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Illinois Tourist AttractionsGuide to roadside oddities and other weird, strange and unusual attractions in Illinois.
For some great Illinois tourist attractions Superman reigns supreme in Metropolis Illinois and the Leaning Tower of Pisa, uh, make that the Leaning Tower of Niles, cleverly masks an old water tower. Here’s your chance to sleep in a caboose. Or tour a haunted house. Or check out a new Old Route 66 style gas station. When you drive up, you’ll think it really IS a gas station it’s so real looking.
Okay, so what’s so great about an old outhouse? And why on earth would an outhouse be an Illinois tourist attraction? I mean, really. Outhouses are outhouses and usually they stink. Literally. Well, this one is two stories—a skyscrapper! Very hard to do outhouse tipping with this one.
And look—no stairs! How the heck do you get to the top floor? Actually, the builders were being practical rather than counting on their creation being a 21st century Illinois tourist attraction. The outhouse was attached to the side of a two-story building. The bottom floor was a general store, the upper floor an inn. With a second floor to the outhouse, that way guests could just walk over to it, rather than have to go downstairs.
Photo courtesy donponder.com.
Find, see, (smell?) the two-story outhouse in a small park in Gays Illinois. Take Hwy 16 to Pine Street. The park is just north of the intersection of Pine.
And so does Superman. Superman stands proud and tall in front of the courthouse in Superman Square. Just across the street, visit the Super Museum. It’s all about uh, gee, how about three guesses and the first two don’t count????? For another Superman treat, dash into the phone booth outside the Chamber of Commerce and pick up the phone.
Raven’s Grin Inn in Mt. Carroll Illinois is not just a haunted house at Halloween. It’s a haunted house year around. And actually, the best time to go is when it’s NOT October. You get a more in depth and lengthier tour. And what a tour it is! Not only is this an old decrepit house turned into a haunted house, it IS a haunted house.
Photo courtesy hauntedillinois.com.
You might even get lucky and see a real live ghost. Look for a dark haired girl in a white dress. Especially in the wine cellar. Go on……be brave--------------- -----take the slide down from the Bad Dreams Bedroom to the wine cellar. This is one of those "must experience” Illinois tourist attractions. Adding to the spookiness, Raven's Grin Inn is on a dead end street right next to the city graveyard. It is located at 411 N. Carroll St, Mount Carroll, IL.
They’re open from 7 PM to 12 Midnight, most nights. Read more about the Raven's Grin Inn amd other haunted Illinois tourist attractions in The Illinois Road Guide to Haunted Locations
North of Chicago, to be exact.
This Leaning Tower of Pisa replica was built in the 1930s to camouflage a water tower. It’s about half the size of the real Leaning Tower so instead of leaning 15 feet it only leans 7.4 feet. That way it’s not quite so scary when you pose for your roadside oddities photo straining to hold the tower up.
Photo courtesy Paul Pendell. The Leaning Tower of Niles is at 6300 Touhy Avenue by the Leaning Tower YMCA.
For some unusual lodgings in Illinois, try Wildlife Prairie State Park. Oh, big deal, you say? What’s so special about camping at a state park? Well, this one has a caboose to sleep in. Okay, maybe not precisely live as it is bolted down to a section of track and can’t go anywhere, but still, it is a caboose. Wildlife Prairie Park has a bunch of cool things to do while you’re staying the night in a caboose. There’s a ton of native Illinois wildlife to see and you can even be keeper for a day! Yep. Adults, too. (And definitely something different.) And that’s what this page is all about. Not just roadside oddities but different things to do at popular Illinois tourist attractions. Like sleep in a caboose and be a wildlife keeper for the day. Can’t do that just everywhere! Wildlife Prairie Park is 10 miles west of Peoria. Take I-74, Exit 82. Turn south and go 3 miles.
A newer Old Route 66 Attraction.
Henry’s Rabbit Ranch isn’t historic, it just looks historic. Built just like an old gas station, you might be fooled into thinking it IS a gas station.
And rabbits? Why rabbits? Well, rabbits tend to breed like, well, like rabbits. Look for the bright yellow Hare It Is! sign at 1107 Historic Old Route 66 in Staunton IL. And for those of you who know your old Route 66 attractions, yes, Hare It Is! resembles Here It Is!, the famous signage for the Jack Rabbit Trading Post in Arizona.
From Illinois Tourist Attractions to State Search
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