9 Most Walkable Town Centers In Indiana

In towns like New Albany, you can walk from a row of 19th-century mansions to the Ohio River Greenway in under five minutes, showing exactly what makes the most walkable town centers in Indiana stand out. These downtowns offer a way to experience fascinating history, explore local restaurants, and even go off the beaten track onto trails that wind through lakes, woods, and rivers. From New Albany's main street, you can see an entire row of luxurious mansions and make your way down to a paved trail on the Ohio River. Some town centers on this list are of great importance to Indiana's history, such as Corydon, the former state capital. Read below to learn more about the nine towns with the most walkable town centers.

Aurora

Aurora is a tiny community on the Ohio River, where everything is within a short walk of the town center. Named after the Latin word for dawn, Aurora prides itself on relaxing riverside strolls and architecture with a lot of history. The best place to start in Aurora from the town center is at the Hillforest House Museum at the southern end of Main Street, on top of a hill. This Italian Renaissance home was built in 1855 by Isaiah Rogers, who would become known as the father of the modern hotel.

From there, you have a few options of places to go. You can head down Main Street to reach the American restaurant, Third and Main Restaurant, or further on to the Southeastern Indiana Art Guild, which houses works from local artists in the area. If you prefer a river hike from the mansion, you can turn right onto 5th Street and onto the Scenic Byway to go to Lesko Park, noted for having the best views of the Ohio River in town.

Madison

Madison has one of the most walkable downtowns in Indiana. In fact, its historic downtown district is the longest in the state. Much like Aurora, it's on the Ohio River, and you can begin your walk near the center of town at a mansion off of Main Street on 1st Street: the Lanier Mansion State Historic Site. This Greek Revival mansion was built in the 1840s and stands as a monument to the town's success as a steamboat stop on the Ohio River. From the Mansion, you can take a left onto Vine Street, which leads to the waterfront on W Vaughn Drive. You can take a right, which will lead you to the Lanthier Winery or the Heritage Trail, or go left to reach the Rockin Thunder River Tours, which offers both slower river tours of the city and faster speedboats. The Evening Dinner Cruise is a favorite, spanning six hours and covering 95 miles along the river, with a catered dinner and romantic surroundings.

Corydon

Corydon's town center has had a long history. The town was selected as the first state capital of Indiana from 1816 to 1825, when it was relocated to the central Indiana settlement of Indianapolis. On E Walnut Street, you can visit the Corydon Capitol State Historic Site, the original 1816 limestone capitol building, and its nearby Elm tree where Indiana’s first state constitution was drafted and debated. From the building, you can continue on E Walnut Street to pick up a gently used book from the Bookworm store or eat lunch at Frederick's Cafe & Grill. At the end of E Walnut Street, turn right onto 337 for several other historic places and cute shops, such as the William Henry Harrison Log Cabin, named after the American president William Henry Harrison, that has many artifacts from the history of Corydon, or you can pick up an artifact yourself from the Olde County Cupboard Primitives right across the street from the log cabin.

Franklin

Located just south of Indianapolis, Franklin prides itself on its walkability and its festivals. It hosts more than 100 events annually, especially in its downtown strip. For example, the town hosts a Franklin Fall Festival at the Franklin Amphitheater in Young Creek Park, just a few blocks west of Main Street, drawing thousands of visitors each year with live music, local vendors, and seasonal food. Franklin is perfect for families to visit, as you can find family-friendly activities within walking distance of Young Creek Park. From the park, you can go down W Monroe Street for a family meal at Ann's Restaurant or go bowling next door at 10 Pins. From there, walk straight onto W Court Street and take a left onto W Jefferson St for the town center itself, which offers several other fun family activities, like browsing toys at the Toodleydoo Toys store or grabbing ice cream from Millie's Ice Cream Company.

