Best Parks in Iowa, United States
The top-ranked park in Iowa is Maquoketa Caves State Park with a ParksRanked Score of 0 (49% data coverage). ParksRanked tracks 125 parks in Iowa, United States, ordered by our own ParksRanked Score only.
125 places · 47 ranked · ranked honestly, never by who pays.
This page ranks every park and protected place we track in Iowa, United States by our own ParksRanked Score — including 96 state/regional parks, 11 state forests, 10 national wildlife refuges, 4 national recreation areas, 2 nature reserves. Places without enough data yet are shown with an Insufficient ranking data marker rather than a guessed score.
The top-ranked is Maquoketa Caves State Park with a ParksRanked Score of 0 (49% data coverage).
- Maquoketa Caves State Park
- Ledges State Park
- Pikes Peak State Park
- Effigy Mounds National Monument
- Lake Manawa State Park
- Herbert Hoover National Historic Site
- Lake Macbride State Park
- Backbone State Park
- Yellow River State Forest - Paint Creek Unit
- Wildcat Den State Park
- Scott County Park
- Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge
- Big Creek State Park
- George Wyth Memorial State Park
- Pinicon Ridge Park
- Rock Creek State Park
- Jester Park
- Badger Creek State Recreation Area
- Volga River State Recreation Area
- Wapsipinicon State Park
- Walnut Woods State Park
- Clear Lake State Park
- Pleasant Creek State Recreation Area
- Marble Beach State Recreation Area
- Waubonsie State Park
- Prairie Rose State Park
- Dolliver Memorial State Park
- Lacey-Keosauqua State Park
- Pine Lake State Park
- Banner Lakes at Summerset State Park
- Black Hawk State Park
- Little Wall Lake Park
- Union Grove State Park campground
- Nelson Dewey State Park
- Beeds Lake State Park
- Hickory Grove Park
- Springbrook State Park
- Elk Rock State Park
- Pilot Knob State Park
- Lake Keomah State Park
- McIntosh Woods State Park
- Marion County Park
- Margo Frankel Woods State Park
- Red Haw State Park
- Echo Valley State Park
- Big Sioux County Park
- Pictured Rocks County Park
- Indian Creek Nature Center
- Bellevue State Park - Nelson Unit
- Macbride Nature Recreation Area
- Heery Woods State Park
- Hickory Hills County Park
- Ambrose A Call State Park
- Sharon Bluffs State Park
- Timmons Grove County Park
- Dutton Cave County Park
- Lost Island Lake State Park
- Thomas Mitchell County Park
- Manteno County Park
- Big Mill Creek Wildlife Management Area
- Jakway Forest County Park
- Goeldner Woods County Park
- Burt Lake County Park
- Chattahoochie County Park
- Gifford State Forest
- Dickson Timber County Park
- State Forest Nursery
- Trappers Bay State Park
- Dewey Heights Prairie State Natural Area
- Mac Coon County Park
- Seven Hills County Park
- Fern Cliff County Park
- Idlewild County Park
- Larson Lake County Park
- Yellow River State Forest - Yellow River Unit
- Cassville Bluffs State Natural Area
- Holst State Forest
- Downing County Park
- Pilot Mound State Forest
- Driftless Area National Wildlife Refuge - Fern Ridge Unit
- Driftless Area National Wildlife Refuge - Pine Creek Unit
- Haugen Timber County Park
- Turvoid Woods County Park
- Allens Grove County Park
- Bald Forty Preserve
- Barkley Memorial State Forest
- Barnes Area County Park
- Crane Creek County Park
- Decatur Bend County Park
- Driftless Area National Wildlife Refuge
- Driftless Area National Wildlife Refuge - Howard Creek Unit
- Evertrue National Wilderness Area
- Hard Scrabble County Park
- Hickory Grove County Park
- Hobbs County Park
- Hyde County Park
- Iowa National Heritage Foundation
- Lake Anita State Park
- Lake Darling State Park
- Loess Hills State Forest
Showing the top 100 of 125. See all on the live map →
Common questions
How many parks does ParksRanked track in Iowa?
We track 125 places in Iowa, United States, of which 47 have enough data to be ranked.
What is the top-ranked park in Iowa?
Maquoketa Caves State Park leads with a ParksRanked Score of 0 (49% data coverage).
Are these rankings influenced by advertising?
No. Rankings reflect our own ParksRanked Score only. Every place is shown, sparse-data places are clearly marked, and no advertising or partnership ever influences the order.