2013 Travel Guide
Enjoy Illinois App
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Illinois Amish Country
The town of Arthur is located in the heart of Amish country, home to more than 2,000 Amish residents and hundreds of charming countryside businesses, Illinois' Amish Country offers shopping, dining, special events and guided educational tours (some of which feature meals in actual Amish homes).
CITY: Arthur
Blind Pig Brewery
Located in downtown Champaign, Blind Pig brews its own craft beers. With its beautiful wood interior, casks full of local brews and friendly locals, this bar is a must-see. When the weather is nice, venture outside and enjoy the large outdoor beer garden.
CITY: Champaign
Allerton Park & Retreat Center
Allerton Park was the private estate of Robert Henry Allerton, who donated it to the University of Illinois in 1946. It features 1,500 acres of woodlands, formal gardens and more than 100 sculptures. The park is open to the public for hiking, picnicking, cross-country skiing and leisurely garden strolls.
CITY: Monticello
Amish Country Tours
A step on guide will accompany your tour of the Amish countryside. The tours will also include meals in Amish homes, and Amish home, buggy shop, dairy farm and woodworking tours. Additional highlights include an Amish museum, local attractions, restaurants, and accommodations.
CITY: Arcola
William M. Staerkel Planetarium
Do some star gazing at the second-largest planetarium in Illinois, located at Parkland College. More than 7,000 stars are projected onto the planetarium’s 50-foot dome. The Planetarium also features special children’s presentations and rock-and-roll light shows.
CITY: Champaign
Tanger Outlet Center
Factory outlet mall with over 40 brand name outlets. Shop Coach, Harry and David, Reebok, Nike, Gap, Bass, Polo Ralph Lauren, Old Navy, Bath and Body Works and much more! Check out our monthly special events, coupons and sales. Tanger Outlet Center is conveniently located off of I-57, exit 212 in Tuscola. Locations nearby include Champaign and Amish Country.
CITY: Tuscola
The 200 Acres
Located in the heart of Illinois' Amish country, The 200 Acres is a working farm that features beautiful gardens, including a spectacular collection of more than 5,000 mums, and offers its heirloom seeds for sale. The 200 Acres is especially known for its more than 300 varieties of rare pumpkins, squash and gourds from around the globe that are grown right on the farm and displayed in its Great Pumpkin Patch from mid-September through October 31 every year. The on-site Homestead Bakery sells made-from-scratch goodies such as pies and angel food cake during spring, summer and fall.
CITY: Arthur
Krannert Art Museum and Kinkead Pavilion
Located on the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign campus, Krannert is the second-largest fine art museum in Illinois, and places among the top tier of university art museums nationwide. The museum’s diverse permanent collection contains some 10,000 works of art, and represents the cultures of African, Asia, Europe and the Americas. In addition to its permanent collection, the museum features outstanding temporary exhibitions throughout the year.
CITY: Champaign
Arthur Amish Country Information Center
This visitor's center offers maps and information on the entire Amish area, including the 150 Amish craft shops that dot the countryside surrounding the village of Arthur.
CITY: Arthur
Cowboy Monkey
Nightlife Bar for casual chatting with friends and family. Dining options during the day as well as full service bar during dining hours.
CITY: Champaign
Assembly Hall
From rock shows to Broadway to family shows to Fighting Illinois basketball and much more, the Assembly Hall has hosted the top names in show business, as well as, numerous University and community events.
CITY: Champaign
ACM Tours
ACM Tours is a full service, receptive tour guide company with many special services available at no additional cost. We literally open the door to fabulous Illinois Amish Country! We are ready to assist you with meals, attractions, lodging and step on guide service. We have available trained, professional, local step-on guides who are well versed in the history, customs and folklore of this most unique part of Illinois.
CITY: Arthur
Rockome Gardens
Located in the midst of Illinois' Amish country, Rockome Gardens features the Illinois Amish Interpretive Center, a cheese factory, gardens, shops, Amish dinners, special events, and farm and house tours.
CITY: Arcola
Ferrel Clydesdale Farms
In operation since 1850, the farm features a blacksmith shop and Clydesdale horses. Chuck wagon cookouts are available.
