‘Hidden Gem’: Growing Number of Visitors Discovering Southern Illinois as Travel Destination - IPM Newsroom

‘Hidden gem’: Growing number of visitors discovering southern Illinois as travel destination - IPM Newsroom

Illinois Newsroom - Inside the state’s push to boost tourism across its inspirational southernmost region The post ‘Hidden gem’: Growing number of visitors discovering southern Illinois as travel destination appeared first on IPM Newsroom.

Growing number of visitors discovering southern Illinois as travel destination – Capitol News IL

In 2023, tourists spent over $47 billion across Illinois, generating over $6.5 billion in state and local taxes, according to the 2024 Tourism Office report. The report estimated that tourism in that year generated over $80 billion in total economic impact for the state.

Growing number of visitors discovering southern Illinois as travel destination - Chronicle Media

WOLF LAKE. Ill. — Standing on the edge of a 300-foot limestone bluff in southern Illinois’ Shawnee National Forest, Machaela Sweeney could thank the perfect words she typed into ChatGPT for bringing her to the unexpected spot. “I literally looked up ‘lush, magical, fairytale areas,’” she recalled, looking over the edge of the forest’s Inspiration... The post Growing number of visitors discovering southern Illinois as travel destination appeared …