Southern Illinois Holidays

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Photo by Southernmost Illinois Tourism Bureau

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Your Southern Illinois Holiday

Design the adventure you've always longed for with a customised Southern Illinois holiday package. A great starting point is Belleville, where you'll experience culture, history and other highlights. Kick off your trip to Southern Illinois with some time exploring O'Fallon visiting popular attractions like O'Fallon Family Sports Park and FanDuel Sportsbook and Horse Racing. Effingham is another city that lures travellers from far and wide. Lake Sara and Effingham Performance Centre are two of the top places to see in this destination. Expedia is your one-stop shop for organising your Southern Illinois holiday. From accommodation and flights, to activities and rental cars, we know how to create a travel experience like no other.

Where to stay in Southern Illinois

Find the best Southern Illinois areas and neighborhoods for the activities you enjoy most. Learn more about Southern Illinois
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Eastport

While visiting Eastport, you might make a stop by sights like Gateway Conference Center and Splash City Family Waterpark.

Find hotels in Eastport

Southern Illinois Holiday Packages

Surrounded on three sides by powerful rivers, this region is richly textured with antebellum estates, farmland, vineyards and tracts of protected forest.

Discover the unique identity of Southern Illinois, a region renowned for its riverside communities, historic estates, rolling plains and rich pasturage. Nicknamed Shawnee Forest Country for the vast tracts of forest and parkland that stretch downstate, Southern Illinois is studded with oak-hickory woods and hardy palms. Explore the area along a network of trails that showcase its natural scenery, heritage grandeur and regional wineries.

Southern Illinois is strewn with historic townships nestled within the lush greenery. Visit Cairo to experience the romance of a preserved 19th-century river town and learn about the region’s Civil War history. MetropolisOpens in a new window is an intriguing little town that is heralded as the home of Superman. Visit the Super MuseumOpens in a new window to learn about the world-famous DC Comics superhero. At the village of Cave-in-RockOpens in a new window, you can discover the area’s enduring connection with the Ohio River and visit a vast limestone cave once used as a hideout by river pirates.

Pretty Makanda is the gateway to Giant City State Park, a stunning preserve peppered with enormous sandstone bluffs known as the Giant City Streets. More breathtaking natural scenery can be found in the Shawnee National Forest within the Ozark and Shawnee hills. Go on a zip-lining tour, hike scenic trails and ride on a bike or on horseback through towering canyons and dense forests. The park’s waterways are also ideal for canoeing, boating and fishing. Learn about awe-inspiring geology on a walking trail through the Garden of the Gods. Discover a unique landscape of floodplain forests in the Cache River Wetlands, which is renowned for its cypress swamps and diverse birdlife.

Southern Illinois has an extensive network of scenic trails and byways. Explore the Shawnee Hills Wine Trail to reach 12 wineries offering sumptuous tastings or check out the heritage riverside towns on the Ohio River Scenic Byway. Leave the car at home and travel from Harrisburg to Karnak on a bicycle or cross-country skis along the former railroad bed of Tunnel Hill State Trail.

Reach Southern Illinois by plane to Lawrenceville-Vincennes International Airport or catch the Amtrak service to Carbondale or St. Louis in neighboring Missouri. Stay overnight in heritage homestead accommodation or pitch a tent in one of the region’s stunning state parks.

Southern Illinois Essential Information

Language
English
Currency
U.S dollars
Closest Airport
Lambert-St. Louis Intl. Airport (STL)

Top hotels in Southern Illinois

Drury Inn & Suites St. Louis Fairview Heights

Drury Inn & Suites St. Louis Fairview Heights

3 out of 5
12 Ludwig Dr, Fairview Heights, IL
Fully refundableReserve now, pay when you stay
The price is £78 per night from 21 Sept to 22 Sept
£78
21 Sept - 22 Sept
includes taxes & fees
9/10 Wonderful! (1,006 reviews)
"Very comfortable room. Light dinner served. Nice breakfast."

Reviewed on 9 Sep 2025

Drury Inn & Suites St. Louis Fairview Heights
Super 8 by Wyndham O'Fallon

Super 8 by Wyndham O'Fallon

2 out of 5
1100 Eastgate Dr, O'Fallon, IL
Fully refundableReserve now, pay when you stay
The price is £46 per night from 21 Sept to 22 Sept
£46
21 Sept - 22 Sept
includes taxes & fees
7.2/10 Good! (1,001 reviews)
"Very out dated. Sheets dingy, old refrig and dirty, door was really dirty"

Reviewed on 10 Sep 2025

Super 8 by Wyndham O'Fallon
Drury Plaza Hotel Mt. Vernon

Drury Plaza Hotel Mt. Vernon

3 out of 5
145 North 44th Street , Mount Vernon, IL
Fully refundableReserve now, pay when you stay
The price is £79 per night from 5 Oct to 6 Oct
£79
5 Oct - 6 Oct
includes taxes & fees
9.6/10 Exceptional! (1,445 reviews)
"Everything"

