Reviews of Indiana Dunes Tourism (Park)

Bruce Provencher

Nice clean visitor center with very clean bathrooms. Great people working the counter here to dole out all kinds of information.

Philip R

Have not been to the Dunes for many years (live out of state), but pleased to see a larger building, larger parking area with bus space. Located right off US 20. Short drive to the Dunes and lakeshore in the state park. Gift shop, National Park stamps (for N.P. Passports), tourism materials, restrooms.

Kathy Noerenberg

A staff member was extremely helpful in researching bird sightings locations which was my purpose in visiting IN Dunes SP and in giving me relevant good maps of the area and other written information. Very nice place, conveniently located after exit Tollway and before IN Dunes area with spacious and clean bathrooms.

Rychelle Cross

Friendly staff! Information on the area is bountiful. Activities to educate children and adults. While there make sure to ask for info on the junior ranger program for any children with you. Beautiful wild flowers adorn the outside.

John Roggenbuck

A beautiful place to visit!! A must at least once in life

Angie Buis

Love it! Headed back today!

Jenni Harris

This area is a fantastic place to visit... we hiked around, visited the beach and old bathhouse...the kids loved skipping rocks, exploring previous visitors' driftwood forts and greeting dogs on the beach...having a dog friendly beach was really nice. We started the Three Dune challenge but got distracted on the beach...great signage and facilities...we also scoped out the camp ground from afar...you can not just drive through the camp ground to look around but we can appreciate that....hiking the dunes and beach was the highlight of our visit to the area!

Teresa Bertrand

Lots of cool interactive exibits. Fun for kids of all ages. Lots of free maps and regional info. Pgms are great but had to be cancelled due to gov shutdown.

Bill Wood

Very helpful, interesting information. Well worth the time do stop.

Matthew Schwarte

There is always someone very helpful here, and it is a good idea to stop here because many of the Park's sites are scattered around and can be confusing to find. The exhibits are free and the clean restrooms can be a godsend.

Richard Green

Small but very informative. Well worth the time to stop and see the exhibit. Friendly Park Ranger too.

Katherine Brewer

Great trails, easy walking and dog friendly.

Rebecca Kidwell

The visitor center is well clean, informative, and has an area for kids to learn about the area. Also, there are nice picnic areas around. If you have a dog, there are dog bags around to help pick up and dispose.

Caleb Rothe

Nice visitors center. Very helpful staff!

Melissa Langhals

Great hiking trails that even a six year old could handle.

Venkateshwarlu Patcha

Nice

Rusty Koll

A lot of fun and a beautiful piece of land!

Jim Kawa

Extremely helpful. Pointed us to the right beach on a holiday weekend so we didn't have to wait over an hour in line.

Mary Lee

A knowledgeable ranger is available to provide answers to questions, maps & area guides are available & the facilities are clean. There is art outside of the building. Also, there is 24/7 shelter at the entrance to wait out a storm or wild animals.

Kathy Keilman

Friendly helpful staff ..products are priced high for the tourist.

Zaxley Nash

I love my Dunes

Sharon Jones

Great place for information . Very helpful and friendly workers too!

Bing Law

Perfect place to be, it feels like a different world. It amazes me how nature stands out perfectly.

Justin George

Stopped through on the way to the campground. Really nice folk working there. Plenty to look at, and a nice gift shop. I would recommend stopped on the way out of the park, on account of the park (including nature center) does not have a very good gift shop.

Rachel Page

The welcome center is really nice with abb area for kids. You could watch a video too.

Allen Wood

Staff was very nice and courteous and very helpful. Got all the information I needed for my trip

Court

Beautiful beaches. Simple getaway without having to leave the states. The areas with free parking are always a plus, too.

Annamaria Pahi

Great place to get help, maps, broshures and a warm welcome.

Sheila Davis

As usual, a great visitor center. Wonderful interactive exhibits.

Vikas Dighe

Very warm and friendly staff

Sharon Sutton

Good information

Pam Navarro

Love our dunes!

David Starr

Enjoyed the park and peaceful outdoors

N B

Nice clean facilities. Very helpful staff. Lots of information about the region.

Shane Hughes

Everyone was friendly and gave some good info on the location and offered some good places to see.

