76. HOMESTEAD BLACKSMITH SHOP
City: Des Moines, IA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Address: 4119 V St.
Description: Down the street from the Homestead Store Museum, this shop preserves blacksmithing as practiced by the original colonists, with regular blacksmithing demonstrations. There are also printmaking demonstrations using an old-fashioned linotype and hand-set printing press, and bookbinding demonstrations as well. Open Saturdays from May-September.
77. HOMESTEAD STORE MUSEUM
City: Des Moines, IA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Address: 4430 V St.
Description: Unlike the other villages in the Amana Colonies, Homestead was not built by the original settlers but instead was created to link the original villages with the railroad that came later to the Iowa River Valley. Artifacts of early commerce are on display here, demonstrating the Amana Colonies’ interaction with the “outside world,” as is a display of colony buildings in miniature. Open Mon through Sat from mid-June through mid-Aug and Sat only from May through mid-June and mid-Aug through Sept.
78. IOWA THEATRE ARTISTS COMPANY
City: Des Moines, IA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (319) 622-3225
Description: A fairly new professional theater company that has set up shop in a former restaurant in the village of Amana. The 117-seat theater gives you a more up-close-and-personal performance experience, and the company has presented some fun, all-American shows with musical accompaniment like Spoon River Anthology and Pump Boys and Dinettes. Tickets are around $25 and can be reserved by calling the box office at (319) 622-3222.
79. OLD CREAMERY THEATRE
City: Des Moines, IA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (319) 622-6194 (box office), (
Description: Iowa’s oldest professional theater company puts on a wide and extensive array of shows, everything from classics like The Glass Menagerie and Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? to more offbeat and unknown shows. They also present several children’s productions each year. The main stage, which is also the stage for children’s shows, seats 300. A separate studio theater is located nearby in the former Amana Middle School. Tickets for most shows are around $22–$26, while tickets for children’s theater are around $8. All tickets are available at the box office, via telephone, or through the theater’s website.
80. AMANA COLONIES GUEST HOUSE MOTEL
City: Des Moines, IA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (319) 622-3599 or (877) 331-08
Description: Located at one end of Amana’s long stretch of shops and attractions, this hotel has 38 rooms divided among 2 buildings: a 125-year-old sandstone house that served as a former communal kitchen houses 12 rooms, while a more modern motel-style building is nearby. Rooms are simple, clean, and comfortable, and include air conditioning and cable television, with rates around $65. No pets.
81. HERITAGE INN AMANA COLONIES HOTEL & SUITES
City: Des Moines, IA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (319) 668-2700
Address: 2185 U Ave. (I-80 exit 225)
Description: A bit more of the traditional motel experience than you’ll find at lodgings in the villages, this hotel has a heated indoor pool, as well as breakfast available at the restaurant across the street for a slightly higher rate. The hotel has 61 basic rooms, with either 2 queen beds or 1 king bed. All rooms have a coffeemaker, hair dryer, iron, and ironing board, and some come with microwave and refrigerator. A guest laundry and wireless Internet are available. Rates are around $90.
City: Des Moines, IA
Category: Tours & Attractions
83. ANNIE’S GARDEN GUEST HOUSE
City: Des Moines, IA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (319) 622-6854 or (866) 622-68
Description: Just off the main drag in Amana, the three rooms in this B&B are well-appointed, with antique touches, deep chairs, and comfortable beds, including a canopy bed in one of the rooms. Each room has a private bathroom, and there’s free Wi-Fi. Breakfast may include such yummies as baked oatmeal or applesauce pancakes, with plenty of fresh fruit. Take time to unwind in front of the living room fireplace or stroll through the garden. Rooms are $90 a night. No kids under 16, and no pets.
84. DIE HEIMAT COUNTRY INN
City: Des Moines, IA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (319) 622-3937 or (888) 613-54
Address: 4434 V St.
