
The Des Moines metropolitan area, officially known as the Des Moines–West Des Moines, IA Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), consists of six counties in central Iowa, United States: Polk, Dallas, Warren, Madison, Guthrie, and Jasper. The 2010 census population of these counties was 606,475, and the 2017 estimated population was 682,877.

Downtown Des Moines is the central business district of Des Moines, Iowa and the Greater Des Moines Metropolitan Area. Downtown Des Moines is defined by the City of Des Moines as located between the Des Moines River to the east, the Raccoon River to the south, Center Street to the north, and 18th and 15th Streets to the west.

Historic East Village is a commercial and residential neighborhood in central Des Moines, Iowa, United States, directly east of the Downtown Des Moines area. The neighborhood is bounded by Interstate 235 on the north, the Des Moines River on the west and south, and East 14th Street on the east. It also sits adjacent to the Historic Court District, which sits west across the Des Moines River. Part of the East Village forms a nationally recognized historic district that was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2019.

The Great Western Trail is a rail trail in the Des Moines metropolitan area south-central Iowa, United States.

The Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden is a botanical garden located in Des Moines, Iowa, United States, on the east bank of the Des Moines River.

The Raccoon River is a 30.8-mile-long (49.6 km) tributary of the Des Moines River in central Iowa in the United States. As measured using the longest of its three forks, its length increases to 226 miles (364 km). Via the Des Moines River, it is part of the watershed of the Mississippi River. The river runs through an intensely cultivated area of croplands and livestock farming, receiving Tile drainage from slow-draining rich natural bottomland.

The Sherman Hill Historic District is located in Des Moines, Iowa, United States. It is one of the oldest residential suburbs in Des Moines. Single-family houses were constructed beginning around 1880 and multi-family dwellings were built between 1900 and 1920. The district encompasses 80 acres (0.32 km2) and 210 buildings and is bounded by 15th Street to the East, High Street to the South, Martin Luther King Parkway on the West, and School Street to the North. The historic district has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1979.