Family Travel - AmericInn^® of Okoboji, IA

The Perfect Family Vacation in Okoboji Iowa

Enjoy our convenient location only minutes from all Iowa Great Lakes attractions and restaurants. We offer spacious accommodations, complimentary AmericInn Perk breakfast, indoor pool, whirlpool, sauna and high-speed wireless Internet access, making us the perfect choice for family vacations in Iowa!

Visitors to Okoboji can enjoy top-notch entertainment throughout the year. Fill your days with visits to our popular amusement parks, local museums, theatres, historical attractions, University of Okoboji events or a scenic lake cruise on the Queen II tour boat. Fill your nights with entertaining bands, comedians, dances, concerts and shows! 

Family Amenities and Features

• Children 16 and under stay free
• Complimentary AmericInn Perk Breakfast
• Complimentary wireless high speed Internet access
• Spacious accommodations featuring AmericInn SoundGuard^™ Construction
• Family/ 2 room suites available
• Rooms with mini-refrigerators and microwaves
• Heated Indoor Pool
• Whirlpool
• Guest laundry room
• Cable television with HBO
• Coffee maker and hair dryer in each room

Family Attractions and Activities

West Lake Okoboji - West Lake Okoboji was carved by the Wisconsin glacier over 100,000 years ago.  It's maximum depth is 134 feet, making it the deepest lake in Iowa and second in size only to Spirit Lake.  West Lake Okoboji is often considered to be one of three blue water lakes in the world.  The other two are Lake Geneva in Switzerland and Lake Louise in Canada.

Spring-fed West Lake Okoboji is a popular regional destination for motor boating, water skiing, sailing and swimming.  The lake is also a popular fishing destination.  The main catches in the lake are yellow perch, bluegill and walleye.  It also contains significant populations of smallmouth bass, northern pike, muskie, crappie, white bass and black bass.  The lake was named "Mde Tonka" (Great Lake) by the Dakota Sioux and "Great" is a fitting name for this rare "Blue Jewel" of the Iowa Prairie.
Distance: .25 miles

University of Okoboji - The Three Sons located in Milford, Iowa is the official University of Okoboji sportswear headquarters.  Imagine a university whose founding fathers prescribed a curriculum fashioned not in academia, but celebration.  An institution whose alumni promote get-down-boogie, not bookworms.  Actually, such a school exists only in mind and attitude, but it is also steeped in a rich tradition in the vacation paradise of northwest Iowa.  The campus is the Iowa Great Lakes, and the halls of knowledge are the pathways of life.  The University of Okoboji is a mythical, yet vibrant, college of fun and spirit of goodwill.  The University of Okoboji is a fictitious university started by three brothers in the 1970's.  A trip to Okoboji is not complete without a stop at Three Sons to pick up a University of Okoboji souvenir. University of Okoboji entrance exams are available upon check-in at the front desk! Don't miss the U of O homecoming celebration each July.
Address: 902 10th Street, Milford, IA 51351
Distance: 4.0 miles
Phone:  712-338-2424

Historic Arnolds Park Amusement Park - Built in 1889, during the golden age of amusement parks, Historic Arnolds Park is one of the longest running amusement parks in the World.  Return to a time where a ride on a Ferris wheel at sunset was the thrill of a lifetime and a Nutty Bar was the yummiest treat in the World.
Address:243 W. Broadway, Arnolds Park, IA 51331
Distance: 3.5 miles
Phone: 712-332-2183
Hours of Operation: Open the middle of May through the first week of September
The Queen II Tour Boat - The  Queen II looks and feels like the steamboats of yesteryear.  Tours last one hour and fifteen minutes and include narration on various historical landmarks around the Iowa Great Lakes.
Address:243 W. Broadway Arnolds Park, IA 51331
Distance: 3.5 miles
Phone: 712-332-2183
Hours of Operation: Open the middle of May through the first week of September

Ranch Okoboji -Featuring an 18 hole mini-golf course, the area's largest arcade, and an ice cream shop, Ranch Okoboji is three acres of fun and attractions! Don't miss Tyotee's Wild Mining Adventure, where kids can mine for rare gemstones, fossils and arrowheads.
Address:1800 Hwy 71 N., Okoboji, IA 51355
Distance: 0.50 miles

Iowa Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame - Each Labor Day weekend the Iowa Rock n' Roll Music Association honors the bands, musicians, radio stations, ballrooms, music stores and individuals who have made  significant contributions to Rock n' Roll by inducting them into its Hall of Fame.  Houses instruments, posters and memorabilia from Iowa's very own rock n'
roll bands.
Address:Historic Arnolds Park Amusement Park
Distance: 3.5 miles
Phone: 712-332-6540

Okoboji Summer Theatre - For 51 years students from Stephens College have been managing, producing and starring in the theatre's productions.  Nine shows run throughout the summer and include Broadway hits, drama, musicals and comedies.
Phone: 713-332-7773

Lakes Art Center - Enjoy viewing works in the gallery's permanent, traveling collections or exhibits by guest artists. For gallery hours and specific event times call the center.
Address:2201 Highway 71, Okoboji, IA 51355
Distance: 1.5 miles
Phone: 712-332-7013

Dickinson County Recreational Trails - The Iowa Great Lakes Trail winds its way through the Iowa Great Lakes region, which offers plenty of outdoor opportunities for visitors-from its popular blue lakes and sandy beaches to quieter natural areas, many protected with INHF assistance.

