Des Moines (Polk County, IA)

Around Des Moines ...

For comparison, Des Moines has a population of 212,000 people.

Below is a sample of neighboring communities based on their distance from Des Moines, with the nearest first.

Country Estate Village
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Country Estate Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Country Estate Village
- Country Estate Village is located in Polk County
Marquisville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marquisville
- Marquisville is located in Polk County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Marquisville
- From Des Moines to Marquisville
Windsor Heights
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Windsor Heights have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Windsor Heights
- Windsor Heights is located in Polk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,735 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Windsor Heights <3>
Saylorville
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saylorville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saylorville
- Saylorville is located in Polk County
Berwick
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Berwick. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<4>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berwick
- Berwick is located in Polk County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Berwick
- From Des Moines to Berwick
Carney
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Carney. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<4>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carney
- Carney is located in Polk County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Carney
- From Des Moines to Carney
Pleasant Hill
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pleasant Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Hill
- Pleasant Hill is located in Polk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 10,025 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pleasant Hill <3>
Rising Sun
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Rising Sun. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<4>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rising Sun
- Rising Sun is located in Polk County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Rising Sun
- From Des Moines to Rising Sun
Johnston
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Johnston have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Johnston
- Johnston is located in Polk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 23,092 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Johnston <3>
Continue List (6 more) ...
- Lakewood
  (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  - Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakewood
  - Lakewood is located in Warren County
  - Google driving directions:
  - From your current location to Lakewood
  - From Des Moines to Lakewood
- Altoona
  (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  - Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Altoona have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  - Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Altoona
  - Altoona is located in Polk County
  - Population from the 2020 Census: 19,503 people
  - Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Altoona <3>
- Ankeny
  (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
  - Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ankeny have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  - Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ankeny
  - Ankeny is located in Polk County
  - Population from the 2020 Census: 70,068 people
  - Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ankeny <3>
- Commerce
  (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  - Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Commerce. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<4>
  - Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Commerce
  - Commerce is located in Polk County
  - Google driving directions:
  - From your current location to Commerce
  - From Des Moines to Commerce
- Norwalk
  (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  - Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Norwalk have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  - Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Norwalk
  - Norwalk is located in Polk County
  - Population from the 2020 Census: 12,449 people
  - Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Norwalk <3>
- Orillia
  (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
  - Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Orillia. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<4>
  - Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orillia
  - Orillia is located in Warren County
  - Google driving directions:
  - From your current location to Orillia
  - From Des Moines to Orillia

For more communities neighboring Des Moines, please visit our County-by-County Page for Des Moines.

Polk County ...

Des Moines is primarily located in Polk County<5> and is the County Seat. A portion of Des Moines extends into Warren County.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Polk County: Boone, Dallas, Jasper, Madison, Marion, Story & Warren.

Curious and Interesting Names Near Des Moines ...

It seems like there is always a nearby community with a name that seems interesting, maybe familiar or just catches our attention in some other way. We've collected some names which strike us as being curious or interesting. Our list can be found on the Tidbits & Trivia Page for Des Moines.

Airports Near Des Moines ...

When a trip includes a flight, we try to find an airport that best fits our travel plans.<6> To that purpose, we've assembled a list of that are relatively close to Des Moines and that information can be found on the Airports Page for Des Moines.

TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Des Moines ...

Looking for more information about Des Moines? A good source is the TripAdvisor website and we always start with their TripAdvisor page for Des Moines. Their page will give you an overview and then additional links that will help you to find lodging, restaurants and attractions.

In addition to the TripAdvisor page for Des Moines, there are neighboring communities that also have TripAdvisor pages. A list of those communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for Des Moines.

Websites We Enjoy ...

When we're planning a trip, we like to check the following websites for sights, attractions and places to visit.

For the State of Iowa:
TripAdvisor Links for:
- Iowa Statewide Tourism
- Des Moines Tourism
- Additional neighboring communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for Des Moines
Also of Interest:

Off-the-Road Links ...

The official website for Des Moines: www.dmgov.org/

The official website for Polk County: www.co.polk.ia.us/

The official website for State of Iowa: https://www.iowa.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>	Population counts have been provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. For more detail, please visit our Census Page for Des Moines.
<2>	The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<3>	While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<4>	An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<5>	If you're interested in how the shape of Iowa's counties, including Polk, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
<6>	When we are planning a trip (for example, to Des Moines), we usually look for the obvious: the choice of airlines that fly into the airport, the number of flights, the connections we have to make, which car rentals are available, etc. We also look for sights and attractions that we might find between any given airport and our destination - we do love exploring. We're willing to fly into a more distant airport if we can get the services and amenities that we like. Even though our choice of airport might be inconvenient to others, it usually gives us a better trip.