Description: With 18 rooms, it’s perhaps a little large for a bed-and-breakfast, but the morning repast is good enough to keep it in this category: Fluffy scrambled eggs, golden-brown French toast, and fresh baked goodies make this a nice place to start the day (it previously served as one of the Amana Colonies’ communal kitchens). Rooms have 2 queen beds and private bath. The beds are very comfortable, and rooms are equipped with free Wi-Fi.
85. ROSE’S PLACE BED & BREAKFAST
City: Des Moines, IA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (319) 622-6097 or (877) 767-32
Description: A former Sunday school built in 1870, this redbrick B&B has 3 large rooms with queen-size beds and private baths. Two of the rooms have twin beds as well. Breakfast features eggs, meats, pancakes, and fresh baked goods. The location away from the greater tourist bustle in the main Amana village makes for a somewhat less hectic stay. Rooms are $75 a night. No pets.
86. VILLAGE GUEST SUITE
City: Des Moines, IA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (319) 622-6690 or (866) 624-66
Address: 4312 F St.
Description: A bit more upscale B&B experience, yet still with a reasonable cost. There are 3 suites in this former communal residence on a side street in the main village. The large first-floor suite has a fireplace and sleigh bed, as well as a Jacuzzi tub in the bathroom. A spacious 3-room suite on the second floor features an eat-in kitchen and porch for taking in the view. There’s a smaller suite on the second floor as well, which is $55, and includes breakfast only if booked with the large second-floor suite. The two larger suites are $95 a night. All rooms have television with DVD player; two of the televisions are equipped with satellite service.
87. COLONY INN RESTAURANT
City: Des Moines, IA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (319) 622-3030
Description: This restaurant was the first to serve the Amana Colonies’ now famous and ubiquitous family dinners, when it began dishing out the platters of meats and bowls of sides in 1935. As at other Amana restaurants, fried chicken and German dishes are the menu mainstays, with a large selection of sausages, including bratwurst and pork sausage, and other meat dishes like Swiss steak, Wiener schnitzel, and delicious cured ham. This restaurant is also known for its breakfasts: delicious pancakes with homemade jam and some of the best breakfast meats you’ll ever eat—big, juicy sausages and thick slabs of bacon. Mmmmm! Dinner entrees are around $15.
88. OX YOKE INN
City: Des Moines, IA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (319) 622-3441 or (800) 233-34
Description: This pair of restaurants epitomize dining in the Amana Colonies, with big platters of fried chicken, roast beef, and ham, as well as German favorites like sauerbraten, schnitzel, and Kassler Rippchen (smoked pork chops). Big slices of pie and cake are offered for dessert. Steaks are broiled to juicy perfection, and there are a few decent seafood options as well. The Amana village location has the charming feel of a country inn, while the interstate location clearly puts less thought into the decor. The food, however, is simple and satisfying at both restaurants. Entrees average around $13–$14. A second location is at 2206 U Ave. (I-80 exit 225, Williamsburg; 319-668-1443 or 877-668-1443).
89. RONNEBURG RESTAURANT
City: Des Moines, IA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (319) 622-3641 or (888) 348-46
Description: One of a handful of the Amana Colonies’ famous family-style restaurants in the original village of Amana, the Ronneburg whips up meals in one of the original village communal kitchens. The menu is meat-and-potatoes, with a German flair, including choices like Bavarian chicken and smoked pork chops with spiced Fuji apples, as well as more old-country favorites like schnitzel and sauerbraten. Good steak and fish choices, too. They actually serve some smaller plates of some of the dinner choices. Try the Black Forest Brownie for dessert. Entrees average around $16–$17. Nice beer garden, too.
90. AMANA ARTS GUILD CENTER
City: Des Moines, IA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (319) 622-3678
Address: 1210 G St.
Description: A great spot to pick up traditional Amana folk crafts, created by contemporary Amana artisans from all seven villages. Items like willow baskets, brooms, quilts, rugs, and tinware are all for sale, as well as decorative and household items. The center also runs classes and workshops for adults and children in traditional arts and crafts like basketry, woodworking, and weaving, as well as sponsors seasonal events like art shows and a song and poetry festival.