The internet can be a wonderful tool that's full of amazing information. In 2024, you have the opportunity to potentially find out the answer to just about anything that needs answering.

The only problem is...I couldn't lazily google "How long would it take to drive around Iowa's border" and get a solid answer. You can google it yourself if you'd like but just about every search that pops either shows driving across Iowa, Iowa road trips, or driving directions.

Thankfully, someone has already done the work for us. If you had to guess how long it would take to drive around Iowa's border, how long do you think it takes? It might take a little longer than you'd guess.

Here is something to cross off of your Iowa bucket list.

21 Hours

According to Iowa Chill, it would take approximately 20 hours to drive around the entire border of Iowa. I decided to round up to 21 hours for any stop you would eventually have to make. Whether you're getting gas, stopping for a bathroom break, getting food, etc.

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As someone who is a fairly new Iowa resident, this completely surprised me. I don't think people realize how big Iowa really is. According to World Population Review, Iowa is approximately 56,000 square miles inside and is the 26th largest state in total area. Iowa is 36,015,294.06 acres big and is similar in size to Illinois, even if Illinois may look significantly taller on a map.

For comparison, Iowa is similar in size to countries like Nepal, Bangladesh, Tajikistan, Greece, and Nicaragua.

 How Far Could You Get In 21 Hours?

If you were to leave from Iowa and drive for 21 hours, where could you potentially end up when you're done? You could end up in Florida if you headed southeast. According to Travel Math, the total drive from Iowa to Florida is approximately 20 hours and 45 minutes. This would mean that driving around Iowa's border is roughly 1,390 miles.

If you are headed to the East Coast, and you drive for about 20 hours, you could end up in New Hampshire.

If you're headed southwest, you will end up just shy of Phoenix Arizona.

If you head west and drive for approximately 20 hours, you could make it to Boise Idaho.

Finally, if you drive northwest (sort of) for about 20 hours, you could almost reach the Montana/Idaho Border

And finally, if you drive north for 20 straight hours, you'll end up somewhere just north of Manitoba Canada!

This gives an incredible perspective on just how big Iowa is. Not only that but it also shows how small North America is. If you live in the middle of the country, you can get to a vast majority of other states, by car, in less than one day.