Friday, September 3, 2010
By Cindy Richards
The Daily Journal correspondent
There are hundreds of fun trips within 350 miles of Kankakee -- some so close you can go for the day and be home that night. Here are a selection of family-friendly Midwest destinations.
Map by Evan Hill/The Daily Journal
INDIANA
Fair Oaks Farm, Fair Oaks
www.fofarms.com
(877) 536-1194.
The Fair Oaks Farms Adventure Center presents dairy farming as Walt Disney might have done it -- lots of bright colors, interactive games and big screen video. From the interactive Adventure Center to the groan-inducing cow humor (What do you call a Guernsey calf after it's six months old? Seven months old.) to the birthing barn, where as many as 100 calves are born daily, to the new kiddie play area, there's plenty to keep everyone engaged for several hours.
Indianapolis Children's Museum, Indianapolis
www.childrensmuseum.org
(317) 334-3322
The fun here starts outside, where a giant dinosaur appears to be busting out of the museum, and it never stops once you're inside. This is one of the best children's museums in the country and it keeps getting better. Museum officials have turned the current expansion program into an exhibit on construction. View it from the Level 2 construction overlook.
Amish Acres, Nappanee
www.amishacres.com
(800) 800-4942
A visit to this 80-acre farmstead is a great way to show kids that there's more to life than an Xbox. Amish Acres offers a dinner, theater, inn and all things Amish (including a Web site, which seems a bit out of character for people who have eschewed modern ways of life).
Illinois Burpee Museum of Natural History, Rockford
www.burpee.org
(815) 965-3433
This is the home of Jane, the teenage T-rex, and one of the most affordable natural history museums. Admission is just $7 for adults, $6 for kids. Parking and admission on Wednesdays are free. It has enough hands-on, interactive stuff to keep younger kids engaged. And Jane is just plain cool.
Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum, Springfield
www.alplm.org
(800) 610-2094
This the state's newest homage to our 16th president and it's very well done. The museum is divided into two parts. Journey I is the kid-friendly section. It includes Mrs. Lincoln's Attic, a hands-on play area where kids can dress up as the Lincoln kids, play with mid-1800s toys and rearrange the furniture in the Lincoln dollhouse. Journey II features his post-election life, which can be a little intense for youngsters.
Lincoln's New Salem State Historic Site, New Salem
www.lincolnsnewsalem.com
(217) 632-4000
This site about 20 northwest of Springfield is a great place to stop and give kids a chance to run off some of that pent-up car-ride energy. They can run along the path while you stroll around exploring the 1830s reconstruction of the log houses, workshops, stores, mills and school in this village where Lincoln spent his formative adult years. State budget woes mean limited hours, so call before you go to be sure the site is open.
Starved Rock State Park, Utica
www.starvedrockstatepark.org
(800) 868-ROCK (7625)
One of the state's natural treasures, Starved Rock State Park offers 18 canyons and 13 miles of marked trails for hiking around the sandstone structures and along the bluffs. Outdoor enthusiasts will find fishing and camping, while indoor enthusiasts can book a room at the Starved Rock Lodge. The name comes from the tale of some Illiniwek Indians who sought refuge atop a 125-foot sandstone butte during an uprising in the 1760s. They were surrounded by the Ottawa and Potawatomi, who stayed until the Illiniwek died of starvation.
Frank Lloyd Wright, Oak Park and Chicago
www.wrightplus.org
(708) 848-1976
Famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright developed his trademark Prairie style of architecture during the 20 years he spent at his Home and Studio in Oak Park. In Hyde Park on the South Side of Chicago sits the Frederick C. Robie House, a Wright masterpiece. Both the home and studio and Robie House are open for tours. Take the kids on a Saturday to the tours led by teen docents called junior interpreters. While you're in Oak Park, take the self-guided audio tour of the Wright houses in the neighborhood around the Home and Studio.
