...were chosen in 2007 from thousands of nominations by citizens. The Illinois Bureau of Tourism whittled the list down to 84 destinations representing 12 from each of the state's seven regions, and Illinois residents then voted online for their favorite locales, which are:
Northern: Starved Rock State Park near Utica
Central: Allerton Park and Retreat Center in Monticello
Western: Black Hawk State Historic Site near Rock Island
Southern: Rend Lake, Benton
Southwest: Meeting of the Great Rivers Scenic Byway (Mississippi, Illinois, and Missouri Rivers)
Chicago: Wrigley Field
Chicagoland: Baha'i House of Worship, Wilmette
Did you know Illinois is an Algonquin Indian word that means “tribe of superior men”? Following you'll find interesting facts about Illinois along with up-to-date Illinois visitor and economic impact information.
2007 Illinois Tourism Visitor Information
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The largest drawing tourist destination is Chicago's Navy Pier
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In 2007, Illinois welcomed nearly 89 million domestic visitors, 20.5 million for business and nearly 68.2 million for leisure purposes. The top five states providing visitors to Illinois were Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Michigan and Missouri.
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More than 1.1 million overseas visitors traveled to Illinois in 2007 ranking Illinois tied for 6th most popular U.S. state. The top five markets for international visitors to Illinois were Canada, the United Kingdom, Mexico, Germany and Japan.
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Illinois ranked 9th in the U.S. in its share of total domestic travel and 6th in traveler spending.
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The average age of Illinois leisure visitors was 45; the majority were married and they had an average annual household income of $73,000.
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Primary activities for leisure travelers to Illinois included shopping, dining, entertainment, touring/sightseeing,