CITY: Lovington
Alto Vineyards Tasting Room
Alto Vineyards' retail wine shop and tasting room offers custom gift baskets, gourmet foods and local artwork. Indoor and outdoor seating offers a place to relax with a glass of Alto's finest. Alto's original location is situated in Alto Pass, on the Shawnee Hills Wine Trail.
CITY: Champaign
Monticello Railway Museum
View various pieces of steam and electric railroad equipment. Offers vintage train rides on Sat. and Sun. May through Oct., as well as a number of special events throughout the year.
CITY: Monticello
Bath & Body Works -- Tanger Outlet Center
Integrating health, beauty and well-being. Combining the introduction of spa products that are easily used at home with the incorporation of simple rituals into daily life, Bath & Body Works is committed to helping consumers improve their emotional and physical being. Purchase lotions, creams, hand soap and more in a variety of scents.
CITY: Tuscola
26 - 27
Findlay Walleye Festival
This yearly festival has plenty of entertainment, food and fun. The Walleye is a feature for the festival with the fish being served daily. There will be plenty of entertainment (bands), an ice cream social, fireworks on Friday-Saturday if rain. Kids games, a farmer's market, tractor pull, car, truck, & motorcycle show, a 5K event and plenty more. A large parade starts at 10am on Saturday and there will be plenty of kids activities and games both days.
CITY: Findlay
Prairie Farm
Traditional farm animals such as sheep, pigs, horses, and goats are featured at prairie farms. The farm offers tours in addition to a petting area.
CITY: Champaign
The Great Pumpkin Patch
Open from mid-September through October 31, The Great Pumpkin Patch features 300 varieties of pumpkins, squash and gourds from around the world, all grown on the farm. The beautiful grounds feature various mazes and gardens, farm animals, a u-pick pumpkin patch and the Homestead Bakery, offering fresh-baked goods. Live entertainment is presented on fall weekends.
CITY: Arthur
Olympic Tribute & Laborer's Memorial
Honoring the extraordinary achievements of Champaign County residents who have participated in the Olympic and Paralympic Games, this granite platform inscribed with the names of the athletes and the Olympic symbol is surrounded by playing fields, gardens and a community college campus. Tribute to Olympic Athletes rises from an ordinary prairie landscape transformed by playing fields, gardens and a community college campus.
CITY: Champaign
Buxton's Garden Farm
Pull up to Buxton's roadside stand to buy in-season vegetables, pumpkins and festive Indian corn.
CITY: Sullivan
John Phillip Sousa Library and Museum
John Phillip Sousa's personal band music library, willed to the University of Illinois, is on display along with period band uniforms and musical instruments. Relive a time forgotten, when the sounds of marching band music filled a town on a lazy Sunday afternoon, when you step into this museum homoring a true "music man." FREE
CITY: Champaign
Orpheum Children's Science Museum
The Orpheum Children's Museum, located in the 1914 Orpheum Theatre, is one of the finest buildings in downstate Illinois. Children of all ages are given the opportunity to learn science at their own pace in an informal setting.
CITY: Champaign
Villa Galleries
Fine art located in the heart of the Illinois Amish country. The Villa Galleries has dedicated its gallery to local artists who have ties to the central Illinois area either through living situation or artwork subject. Photography, watercolors, colored pencil, oil and acrylic, stained glass, and pottery are just a few of the mediums featured in the gallery.
CITY: Arthur
Stellar Tours
Amish Adventures will give you an up close and personal tour of the Illinois Amish culture and religion as you travel back in time along our quaint country roads with our professional and informed tour guide. To help our visitors learn more about the Amish culture, we offer a variety of tours that are customized to fit your itinerary. Tours of Amish homes, Amish farms, Amish woodworker's shop, a meal in an Amish home and a Step-on Guided Tour of the Amish countryside!
CITY: Arthur
Tri-County Auctions
Authentic, mix-with-the-Amish experience. Auctions held at Vernon Yoder’s farm near Arcola.
