Champaign: Nature, Gardens and Culture in Champaign County

Champaign combines green landscapes, distinctive gardens and a diverse cultural scene. Those planning a trip with children can combine experiences in nature, history, performing arts and regional specialties here. When choosing your vacation rental in Champaign, it is therefore particularly useful to consider what kind of holiday you would like to create: active days in the countryside, peaceful garden visits or cultural discoveries in Champaign County.

Forest Landscapes and a Car-Free Rail Trail

The Lake of the Woods Forest Preserve covers 873 acres along the Sangamon River corridor in a hilly woodland area near Mahomet, Illinois. This creates a landscape that clearly differs from a purely urban sightseeing experience. The eight-acre Mabery Gelvin Botanical Garden is also located within the preserve.

Another way to combine landscape and exercise is the Kickapoo Rail Trail. The currently open 6.7-mile section runs between Urbana and St. Joseph. The trail follows a railway line abandoned in the 1980s and provides a car-free connection as well as recreational opportunities between several communities and parks. At the same time, the trail passes through forests, prairies and wetlands. Its varied landscapes make it an appealing destination for anyone who does not want to visit cultural attractions exclusively during their stay.

Gardens as Green Places for Learning and Experiences

In Urbana, the Champaign County Idea Garden is an 18,000-square-foot planted area in the University of Illinois Arboretum. Since 1997, the garden has served as a venue for public workshops and also includes a special garden area for children. This makes it possible to combine a visit with different interests without having the entire day revolve around a single attraction.

The Red Oak Rain Garden is home to nearly 60 native plant species and serves as a venue for public workshops and events. At Japan House, guided tours of the gardens are offered by prior appointment. They cover history, design concepts and information about plants. If you prefer to include fixed activities in your travel plans, you should take this prior appointment into account when planning.

The Anita Purves Nature Center also offers environmental programs on-site and at other locations. Depending on your desired pace of travel, you can include a garden day, a nature program or an outing on the rail trail in your plans.

History, Performing Arts and Regional Flavors

Champaign County can also be explored through its history. The African American Heritage Trail documents more than 170 years of African American cultural history in Champaign County. The Museum of the Grand Prairie houses the Doris K. Wylie Hoskins Archive, with thousands of archival materials on African American history in Champaign County and east-central Illinois.

The Champaign County History Museum interprets the history of Champaign County through changing exhibitions and offers guided tours with different focuses throughout the year. In Urbana, the Krannert Center for the Performing Arts has five indoor stages, including Foellinger Great Hall. In addition, the William M. Staerkel Planetarium at Parkland College in northwest Champaign uses a digital Digistar projection system.

Prairie Fruits Farm & Creamery offers a special insight into regional experiences. It offers goat walks, goat yoga, and tastings of goat cheese and goat milk gelato. The operation also includes the Caprae restaurant, which uses regional ingredients. Such offerings add a distinctive touch alongside museums, gardens and performing arts programs.

Champaign as a Base for Different Types of Days

When searching for a vacation rental or holiday home in Champaign, you can therefore first determine your preferred focus. Those interested in nature can consider the Lake of the Woods Forest Preserve, the Mabery Gelvin Botanical Garden or the Kickapoo Rail Trail. For culture and history, the Heritage Trail, museums, the Krannert Center and the planetarium offer different points of interest. Families can also consider the children's area at the Idea Garden and the Nature Center's offerings without having to turn them into a fixed program.

For further orientation, the direct destinations Champaign, Urbana, Rantoul, Mahomet and Savoy are available. You can find other pages at the same level under St. Clair, Edgar and Franklin County.

To the higher-level travel overview: Illinois.