Do you like festivals, farmer’s markets, and outdoor activities?

How about volunteering, taking in plays and cultural events? Whatever you love to do, Pella may have the perfect fit for you.

RETAIL, RESTAURANT & HOSPITALITY
Pella is a hub for tourism! Guests enjoy cultural and historic sights, as well as a flourishing downtown district with unique local shops and restaurants. If you have a passion for baking, culinary arts, fashion, apparel, or merchandise, we have that too! To support visitor and corporate travel, Pella is also home to several hotels.

PARKS
The City of Pella manages over 15 different parks that house a variety of facilities, including tennis courts, soccer fields, pickleball courts, and winter ice skating. Throughout the year, residents of the area can take part in a number of recreation programs from youth basketball, flag football, and soccer to adult co-ed softball and sand volleyball. The City of Pella Indoor Pool is open year-round and the outdoor Aquatic Center is open seasonally, both offer lap swim, swim lessons, water aerobics, and more.

GOLF
The community features two golf courses, the 9-hole private Pella Golf & Country Club and the 18-hole public Bos Landen Golf Resort, as well as a disc golf course at Roberts Creek. Residents can use PRC Health and Fitness or Anytime Fitness, Pella’s two health and fitness facilities. The community is also home to a variety of classes, such as martial arts, yoga, aerobics, and more.

OUTDOOR
Lake Red Rock is the perfect place for camping, boating, canoeing, swimming, bike riding, walking, picnicking, fishing and relaxing on the beach. It is Iowa’s largest man-made lake with anywhere from 15-to-17,000 square acres of surface water and is located just minutes southwest of town.

The Roberts Creek County Park on the north side of the lake offers hunters the opportunity to encounter one of Iowa’s famous trophy bucks. Lake Prairie Hunting Preserve just north of Pella has over 1,500 licensed acres of prime hunting ground along with trained hunting dogs, guided turkey hunts, and a clay course.

The Volksweg Trail (“A People’s Path”) runs 14 miles along Lake Red Rock into Pella and is ideal for rollerblading, biking, walking, jogging and even cross-country skiing during the winter.

ART
If creating art is your passion, there are many opportunities in Pella! The Pella Community Center hosts workshops for adults and kids alike, including after school art programs.

To view others’ creative works, there are several art galleries in the area. Within Pella, the Joan Kuyper Farver Art Gallery is housed inside the Pella Community Center, and Central College’s Mills Gallery hosts student works and featured artists from around the world. The Des Moines Art Center features over 5,000 permanent works of modern art, as well as visiting exhibits.

LITERATURE
Pella is home to a beautiful library facility. If you enjoy reading, you will not be disappointed! The Pella Public Library features programming for children and adult book clubs, so it is easy to meet others who share your literary enthusiasm.

MUSIC
Really enjoy playing music? Consider City Band! Entirely comprised of Pella and area residents, this community band entertains crowds every Thursday night in June and July. If you enjoy listening to music, there are always great concerts lined up at Central College and the Pella Opera House. Central College is especially known for “Flying Pans” (a Caribbean steel drum band), and jazz ensembles. Nearby, Des Moines’ Iowa Events Center and Des Moines Performing Arts frequently host top names in the music industry.

THEATER
Pella has great options for theater! If you have a passion for drama then consider trying out for a play by Union Street Players, our local award-winning theater group. The Pella Opera House hosts some great acts as well, including acclaimed children’s theater programming. Central College’s theater also features great student productions, which the public is invited to attend. In nearby downtown Des Moines, it is only a short drive to the Des Moines Civic Center to enjoy Broadway touring productions and other major shows.