Small towns, rural attractions, and state parks offer ways to escape the urban frenzy
By Randy Mink
Away from its big population centers, Illinois provides itinerary planners with a bushel basket full of opportunities to ditch the rat race and connect with a slower pace of life.
Your travelers can unwind while shopping for treasures in towns like Galena, Jacksonville, and Elsah. They can commune with nature in places like Shawnee National Forest and Starved Rock State Park. Agritourism is bigger than ever, and possibilities for farm visits crop up all across the state.
Here is a sampling of places that will perk up your next group trip in Illinois:
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SMALL TOWNS
Galena
Once the largest Mississippi River trade port north of St. Louis, tourist-friendly Galena is one of the best-preserved 19th-century towns in the Midwest. Featured in many movies, the curving streets have changed little since the 1840s. Explore Main Street’s collection of more than 125 independently owned shops and eateries, or embark on a Galena Trolley Tour that passes famous buildings like the DeSoto House Hotel, where Abraham Lincoln delivered a speech from the balcony in 1856. At the Ulysses S. Grant State Historic Site, learn about the famed Civil War general who lived in the Italianate-style manor before and after his presidency.
Long Grove
Historic Downtown Long Grove, a shopping/dining hotspot in northwest suburban Chicago, abounds with gift boutiques, home decor stores, art galleries, wine bars, and restaurants. Long Grove Confectionery is famous for its creamy chocolates and buttery copper kettle caramels. Enjoy a juicy burger or prime rib sandwich at The Village Tavern, Illinois’ oldest continuously operated tavern/restaurant (1847). And don’t miss the Sock Monkey Museum. Multi-day festivals include Chocolate Fest, Strawberry Fest, Apple Fest, Irish Days, and Vintage Holidays.
Bishop Hill
Historically significant buildings, including Colony Church, remain from the utopian religious community founded in 1846 by a Swedish pietist and his followers. The Bishop Hill Museum offers an orientation video. Several shops provide the opportunity to see artisans at work, and the general store sells specialty foods and other imports from Sweden. Savor the Swedish meatballs at PL Johnson’s Dining Room.
Pontiac
Mother Road enthusiasts flock to the free-admission Route 66 Association Hall of Fame and Museum, a repository of memorabilia celebrating the people and businesses that served motorists on the historic highway. Upstairs, visitors find rooms with exhibits on 1940s nostalgia, Civil War music, and the Titanic, plus the Livingston County War Museum, a treasure chest of military artifacts. Outdoors, visitors pose for photos in front of the giant Route 66 shield mural emblazoning the building’s back wall. More than 20 other artist-designed murals brightened downtown. Classic car buffs enjoy the Pontiac – Oakland Automobile Museum.
Atlanta
The town of Atlanta, another stop on Historic Route 66, recently unveiled the American Giants Museum, which chronicles the story of the 20-foot-tall fiberglass “Muffler Men” statues once used as advertising characters by automotive and other highway businesses. Several of these towering figures stand outside the museum. Across the street is the Bunyon Giant, a fiberglass man holding a hot dog.
Lincoln
Another great photo op awaits on Old Route 66 in Lincoln, where a statue of Abraham Lincoln sits in the driver’s seat of the Railsplitter Covered Wagon, the world’s largest covered wagon. The 16th president also is remembered at the Lincoln Heritage Museum, which has rare Lincoln-related artifacts and immersive audio-visual displays that tell the story of his life. Photo opportunities in Lincoln also include the Tropics Restaurant Neon Sign, a replica Route 66 landmark that recalls a beloved institution that operated from 1950 until closing in 1997. In downtown Lincoln, visit the quaint shops and cafes surrounding the Logan County Courthouse and grab a selfie at the huge Lincoln penny mural.
Jacksonville
Historic districts brimming with beautiful homes, along with a variety of museums and an extravaganza of Walldog murals around the downtown square, set the tone in this inviting college town 25 minutes west of Springfield. Visitors to this charming Main Street community can spend hours shopping for gifts and antiques at the locally owned stores. Catch a movie in The Illinois Theater, which dates back to 1939.
Casey
Located off of I-70 in east-central Illinois, the town of Casey (pronounced “KZ”) is worth a stop for taking pictures at the World’s Largest Barber Pole, World’s Largest Rocking Chair, and other oversized roadside attractions. Climb up into the World’s Largest Mailbox or ring the World’s Largest Wind Chime. Have lunch at Richards Farm Restaurant, home to the 60-foot-long World’s Largest Pitchfork. Casey’s motto: “Big Things Small Town.”
