Illinois's parks and forests offer varied opportunities for outdoor recreation. Many miles of abandoned railroad right-of-way, both urban and rural, have become improved hiking and biking trails.

Sandy beaches along Lake Michigan provide attractions for swimming and other water-oriented sports. The state's long, cold winters and abundant snow in its northern sections make winter sports such as ice skating and skiing popular.

Dickson Mounds Museum, a branch of the Illinois State Museum and a National Historic Site, is one of the major on-site archaeological museums in the United States. It offers a unique opportunity to explore the world of the American Indian in an awe inspiring journey through 12,000 years of human experience in the Illinois River Valley.

Chicago---The Big City -- with its tall skyscrapers, wheeling and dealing commodities traders and no-nonsense residents -- has three-quarters of the state's population in its orbit. But beyond the last Windy City suburb is another Illinois, a vast prairie of productive farms, picturesque cities and towns rich in history.

The capital, Springfield, honors in countless ways its most famous citizen, Abraham Lincoln. To the west, the old river town of Galena retains a Civil War-era feel and is filled with bed and breakfast inns. Collinsville?s ancient Cahokia Mounds reflect the deep, native roots of Illinois. And flatlands give way in the south to rolling hills, limestone bluffs, lakes and a national forest running the width of the state.

Illinois List of Vacation Ideas