The multi-use Iowa Great Lakes Trail provides local citizens and visitors a safe place to bike, walk, rollerblade, run and cross-country ski. The trail winds along rural, community and nature areas in the heart of the Iowa Great Lakes Region, including Spirit Lake, Okoboji, Arnolds Park and Milford. The “spine” of the system is a 14-mile, ten-foot wide, hard-surface trail that accommodates two-way recreational traffic. Connecting to the spine trail are several other shorter trails to explore, including the Kenue Park Trail, Arnolds Park City Trail and Spirit Lake City trail. The trail has already been extended and now loops around the east side of Spirit Lake. Future plans are to continue the expansion so the trail borders the entire lake.

Abbie Gardner/Sharp Cabin Historical Site - The Abbie Gardner Cabin was listed on the National Register of historic places in 1973.  Occurring in 1857 the Abbie Gardner Cabin was home to one of the few violent conflicts in Iowa between European-American settlers and Native Americans.  For more information or to schedule a group tour, call the number below.
Address: 34 Monument Drive, Arnolds Park, IA 51331
Distance: 3.5 miles; One block west of Historic Arnolds Amusement Park
Phone: 712-332-7248

Spirit Lake Fish Hatchery - The Spirit Lake Hatchery is a cool water station located in Dickinson County.  The facility collects, spawns, incubates, and raises walleye for use throughout the state.  Each year between 60 and 70 million walleye fry are hatched at this facility.  The number of muskellunge produced is relatively minor when compared to the sheer numbers of walleyes produced; however, this facility serves as the sole source of Iowa's muskellunge.  The fish are raised to nine or ten inches before being stocked throughout the state.  Tours are available weekdays from 8am - 4pm.
Address: 122 252nd Ave., Spirit Lake, IA 51360
Distance: 6.0 miles
Phone: 712-336-1840

Iowa Great Lakes Maritime Museum - Relive the days of steamboats, motor launches and wooden cruisers.  The museum has amassed a vast collection of local photographs, articles and artifacts from the Iowa Great Lakes early 'golden days' of boating.  Includes familiar hallmarks from Arnolds Park earlier days.  Located in Okoboji Spirit Center next to Historic Arnolds Park Amusement Park.
Address:243 W. Broadway, Arnolds Park, IA 51331
Distance: 3.5 miles
Phone: 712-332-5159

The Clay County Fair - What began as a four-day county fair which attracted 28,000 people in 1918 has evolved into the "world's greatest county fair." Best known for its agribusiness machinery displays, the fair devotes 35 acres to agricultural equipment, making it the largest and most comprehensive agribusiness display in the country.  The fair also features big name entertainment, 4-H and FFA displays and events, chuckwagon and harness racing, truck and tractor pulls, a rodeo, car races and a carnival. There are approximately 500 commercial exhibit booths.  Cattle, horses and sheep are available for viewing all nine days  of the fair.  Poultry are displayed the first four days and rabbits are on exhibit the last five days.
Address: Spencer, Iowa
Distance: 20.0 miles
Hours of Operation: September 5-15, 2009

Kenue Park - Within this park you will find meadows, oak-savannah forest, and a spectacular overlook from the top of a glacial kame - a large bluff remaining of a river running into a glacial hole.  Centrally located in the heart of Dickinson County, this park has picnic areas, nature trails, a physical fitness course, and modern bathrooms.  Make sure to visit Westport School also at Kenue Park, and soak up the history of this historical pioneer one-room school house.
Address:170th St., Okoboji, IA 51355
Distance: 3.0 miles
Phone: 712-338-4238 or 712-332-2355

Horseshoe Bend County Wildlife Preserve - This 180-acre preserve offers an extensive trail system winding through river valley of the little Sioux River, and upland forests, meadows, marshes and oxbow ponds.  These diverse habitats are host to a number of creatures including deer, beaver, woodpeckers, songsbirds and hawks.  Facilities include a "warming shelter" with a spectacular river valley outlook, a playground featuring a huge 40' enclosed tube slide, wildlife-viewing blind, aesthetic footbridges spanning the river, modern bathroom facilities, and a picnic area.
Address: 3.0 miles S of Milford on Hwy. 71 and 3 miles W on 240th St., Milford, IA 51351
Distance: 10.0 miles
Phone: 712-338-4786

Fishing the Iowa Great Lakes - Visitors to Lake Okoboji find that the fishing is first rate in this Iowa Great Lake.  Fishing enthusiasts can fish year round with both warm weather fishing and ice fishing in the well stocked waters.  Numerous species of fish swim these waters; your catch may include bass, walleye, catfish, perch, crappie, bluegill or northerns.  For anglers looking for more of a challenge you can test your skill at fishing for Muskellunge.  Seven of the current "Iowa All Time Record Fish" were caught in the Iowa Great Lakes.

