10 Best Things to Do in Indiana

Brown County State Park is home to seemingly endless outdoor adventures with the backdrop of scenic vistas, vibrant greenery, and inviting lake waters. Whether you're looking to relax with a bit of fishing or an easy hike, or you'd rather challenge yourself on a biking trail or boating excursion, Brown County State Park has it all. Don't forget to check out the horseback riding as well, as the local barns have both horses and ponies to ride, so the whole family can take part.

Antique Alley is a 60-mile stretch of road between Richmond and Knightstown that's home to more than 1,000 antique dealers. If antiquing is more than just a casual hobby to you, visiting Antique Alley could have you leaving with a car full of treasures. The highest concentration of antique shops along this road is in Cambridge City, where you'll find an entire antique mall. While you'll find plenty of antique shops along this road, it also grants access to the picturesque Indiana countryside, so you can enjoy the tranquil fields and vibrant trees as well.

The Children's Museum of Indianapolis is state of the art with 5 floors of exciting exhibits and more than 100,000 artefacts to examine. It's split into 3 different sections: the Cultural World Collection, the Natural World Collection, and the American Collection. All of the collections contain fascinating pieces, but the simulated living dinosaur, the old steam train, and the largest water clock in the world tend to stand out. Adults and children alike can enjoy this museum, as the sheer number of exhibits virtually guarantees that you'll learn something.

The Spirit of Jasper Train is a historic steam train that offers rides along with food, drink, and a romantic atmosphere. When you book a ride on this train from Jasper Depot to a wide variety of Indiana locations like French Lick, you can experience one of the most popular methods of transport from the past. The ride is notably comfortable thanks to the lounge cars that are climate-controlled with served meals and drinks. Couple that environment with the backdrop of the tranquil Indiana countryside, and your ride may be downright romantic.

Parke County's covered bridges are traversable by car and include 31 structures with unique histories that you can drive through for scenic views and vibrant nature. The bridges are notably well-maintained along with the roads and nature around them. You can also enjoy the Covered Bridge Festival if you visit during October. No matter when you travel, you may want to visit the Portland Mills Covered Bridge, one of the oldest covered bridges in the county, along with the surrounding village and its delicious food offerings of classic American fare.

Turkey Run State Park is home to a wide variety of outdoor offerings including incredible sandstone cliffs and deep ravines along with welcoming hemlock groves and hauntingly alluring old trees. Much of the wilderness in this park dates back hundreds of years with towering trees, but it's still easily navigable. You can venture through this park on foot, on a bike, or even on horseback depending on the trail you opt for. If you happen to visit during the summer, you can even go for a swim in the local river, while fishing on Sugar Creek is popular all year long.

Indiana Dunes State Park offers coastal fun for outdoor adventurers with its beaches and trails located along Lake Michigan. You'll find more than 15 miles of coastline here, and the beach is welcoming with calm lake waters that are safe for the whole family. If you're more interested in hiking, you'll find over 70 miles of trails throughout the area that can take you along the coast, through tallgrass prairies, and even to a mountain. Don't forget to check out the local birds as well, as more than 300 species call this park home.

Holiday World & Splashin' Safari is a theme park where you can enjoy all sorts of rides throughout the park's 4 holiday-based sections. These themed sections are focused around Thanksgiving, Christmas, Independence Day, and Halloween. All ages are welcome, as there are rides suitable for everyone, but the wooden coasters are especially popular. In addition, the Wildebeest and Mammoth water coasters are the 2 longest in the world. You'll find an entire water park as well that makes it easy to stay cool during the warm summer weather.

The Market Street Catacombs lie beneath the Indianapolis City Market where you can explore a Romanesque collection of tunnels and brick arches underground. The catacombs were once the basement of the Tomlinson Hall building, which burned down decades ago. When you explore the remnants of this once-imposing building, you'll see a series of intricately crafted brick arches in a barrel-vaulted style that are simultaneously fascinating and a bit odd. You'll find no bones in these catacombs, but the empty archways look as though they're the bones of a once tall-standing structure.

Falls of the Ohio State Park is the legendary meeting place of Lewis and Clark, and it's home to abundant natural history including fossils. The geological offerings of this park have drawn in curious visitors from all over the world looking to see the Jeffersonville Limestone fossil beds for themselves. You can learn more about them in detail by visiting the nearby interpretive centre, which also offers info about nearby settlements. Don't forget to visit the banks of the Ohio River, where you'll find impressive limestone formations.