I hosted a graduation party for 22 U of I graduates and their families (130 people) at the Hudson…read moreFarm reception barn on a Saturday night. Everything about it exceeded our expectations. The facility is very clean and spacious with high ceilings, and they have it beautifully set up with nice lighting. There was plenty of room for our buffet, table seating for everyone to sit down for dinner, the 360 photo booth that we rented, the bar, and the dance floor. Though everything inside the reception barn is picture perfect, when Dan opened the barn door at about 7:00 pm, all of the guests were blown away. We had a perfect evening with pleasant temperatures and a gorgeous sunset, and it became and indoor / outdoor event in a beautiful pastoral setting. The graduates and their families had such a fantastic time in a unique setting that made for a night we will never forget. Dan was so easy to work with and he and his staff worked so hard behind the bar to provide excellent service. Highest praise for Hudson Farms - its a gem. You will not be disappointed.

Seamless planning, coordinating, and event experience with Hudson Farms! I'd give 10 stars if I…read morecould! I've done planning and coordinating of small and large events as a hobby for over 15 years and worked with so many venues. Hudson's has by far exceeding any expectations and is hands down superior to any other event venue I've worked with in the past. Dan at Hudson's was such a great communicator and was warm and friendly as were any other employee we came in contact with. This 6th generation family farm has turned an incredible family heritage and farm into a dream venue left us wanting for nothing! Scroll through their photos for a tiny taste of the beauty of Hudson Farms. Seeing the ceremony barn, reception barn, rustic corn fields, and gorgeous green grassy fields and exquisite sunsets in person are simply breath taking. During the evening reception, Dan has the back doors opened to reveal the perfect view of the sun setting. Hudson Farms has such pride in their meticulous grounds keeping to the point you'd be hard pressed to find a single weed, the grass freshly cut and perfect for a stroll, and even the edges of their property to the road are freshly cut making your entrance to their farm beautiful and well cared for. His recommendations for additional venders like the DJ, linen rentals, and catering were helpful and also great people to work with. I'm addition to all of these things, Dan has a HUGE inventory of decor including a large variety of centerpiece items available for the bride and groom's use saving them hundreds and hundreds of dollars in decor and all come with the rental of the space. I could go on and on but come see for yourself. The bride and groom were so incredibly happy with Hudson Farms and as a coordinator, I am beyond grateful for their ethics, attention to detail, and experience. Thank you Hudson Farms for helping create their dream wedding.

This was such a great place to go and enjoy a night with friends. They had everything set up when…read morewe got there. The artist took it step by step and walked around to help everyone out. It was so fun to see all the variations of the same painting. I am not an artist but I am so proud of my work. I will definitely be back!

It is easy to get mesmerized by historic looking exterior and the renovated interior. I certainly…read morewas, I had to do a double take on whether or not this was still part of the Hilton family of hotels. The Hotel Royer has been a popular choice for myself as of late whenever I am in town as it is a very solid option in terms of locale, price point and amenities. Whenever I walk in, I immediately notice two things. First off, the decor really brings together the theme of the hotel. I felt as if I was being taken back a few centuries to some royal kingdom, with portraits of historical figures, and furniture that is modern to the touch yet antiquated to the eyes. I also notice the smell, it is clean smelling and inviting. It certainly beats the musty cigarette smell you get at some places. The rooms in general are pretty good. The beds are comfortable, the lighting is decent and the space is typically pretty clean. The bathrooms are okay in my opinion (I am quite particular about this aspect). Sometimes the showers take a while to heat up and the toilet paper is pretty low quality. I think the weakest part of the rooms are the fact that some rooms do not have a desk. I think this is a big miss, as someone who visits on business a lot, it makes doing work in my room impossible sometimes. Additionally, the WiFi is super inconsistent, I found my devices being disconnected at will! In terms of amenities, I think the Hotel Royer is much better than the average Hilton. While there isn't the complimentary breakfast, they have their own restaurant, a well equipped gym and a pool. They also have a bar and their own banquet hall, for big events. The hotel is well located, in a walkable area and not too far from campus. Overall, I am a bit weary to select this hotel on future trips where business is important. However, if I am looking for a relaxing and quality stay, then I know the Hotel Royer will have me covered!

The mattress:supportive The sheets: luxurious…read more The pillows: cloud like The towels: thick and thirsty The toiletries: plentiful and nicely scented The water pressure: excellent The decor: modern while preserving the original. The parking: free and easy as pie The neighborhood: walkable with many wonderful independently owned businesses I really like this hotel. I have stayed here several times. Like some of the other reviewers, I remember it as Jumer's Castle Lodge. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band stayed there in the 80s and I will never shut up about it. I think they have done a really good job with the remodel. Highly recommend.