Christina Emmert

3 Dunes Challenge was fun and the views were awesome!

K Stephens

Beautiful, but parking was not good, too far from the water

Eddie Hall

Very nice stopping off point before the beach.

John Bokram

Clean restrooms, great displays, Awesome gift shop, great for kids and campers, fabulous staff, visit when you arrive or on a cloudy Rainey day....

Sarah Parrish

Beautiful art outside and inside. Also there are really cool facts about Indiana inside along with art. A great excuse to get out and stretch your legs. Dog areas are nice and well maintained. They also had a bowl of water and treats for your puppers.

Jordan Peelman

Wonderful addition to the National Parks. They will give you a garbage bag at the visitor center if you ask. If you bring it back full of plastic you get a free water bottle. Trash cans everywhere on the beach, but people still litter. Anywho - beautiful place.

Drew Young

This was a nice little visitor center. Cool stuff to look at and learn about as well as activities for children as well as adults. Worth ching out.

Daniel Shryock

We were trying to find a good trail for the family (adventurous, but fairly young kiddos). Sandy at the visitors center was the best. She took her time with us, highlighted the cool trails on our map, and really connected with our family. Recommend you stop and talk with these fine people.

donna kavanagh

Beach...nature....animals ..!!!

Lexi Thornton

Great place to stop and get info on how to plan your Dunes visit. Friendly and knowledgeable staff made our visit amazing.

Amber Chris

Open daily and helpful staff

Kayla Anderson

Always educational

Kristi Huemoller

Awesome resources. Wonderful assistance from employees! Clean and easy to enjoy.

Tami Johnson White

Great place to hike. The beaches are beautiful. Family friendly.

Ann Stickel

Very interesting a d informative place. I highly recommend it to anyone visiting the dunes.

Bob Joslyn

Great park many facets.

Shelley Gorski

Lots of information. Brochures and flyers for all of northern Indiana. The staff were very nice and helpful. The area was very clean, especially considering the number of people that were in there. I stepped in and watched a movie for a moment - pleasent way to learn some history. Stepped into the next room and found some stuffed animals. One of the animals was a snow owl. I guess I know what happened to Hedwig :(

Gerry OBrien

Great place to visit any time of the year

Kowshik Eggoni

If you enjoy hiking, 3 dune challenge is a recommended activity.

Elena Cerrudo

Very helpful people. Very good maps and recomendations.

kitgrrrl

Nice visitor's center. Pamphlets galore and lots of stuff to explore, especially for kids. Small gift shop and knowledgeable staff. Front foyer is kept unlocked 24 hours with a phone for emergencies.

Marianne J. Ford

The park staff are knowledgeable and friendly. They have an abundance of information on local activities. The center is new, with artwork and plenty of educational features.

Brian Dudley

Great staff that can help you with all your Indiana Dunes questions.A great place to pick up a map.

Sara Murzyn

A good stop to get aquainted with the dunes recreational areas. Ask questions about best places to suit what type of recreational your family seeks. Public clean restrooms. Displays taht are great for kids.

Christopher Sherbak

Knowledgeable staff about the surrounding area.

Puneet Singh

Nice rangers. Good for kids to learn more about the national park, and find the right stuff to do based on your interests and ability.

Beverly Ruthven

Great family time

Heather M

Got there on a hot day, didn't know my way around, stopped in visitor center and founf the staff not so helpful. I wasn't aware there is a state park and a national park with different access, different amenities, different parking. Attitude of the employee at state visitor center was that we should already know the state park was going to be overful. She seemed aggravated to have to explain to me where tje other park was and what was different about it. Had to ask a million questions to get the full picture rather than her volunteering info.

Julie Pangle

Very helpful.

Jeremy Ginsberg

There is so much to do here! Don’t think you’ll just be able to stop by the visitors center, get your stamp and go. Amazing trails, knowledgeable Ranger staff, a very in-depth Junior Ranger program and so much to explore.

Cathi Partridge

Loved the Dune Challenge. Nice park with nice trails and beautiful view of Lake Michigan.

Kyle Telechan

Cool stop for travelers. Doubles as a Indiana Dunes Nature Center. New bike trail leads from the back of the parking lot into the Indiana Dunes State Park through some woods - all completely separated from the road.