Elsah
Tucked between the limestone bluffs alongside the Mississippi River north of Alton, the entire town is on the National Register of Historic Places. Elsah has been called “the village where time stood still.” Little shops, B&Bs, stone houses, and the campus of Principia College recall a bygone era.
Chester
Popeye statues and murals on the Popeye Character Trail remind visitors that this Mississippi River community was the hometown of the cartoon character’s creator, E.C. Segar. See rare Popeye the Sailor Man artwork and other memorabilia at Spinach Can Collectibles, a museum/souvenir shop.
Metropolis
This small Ohio Rivertown is the “Home of Superman.” The Super Museum, a shrine to the TV, movie, and comic book hero, contains one of the world’s largest collections of Superman memorabilia, from toys, food products, and lunch boxes to movie posters, paintings and statues, and props and costumes from the old TV show. Nearby, a 15-foot-tall bronze statue of Superman stands by the Massac County Courthouse. Browse downtown’s boutiques and antique shops and try your luck at Harrah’s Casino.
AGRIGTOURISM
Epiphany Farms in Downs, a village near Bloomington-Normal, feels strongly about the value of understanding the source of your food, which is why the team offers tours of their working farm during the growing season. Visitors have the opportunity to learn about the regenerative and chemical-free agricultural practices that Epiphany Farms uses to provide food to local eateries.
Every item on the menu at the on-site restaurants is raised naturally on the farm or sourced from local farming artisans.
In the peaceful countryside of Normal, Rader Family Farms is a sprawling “agritainment” destination that offers dozens of activities, including a corn maze, pumpkin and apple picking, and a tram ride through the fields. Guests enjoy feeding the goats and meeting the sheep, cows, horses, donkeys, and alpacas. They enjoy fresh-baked pumpkin donuts and pumpkin and apple bars at Harvest Brew Coffee Shop and Bakery, a fall favorite in the Pumpkin Blossom Barn.
Marcoot Jersey Creamery, located on a seventh-generation, family-run farm in Greenville, provides a chance to observe the craftsmanship that goes into making artisan cheeses and farm-fresh dairy products. Tours include the calf barn, milking parlor, and creamery. The store offers a variety of cheeses.
Just 10 minutes from Marcoot Creamery, visitors can tour the barns and pastures at Rolling Lawns Farm, home to a herd of Holsteins. At the milk processing and bottling facility, The MilkHouse, you can indulge in freshly made ice cream and other dairy products.
Woodlawn Farm, a living history museum located five miles east of Jacksonville, allows guests to immerse themselves in mid-1800s farm life. It was an important stop on the Underground Railroad for runaway slaves seeking shelter.
Lincoln Log Cabin State Historic Site, a working farmstead south of Charleston, provides insights into Abraham Lincoln’s family history. A two-room cabin replicates the 1840s home of Thomas and Sarah Bush Lincoln, the future president’s father and stepmother. The site offers a variety of interpretive programs, as does the adjacent Stephen Sargent Farm, which was moved to that location to broaden understanding of 19th-century rural life in Illinois.
Illinois Rural Heritage Museum in Pinckneyville has two cavernous buildings housing an outstanding collection of farming implements and other antiques. Catch a demonstration of the rope-making machine, learn about coal mining, see a lard kettle and sausage stuffer, and admire a farmhouse, general store, and doctor and dentist offices from way back when.
In southwestern Illinois, tours are available of Kamaroo Farms, an alternative-agriculture enterprise that raises kangaroos, camels, ostriches, emus, and other birds and animals. It is located in Kampsville on a peninsula between the Illinois and Mississippi rivers.
Eckert’s Country Store & Farms, high up on bluffs along the Mississippi River in Grafton, specializes in hand-picked peaches and blackberries in the summer, and apples and pumpkins when the fall air turns crisp. The store offers fresh produce, apple cider, apple and pumpkin butter, honey, Amish salsas, jams, jellies, and bakery treats. During late September and October, weekend entertainment includes carnival rides, pony and camel rides, the Golden Goat Bridge, a petting farm, and miniature golf.
Rolling Oak Alpaca Ranch in Makanda rests on 10 acres in Shawnee National Forest, just off Interstate 57 and minutes from multiple wineries. Home to more than 20 alpacas, the ranch offers private tours that shed light on alpaca farming and how the soft fibers are made into various products.
