Take a trip to St. Louis. You can travel by plane to St. Louis for as little as $121, go by Amtrak train for as low as $32 or by Greyhound bus for $27 (if you buy your ticket online), as of October 2010. Budget accommodations in St. Louis include Courtyard St. Louis Westport Plaza, Hampton Inn in Downtown St. Louis and Cheshire Lodge.
If you take a few days to vacation in St. Louis you can find inexpensive activities here, such as touring the Anheuser-Busch Brewery, enjoying the sculpture and botanical gardens of Citygarden, visit the world-renowned St. Louis Zoo or marveling at St. Louis's famous Gateway Arch. The city also offers a wide range of unique museums, including the American Kennel Club Museum of the Dog, the Museum of Black Inventors and the Historic Aircraft Restoration Museum.
Pack up a tent, a sleeping bag and some camping gear, and head out to enjoy Illinois nature. Kickapoo State Park, located approximately three hours from Chicago, provides a camping area, as well as opportunities to boat, canoe, fish, bike, hike, picnic and even scuba dive.
Spitler Woods State Natural Area, a three-and-a-half-hour drive from Chicago near Mt. Zion, Illinois, offers campers the option of hiking and picnicking in the park's Nature Preserve/Natural Area.
Wolf Creek State Park, four hours south of Chicago, has a campground with an extensive list of additional activities including hiking, archery, horseback riding, swimming, fishing and in the winter, snowmobiling.
Explore Illinois history and culture by touring small museums located throughout Illinois. The La Salle County Historical Society & Museum in La Salle, less than two hours southwest of Chicago, gives visitors an overview of prairie life in this small Illinois town, including exhibitions showing information about the Illinois and Michigan Canal, an 1875 post and beam barn, an 1865 one-room schoolhouse and an 1892 working blacksmith shop. The museum's hours vary according to the time of year.
The Illinois Amish Interpretive Center in Arcola, less than an hour south of Chicago, presents exhibits that provide an overview of Amish life, beliefs, traditions and culture. The center is open from March through November, and other months by appointment.
The Early American Museum in Mahomet, three hours from Chicago, shows exhibits of Illinois' early settlement, textile production, agriculture and arts, including collections of blacksmithing and cloth-making tools. Hours vary and the museum does not charge for visits.