John Deere Pavilion, Moline
www.deere.com/en_US/attractions/pavilion/index.html
(309) 765-1000
Moline was home to the first John Deere plant, a history that is celebrated at this free museum. Kids won't care about the glorious past, though. They'll be more interested in climbing on the giant tractor.
Michigan AirZoo, Kalamazoo
www.airzoo.org
(866) 524-7966
This air museum is a treasure and fun for little kids (who get their own mini-play area) and big kids (who get to ride in the flight simulator). Aircraft aficionados can go shoulder-to-wingtip with some of the world's most elite flying machines, including the F-14 Tomcat, the star of "Top Gun."
Henry Ford Museum, Dearborn
www.thehenryford.org
(800) 835-5237
This building houses an amazing collection of Americana, from the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile to a 1960s era Holiday Inn hotel room complete with green shag carpet. And, of course, there are plenty of cars, even some not made by the Ford Motor Co. Tour the nearby Rouge assembly plant for an additional fee. If you visit after April 15, buy a combined pass and spend a day at Greenfield Village, a living history depiction of a late 1800s village.
Holland
www.holland.org
(800) 506-1299
The town's famous Tulip Time tulip festival doesn't start until the first weekend in May -- after most spring breaks end -- but the Dutch town still is worth a trip. Don't miss the DeKlomp Wooden Shoe & Delft Factory, where you can talk with the artists as they mold, hand paint, and glaze the blue and white delftware or watch the wooden shoe carving machines that were imported from the Netherlands.
WISCONSIN
Milwaukee
www.milwaukee.org
(414) 273-3950
One of the family-friendliest cities anywhere, Milwaukee is home to the wonderful Betty Brinn Children's Museum, the venerable Milwaukee Art Museum and the terrific Milwaukee Public Museum. Its newest attractions are aimed at those hard-to-please tweens: Discovery World, a science and technology museum, and the Harley-Davidson Museum, that celebrates the 105-year history of Milwaukee's own creation. If you visit with younger kids, stay at the Milwaukee Hilton City Centre. It has the ultimate in kid vacation features: an indoor waterpark in the basement.
Wisconsin Dells
www.wisdells.com
(800) 223-3557
A trip to the indoor waterpark capital of the world ought to net you at least one spontaneous hug from your kid. Spend some time on the Internet before you go to be sure you choose the right waterpark for your little swimmers. Some, such as the huge Kalahari, are better for older kids. Others, such as Wintergreen, offer a tamer experience more appropriate for little ones. If you have kids of varying ages and bravery levels, take along another adult so one can follow the big kids onto the big slides and the other can stick with the little ones on the little slides. And never go to Wisconsin Dells without checking the Web for deals.
IOWA
Amana Colonies, Amana
www.amanacolonies.com
(800) 579-2294
Settled by German immigrants as a religious communal society in 1855, this area continues to celebrate its heritage with food, crafts and, of course, beer. Other nearby towns celebrate their ethnic history as well, including Cedar Rapids, home of the National Czech and Slovak Museum and the African American Historical Museum, and Kalona, home to the largest Amish settlement west of the Mississippi,
National Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium, Dubuque
www.rivermuseum.com
(563) 557-9545
Six large aquariums and numerous exhibits celebrate the Mississippi. While you're in town, stop at the 1856 Mathias Ham House Historic Site and marvel its the Victorian opulence.
MISSOURI
St. Louis
www.explorestlouis.com
(800) 916-8938
This city has that most coveted of family features: lots of free stuff to do with the kids, including the St. Louis Science Center, Missouri History Museum, the St. Louis Zoo and the Anheuser-Busch Factory Tour, which includes a visit to the Clydesdale stable. If you want to spend money, there's always Six Flags amusement park, which will reopen for the season in late March.
Kentucky Mammoth Cave
www.nps.gov/maca
(877) 444-6777
The aptly-named Mammoth Cave is 365 miles long and a natural wonder. Opt for the Frozen Niagara Tour if you want to see stalactites and stalagmites, but beware of the restrictions: If you can't make the climb, don't take the tour.