CITY: Arcola
Wacky Nackies
Gifts, decorative accessories, jewelry, candy - life's simple pleasures
CITY: Monticello
Whitley Creek Recreation Area
This campground has 81 campsites, most of which are shaded.
CITY: Sullivan
Steeple Gallery
We specialize in Americana, limited edition prints, custom framing, primitive antiques, gifts and decor. We are located in a 1906 vintage church.
CITY: Monticello
Illinois Amish Center
Recently relocated to Rockome Gardens in the countryside near a prominent community of Old Order Amish, the largest in Illinois. The museum originally opened in 1996 and features exhibits on most aspects of Amish life, as well as an introductory video about the Central Illinois Amish. Through the museum, tours can be scheduled of the Amish countryside, Amish homes, farms, businesses and meals in Amish homes.
CITY: Arcola
Downtown Champaign Shopping
Discover cute boutiques housed in historic storefronts in downtown Champaign, including antique and consignment shops. Be sure to stop at PACA’s Architectural Salvage Warehouse, where you’ll find everything from vintage stained glass to ceramic tiles.
CITY: Champaign
19 - 20
Ghost Train and Haunted Boxcar
Ride the Ghost Train through Camp Creek Hollow, with a stop at Cemetery Road. Only the brave should walk through the Haunted Boxcar.
CITY: Monticello
Holiday Inn Express - Tuscola
82 rooms, 6 executive suites. Extended continental breakfast. Meeting facilities for up to 35 people. Two full service restaurants within walking distance.
CITY: Tuscola
Beverly Cinema
Located in the heart of the shopping district take some time away from shopping, and come watch the latest premieres in the film industry!
CITY: Champaign
Joe's Brewery
Serving only the finest bar food available, Joe’s is the home of the Super Bird and a great place to grab some tasty wings or burgers, as well as the best fish sandwich you’ll find anywhere. Joe’s continues to provide a high energy atmosphere only available on a college campus as well as great food at a reasonable price. We hope you enjoy it as much as we do.
CITY: Champaign
University of Illinois FIGHTING ILLINI
Wear your Orange & Blue to all 19 Varsity Athletic events in support of the hometown Fighting Illini as they compete in the newly looked Big Ten Conference as apart of the NCAA Division I. Alumni come back and visit your old stopping grounds and see what has or hasn't changed on the Urbana-Champaign campus as well as showing your support for the current FIGHTING ILLINI athletic teams! There are tons of events that go on at each of the Illini home games such as Homecoming. Visit fightingillini.com for further information on what exciting promotions the Division of Intercollegiate Athletics has to promote Fighting Illini Sports.
CITY: Champaign
Market Place Shopping Center
Exciting shopping in Champaign, Illinois with unique and varied stores. Check out the website for listing of stores, restaurants, and other accessories that are featured inside.
CITY: Champaign
Lake Shelbyville - Bo Wood Recreation Area
Most of the campsites in this 82 site campground are shaded. Located on Lake Shelbyville, beach nearby.
CITY: Sullivan
Parkland College Theater
The Parkland Theater, a flexible proscenium theater with 315 seats, is the performance home for many Parkland theatrical, choral, and instrumental groups. The theater is also used by community organizations, speakers, guest professional artists, and theater classes.
CITY: Champaign
Monticello Railway Museum
Offers vintage train rides on Sat. and Sun. May through Oct. View various pieces of steam and electric railroad equipment.
CITY: Monticello
Olde Brick Wall
Here at Olde Brick Wall we carry a wonderful collection of upholstered and early American reproduction wood painted furniture. There are several styles and colors to choose from. To complete your whole room, we carry paint, curtains, shower curtains, pillows, rugs, chandeliers, shelves and pictures. Established in 1994 in a charming, old hotel building in the heart of Illinois Amish country, Arcola, the Olde Brick Wall features a wonderful gathering of tinware, light fixtures, candles, redware, folk art and primitives. We offer everything you could ever want to give your home that special look, feel and smell of country that we all love so much.
CITY: Arcola
Marsha's Vineyard Bed & Breakfast
Built in spring 2000 by a local Amish contractor, this 1 1/2 salt-box cottage includes two spacious siutes, private baths and kitchen located in the heart of Illinois Amish Country.
