Champaign - any suggestions for activities?

Heading to Champaign via Indy on June 8th so my son can attend a wrestling camp at U of I. Will stop off to see some relatives in Southern Illinois but then looking for things to do for five days or so while in Champaign. We are active foodies with interests in arts, history and music. Saw a reindeer farm listed on the Champaign Chamber site but not much else. Any advice? Should we drive to Chicago instead - and how hard/long of a trip would that be?

Champaign - any suggestions for activities?

Hi hapahaolegirl,

Champaign will be easier to move around in since the students are gone, but there is a lot of road construction.

For art I would take a small road trip past Monticello to Allerton Park. It was donated to the U of I years ago. There is a mansion surrounded by formal gardens and more than 100 unique sculptures. Driving instructions: 鈥iuc.edu/oce-sites/allerton/directions.cfm

For history I would drive to Springfield and go to the new Lincoln Library. This is not books(they are in the building across the street) but the mulity media story of his life. Web site: http://www.alplm.org/home.html

For music I would check out Krannert Center at:

http://www.krannertcenter.com/

Chicago is 2.5 to 3 hours away on I 57. The Dan Ryan Expressway is under heavy construction. You would take I 57 to the Ryan to go down town. You might want to consider Amtrak. They have 3 trains a day to Chicago leaving from Illinois Terminal.

I have seen ads for the reindeer farn around Christmas, but have never been.

This is just a few ideas.

Enjoy Your trip!

Champaign - any suggestions for activities?

There is a large Amish area south of Champaign in the Arthur-Arcola area; lots of places to eat and some nice shops; also an outlet center in Tuscola if you are into that sort of shopping. Have fun!

I would think that a trip over to Springfield might be worth your while now that the new Lincoln Museum downtown is open. In a small area downtown you can see Lincoln%26#39;s home (modestly interesting) and the old state capitol (fair), but the new Lincoln museum really was neat. Lincoln%26#39;s tomb is probably within 10 minutes, and then Lincoln%26#39;s New Salem park out in the country is something of a drive, but not a bad place either. At any rate, the whole Lincoln experience would be worthwhile to someone who has never experienced it.

Wow! All the suggestions sound good to me. Looks like we won%26#39;t have a probably filling our days after all. Thanks!

I agree that the Lincoln Museum is definitely worth a stop! Another excellent restaurant in the area that%26#39;s worth the drive (a little over an hour away) is the Beef House (www.beefhouserolls.com) in Covington, Indiana. Bloomington-Normal is another nice to visit as well.

A very good website to check is the local paper%26#39;s calendar of events page that can be found at: www.news-gazette.com/calendar/2007/06/12 (for instance, on June 12th, Kilborne Alley--a really great blues group--is playing at Biaggi%26#39;s, an excellent Italian restaurant in Champaign). Another website of interest might be the local convention and visitor%26#39;s bureau website at: www.visitchampaigncounty.org. It%26#39;s kind of tricky to navigate (FYI--to see ALL of the listings for different sections, make sure you scroll to the bottom and click the option to view all listings), but it will give you a taste of the different places and events that Champaign-Urbana has to offer.

I hope you enjoy your trip!

I live in Springfield Illinois and would definitely agree that driving over to see the new Presidential Museum is well worth the time. The museum has only been open a couple of years and it is fabulous. Allow several hours (minimum) for the museum. Lincoln%26#39;s Home is also in that area and worth a visit, it shouldn%26#39;t take much time out of your day. If you are there at lunch time, there are several nice inexpensive restaurants in our downtown area, and several quaint shops, all within walking distance of the museum. If you want to see Lincoln%26#39;s tomb, you would have to drive to it, about a 10 minute drive, as the other poster said. As far as New Salem (where Lincoln lived as a young man), it is about 20 miles outside of Springfield. It is interesting IF they have something going on, like a re-creation of life in the 1800%26#39;s, or some type of event scheduled, but if not, it probably wouldn%26#39;t be worth the time/drive, plus it can be a long, hot walk around the grounds when the temp is high.

Thanks, all! Leaving tomorrow and taking my TA advice with me!