Less than an hour from Springfield, Decatur offers a wide variety of ever-changing wonders for families with children in search of indoor and outdoor play. From the constructive playthings of the Children’s Museum of Illinois to the animals at the Scovill Zoo and woodland experiences of Rock Springs Conservation Area and Nature Center, discover Decatur and enjoy fun for all on a leisurely schedule. And when you’re ready, there’s pie. Here are a few highlights for your next fall getaway together.
Children’s Museum of Illinois
55 S. Country Club Road
Fully wheelchair accessible, special sensory-friendly hours and accommodations available
Lockers available
No concessions, but tables and chairs are available in the Mess Hall and in the outdoor picnic area for those who bring their own snacks and meals.
Hours and admission: cmofil.org
For families with children ages 2 through 10 years ready to discover and play, this is a fun, colorful and memorable place to visit. For executive director Rikki Parker, “It’s all about the joy, the look in kids’ eyes, such as when they climb the (two-story) climbing structure for the first time.”
The Central Climber, which replaced the former climbing gym in 2024, is one of the newer features of this award-winning 27,000-square-foot interactive play, arts and sciences facility that opened in 1990 and gets bigger and better every year.
“(The climber) is not just indoor playground equipment,” said Parker. “There are various ways to plan and go through it, and it encourages healthy risk tolerance and how to use gross motor skills, so kids have fun while they’re learning.”
In addition to the climbing structure, a new working 20 foot by 5 foot Illinois Waterways table, complete with a lock and dam, demonstrates how agricultural goods are transported using the Illinois waterway system; an outdoor sound garden offers a different kind of sensory experience; and the new 7,000-square-foot Heroes Hall features law enforcement and first responder activities, a dispatch center, sheriff car, ambulance, miniature hospital and more.
More than 60 exhibits and activities, including two toddler areas, simulate real-world scenarios, all available for spontaneous play and discovery in each child’s own ways.
“Especially in traditional education,” said Parker, “it’s pretty rare for kids not to have a metric for success – a grade, a pass/fail. Here, we let kids be kids and learn through play. It’s an amazing opportunity to learn hands-on experimentation through doing.”
Scovill Zoo
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71 S. Country Club Road
Last day of 2025 season is Oct. 13
Hours and admission: decatur-parks.org
Scovill Zoo is big enough to offer views of dozens of animal species, a train ride through the property, a farm exhibit, reptile building, carousel, outdoor climbing structure and more, but small enough to feel manageable for families with young children.
“We’re a small-size zoo; however, we have a wide variety of species, including exotic animals that families wouldn’t get to see, right in their back yard,” said zoo director Heather Perdue. “We hope families come see the animals and learn about their ecosystems and conservation, and that we can inspire their curiosity to learn more.”
Enjoy free admission on Thursdays from now through Oct 9.
Scovill Sculpture Park
South Country Club Road
Open dawn to 10 p.m. all year
This 800-foot walkway between the Scovill Zoo and Children’s Museum of Illinois offers a bike/walk/hike trail, lake front and “unique, thought provoking sculptures,” according to the website.
Coney McKane’s American Eatery
104 E. Prairie Ave., Decatur
Enter at 100 N. Main St.
Check website for current serving hours, wait times and menu: coneymckane.com
Hungry? Stop by for lunch or supper, or possibly just dessert from the wide selection of mouthwatering fruit and cream pies made by the family’s own Grandma Flo. Note – the restaurant doesn’t take reservations. If you have waited too long for a snack and someone is getting antsy, check wait times online. There are lots of tables, and the wait staff hustles, but you may be glad you still have half a sandwich in your bag.
Rock Springs Conservation Area and Nature Center
3939 Nearing Lane, Decatur
Free admission and equipment loans
Check maconccd.org for hours
For a peaceful outdoor experience that offers a variety of land and water activities, as well as an educational experience of the region’s natural resources and cultural history, the 1300-acre Rock Springs park and nature center offers families an opportunity to immerse themselves in nature. Ideal for older children and homeschool groups, Rock Springs’ hands-on, informational and interactive Ecocenter, Window on Wildlife viewing and listening area, free canoes and kayaks at certain times, art galleries, hike/bike/walk trails through the woods and special events provide a change of scenery and engaging outing.
“Come learn all about the area’s pre-settlement and early settlement life, farming activities and even the Rock Springs bottling plant,” said executive director Jerry Culp, including the indoor-outdoor classroom. “Come out and enjoy.”
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This article appears in Fall Guide 2025.
