The Best Illinois Amusement Parks and Theme Parks

Santa's Village was an Illinois favorite for many years. It closed in 2005, but was retooled and reopened as Santa's Village AZoosment Park. It includes some of the original park's rides, such as Santa's Slide and the Snowball Ride, along with animal exhibits and other attractions. It also offers classic rides, like The Whip and the Midge O Racers, culled from Kiddieland. Its lone major coaster is Super Cyclone, which climbs 33 feet and hits 30 mph.

Donley's Wild West Town (seasonal) is an old-school, small park with shows, pony rides, a museum, and other attractions themed to the Old West. Rides include a mine train roller coaster, a carousel, a small train, and canoes.

The small facility includes laser tag, go-karts, bowling, laser tag, an arcade, and a few rides, such as bumper cars and a spinning Catapult. It also offers black-light mini-golf and Quest II, a play structure for young kids with rope bridges and interactive features. Enchanted Castle also includes the Dragon's Den restaurant.

The small center includes bowling, a jungle gym, a toddler zone, an arcade with Skee Ball and other redemption games, and a few rides such as a small roller coaster, bumper cars, a bounce house, and spinning rides.

Grady's Family Fun Park offers go-karts, a slide, bumper boats, batting cages, and mini golf. Amusement rides include a Tilt-A-Whirl, Round-Up, a Sizzler and a small coaster.

The small Halloween-themed park, Haunted Trails, features laser tag, batting cages, go-karts, and mini-golf as well as a few rides such as a small coaster and a Crazy Cabs spinning ride. It also offers two game rooms that are open year-round.

Like its sister park in Burbank, this is a small facility. It includes a few rides such as a small coaster, an arcade, batting cages, go-karts, and mini-golf.

Safari Land is a small, jungle-themed park. Activities include a carousel, small roller coaster, a Tilt-A-Whirl, a flight simulator, go-karts, bowling, an arcade with redemption games, the Lion's Den soft play area for young children, and billiards. The center also offers the Atlantis Restaurant and the Water Hole lounge.

A massive park, Six Flags Great America is one of the amusement chain's premier locations. Among its many marquee rides is Goliath, which hits 72 mph (making it one of the ten fastest wooden roller coasters in the world), the “wing coaster” X-Flight, and the launched impulse coaster, Vertical Velocity. While thrill rides are its specialty, Great America also offers three areas with tame rides designed for small children The park also includes an adjacent water park which requires a separate admission.