6 Quirky Midwest Roadside Attractions Within A Day’s Drive of Kansas City
Kansas City’s position near the heart of the Midwest puts a collection of strange, charming and thoroughly one-of-a-kind roadside attractions within a day’s driving distance for a summer getaway.
Here are six unique stops that are totally worth a trip around the region.
World’s Largest Ball of Twine — Cawker City, Kansas (3.5–4 hours drive)
The nearest oddity on this list sits right over the state border in Kansas. A farmer named Frank Stoeber started the World’s Largest Ball of Twine in 1953 after accumulating leftover twine from years of feeding his cows bales of hay. He thought it would be a fun activity and good exercise to roll it into a giant ball, so he did.
The ball soon appeared at the county fair and the city’s Centennial parade, becoming a full-blown attraction. It now weighs over 17,000 lbs, and it’s still growing — visitors are invited to add to it. Call or email Ball of Twine Caretaker Linda Clover, and she will give you a tour, history lesson and some sisal twine to contribute to the ball.
American Gothic House — Eldon, Iowa (4–4.5 hours drive)
The American Gothic House in Eldon, Iowa, is the actual farmhouse from Grant Wood’s iconic 1930 painting “American Gothic.” The visitor’s center is open year-round, Wednesday through Sunday — check their events calendar online for any holidays or changes. You can pose in front of the house for photos and even borrow a pitchfork and period costume from the visitor’s center. Posing is available any time, dawn till dusk, even when the visitor’s center is closed.
Corn Palace — Mitchell, South Dakota (6.5–7 hours drive)
Established in 1892, the Corn Palace is a massive building covered entirely in murals made from real corn, grain and grasses. The murals are redesigned every year with a new theme. The palace also hosts an annual festival with food, entertainment and carnival rides.
Gemini Giant — Wilmington, Illinois (7–7.5 hours drive)
The Gemini Giant is a 28-foot fiberglass 1960s “Muffler Man” astronaut holding a silver rocket. Named after Project Gemini, NASA’s second human spaceflight program that ran from 1961 to 1966, the statue stood outside a Route 66 diner from 1965 to 2024. In 2024, the Joliet Area Historical Museum acquired it with the goal of preserving it and moved it to Wilmington’s South Island Park — a memory of the Space Age craze preserved for a new generation of road-trippers.
The Spam Museum — Austin, Minnesota (7–8 hours drive)
The Spam Museum in Austin, Minn., is a free museum entirely dedicated to the canned pork product. Its interactive exhibits cover the brand’s history, uses and popularity during World War II. A gift shop stocks fun and quirky Spam merch.
Carhenge — Alliance, Nebraska (12–13 hours drive)
Carhenge is a full-scale replica of Stonehenge built entirely out of vintage American cars painted gray, sitting in the middle of the Nebraska plains. Jim Reinders created it in 1987 in memory of his late father, who used to live on the farmland where the sculpture stands. It’s open year-round, from dawn to dusk. A gift shop is open seasonally. While this one may be ambitious for a short trip, it’s totally worth a stop if you’re heading out that way.
For KC-area families looking for a budget-friendly summer adventure, any of these attractions makes for an affordable outing. Most are free or low-cost, and the drive itself is half the fun.
This article was created by content specialists using various tools, including AI.