Curtis Orchard & Pumpkin Patch in Champaign is a family-run farm that’s been feeding people since 1873 and now grows dozens of varieties of apples alongside a pumpkin patch just waiting to be picked in the fall. If you don’t have time to pick your own, their large country store offers the opportunity to shop for these and much more, including specialty food and gift items, fresh apple cider, baked goods, and delicious homemade honey. A visit here would not be complete if you didn’t stop at the corn maze, goat petting zoo, and Flying Monkey Cafe.
Groups can arrange tours and tastings at Illinois’ first farmstead cheesemaking facility, Prairie Fruits Farm & Creamery, a goat dairy just north of Champaign. You can meet the goats, sample artisan goat cheese and goat-milk gelato, roam the grounds, and visit the farm store.
Hardy’s Reindeer Ranch in Rantoul allows visitors to encounter a herd of authentic Alaskan reindeer. Take a tour and get the opportunity to meet these friendly animals, and if you’re brave, you can even give one a kiss. In the fall, you can get lost in their corn maze.
The Great Pumpkin Patch in Arthur is a family-owned farm with over 300 varieties of pumpkins, squash, and gourds from over 20 countries around the world. Visitors can experience the harvest season with beautiful surroundings in the heart of Amish Country. Pumpkins aren’t all this place has to offer as guests can experience detailed mum displays known as “quilts,” corn mazes, farm animals, scenic wagon rides, and places to eat and drink.
There’s no place that better spotlights the state’s agricultural prowess than the Illinois State Fair in Springfield. The annual event, set for August 13-23, 2026, offers everything from prize-winning livestock to carnival rides, harness racing, concerts, circus acts, and an acrobatic high dive show. In the Dairy Building, catch a glimpse of the iconic Butter Cow (made from 500 pounds of unsalted butter), pose for a dairy-themed selfie at the photo kiosk, and enjoy ice cream and cream puffs.
PARKS
Starved Rock State Park, Utica. Located on the Illinois River near Utica, 92 miles southwest of Chicago, this is Illinois’ most-visited state park. Trails showcase canyons, waterfalls, and spectacular overlooks. The rustic Starved Rock Lodge, constructed in the 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), has a restaurant, guest rooms, and log cabins.
White Pines Forest State Park, Mount Morris. The park is known for its hiking trails, excellent restaurant, cabin accommodations, and Pines Dinner Theater.
Matinee music shows commonly pay tribute to popular pop and country artists of today and yesteryear. Offerings in 2026 will feature the hits of Elvis Presley, Dean Martin, Kenny Rogers, Tom Jones, and others. Scrooge the Comedy has been a December tradition for more than 30 years.
Pere Marquette State Park, Grafton. Featuring 8,000 picturesque acres, Illinois’ largest state park is situated on the Mississippi River. Visitors can hike miles of wooded trails, bicycle along river bluffs, take a boat out for fishing, or go horseback riding through a peaceful forest. As a frequent nesting spot for migrating bald eagles, it’s also the perfect spot to catch a glimpse of the national bird. The historic stone-and-timber lodge has a mammoth lobby fireplace, an indoor swimming pool, elegant dining, 50 spacious guest rooms, and 22 stone guest cabin rooms.
Garden of the Gods, Shawnee National Forest. Located on the forest’s eastern side, a half-hour southeast of Harrisburg, the awesome wilderness of sculpted sandstone pinnacles and bluffs seems out of place in the Prairie State. Observation Trail, a quarter-mile flagstone path with interpretive panels, takes hikers through massive boulders affording spectacular overlooks of the pristine woodlands. Scrambling among clifftops, visitors can go wild taking pictures, but signs urge caution; it’s a long fall. The trail’s most photographed sight is Camel Rock.
Giant City State Park, Makanda. Nestled in Shawnee National Forest, the park draws hikers eager to squeeze through the narrow passageways threading the massive sandstone walls lining mile-long Giant City Nature Trail. Giant City Lodge, built by the CCC in the 1930s, awes first-time visitors with its massive white oak timbers and sandstone blocks. Its spacious Bald Knob dining room is famed for all-you-can-eat chicken dinners served family-style. Nearby are 34 cabins and an 82-foot-tall water tower with an observation deck offering panoramas of the picturesque bluffs, ridges, and canyons.
Download your FREE Illinois Group Tour Planner and start planning your group trip today!