CITY: Arthur
SoDo Theatre
A developing space for visual and performing artists and arts organizations. We are the home of Class Act Interactive, with classes and interactive experiences for children of all ages.
CITY: Champaign
Best Western - Gateway Inn
44 guest rooms. Inside entrances, elevator. There are some extended stay rooms with kitchenettes. Conference facilities including banquet room (350), meeting space/conference room, olympic indoor size pool and extensive outdoor deck area that is available for private events.
CITY: Monticello
Amish Country Heirlooms, LLC
Area's largest of hand-crafted Amish and oak furniture, collectible prints, and accessories, along with Country Dreams furniture exhibit.
CITY: Tuscola
The Primitive Goose
Seek out life's simple pleasures...A gathering of primitives, antiques, folk art, and home and garden decor. A memorable shopping experience!
CITY: Arcola
Framer's Market
Framer's Market is a full-service framing shop that has been designing custom frames and enhancing art since 1981.
CITY: Champaign
Sullivan Marina
Located on a serene wooded hilltop, gently slopes into a full-service marina and restaurant situated on Lake Shelbyville.
CITY: Sullivan
Simply Amish
Many Styles. One Standard. Amish isn't a style. It's a standard of excellence—desired by many and practiced by a very rare few. It's in the fine details of solid wood drawers, hand-finished, inside and out. It's in the skill of genuine Amish craftsmen, passed down from one generation to the next.
CITY: Arcola
Boltini Lounge
BOLTINI LOUNGE is the quintessential cocktail lounge of the Champaign-Urbana community. Located in the heart of downtown Champaign, Boltini offers a great selection of liquor, food, entertainment and fun. It truly is the adult playground of downtown welcoming any and everybody from the downtown hipster to the professional enjoying a happy hour cocktail to our own service industry friends and everybody in between.
CITY: Champaign
Douglas-Hart Nature Center
Explore 70 acres of prairie, wetlands and forest habitat.The Visitor Center features interpretive exhibits, sensory displays and live critters, including a bird observation area.
CITY: Mattoon
Arcola Architectural Tours
Arcola is a pristine showcase of small-town America that still retains many examples of more than a century of architectural changes in the American home. Two tours daily from April through October.
CITY: Arcola
The Arcola Diamond House Bed & Breakfast
Arcola Diamond House is just what you hope to find in a bed-and-breakfast... a touch of whimsy, a dash of nostalgia and engaging hosts brimming with small-town friendliness. The Harshbargers, a family of porcelain artists, poets, musicians and scholars, have developed a sure-fire formula for enchanting their guests. Blending the decorative arts with culinary flavors, they have turned their family homes into masterpieces. Shining with personality, The Flower Patch & Diamond House make a pleasant beacon of exquisite taste; in more ways than one.
CITY: Arcola
Chester Street Dance Club
Located in downtown Champaign, this huge dance club features DJs spinning everything from Top 40 remixes to electro-industrial dance. Cool down on the outdoor patio.
CITY: Champaign
Bridget's Blarney Stone
Bar & Grill - Small Town Hang Out Spot; with Karoke every 1st and 3rd Friday of each month
CITY: Ivesdale
Outdoor Center Fields
The Outdoor Center Fields are located at First Street, spanning either side of Stadium Drive. Not just for students, but very welcoming to the general public.! Reservations for special group outings must be made! Outdoor Center Fields Amenities four lighted football fields two lighted soccer fields three lighted sand volleyball courts three lighted basketball courts six lighted Tennis courts Outdoor Center facility with exterior drinking fountains, restrooms, and a meeting room
CITY: Champaign
Dielman's Asparagus Patch
Pick up fresh asparagus at this roadside spot from mid-April through the end of May.