Julian Corley

Great place to go hiking an take photos

Rick Avelar

Better then North Avenue in Chicago.

Debbie Kessel

Beautiful! Absolutely love

Appasaheb Adekar

Nice place for outing, clear water beach and less crowd

Wendy Kirts

Sent off for info and they were speedy in mailing my package!

Get Off The Couch

Very helpful and extremely friendly rangers and staff.

annapurna surekha

Good place, you can enjoy if the weather is pleasant. Clean and nice except that there are flies all over the beach which actually bite. Carry bug spray to enjoy your day at the beach.

Jay Phares

Be aware, the map from the office shows all roads being open... However, Beverly Dr between E. State Park Rd and Broadway is closed. The park and dunes were great and the water had a nice color. Very pretty.

Allegra Taylor

Be sure to stop by here before heading to the shore! The Park Ranger who spoke to us was very helpful and friendly.

Tor Aabo

Among the many Dunes around Lake Michigan, this is the most Southermost. Several Hiking Trials and wild life.

Andrew Fisher

We had a great stay at Indiana Dunes and had a good time looking around the tourism center. Everyone we encountered during our stay was very kind. The only grievance we have is that we had to pay a park entrance fee despite paying for camping already. We had read that ahead of time so we were prepared, but it should probably be changed regardless.

Lisa Moss

Big and full of information. Clean bathrooms. Great place to ask Park Rangers questions about the area.

Mike Gergory

Very helpful

james ford

Great. Walking trails, gift shop, knowledgeable staff

Eddie Ho

Educational and good culture experience. Be prepare for long walk along the trails.

Kun Feng

Good place for hiking. You can pick the route based on your preference of difficulty, view and time duration. We mixed two routes to have a relatively short route and a 15-min walking along the shore. Indiana students can get discount with valid Indiana student ID. It is not applicable for non-Indiana students.

Brian SANDAGE

Hopefully will go there

Mary Hogueisson

Nice facility with lots of information and bathrooms

Mary Newland

Only wanted to buy a post card. Had to ask information to get someone to ring me up. She acted like she did not want anything to do with me. Mean, snorted at me when I didn't have anything less than a $20

Don Dearth

Great natural landmark.

Shobana Kumar

Just gorgeous!

David Bouwkamp

Nice variety of exhibits and information for a short visit. We had a group of kids who enjoyed the exploring room and started their own puppet show. I appreciated the person who gave personalized recommendations about what to avoid on a busy 4th of July and where to go when it's not so busy. Only recommendation would be for a film that highlights the plants and animals of the area. The film we watched--and I think the only one showing--featured the person who pushed to preserve the area and the need for more preservation. Nice, but pushing preservation is preaching to the choir at a national/state park.

Beverley Holeman

Nice place to stop before you enter the park. Offered a room for the kids to explore. Also offered plenty of literature for local places

Tammie Whitman

Walked along the edge of the water, wading in it too! Pretty. Clean. Fun.

Tim Vermande

Family-companion restroom. Excellent accessibility.

ZESEN ZHOU

Nice.

Michael Farrell

The newest national park. Enjo_ed our visit.

Betty Jones

I enjoyed the time up there

LaCresha Kolba

Absolutely gorgeous place to visit! Some trails are dog friendly and they are allowed on the beach. Beautiful and peaceful.

Robert Kosin

Name changes to National Park from Passprt stamp to t-shirt are now found at the Visitor Centor amidst unchanged quality of the best of Lake Michigan's shoreline.

Faith Lightner

Such a wonderful time! Beautiful

Jacob Riesenberg

Great place to gain a lot of information about the dunes from... The staff was very friendly.. I would have Indiana dunes is a great place to stay for a weekend or even a whole week

Steve Jones

Nice friendly park rangers.

Brent Barnard

Excellent stop. I was thinking there wouldn't be much of a Visitor's Center for a mere National Lakeshore (as opposed to a National Park), but this place is splendid. The architecture is impressive, and the displays inside are engaging. The rangers helped us quickly determine the best spot along the lakeshore for our visit after asking us about our interests and timeframe - super friendly people who are genuinely eager to assist. Two thumbs up.