Kick off the 2009 walleye season at the Iowa Great Lakes during the 27th Annual Great Walleye Weekend, May 1 and 2, 2009.  This two-day fishing tournament benefits Easter Seals.

A record number of anglers cast their line in last year's Great Walleye Weekend, attempting to land one of six specially tagged walleye.  The specially tagged walleye are distributed in the West and East Okoboji Lakes and Big Spirit Lake by the Department of Natural Resources.  A tagged walleye is worth $10,000 if caught by a registered contestant during the contest hours. If more than one of the tagged walleye is caught, the $10,000 is equally divided.  A number of pan fish are also tagged for additional prizes.
Distance: 1.5 miles

Guided Fishing in Okoboji - JTG Expeditions, your Okoboji, Iowa, fishing guide, provides all your fishing equipment...rods, reels, bait and tackle and you'll head straight to the fish. All you have to do is dress appropriately and bring something to eat or drink if you wish. You can expect to catch bluegills, smallmouth bass, walleyes, largemouth bass and maybe even a northern or muskie.

Ice fishing is a rapidly growing sport. JTG Expeditions fishes Spirit Lake and West Lake Okoboji in the winter. West Okoboji is a very unique lake to ice fish because of its clarity. Most days you can actually watch the fish eat your bait. JTG Expeditions has several portable heated ice fishing shacks for some of the best ice fishing in Iowa and the upper midwest.
Phone:For bookings contact John Grosvenor at 712-330-5815

Pikes Point State Park - Pikes Point State Park is situated on West Lake Okoboji and is home to one of the most popular swim beaches in the area. Pikes Point's beach also has a very popular swim platform located within the swimming area for users to sunbathe or play on. Pikes Point is a great place for a family picnic. There are several picnic tables located throughout this nicely shaded area with a great view of West Lake Okoboji. There is also a CCC stone shelter that is available for rent and may be reserved online through the park reservations system. To make reservations visit https://eservices.iowa.gov/iowaparks/
Address: 15973 213th Avenue Spirit Lake, IA 51360
Phone: 712-337-3805

Gull Point State Park - This park on West Okoboji Lake is a perfect place to spend a few hours or a whole day!  Hiking trails are well-maintained, winding their way through Burr Oak forest and marshes.  Gull Point's beach provides a fine place for young and old to sunbathe and splash in the crystal clear water. The western portion of Gull Point State Park is a hiker's delight, with a fine self-guided interpretative trail. On the 1.3 mile trail, visitors can identify a variety of natural features by using the trail brochure. This area of the park is an excellent place to observe a wide variety of wildlife from songbirds to white-tailed deer. In the winter, the area is open for cross-country skiing. The Gull Point lodge, built during the 1930's by the Civilian Conservation Corp, is the largest such facility in the state. It features kitchen facilities and will seat 140 people. The lodge is a wonderful setting for group activities such as wedding receptions and family reunions. Lodge reservations can be made online through the park reservations system at https://eservices.iowa.gov/iowaparks/.
Address: 1500 Harpen St., Wahpeton, IA 51351
Distance: 3.0 miles
Phone: 712-337-3870

Pirates’s Cove Mini Golf - Putt your way through the world of 18th century pirates-- under cascading waterfalls, across a natural stream and past pirate ship ruins! Nestled in a naturally beautiful landscape, this 18-hole course will delight your family. With an elaborate pirate theme, natural beauty and manicured landscaping, Pirate's Cove is the perfect location for family and group gatherings. Challenge friends and family to a friendly round of Pirate's Cove Adventure Golf. Discover the fun! Located at the entrance to Historic Arnolds Park Amusement Park.
Address:25 Lake Street Arnolds Park, IA 51331
Distance: 3.5 miles
Phone: 712-332-6094

Great Lakes Cinema 7 - Okoboji’s premiere movie theatre, boasting 7 movie screens. Enjoy your visit to the movies in air conditioned comfort. Featuring a full service concession stand serving delicious popcorn, your favorite candy, and soft drinks. For your convenience there's plenty of free parking.
Address:1698 Exchange Street, Okoboji, IA 51355
Distance: .10 miles
Phone: 712-332-7553