CITY: Monticello
The Flower Patch
Featured in Midwest Living magazine, the Arcola Flower Patch offers a lovely downstairs parlor, shaded porch swing, quiet gazebo for tea or coffee & gift shop. Lynn, the Artist in Residence, displays framed porcelain art and watercolors throughout the house. Every room abounds with floral arrangements, crafts, curios and family memorabilia. With floral rugs, potted plans and displays of fresh and dried flowers, it’s always spring at the bed & breakfast. Guests and non-guests alike are welcome to tour the backyard garden, where the Harshbargers grow the herbs used in their epicurean masterpieces
CITY: Arcola
Arches Antique Marketplace
Antiques of all sizes and descriptions, from books and clothing to kitchen utensils and baby items.
CITY: Findlay
Graber Produce Patch
This roadside produce stand offers asparagus, radishes, eggplant and sweet corn.
CITY: Sullivan
Arcola Historic Train Depot & Information Center
This 1885 train depot displays Illinois Central Railroad memorabilia, the largest Louis Klein collection of antique brooms and brushes in the United States, and interesting Arcola relics and keepsakes. Because Arcola is the birthplace of Raggedy Ann creator Johnny Gruelle, Raggedy Ann & Andy dolls and collectibles are also on display.
CITY: Arcola
Shelbyville State Fish and Wildlife Area
A 6,400-acre wildlife area on the north end of Lake Shelbyville. Hunting for waterfowl, forest and upland game is popular. Boat access is provided to accommodate anglers and hunters.
CITY: Bethany
Champaign County Farm Bureau
The Farm Bureau acts as an intermediary to set up specific tours of area farms for visitors to Champaign County.
CITY: Champaign
Ameri Host Inn - Tuscola
59 rooms with 2 jacuzzi suites, indoor pool, free deluxe continental breakfast.
CITY: Tuscola
Virginia Theatre
Since 1921, The Virginia Theater has been a landmark in the business district of Champaign and in the history of the region. For 75 years, the 1,525 seat theater has offered entertainment as a vaudeville house, legitimate theater, and movie house. The historic theater plays host to Roger Ebert’s Ebertfest Film Festival every spring.
CITY: Champaign
Act Your Age - Champaign Urbana
A young out-of-work actor does research for the role of an old man by spending time in a nursing home, where he learns to respect the elderly and ponders his own life choices.
CITY: Champaign
Meadowview Golf Course
This 18-hole, par 72 course features moderate to gently rolling terrain, manicured greens, a full-service pro shop and a food court.
CITY: Mattoon
Nature's Bounty
Buy dried herbs and flowers, or pick your own red and golden delicious apples.
CITY: Sullivan
Amishland's General Store
Nostalgic general store filled with Amish wood crafts, quilts, food products and souvenirs.
CITY: Tuscola
Sisters
Locally hand crafted goodness, baked goods, fun decor for the home, children's section & more, soaps, blankets, antiques, sock monkey & designer fabrics, amish souvenirs, hand woven rugs, teapots and more.
CITY: Arcola
Martha's House of Florals
Beautiful flowers, gifts, candy and cards. While away a few minutes in this treasure trove.
CITY: Atwood
Dec 25
Mattoon Lightworks
Enjoy the lights of the season in beautiful Peterson Park. Over 50 magnificent light displays, many of which are animated. Definitely a site to see! Drive through at your leisure evenings starting at 5pm. Over 15,000 visitors each year see this great display of holiday lights. Admission is free, donations accepted.
CITY: Mattoon
Yoder's Lamps & Antiques
A shop full of antiques and 30+ dealers, plus a large inventory of antique oil and gas lamps. Repair and parts are available for antique and modern oil and gas lamps. Authorized Aladdin Lamp dealer and repair.
CITY: Arthur
The Little Theatre On The Square
A Professional Actor Equity Association-affiliated theatre performing Broadway musicals and comedy. Produces five mainstage shows from mid-June to mid-August. Three theatres for young audiences, shows, in addition to a fall, Christmas, & spring show.
CITY: Sullivan
Vintage Karma
Handmade goods from local artists. Oh, and it’s got one of the most unique floors you’ll ever see – check it out for yourself and bring your camera!
CITY: Tuscola
Harris Agricultural Museum
The museum houses an agricultural display that includes antique tractors (1922-1937), engines, a 1919 grain/dump truck, a replica of a 1920s farmstead kitchen, and more.
CITY: Atwood
