery Center (a good place to relax in a one-room children's museum in a converted grocery store), AND the The Sawmill Museum, with a kid-sized indoor lumberjack village; across the river in Fulton is an authentic, working Dutch Windmill and fascinating interpretive center where kids can try on wooden shoes, see a dozen kid-sized windmill models, and a little playroom. (Parents can buy fresh milled flour and there's a gift shop). There's a heritage village up the road a bit from it for excellent hiking and history; and $5 theater for kiddos on Saturdays at the Clinton Area Showboat Theatre; and eat on the riverfront at Candlelight Inn - Clinton Iowa next door. Try for a seat out on the deck, or if weather doesn't permit, the large windows inside still give you the beautiful views. Need to burn off energy? The Rotary Park just south of the Showboat and Candlelight Inn has a kid-sized zipline and great playground equipment, as well as a shelter and bathrooms.

Try to go to a Clinton LumberKings game, which also has bounce houses and games and playgrounds in addition to being a really nice, easily navigated (and stroller-friendly) ballpark. Check their schedule for fireworks displays. Drive through Eagle Point Park on the way north out of town, which has incredible views of the widest spot in the Mississippi. Then and enjoy 67/52 which is a beautiful drive. Sabula is an awesome island city for lounging about, camping, and has the incredible dive Bombfire Pizza, where kiddos can play a piano or use sidewalk chalk outside, and a little ice cream stop at the first stop sign. You can also take a loop across the river at Sabula to Savanna, a river bluff town with the beautiful Palisades park to the north, and an enjoyable drive over the water for several miles.  A good napping ride up to Dubuque via 52...

If you're visiting in fall, check out the apple orchard on 52, as well as Papa's Pumpkin Patch just south of Bellevue. Bellevue has a lock and dam with pretty overlooks.

At Dubuque, take the Fenelon Place Elevator (like a cable car up the cliff) and then go to the National Mississippi River Museum & Aquarium and plan to stay at least half a day there. The quickest route back to Des Moines is probably via 61-80. There's an old drive-in theater on 61 near Maquoketa that generally plays kid-friendly fare.

What I like about this itinerary is it's super preschooler-friendly and a relaxed but fun pace for parents, and getting from one spot to the next is easy; no traffic once you get off 80; and the activities are fairly inexpensive compared to bigger cities.