Heritage Carousel

Activity Overview

The Heritage Carousel is a popular children's attraction in Des Moines' Union Park. It is a charmingly designed hand crafted and hand painted turn of the century replica carousel. It's a fun activity for everyone aged 1 to 101. When you visit you can enjoy the rest of Union Park, one of the biggest parks in the city, too. There are quite a few things to keep you busy here including the ever popular Rocket Slide. The Carousel only runs from late spring until early fall.

Things to Do

• The Carousel is a fun, and cheap, way to fill a while with your kids. Children ride for 50 cents while the adult ticket is only a dollar so you won't be breaking the bank. The whole ride is soundtracked by an organ playing classic merry-go-round music. The whole experience is rather quaint and all the more enjoyable for it!
• Another fun attraction is the Union Park Rocket Slide. It is essentially another relic of a bygone age, though it is more recent having been installed in the late 60's. With a fresh coat of paint it still serves and brings fun to the local children of the area!

Heritage Carousel Insider Tips

• The Carousel is closed to the general public on Mondays though it can still be used on these days for private and special events.
• Be sure to print off a coupon for the Carousel that gets you a free ride once you have already paid for one ride.
• A fun way to support the carousel and keep it maintained for generations to come is to adopt one of the hand crafted animals.