Anderson Japanese Gardens

Mark your calendars now for this spook-tacular good time at Anderson Japanese Gardens.

Pop quiz, hotshot. Our state of Illinois, while nowhere near the tourism capital of the United States, still managed to draw how many visitors in 2016? If you just shouted "110 million!" at your monitor--congrats. You nailed it.

If you think that you'll have to come up with some big bucks to enjoy a vacation in some far-flung exotic spot, you're probably right. However, you can save those dollars with an Illinois-based "stay-cation," because we've got lots of things to see and do right here without breaking your budget (although, to be honest, Illinois has some really pricey things, too).

Wednesday morning on the WROK Morning Show, David Anderson of Anderson Japanese Gardens (AJG) stopped by with a preview of Tuesday Evening in the Gardens, a weekly event that showcases outstanding musical peformers playing in one of the most beautiful settings you'll find anywhere.

Do a little Google-ing about the top places to visit in Illinois, and you'll see a familiar name pop up in list after list: Rockford's own Anderson Japanese Gardens.

In spite of it's global reputation as a violent city, Chicago ended up setting a new record for tourist visits last year with 31 major conventions, the NFL Draft, and of course, the World Champion Chicago Cubs drawing folks from all over. And, although they came for the Windy City, many tourists are opting to take a ride out to Rockford, too.

This morning on the WROK Morning Show, our friend David Anderson, from Anderson Japanese Gardens, stopped by to fill us in on a really cool cultural event going on this weekend in the gardens.

Given how long and cold Rockford winters can be, most of us try to spend as much time as we can outdoors during the summer season. We play outside, work outside, cook outside, and on Tuesday evenings, we get to listen to some really great music outside.

Summer is almost here and romance is in the air; here are 10 great ways to spend date night right here in Rockford.

I don't think you'd get much argument if you declared Anderson Japanese Gardens to be one of the most beautiful spots in Illinois, let alone Rockford. Ask anyone who's ever spent time there. If you're one of those folks who've never been to AJC, then make plans to join them this Saturday for their Opening Celebration.