Iowa's Amana Colonies are a group of seven communal villages originally settled by German Pietists in the mid-1850s amid rolling hills, valleys and farmland along the banks of the Iowa River. A National Historic Landmark since 1965, the communities are a major tourist draw and home to museums, barns, artisan shops, restaurants and recreational amenities. If you'd like to stay overnight on your visit to the colonies, a variety of accommodation options are available, including a large seasonal campground for tents, trailers and RVs.
Amana Colonies RV Park and Event Center is a 60-acre campground that lies about a half-mile east of the village of Amana and within a short drive of many Amana Colonies attractions. The park has 414 RV sites that are 30 feet wide and accommodate vehicles up to 75 feet long, including 136 sites with full hookups and 278 with electric and water hookups only. Another 48 sites are available for tent camping. All campsites are level, with most including picnic tables and fire rings.
The campground is typically open from April to October. Additional amenities include free Wi-Fi, restrooms with showers, laundry facilities, a campground store and an RV sanitation station that accommodates up to four vehicles at one time. Three on-site buildings provide more than 20,000 square feet of space for meetings and events. Reservations are accepted online, with discounted rates available for large groups or RV rallies. Overnight fees include up to two adults, as well as children ages 14 and younger, with a small fee charged for each additional adult. Pets are allowed in the campground.
The Amana Colonies RV Park and Event Center has a number of on-site events and activities, such as arts and craft shows, music festivals and sports competitions. The campground is near recreational amenities such as Lily Lake, the Kolonieweg Recreation Trail and Amana Colonies Golf Club. Other attractions within a mile of the campground include the Old Creamery Theatre, the Ox Yoke Inn restaurant and the Amana Heritage Museum. The museum includes a 19th-century home, schoolhouse and exhibits that tell the story of the colonies' early days.
If you're visiting during colder months when the campground is not open, Amana Colonies has other year-round accommodations that include hotels and bed-and-breakfast inns. The Amana Colonies Convention & Visitors Bureau also recommends several other nearby campgrounds, the closest of which is F.W. Kent Park, a Johnson County facility in Oxford, about 12 miles west of Amana. The park's year-round campground includes 86 sites with electric hookups, picnic tables and fire rings. Other amenities include restrooms and showers, an RV sanitation station, hiking trails and a 27-acre lake for fishing and swimming.