Don Monday

The visitor center was nice, didn't have time to visit the dunes-I want to go back and take a closer look!

john coffey

Good beach. Take your dog.

Alice Olson

Concert each month called Save the Tunes. Old song done by group of folks with accordions, fiddle, guitar, banjo, dulcimer sometimes--always fun!

Hong R. Zhang Durandal

Excellent park near Chicago Land. Only a 1 hour drive from the city of Chicago it offers a great weekend get away and a challenging workout. You can also enjoy a beach front that is not too crowded.

J Bishop

Wonderful place to stop and see, get your passport stamped, and get some great info

Canessa Stafford

Very nice, informative, bus tour, and gift shop. Beautiful art work surrounds the grounds.

Joe Sparks

Lots of brochures but lacking the knowledge of the area to make recommendations on hotels and dining. The National Park service is also located in this facility and they know the Dunes. The county part (much) less so.

Paul Riggs

Great visitors center.

Magdalena Gonzalez

Went to an acoustic instrument show and it was wonderful. I enjoyed it very much!

set c

Definitely worth the trip. We hiked the route to the 3 dunes and then went to the beach. Great workout and pretty scenery. The staff at the park are very nice and helpful. We stayed overnight which I recommend unless you don't mind a long day hiking and driving.

stephen semmelroth

One of the best visitor center I've been to

Tina May

Great place to visit for kids and adults. The sand is very clean with some thin flat rocks instead of sharp shells. The beach area is very clean and the water looked amazing and wasn't very cold. Many sand trails to take walks and just relax. You can walk so far along the shore line and take a break when needed. Large restroom area here and also changing rooms. They also have food trucks and vending machines. The staff (when you come in and pay to enter park) was very friendly.

LT Kai

People are nice and helpful. Cool theater. Nice displays. Educational and interactive learning Center.

Rebecca Nicodemus

Either poor trail markings or nothing to really see. Pollution to the left and right of me. A beach and a few dunes in the middle of an industrial waste land. Go see it while you can - I'm sure a manufacturing plant will soon take over the area.

Brenda Fisher

Me, daughter, grandson and Sister on vacation loving it

Dani Silvershoes

I stopped in to use the restroom. There were about 5 or 6 stalls in the women's restroom. Soap dispenser were filled and decent TP. Paper towels to dry your hands. No hand dryers. I did bring my dogs in with me. It was a very hot day and I could not leave them in the car. No one said a word to me but then again my dogs were quiet. Don't rec taking advantage of this but anyone with a heart should understand.

Dakoda Rose

Very sweet and funny workers here. Very helpful with tourists and took time to help find good local places to eat

cshaw345

Nice place to stop and relax. Water is clean and very shallow far out, so good for kids. The dunes are a tough hike, but fun.

Gregory Stiller

Fantastic - Marvelous !. PENNY was incredible. She went out of her way to help. I wanted to take her home. She was the finest Ranger I've ever come across. I've been to ovet seventy five parks. Sweet and Cuter than a basket of puppies. Thank You Penny Made my 3500 mile trip outstanding.

SeFok Chan

The visitor center is well located on Highway 49. The staffs are very friendly and helpful. I always stop by there whenever I visit the Indiana Dunes. There are many ranger led program you can join and the programs are informative even after I have visited the park many times. There are also all sorts of tourist brochures available related to northern Indiana.

Ryan Horne

We visited this location so our Daughter could get her next Junior Ranger Badge. The gift shop is small for a national park & does not have the typical items you would expect from a National Park. They were out of Indian Dunes offical stickers and the 1991 Indiana Dunes Sticker. The young female Ranger in the gift shop said they used to carry them. She was extremely friendly though The other female Ranger at the desk Sandy was excellent and shared several stories with my 5 yr old about why she loved being a Ranger. They have a decent size auditorium with the park film and another room with items for children. They also have a bathroom. Be aware they close at 6PM sharp so make you you plan enough time for the Jr Ranger program to get back before the doors close. We made it with 10 mins to spare. Lastly they do not have a Offical NPS sign on the building or out front. It was a temporary sign it seemed. Not a big deal but we have been to over 50 NPS sites and the picture is a highlight of our trip.

