Why You Should Take A Road Trip to Bloomington, IN This Summer

by | May 28, 2019 | Tales From The Road

What would you say if your college town asked if you wanted to create some fun travel content about them?

YES! YES, OF COURSE, ABSOLUTELY!

That was basically my response. Yep, you could certainly call me an enthusiastic Hoosier!

As an Indiana University graduate, I’ve known for a while that there is so much more to Bloomington, Indiana than the venerable university sitting in its center. Bloomington is a city of culture, charm, and character in its own right, making it an ideal weekend road trip destination for any savvy Midwesterner.

Nestled in the forested hills of south-central Indiana, Bloomington is a four hour drive from my hometown of Chicago, and is also driving distance from many other cities! Plus, it’s only an hour from the Indianapolis airport, and has an hourly direct shuttle for $23. Easy peasy, folks!

  • 1 hour & 15 minutes from Indianapolis, IN
  • 2 hours from Louisville, KY
  • 2 hours & 45 minutes from Cincinnati, OH
  • 3 hours & 30 minutes from Lexington, KY
  • 3 hours & 45 minutes from Columbus, OH
  • 3 hours & 45 minutes from St. Louis, MO
  • 4 hours from Chicago, IL
  • 4 hours & 30 minutes from Nashville, TN
  • 5 hours & 30 minutes from Detroit, MI and Milwaukee, WI

But why go? What is there to see when you get there?

SO MUCH, I PROMISE!!!!

My husband Derek and I love a good road trip, so we jumped at the chance to hit the pavement for an adventure down to our college town a couple weeks ago. I was thrilled to partner with Visit Btown for their #BtownExplorer scavenger hunt program – especially because it gave me a great excuse to visit the town where I met my husband!

Me and Derek hitting the road on Friday evening to head to Btown!

Once Derek and I arrived at our hotel (the Home2 Suites by Hilton on Walnut St.), we quickly noted our room’s full kitchen and spacious layout. What a treat! Since the Visit Btown team had selected our hotel, we were delighted to try out this newcomer, which had been built after we graduated. I loved that it offered a continental breakfast complete with make-your-own waffles! Plus, the full kitchen gave us everything we needed to cook and eat some meals in our room. Definitely a viable option to consider as an alternative to an AirBNB – especially if you are traveling with a family or have a longer stay.

The kitchen and breakfast area in our King Suite at the hotel!
Cute decor in the Home2 Suites Bloomington lobby!

After eating breakfast on Saturday morning, Derek and I jumped in a Lyft and began Visit Btown’s epic scavenger hunt around town. Their team had compiled a list of Bloomington sites for our visit, and IT WAS SO MUCH FUN! I documented the entire hunt below in a travel vlog for you all to enjoy!

In the above video, you’ll see that we unfortunately encountered some rainy skies, but luckily Bloomington is filled with so many activities, cozy coffeehouses, and delicious restaurants that we still had plenty to do!

Specifically, we were able to explore and capture the below Bloomington hotspots throughout the weekend – all of which are quintessentially “B-town.”

My #BtownExplorer Scavenger Hunt Destinations:

IU’s Sample Gates – the beautiful entryway to Indiana University!
  • Dunn Woods nature paths
Nature paths in the middle of IU’s campus!
The Showalter Fountain depicts the Birth of Venus, and welcomes visitors to the IU Auditorium’s front entrance.
Admission is free! Just another way Bloomington shows that it values the arts!
The farmer’s market is only open until 1pm so make sure to get there early!
Biking is HUGE in Bloomington thanks to the town’s annual Little 500 bike race! Bike trails are everywhere, and you can bike along the B-Line trail through town!
Derek refueled with some delicious tacos at Social Cantina across from the courthouse!
  • Monroe County Courthouse in the center of the downtown square
  • Griffy Lake (dirt trail hiking, boat rentals)
  • Hopscotch coffeehouse
I got the cold brew coffee at Hopscotch to help caffeinated for Saturday night on the town!
The pretty view outside the gift shop!
One of many places for the monks to pray and meditate at the TMBCC
Among tons of creative flavors, they also serve a couple dairy free options!

With that, I want to include a few more of my recommended stops (because what’s a couple more options for your itinerary, right?)! I suppose it’s hard to go wrong in Bloomington – there’s  something for everyone!

My Additional Bloomington Area Recommendations:

The crazy thing is that despite the number of items on the two lists above, you still have tons of other fun restaurants, nightlife, and activities to choose from during a visit to Bloomington. Breweries? Yep! Escape Room? Yep! There are hundreds of places to eat, drink, and hear live tunes. The town is your oyster, dear travelers!

Feel free to check out Visit Btown’s website here for more help with planning a trip!

Also, if you have any questions about my trip to Bloomington, feel free to leave them in the comments and I’m happy to answer them! Happy travels, everyone!

Note: this post is sponsored by Visit Btown (@visitbtown), but all opinions expressed are wholly my own.

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