7 Iowa zipline adventures for every thrill level
Iowa’s many ziplines offer experiences ranging from heart-pumping to relaxing. Discover the Iowa zipline best suited for your preferred thrill level.
Ziplines offer fun for all ages—from thrill-seeking adults to adventurous children. In Iowa, there are a number of zipline adventures to embark on, both indoors and outdoors, and at a variety of thrill levels and price points. Some ziplines are as long as 1,000 feet, while others offer a much shorter ride. Whatever thrill level you seek, there is an Iowa zipline adventure to meet your needs.
1. SkyTours Zipline
Embark on a guided two-hour adventure through historic Union Park with SkyTours Zipline. This family-friendly zipline experience takes riders through the rolling hills of Union Park and includes a history lesson of Dubuque and Union Park’s amusement park. The ziplines range in length from 300 to 1,000 feet, and there is a dual 800-foot zipline for riders who want to race one another. This adventure also includes three short hikes—about one-third of a mile each—on mild-difficulty trails.
Cost: Tickets start at $75. Discounts are available for active and retired military service members.
Address: 11764 JFK Rd., Dubuque
2. DEFY
DEFY, an indoor air sport park, offers a kid-friendly zipline experience. Riders hang onto handlebars and zip over a foam pit, which they eventually land in at the conclusion of the ride. In addition to its zipline adventure, DEFY is home to numerous trampolines and other activities, such as extreme dodgeball and battle beams.
Cost: Standard Pass tickets, which are valid for 90 minutes of play, start at $21.99. All Day Pass tickets start at $32.99.
Address: 851 Hwy. 6 E., Ste. 102, Iowa City
3. The Fun Station
The Fun Station, an indoor family fun center, has three locations in Iowa, all of which offer a wide variety of attractions and games to enjoy. The Dubuque location is the only outpost that includes a zipline, and it also offers slick slides—described as water slides without the water—an arcade, and tons of trampolines.
The Cedar Rapids and Quad Cities locations each feature their own attractions, including climbing walls, bumper cars, axe throwing, ropes courses, and mini bowling.
Cost: To access the zipline rail, you must purchase an Ultimate Ticket, which costs $29.99 and includes all-day admission to all attractions and a $10 game card for the arcade.
Address: 555 John F. Kennedy Rd. #400, Dubuque
4. Urban Air Adventure & Trampoline Park
Urban Air Adventure & Trampoline Park has enough attractions to keep thrill seekers busy all day long. The Sky Rider is a zipline-like experience that takes riders through the adventure park, allowing them to scout out other attractions from above. The ride is advertised as “no skill, all thrill,” so it’s an excellent option for all ages.
Other attractions at Urban Air include a ropes course, climbing walls, trampolines, a battle beam, a slam dunk zone, and trampoline dodgeball.
Cost: To access the zipline, you must purchase an Ultimate Attractions ticket for $31.99. A Shorty 40 ticket is available for children 40 inches tall or shorter for $12.99.
Address: 2829 S. Ankeny Blvd., Ankeny
5. University of Iowa Challenge Course
The University of Iowa’s Challenge Course features obstacles similar to those you’d expect to find in a military obstacle course. However, they’re designed so people of all fitness levels can participate. The course features a combination of eight low elements (directly on the ground up to 10 feet tall) and 22 high elements (from 13 to 25 feet tall), including a zipline.
Unlike the other zipline adventures in this roundup, you can’t just show up and buy an individual ticket. The course was designed as a team-building challenge, and you must fill out a request form before you can participate.
Cost: Ticket prices start at $20 per person but vary widely based on several factors, such as whether or not you’re affiliated with the university.
Address: 2960 Hawkeye Park Rd., Iowa City
6. Sky Zone
At Sky Zone, an active indoor entertainment park, you’ll find plenty of ways to play. In addition to a zipline, there are a number of other aerial and jumping activities and attractions, such as sky silks, sky slam, freestyle jump, and an air basketball court. The park also has a Ninja Warrior-style obstacle course, a foam zone, dodgeball, tug of war over a foam pit, and a toddler zone for younger adventurers. At night, the park transforms into a jumping dance club with music, lasers, and blacklights.
Note: We were unable to confirm if Sky Zone’s Cedar Rapids location has a zipline, so call ahead before visiting or head to the Grimes location if ziplining is a must for you.
Cost: Single-day passes start at $22 for 90 minutes of play or $29 for all-day access. Glow tickets cost $25.
Address: 1300 SE Gateway Dr., Ste. 103, Grimes and 5515 Council St. NE, Cedar Rapids
7. Treehouse Village
Treehouse Village, part of the Iowa Arboretum & Gardens, has its very own zipline. The village consists of a wooden, elevated play structure with swings, slides, and climbing ropes, multiple treehouses, a suspension bridge, and, of course, a zipline.
In addition to Treehouse Village, you can explore the arboretum and gardens and the many prairie and woodland walking trails.
Cost: To access Treehouse Village, you must purchase a ticket to Iowa Arboretum & Gardens. Tickets for those 13 years and older cost $12. Tickets for children aged three through 12 cost $7, and kids under three get in free.
Address: 1875 Peach Ave., Madrid
Bonus: Iowa Parks
Several parks throughout Iowa have their own ziplines, perfect for those looking for a free or low-cost ziplining experience for children.
Aurora Park in Newton features a zipline as well as a gaga ball pit, climbing walls, a skate park, basketball and tennis courts, and a playground with swings, slides, and monkey bars.
In Des Moines, Riverview Park, located where Riverview Amusement Park once lived, features a zipline designed to look like a roller coaster—an homage to the now-shuttered amusement park. The park also has an amphitheater, walking and biking trails, and a playground.
As far as public park ziplines go, Deer Creek Park’s is one of the longest. Located in Ankeny, this park has two playgrounds—one for toddlers and one for older kids—a basketball court, walking and biking trails, and picnic shelters. The zipline is large enough that adults can ride it too.
Marion County Park in Knoxville, Mega-10 Park in Marshalltown, Lawbaugh Park in Stuart, and Walnut Creek Regional Park in Urbandale are just a few other parks in Iowa with ziplines worth checking out.
Our stories may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. We ask that you edit only for style or to shorten, provide proper attribution and link to our web site. Please see our republishing guidelines for use of photos and graphics.
