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Peoria is Prime in the Wintertime (travel article)

By Lesley Kontowicz
From spring to summer, fall to winter, there’s always something fun happening in Peoria—it’s like the city that keeps on giving. So, don’t let the dropping mercury get you down. Instead, capitalize on the gifts of the season with these top things to do in and around Peoria. Whether ‘tis indoor, outdoor, personal, spectator, everyday or holiday, there’s plenty at play.

Hockey

When the frost glistens on the greens you know it’s time to put it on ice. Select weekends from mid-October through the first week of April, Carver Arena in the Peoria Civic Center transforms into an ice rink to host home games for the Peoria Rivermen, a Southern Professional Hockey League team. Single-game tickets can be snagged for as low as $11, so include dinner at one of Peoria’s delicious downtown eateries and make it a date.

Skating

There’s nothing like lacing up a pair skates and gliding along the glassy ice to warm your wintry state of mind. PNC Winterfest Ice Rink at the corner of Fulton Street and Jefferson Avenue near the Peoria Civic Center lets you do just that from November 27 through January 14. Slide down their 100-foot long Ice Slide for a real thrill. Relax and watch the fun as you sip hot cocoa inside the heated tent. And if you’re tired of the typical New Year’s Eve celebration, ring in the new year at Winterfest’s New Year’s Eve Countdown which includes live music from Dexter O’Neal and the Funk Yard, fireworks, a children’s ball-drop at seven p.m. and a midnight ball-drop countdown. Check our website for skating coupons.

Brain Games

Ready to warm up inside and get the blood flowing again, to your brain? Book a session at downtown Peoria’s Gone in 60 Escape Games where you can shed your Santa suit and get your MacGyver on… or Sherlock Holmes or Nancy Drew or Columbo or insert name of your favorite sleuth here. As seconds tick away, you’ll work with others—or against, depending on your level of competition—to find clues, solve puzzles, crack codes and unravel hidden mysteries in an effort to escape your crucible or save the world from destruction.

Basketball

When the Rivermen are away the Braves will play. Bradley University brought collegiate basketball to Peoria in 1902 with the Bradley Braves who like the Rivermen currently play their men’s season home games downtown at the Peoria Civic Center’s Carver Arena. Their 16-game home schedule tips off November 1 and runs through February. Meanwhile, the women’s basketball team, recently predicted to finish sixth in the Missouri Valley Conference pre-season poll (their highest ranking in five years), shoots the hoops in Renaissance Coliseum on the university campus located in the West Bluff Historic District near downtown. So, bless the bleachers and put some cheer in your holiday.

Running for What Matters

Suit up December 9 outside the Limelight Eventplex in Peoria on for the Santa Cause 5k. Whether you walk, jog or run you’ll be ho-ho-hoofing it like Santa because the only requirement for this footrace is that you dress like jolly Ol’ Saint Nick. But don’t stress, a five-piece Santa suit comes with your registration. No holiday hustle would be complete without Santa’s fleet of reindeer. With glowing Rudolph noses and fuzzy antlers, the little ones who aren’t yet primed for the long haul will be unleashed in the one-mile Reindeer Run. All participants receive a commemorative ornament, and proceeds benefit Neighborhood House whose mission is to alleviate poverty through programs that provide critical short-term relief while facilitating long-term recovery.

Casino Games

Situated on the shores of Lake Peoria in East Peoria, Par-A-Dice Hotel Casino offers plenty of adult fun and entertainment for the serious player to the curious bystander. Choose from more than 1,000 jingling slot machines and 24 game tables featuring Blackjack, Caribbean Stud Poker, Roulette, Craps, Let It Ride and Three-Card Poker. Also, enjoy multiple dining options from casual to fine dining, shopping, dancing and live music on the weekends.

Sparkle and Shine

On November 18, the City of East Peoria, kicks off its 33rd annual Festival of Lights celebration with the Parade of Lights. But if you can’t make the parade, see the twinkling floats and more at Folepi’s Winter Wonderland drive-through from November 23 through December 31. The mascot Folepi gets his moniker from an acronym of the event title combined with the city’s name (Festival of Lights East Peoria Illinois). Among the many glowing installations see the Star Trek Enterprise, the Bat Mobile, and a 160-foot long steam engine illuminated with 65,000 lights (that’s 6,500 100-light strings, if you’re doing the math). Enter on Par 3 Lane off Springfield Road, and set the mood for this signature holiday experience by tuning your radio to 107.3 for the perfect holiday music accompaniment.

Also, be sure to navigate the free Narrated Nativity drive at Taylor Street and Springfield Road and stroll Folepi’s Enchanted Forest (also free) in East Peoria’s Levee District which culminates with a 35-foot Christmas tree. Visit Santa on select dates inside the Civic Plaza building near the forest entrance. Other festive events enhance the excitement of the season with the Festival of Lights Queen Pageant, an ornament hunt, FOLEPI River Trail Classic competitive run/walk, Holiday River Cruises, stage productions of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and The Nutcracker, Folepi's Gifts Galore Shop & Stroll, and the New Year’s Eve Get Lit Fun Run.

Field Sports

Outside the lawn may be yellow-brown or covered in white, but the grass is always green in North Peoria’s The Yard. With 57,000 square feet of indoor turf, you don’t have to let your summer sports skills get rusty. Batting and pitching cages, baseball, softball, soccer fields and weight training are only some of the fun you can have. Gather extended family and friends and make a tradition of burning off calories from holiday dinners with a lively field game. Birthday parties, family reunions and corporate events can all be scheduled any day of the year.

Carolers and Carriages

The holidays can be full of awe and wonder, but it’s no surprise that the town that takes outdoor parks to the extreme also treats Christmas with the same passion. Less than a half hour’s drive southeast from Peoria along the banks of the Illinois River, nestled between Pekin Lake and the Powerton Fish and Wildlife Area (Illinois’ fifth largest park district), downtown Pekin lights up with Christmas on Court. The celebration commences December 4 with a tree-lighting ceremony and visit from Santa Claus, horse-drawn carriage rides, strolling carolers and other live performances, fun giveaways, tasty treats, quaint shopping and more. Most activities continue through the holiday season, so slow down with a stroll along historic Court Street to get steeped in the Christmas spirit.

Browse these suggestions and others to you build your itinerary, plus find lodging and dining options to round out your perfect winter getaway at EnjoyPeoria.org.  

Click here to link to published version.
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