If you want to immerse yourself in the American heartland lifestyle, Iowa offers a wide range of wholesome family attractions and activities.

Here are Sears Imported Autos's getaway ideas to help you make the most of a weekend in Iowa.

Scenic Drive on Along the Mississippi River

On this 200-mile route you’ll see limestone bluffs, picturesque farms and river towns like Burlington and Fort Madison. In the towns you can dine at locally-owned diners that serve heaping helpings of country-style specialties and visit buildings that are more than a century old. The college town of Mount Pleasant, home to Iowa Wesleyan College, has an agricultural heritage celebrated with a museum complex and a fun fall festival every year. Among the many recreational activities available in this area are canoeing, fishing and bicycling.

Cedar Rapids

A city brimming with beautiful city parks and green space, Cedar Rapids has a rich cultural and historical heritage and boasts more than 35 local landmarks on the National Register of Historic Places. Interesting sites include Brucemore, a Queen Anne-style mansion set in a 26-acre park with exhibits, tours and garden walks; Czech Village, a restored section of what was the shopping district for thousands of Czech, Moravian and Slovak immigrants who immigrated to Cedar Rapids since the early 1900s; and the National Motorcycle Museum in nearby Anamosa, which has a fabulous collection of more than 180 vintage motorcycles from around the world, antique posters and collectibles. For golfers, Cedar Rapids has more than 40 golf courses in and around the city.

Iowa Great Lakes

A beautiful chain of glacier-carved lakes, this area extends southwest from the Minnesota border and spans about 15,000 acres. The Iowa Great Lakes include Iowa’s largest natural lake, Spirit Lake and five smaller interconnected lakes.. The region encompasses towns such as Arnolds Park, Estherville, Milford, Okoboji, Spencer and Spirit Lake. Enjoy boating, fishing, swimming, sailing, water-skiing, parasailing, canoeing, kayaking and wakeboarding for some water based fun in this land of lakes. For the kids and adult thrill seekers, Historic Arnolds Park is a must see. It was built in 1889 and is one of the longest operating amusement parks in the world. It’s also home to The Legend, a wooden roller coaster, as well as live concerts and sandy beaches.

Golf

Iowans love to play golf and there are more than 400 golf courses and resorts in the state. The leading golf destinations for weekend golf getaways are Cedar Rapids, Des Moines, Sioux City and Waterloo. Some of the best public access courses in Iowa are The Harvester in Rhodes, Blue Top Ridge at Riverside, The Preserve on Rathburn Lake in Moravia, Spirit Hollow in Burlington, and Amana Colonies in Amana. The golf resort line-up includes Riverside Casino and Golf Resort and Honey Creek Resort State Park on Rathburn Lake.

Iowa State Fair

Staged in early August, the Iowa State Fair is quintessential Americana and is often billed as “America’s Classic State Fair.” Held at the 400-acre Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines, it features competitions, agricultural exhibits and one of the world’s largest livestock shows, not to mention classic fair food with everything from corn dogs and cotton candy to funnel cakes and fried Twinkies.