VISITING THE DUTCH TOWN OF PELLA, IOWA
While on our cross-country trip to Nebraska from New York we came across this hidden gem of a town! This charming small town gives you a small taste of Holland, for a perfect day trip from Des Moines or Davenport. Pella, Iowa is just 50 minutes from Des Moines and 2 and a half hours from Davenport. Plus, it’s just 30 minutes off the I-80 interstate!
This beautiful little town is best known for their annual “Tulip Time” celebration, where the town is filled with gorgeous tulips in early May. The community plants hundreds of thousands of tulips in celebration of Pella’s Dutch heritage. Lucky for us, we happened to visit Pella during mid May and were able to enjoy the beautiful tulips.
With this travel guide you’ll find all the best things to do on your visit for a fun and exciting pit-stop!
Central Park, 720 Franklin St
We found free street parking on Washington Street but there is plenty of parking all around Central Park. We wandered through Central Park admiring all the tulips. We took the opportunity to take a ton of photos of our adorable pup and headed towards the downtown shops.
Fun fact: More than 200,000+ tulips bloom in Pella each Spring!
Pella Visitors Center, 915 Broadway St
At the Pella Visitor Center we grabbed a few brochures and sat on a bench to read about all the things there are to do before we continued walking around. The visitor center is open till 4pm.
Jaarsma Bakery, 727 Franklin St
You can’t get a small taste of Holland without trying a delicious pastry! So we stopped by Jaarsma Bakery to grab a few sweet treats. They have wonderful baked goods and a great selection of souvenirs. We got a postcard and browsed through the assortment of dutch candy.
All the pastries we got at Jaarsma Bakery were honestly really great! We got a few almond covered treats, one was like a puff that was sweet and flaky and another that was an almond tart with almond filling. The third pastry we got was a peach and creme strudel, this one was definitely my favorite, plus it was warm so that was a plus!
Molengracht Plaza & Pella Canal
We made our way down Main Street and walked along the Pella Canal. The Pella Canal has a few stores along each side of the canal, there is a chinese restaurant, a nail salon, a movie theater, and even a hotel. Located in the middle of town, it's a beautiful place to just sit on a bench and relax while people watch and enjoy the view of the canal. We sat on a bench and enjoyed our pastries from Jaarsma Bakery.
The Klokkenspel, 625 Franklin St
At the Pella Canal, on your first left we saw this little brick walkway into a small plaza with a few benches and a beautiful little fountain. Located behind a glass window high above, you can see a few little figures performing at the top of the hour (11:00, 1:00, 3:00, 5:00). You can sit on a bench in front of the clock to wait for the attraction to begin. Plus, the Klokkenspel is the perfect place to sit and wait for your order at #dutchfix.
#dutchfix, 621 Franklin St
In the same plaza as the Klokkenspel you’ll find a popular family restaurant, #dutchfix. We stopped here for lunch and we were surprised by how affordable it was! We got a few things to try, we got the gouda mac and cheese, the gouda burger, the chixfix sandwich (crispy chicken on a Jaarsma bun with mayo and Dutch red cabbage slaw) and a side of fries with chipotle mayo and beer cheese for dipping. Everything was actually really good and we’d definitely come back to try a few more items on their menu!
Pella Historical Village, 507 Franklin St
The Pella Historical Village and Vermeer Windmill is a museum that consists of 22 buildings that showcase 19th century life. It’s really interesting to learn about the history of the town, admission is $10 a person. Don’t forget to take a picture in front of the Vermeer Windmill outside!
Fun fact: The Vermeer Windmill is the tallest working grain windmill in the United States.
Sunken Gardens Park
If you are looking for a secluded park to relax, Sunken Gardens Park is just a few blocks from downtown. We came here on a Friday afternoon and there wasn’t a single person here, it was a very relaxing park! There is a small pond in the middle of the park and an awesome windmill (1921 Windmill) surrounded by pink tulips.
This park was one of my favorite places to walk around, while taking a stroll around the small pond something I noticed was that it’s shaped like a wooden shoe! We saw a few wooden shoes in front of the Vermeer Windmill downtown!
Tuttle Log Cabin, 608 Lincoln St
If you visit the Sunken Garden Park you should swing by the Tuttle Log Cabin while you are in the area. It’s open to visit inside during the Tulip festival but it’s a pretty neat stop to see this log cabin. Just to give you a little information about this cabin, it’s named after the first pioneers Thomas and Nancy Tuttle that settled in Marion County in 1843.
“For four years, the Tuttles farmed what would become Pella’s Central Park and the eight blocks adjacent to it. In July 1847, Dominie Henry P. Scholte, leader of 800 Dutch immigrants, purchased the Tuttle’s land and that of several other settlers in the area, founding the city of Pella. The Tuttle cabin is believed to be the oldest remaining structure in Marion County.”
If you happen to visit Pella in the summer months of June and July, keep in mind that every Thursday evening in the plaza there is a carnival with games, performances and fun activities! In the fall they also have their annual Fall Harvest & Dutch Artisan Festival, and in the winter they have a Lights at Night & Holiday Concert. Regardless of when you visit there is always something to see and do in Pella.
I hope that next time you find yourself driving across Iowa you’ll consider stopping by historic Pella.
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