Top Beaches, Waterfalls & Swimming Spots in Illinois
Illinois has 5,109 listed water destinations, including lakes and rivers. Browse them by type below, with ratings, photos and directions for each.
🏞️Top Lakes in Illinois
6 locations
4.7(436)Whalon Lake
Nature park featuring a quarry lake, prairie & wetlands, plus fishing, boating, trails & a dog park.
4.7(268)Carlyle Lake
Large 26,000-acre lake used for sailing & fishing, with sandy beach areas & state park trails.
4.7(250)Lake Shelbyville
Popular, 11,000-acre lake featuring boating, swimming, camping, fishing, sandy beaches & picnicking.
4.4(86)Lake Springfield
4,260-acre reservoir with boating, fishing, a marina with watercraft rentals & a park with a zoo.
4.4(54)Lake Decatur
Expansive manmade lake, a popular destination for boating & fishing, with several boat ramps.
4.8(54)Cedar Lake
Large reservoir lake for water activities like fishing, kayaking, canoeing & swimming.
🌊Top Rivers in Illinois
3 locations
4.5(342)Illinois River
The Illinois River is a principal tributary of the Mississippi River at approximately 273 miles in length. Located in the U.S. state of Illinois, the river has a drainage basin of 28,756.6 square miles.
4.4(334)Fox River
The Fox River is a 202-mile-long tributary of the Illinois River, flowing from southeastern Wisconsin to Ottawa, Illinois in the United States. The Wisconsin section was known as the Pishtaka River in the 19th century. There is another Fox River in Wisconsin that flows through Lake Winnebago into Green Bay.
4.2(15)Des Plaines River
River running through plane forests & marshland, popular for canoeing & fishing for carp or bass.
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