
And the state’s #1 tourist trap…
Amidst all the Kwik Trips and Culver’s, you’ll find a variety of questionably quirky attractions on any given Wisconsin highway. All are unusual, most are one-of-a-kind, and a few are actually worth the stop.
Casago, a platform for vacation home rentals, ranked the biggest tourist traps in the country and world, based on TripAdvisor reviews that have the words “tourist trap” in them.
What’s Wisconsin’s? The Mars Cheese Castle in Kenosha.
When Mario and Martha Ventura first opened their cheese shop in a renovated schoolhouse at the intersection of highways 41 and 43 in Kenosha County, even they couldn’t have dreamed what it would become.
Today, that shop is a castle, selling more than 1,000 different types of cheese, novelty souvenirs, gift baskets, wine, sausage, sweets and more.
Here are three more roadside attractions that tourists often miss:
1. The exact center of the Northern half of the Western Hemisphere
Poniatowski
Did you know the precise center of the Northern half of the Western Hemisphere is in Wisconsin? If you ever find yourself in Marathon County, stop by the Wausau Central Wisconsin Convention & Visitor Center to sign the 45 x 90 Club guest book and pick up a commemorative coin!

2. A graveyard for discarded fiberglass statue molds
Sparta
The FAST (Fiberglass Animals, Shapes and Trademarks) Corporation is the premier manufacturer of fiberglass statues, water slides, and larger-than-life creations of all kinds. But all those hollow molds take up a lot of space, so when the company is finished, it lines them up in a field on its property. See if you can spot the ones from old Wisconsin Dells attractions.

3. The world’s largest talking cow, Chatty Belle
Neillsville
In Clark county, cows outnumber humans four to one. So it makes sense it’s home to the world’s largest talking cow! The 16 foot tall, 20 feet long “Chatty Belle” was named by a first grader who won her school’s contest in 1967. Her prize? 100 lbs. of butter! Drop some change in Chatty’s coin-operated voice box, and she’ll talk to you.

Support Our Cause
Thank you for taking the time to read our work. Before you go, we hope you'll consider supporting our values-driven journalism, which has always strived to make clear what's really at stake for Wisconsinites and our future.
Since day one, our goal here at UpNorthNews has always been to empower people across the state with fact-based news and information. We believe that when people are armed with knowledge about what's happening in their local, state, and federal governments—including who is working on their behalf and who is actively trying to block efforts aimed at improving the daily lives of Wisconsin families—they will be inspired to become civically engaged.


New Biden rules deliver automatic cash refunds for canceled flights, ban surprise fees
In the aftermath of a canceled or delayed flight, there’s nothing less appealing than spending hours on the phone waiting to speak with an airline...

One year on the Wienermobile: The life of a Wisconsin hotdogger
20,000+ miles. 16 states. 40+ cities. 12 months. Hotdogger Samantha Benish has been hard at work since graduating from the University of...

Biden makes 4 million more workers eligible for overtime pay
The Biden administration announced a new rule Tuesday to expand overtime pay for around 4 million lower-paid salaried employees nationwide. The...

‘Radical’ Republican proposals threaten bipartisan farm bill, USDA Secretary says
In an appearance before the North American Agricultural Journalists last week, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack...