Wow...just chiming in to say, another vote for Madison.... wouldn't have thought so many on here would know it-even though it wins a lot of "historic" awards. I also grew up there
, and besides all the traditional sites to visit...Lanier home, etc. I would put in a plug for Cafe Camille in downtown, and would vote for the B&B's in the downtown area...there are several nice one OP...I see that you decided on Brown County, but if you're ever looking for another trip try Madison....I myself like the Christmas tours--houses are usually decorated to the hilt and carolers strolling around downtown, etc.
I love Madison as it's really cute with the old houses downtown. My cousin's wife's family owns a little grocery store there. They have Civil War days sometime at the Lanier mansion sometime this summer, but I couldn't tell you when.
As far as Brown County....You will enjoy puttering around Nashville..very cute shops, artisans, homemade ice cream, etc. We love to drive through the state park when the fall colors are at their height,
Lots of little shops to go into in Nashville, plus there's great walking trails in the park that aren't real tough. The Brown County Playhouse is located just west of town on 46. The IU Theatre dept puts on shows there during the summer. The Little Nashville Opry has country shows most nights, with some pretty big names at times.
but you might want to drive up the road a bit, and visit the Indiana University campus...nicer in the summer without the crowds. Highly reccomend Lenny's restaurant if you make it to Bloomington.
I love B'ton and IU so much I got two degrees from there. There's an art museum on campus, plus the Glen Black museum if you like anthropology. The campus has some really neat buildings in the old quad area. There are a lot of ethnic restaurants around town if you want to try different cuisines. Yanko's little Zagreb has great steak, or you could try the Trojan Horse (greek) or the Siam House.
I would have put in a vote also for Metamora...cute shops with some crafty and some artisan. But other fun activities like the canal boat ride and a steam locomotive ride available. Also homemade ice cream mmmmm....
I think Princesa likes ice cream a lot. I agree with her about the ice cream in Metamora. If you go there, make sure you take the canal ride.
We just returned from camping at Lincoln State Park.
I spent a couple weeks there every summer at 4-H camp as a kid. I love the place, and it's neat to see the Lincoln-related spots nearby. If you go there, you have got to go to Santa Claus-land/Holiday World if you have small kids. I've been going there for 42 years now, and it's an incredible bargain, and lots of fun. They've got excellent rollercoasters, and a great water park.
For anyone else still debating a destination, I would vote for this as well. With this year being the bicentennial of Lincoln's birth, we were able to take part in a lot of extra activites at the Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial. We had a great time camping (nice park, nice facilities, beach, canoe rentals, etc.) but also were able to expose our kids for a great history lesson at the same time. (Only about an hour west of Louisville and not far off the interstate)
In case you can't tell, I'm 1 hour from Nashville, 40 minutes from Bloomington, about 1 1/2 hours from Metamora, and about the same from Santa Claus-land and Lincoln State Park.
OP, when are you going on your trip to Indiana?
