Illinois Hotel Named Midwest’s #1 Resort For 6th Straight Year

If you stopped 100 Illinois residents on the street and asked them to name a resort hotel, you'd probably be annoying each and every one of them for interrupting their day, but assuming they'd be willing to talk to you, they'd probably name someplace that isn't anywhere near Illinois (assuming they could name one off the top of their heads).

You'd more than likely get names like Disney, Four Seasons, or a bunch of places in Las Vegas. What you probably wouldn't get is someone naming a resort hotel that happens to be right here in the state of Illinois.

That's too bad, because there's on particular Illinois resort hotel that has been named the number-one resort hotel in the entire Midwest by the readers of a highly-respected travel-based website called TravelAndLeisure.com. This hotel has been named number-one in the Midwest for six straight years now.

Before We Get To The Number-One Resort Hotel In The Midwest, Let's Take A Look At Which Other Midwestern Resorts Were Part Of The Voting

TravelAndLeisure.com, as part of their "World's Best Awards" survey for 2025, asked their readers to rate certain criteria, including rooms and facilities, location, service, food and value. Respondents were then asked to choose from five ratings that ranged from excellent to poor. A perfect score would be 100.

Here are the other four resort hotels that came in behind Illinois' winning hotel:

• Grand Hotel: Mackinac Island, Michigan. Reader score: 88.16
• American Club Resort Hotel: Kohler, Wisconsin. Reader score: 88.12
• Big Cedar Lodge: Ridgedale, Missouri. Reader score: 84.00
• Grand Geneva Resort & Spa: Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. Reader score: 83.89

Enough about the Midwestern competition. Let's get to the winner.

Deer Path Inn, Located In Lake Forest, Has Been Voted As The Best Midwestern Resort Hotel For The Sixth Straight Year With A Readers Score of 96.94

In the TravelAndLeisure.com survey, Deer Path Inn is described as being a "Tudor-Revival Landmark," that was once the home of Colonel William Sage Johnston before being turned into a hotel back in 1929.

Here's what TravelAndLeisure.com and their readers had to say about Deer Path Inn:

The inn blends English-style hospitality with modern comforts, all nestled in the heart of Lake Forest’s historic district, just a quick train ride from downtown Chicago. There are 57 rooms, three dining venues, a legendary afternoon tea in the Garden Courtyard, and plush lounges where guests can kick back and relax all day.

Just make sure that during your getaway, you stay awake long enough to enjoy the property’s signature nightly milk and cookies.