Melody Nowak

Indiana Dunes is a wonderful recreation spot t enjoy by yourself or with the family. Here you can enjoy nature, exercise on trails or in the water, relax on a beach, or learn about history.

Angeli S

The park rangers were super helpful and bathrooms were very clean. We parked our car here and rode our bikes a couple miles to a secluded beach.

Fariya N

Super friendly people, fun time, a lot of sand. Would go back. Plenty of parking. Pet and children friendly.

Marisa Bonomo

The 3 Dunes Challenge made me feel like I DESERVED to buy me self a hoodie by the time I was done! I was so happy that Mt. Tom had stairs by the time I got there... The visitor center staff is very friendly and made for a good welcoming experience.

Brian Boznak

I love just going in there and visiting with the staff!

rachael estrada

So amazing and beautiful

Randy Keaton

Beautiful place love going there lot of nice Trails beautiful beach nice place to camp

Miss Molly Brasseur

Very clean and friendly. Informative. Pet friendly. Reasonable.

Jeffery Meyer

Best beaches in Indiana maybe the only ones but still clean and nice change rooms.

Michael Blejski

I've hiked the Appalachian Trail, and I must say the Indiana Dunes is fully up to par when it comes to nature. One of the highest levels of biodiversity of all the national parks, which is amazing considering it's size. Great views of the Lake and Chicago, free parking during non peak!!! Packed in the summers though

Good Vibes

Facilities still closed, no entrance fees, great time & views

Guadalupe L

Love the clear water compared to Lake Michigan beaches in Chicago.

E Baumann

Friendly and very knowledgeable volunteers , offer great advice about our visit to the dunes. We will return next Summer again for sure

M Terry

It was wonderful! Educational &interesting for the whole family, definitely worth spending time here ...even had an electric car plug in

Maria Romaniak

Good place for an easy hike.

Erica

We've been here many times and everyone that works there is ridiculously helpful. My son loves it here. Great info, and every question about the dunes answered.

Steve Schwinn

This is actually the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore Visitors Center. Very nice one! A bike trail starts there and takes you right to the shore.

Ross Crawford

Very beautiful!! Will be back, very soon!

Lukáš Zlámal

Very nice place. Got some drone footage of the shore but when disassembling the remote, strong wind surprisingly knocked my phone off hood and screen broke. The visitor center is quite nice too.

Everett Sporrong

it was trash literaly there was a broken tire

Thetoaster Thompson

Well worth the trip.Really fun place. Don't forget the three dune challenge. On a warm summer day it's perfect.

den fargo

Nature beautiful. Total extreme work out loved it first timer be back when warm loved scenery

Dave Phillips

Great place

Kary G

It was amazing it was so fun and refreshing

David Larson

Had a great time exploring this National Park. Wonderful sand dunes with easy access to lake Michigan. Nice stop on the way to Chicago.

Brian Holland

Beautiful beach in a gorgeous park

Prasad MVSD

It would be an interesting place for hiking also. Nice views and beach. But far away from the town.

Christina

I have had really pleasant experience there !

Ayeshi 7

Very beautiful place. My kids had a great time last summer. V r planning to visit again. It has an amazing art!!! V enjoyed sooooooo much!!!!!

Ratan Ali

One of d memorable sunsets. Loved the place. It's so less crowded. Trekking in the dunes is also fun

Alberto Gamarra

Exhilarating hike up the dunes, trails 7 & 8. Beautiful view of lake. Bring lots of water for summer heat and open or hightop hiking shoes.

CatalystEco Consulting

an integrated facility for County, State Park, and National Lakeshore agencies.

Mason Good-Turney

I love going to national landmarks and parks. This was was very unique place. With a lot of cool information. I would recommend if you have kids to do the junior ranger program it makes any national park more fun.

dorothy gullickson

The woman who helped me was amazing. She was knowlegable and seemed to be invested in actually helping people. I wished I would have got here name...but long blond hair middle aged There was a ranger there as well who said I made a wise choice my Miller Beach stay didn't happen..a somewhat dicey area.

Keith Nelson

Well organized park

Marissa Moschowsky

Great weekend destination