Is This the Most Scenic and “Instagrammable” Attraction in Iowa?

It's a tired old cliché that when people think of Iowa, they think of farmlands and cornfields. There's a reason those images come to mind, yes, but there is also an abundance of natural beauty to be found within the Hawkeye State.

The website FloridaPanhandle.com recently conducted a comprehensive study on the most #hashtagged locations in all 50 states. To put it more scientifically, they looked at the locales that generated the most social media traction. Before even viewing the results of the study, I tried to think what could top the list?

Spirit Lake, IA? It has a ton of beautiful homes and gorgeous scenery. Pella, IA? It's been renowned for its quaint, Dutch aesthetics. But neither of those two were found to be the most "Instagrammable" spot in all of Iowa.

Before we get to Iowa's most marquee attraction, here are some key findings from FloridaPanhandle's research:

• Central Park has 133,881 reviews and still remains at an astounding 4.5 rating… on top of its 437K followers on Instagram.
• The most followed attraction on this list is the Burj Khalifa with over 2 million followers, and the most rated is La Sagrada Familia with over 165,000 reviews.
• Orlando, FL is home to the most hashtagged attraction in America. Walt Disney World reigns at over 10,150,394 hashtags… and counting (#waltdisneyworld)
• One monument favorite like the #libertybell has over 150,000 tags, while the #washingtonmonument has over 600,000. When comparing the number of reviews to each, they both have over 4,000 TripAdvisor reviews each and are rated as a 4.5.
• One of the most followed and high hashtagged attractions is based in the beautiful Colorado. Red Rocks Park and Amphitheater not only has 1,646,116 #redrocks tags, but the Red Rocks Instagram has over 450K followers.

When it comes to Iowa, Lake Okoboji was deemed the most "Instagrammable" location in the state. Anyone who has been to Lake Okoboji knows that some of the most scenic and gorgeous views in the entire region belong to this location. Whether it's summer or winter, the lake sees a variety of tourists from all over the country:

According to information obtained from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, West Lake Okoboji is comprised of 3,847 surface acres of water with an average depth of 38 feet and maximum depth of 136 feet. There are 19.8 miles of shoreline around West Lake and the natural drainage basin is fed by 13,668 acres of land or approximately 22 square miles. - per Vacation Okoboji

If the beautiful water, and the fact that approximately 47 species of fish can be found in West Lake Okoboji alone, there are a few notable state parks located along the shores of the West Lake:

Three State Parks are located along the shores of West Lake, including Pillsbury Point, Gull Point, and Pike’s Point that is located adjacent to the City of Okoboji’s northern city limits. West Lake Okoboji is considered a blue water lake formed by glacial movements retreating north, and is only one of three blue water lakes in the world. - per Vacation Okoboji

When it came to one of the most popular destinations of all, London was the big overall winner, with several spots being incredibly "Instagrammable:"

The UK, in particular, is home to several locations with a high count of pictures on social media. #bigben has over 3 million hashtags on Instagram, #towerbridge has 2,762,642, and #nottinghill has over 1.5 million… Not to forget about #conventgarden and #buckinghampalace that each have over 1 million tags. - per Florida Panhandle

See the complete study on Florida Panhandle's website!