Zion

A Picture is Worth 1,000 Characters

In 2016, the National Park Service turned 100 years old, having spent the last century preserving some of the United States’ most unique, stunning and ecologically diverse sites—much to the delight of visitors. 

In fact, a new report shows that roughly 21 million people made a trip to National Parks in the Midwest Region in 2015, spending $1.3 billion in communities within a 60-mile radius of the chosen destination, supporting jobs and local economies. In Illinois alone, that figure tallied around 233,000 recreation visits and a total visitor spending of almost $14 million.