Kankakee Area

Region · Illinois

Kankakee Area

Best timeMay–Oct
From you
Nearest airportGYY · 35 mi
On this page

Overview

The Kankakee Area is made up of Kankakee County, part of the Chicagoland region of Illinois.

Updated from Wikivoyage on 1 October 2026 · Something wrong or missing? Improve it on Wikivoyage

Plan your trip

Best time to visit & weather

Most comfortable: May–Oct. Summer highs reach about 82°F; winter lows dip to about 18°F. Cold months (Jan, Feb, Dec) can bring snow and ice; check road conditions. Wettest: May and Jun. (climate data from nearby Indiana Dunes National Park)

Jan: 2.2 in rain2.2"Jan: high 32°F, low 18°F32°18°JanFeb: 2.0 in rain2"Feb: high 36°F, low 21°F36°21°FebMar: 2.3 in rain2.3"Mar: high 46°F, low 30°F46°30°MarApr: 3.6 in rain3.6"Apr: high 57°F, low 40°F57°40°AprMay: 4.3 in rain4.3"May: high 68°F, low 50°F68°50°MayJun: 4.3 in rain4.3"Jun: high 78°F, low 60°F78°60°JunJul: 4.0 in rain4"Jul: high 82°F, low 64°F82°64°JulAug: 4.1 in rain4.1"Aug: high 80°F, low 63°F80°63°AugSep: 3.7 in rain3.7"Sep: high 74°F, low 56°F74°56°SepOct: 3.8 in rain3.8"Oct: high 62°F, low 45°F62°45°OctNov: 2.8 in rain2.8"Nov: high 49°F, low 34°F49°34°NovDec: 2.3 in rain2.3"Dec: high 37°F, low 24°F37°24°Dec

Blue bars: average daily high and low (°F). Purple columns: average monthly rain and melted snow (inches).

Getting there

  • From you: to see whether to drive or fly, and how long it takes.
  • GYY Gary/Chicago International Airport, Gary — 35 mi away. Directions
  • MDW Chicago Midway International Airport, Chicago — 41 mi away (major hub). Directions

Sample 3-day trip

  1. Day 1: Kankakee — Kankakee County Museum complex, B. Harley Bradley House.
  2. Day 2: Kankakee River State Park — State Park Suspension Bridge, The Kankakee River.
  3. Day 3: Bourbonnais — explore the town.

Built from the best-covered destinations in this region; open each for its own day plan.

Places in Kankakee Area

Cities

  • Kankakee- the county seat
  • Momence- home to Bordertown Guns

Villages

  • Aroma Park - home to a boat club.
  • Bourbonnais - the former summer home of the Chicago Bears.
  • Bradley- home to a growing business sector.
  • Hopkins Park- the poorest area in Kankakee County.
  • Limestone- once meant to be the county seat, now a small rural village.
  • Manteno- very similar to Bradley.
  • Bonfield- Known locally for its feuding families, conservative attitude, and its ban on alcohol. According to the book Wild Kankakee by Jim Ridings, the town is named after Thomas A. Bonfield, a lawyer who named the town for himself after renaming the train station to "Bonfield," despite the fact that the post office was named Verkler.
  • Sun River Terrace- home to a large population of African Americans and about 390 people.
  • Sammons Point- built to stop the spread of a nearby landfill.
  • Union Hill- home to a tractor dealer.
  • Irwin- the birthplace of Art Ward, though there is nothing there in his memory.
  • Rockville- the only remaining town in the Kankakee Area that was founded by Indians.

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