Winona Lake

Winona Lake combines beautiful boardwalk views with easy access to a lakeside beach. Right off Park Avenue is the Village at Winona, a historic neighborhood that's been converted into a charming walkable shopping destination. Discerning customers can always find something in the Village, whether it's pottery from the Pottery Bayou, boating equipment from The Lake House, or a good conversation at the Social Ice Cream and Sandwich Shop. Once you leave the Village, keep walking down Park Avenue to the South until you reach the Winona Lake Limitless Park and Splash Pad. This is the primary sandy beach on Winona Lake, and is a great spot to take a boat out as well. The park also connects up to the Heritage Trail, which winds around the lake and through sculpture-filled woods. Each of the sculptures on this trail was designed to evoke the town's history and spiritual heritage, with several representing key lessons from the Biblical Beatitudes.

New Harmony

New Harmony is a mysterious town that attracts people from all walks of life. After all, the town was the site of not one but two utopian communities: one led by German pietists called the Harmonists, the other by the Owenites in the early 19th century. As soon as you arrive in New Harmony, you'll see a serene labyrinth maze called the Harmonist Labyrinth on Main Street. It was built by the original Harmonists to encourage meditation. It only takes about a 15-minute walk to go through all of Main Street, and from there, you'll see a mixture of modern green spaces like Murphy's Park, gourmet sandwiches at Say's Restaurant, and the Roofless Church at the very northern end of Main Street. This church was built with a unique open-air structure in the 1960s to encourage worship in the open sky.

Shipshewana

Shipshewana is an adorable rural town located in the heart of Amish country. It packs a lot into a small downtown. Starting on N Van Buren Street, you can have authentic Amish meals and baked goods from the Blue Gate Restaurant & Bakery or enjoy a show at the connected Blue Gate Theater. From the restaurant, you can head south down N Van Buren Street to Yoder's Meat & Cheese or the Shipshewana Flea Market, which is open from May to September. It's the largest flea market in the Midwest, with nearly 700 vendors showcasing a wide range of decorative, antique, and craft goods. If you turn north from Blue Gate instead, and then take a right onto E Depot Street, you'll find the trailhead for the Pumpkinvine Nature Trail. This is a 17-mile trail on paved roads that goes through beautiful Amish barns and the Indiana countryside, connecting up with several other communities.

New Albany

Downtown New Albany is right across the Ohio River from Louisville, Kentucky, and its Main Street is within walking distance of a long waterfront trail and a historic mansion row. The mansion section of Main Street is most known for the Culbertson Mansion State Historic Site, built in 1867 by one of the wealthiest men in Indiana in the French Second-Empire style. The mansion awes visitors with hand-painted frescoed ceilings, marble fireplaces, and alleged ghost hauntings. One of the mansions has been converted into a B&B for a weekend stay at The 1851 Pepin Mansion Historic Bed & Breakfast. Walking down Main Street, you can stop in for dinner at the Mexican restaurant Agave & Rye New Albany or grab a coffee from a coffee shop in a converted gas stop at Coffee Crossing. If you take a left onto State Street, you can reach the Riverfront Park across a train track and the larger Ohio River Greenway, which goes for over 7 miles to the communities of Clarksville and Jeffersonville and over a pedestrian bridge to Louisville.

Angola

Angola has a grand town square that immediately stands out for its Steuben County Soldiers Monument in the middle. Standing 70 feet tall, the monument has the names of all 1,278 men from Steuben County who served in the army during the American Civil War. Several bronze statues adorn the monument, including a 10-foot-tall woman holding a wreath and an American flag. From the square, you can see another intriguing monument at the Baron Von Steuben Statue, honoring the Prussian commander who helped train American soldiers during the American Revolutionary War. You can relax with a coffee at Broomsticks and Brews, which sits next to a painted alley called Imagine Alley. Going around the square are multiple restaurants for all diets, including The Rooted Vegan. The best part is that all these landmarks and more are within a five-minute walk of the square, and nearby areas like Wayne Street offer endless more places to visit.

Stroll Through These Indiana Town Centers

Small Indiana towns are always hopping with activity. Whether that's neighbors going shopping together at the Village at Winona and then watching the sunset on the shores of the beach, or Shipshewana's bustling flea market filled with Hoosier and Amish antique items. By visiting these town squares, you can take in some of that infectious energy, whether that's getting a stroll in at the New Albany Greenway or going to a festival in Franklin. You don't have to take a car to see all these town squares have to offer; you just need a good pair of shoes and a lot of energy.