Reviewed on 10 Sep 2025

Drury Plaza Hotel Mt. Vernon
See all 1,064 properties in Southern Illinois
Lowest nightly price found within the past 24 hours based on a 1 night stay for 2 adults. Prices and availability subject to change. Additional terms may apply.
All Inclusive Holidays
All Inclusive Holidays
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Beach Holidays
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Family Friendly Holidays

Popular places to visit

Garden of the Gods Recreation Area

Garden of the Gods Recreation Area

See for yourself why Harrisburg’s unearthly sandstone formations, tucked within lush Shawnee National Forest, earn their ethereal name.

Garden of the Gods Recreation Area
Superman Statue which includes a statue or sculpture as well as a small group of people

Superman Statue

Superman fans will love getting a photograph taken in front of this giant statue of the Man of Steel himself, dressed in his iconic red-and-blue guise.

Superman Statue

Frequently asked questions

Can I cancel my flight booking to Southern Illinois due to COVID-19?
If you haven't booked yet, check the terms and conditions of your preferred carrier. If you've already locked in your flight to Southern Illinois, click through to our Customer Service Portal. The information here will help determine which COVID-19 policies apply to your booking and advise the next steps.
What's the best way to find cheap flights to Southern Illinois that have flexible change policies?
At Expedia, we've been channeling our inner gymnast to bring you the most flexible fares around. Just click on "No change fee" under the filter heading "Flexible change policies" to find your perfect flight to Southern Illinois.
What are some of the general tips for travellers to Southern Illinois during the COVID-19 outbreak?
With new COVID-19 rules and measures to adhere to, travel looks a bit different at present. Here are some useful things to know before you hop on that plane to Southern Illinois:
  • Research the rules and restrictions in both your origin and destination. You may not be able to travel depending on local circumstances, so make sure you check before you lock in your flight.
  • Wear a face mask during airport screening. A TSA employee will ask you to temporarily lower your mask for ID purposes.
  • To minimize the risk of cross-contamination, place your boarding pass on the scanner yourself and then hold it up for inspection. Do not hand your pass directly to a TSA officer.
  • One liquid hand sanitizer container is now allowed in your carry-on baggage. It must be no larger than 12 oz (350 ml), and you'll need to take it out of your bag for X-ray scanning.
  • To reduce handling during the screening process, place items such as your phone, keys and wallet into your carry-on rather than the bins.
  • Transport your food items in a clear plastic bag and also put them in a screening bin. Keeping your food separate from your carry-on makes it less likely that a TSA agent will need to open your bag for inspection.

Which airlines fly to Southern Illinois?
Cape Air is a well-known carrier servicing Southern Illinois. Search for a ticket to Williamson County Regional Airport (MWA) and you'll have 160 Cape Air flights a month to pick from.
How can I find cheap tickets to Southern Illinois?
A useful strategy for scoring cheap tickets is to be flexible with your travel dates. Begin with searching for your flight to Southern Illinois, then click on the "flexible dates" box to compare prices for nearby days. Want another tip? Book in advance. To give you an idea of costs, was the lowest price for a flight to Southern Illinois in the last seven days.
How much is a flight to Southern Illinois?
In the last seven days, round-trip tickets to Southern Illinois sold for as low as and reached a maximum of . For one-way trips taking off from (), the lowest amount paid during this same period was .
What are the most popular airports to fly into in Southern Illinois?
The main gateway to Southern Illinois, about 160 flights cruise into Williamson County Regional Airport (MWA) each month. Keep an eye out for a rewarding deal, lock in your seat and get set to discover this sensational region.
When is the cheapest time to fly to Southern Illinois?
If you'd rather spend your holiday savings enjoying Southern Illinois rather than on your trip there, jet off earlier in the week. The most economical day to travel is usually Tuesday, with Monday close behind. With many folks keeping their travel to weekends, Saturday tends to have the most expensive airfares.
How much is a plane ticket to Southern Illinois?
In the last seven days, plane tickets varied between and . Check out our sensational deals to Southern Illinois, make a booking and then get ready for your getaway!
Which airlines with flights to Southern Illinois employ COVID-19 cleanliness policies?
In response to the global COVID-19 pandemic, airlines have implemented additional actions and measures to help their passengers get back in the air. Here are some great examples:
  • Southwest Airlines - this airline is known for providing passenger masks and cleaning with disinfectant.
  • American Airlines - this airline is known for providing passenger masks and cleaning with disinfectant.
  • Delta - this airline is known for electrostatic cleaning and cleaning with disinfectant.

* Savings based on package bookings compared to the price of the same components booked separately. Savings not available on all packages. Flight-inclusive packages are ATOL protected.