The Regent Ballroom is by far the best dance floor for miles around! Their weekly Friday night…read moreBallroom Dance is the perfect way for beginners and new dancers to get floor time to build their skills in a truly welcoming community. For more advanced dancers there's a monthly Saturday night dance where we can burn the floor! Dance classes at several beginner levels, fun line dance class seems to appeal to older single senior ladies, plenty of ways to get up and get active.

We've taken ballroom dancing lessons there. What a delightful thing to learn! David and Ellen, the…read moreowners, are excellent teachers. It is great fun, not at all embarrassing, and something we look forward to each week. As an anniversary present my wife and I just bought each other another round of lessons. We've started putting the weekly dances on our calendar to exercise our newly acquired skills. This is a university town, and most of us spend our time trapped in our frontal lobes. So doing something entirely different, in which we move to music, is a joy.

The IL terminal staff were amazing at communicating with me the entire time. Wendy was absolutely…read moreamazing! The caters communication was good 2 weeks prior to the event, trying to contact them anytime before that was pretty impossible. Not a good thing when planning from out of town. Also the food was amazing at the tasting but when it came to the event it was not the same dishes we sampled. That was was a huge upset for us especially after we talked it up to our guest.

We had originally booked our wedding reception at the CityView at Illinois Terminal. We had worked…read morewith Wendy to do the showing and the booking. Unfortunately do to the COVID 19 pandemic we had to change our date and ultimately cancel not only because of the pandemic but also because my husband is military (living out of state) and couldn't travel during this time. Throughout the entire planning process, pre-covid and during pandemic changes, Wendy was absolutely amazing to work with. She answers all communications super promptly and was extremely understanding and sympathetic when we had to cancel. Without much explanation we were able to cancel and get our money back. I am extremely disappointed that we weren't able to have our reception at the CityView at Illinois Terminal but am just as much grateful for Wendy and her warm spirit and understanding throughout it all! Would definitely recommend based on our experience.

The staff was amazing! There was a snow storm and they were very understanding and helpful! Would…read moredefinitely recommend

We used Palace Events for our wedding and were very happy with how everything turned out! Our…read morewedding reception was held in a machine shed, so we needed some elegant decor to dress it up. Palace Events provided drapery, lighting and a chandelier, which created the perfect setting! Courtney was the coordinator we worked with and she was polite and very organized. She also was proactive in seeing an issue with the lighting and fixed it before I had to mention anything. In addition, we used their Standard Photo Booth and were so glad we did! Sam was easy to work with and created the perfect photo design for our wedding! There were many options, including videos and GIFs--our guests had a blast with it! Overall, we're very pleased with Palace Events and are happy we used them for our wedding! *Professional photography by Miranda Malliet Photography

I got the opportunity to see Jeff Tweedy of Wilco last night at the Virginia theater and oh what a…read morenight.. We laughed, we cried, we sang along, I drank 6 dollar beers, I stood in line to go to the bathroom.. First off the theater is beautiful and older, It does have some nice updates and the smell of popcorn right when you walk in hit me pretty darn hard! I got my ticket on Stub Hub so the only staff members I experienced were the ushers and bartenders both who were fantastically kind. I love the Roger Ebert statue outside the theater a perfect intro to the theater and a perfect spot to take a thumbs up photo with everyone's favorite critic. I got 3rd row ticket for 15 buck on Stub Hub so my experience during the show was fantastic, but if you are hard of hearing I might actually sit up in the balcony cause it was pretty quiet where I was sitting. Seats were comfy and the sound was quiet but great! Bathroom situations in these old theaters is all the same, your going be waiting in line but once you get in, they are clean and nice! This was a fantastic experience.

It is very difficult for me not to give the Virginia Theatre 5-stars. The venue is one of the most…read morebeautiful theaters I have ever laid eyes on. This one of the few places I have not hit the unsubscribe button to. I want to know what is playing here. What they play at the theater is one of the reasons I am giving a 4 star rating. This is where I would love to watch all kind of classic movies or foreign films. That is just not what they play here. Maybe there is not an audience for those kinds of films. I remember checking their schedule once and it was all kids movies. I was fortunate enough to see Rushmore here. That was really amazing. Those are the kind of movies I would love to be watching here. Maybe some French New Wave or midnight movies. I know that Virginia Theatre's schedule is not dictated by my likes but I can always hope.

I could write a long review about every amazing attention to detail The Venue helped provide to us,…read morebut my fingers would get tired and I would probably just ramble. The crew at The Venue are absolutely outstanding, extremely thoughtful, very organized, and truly care about making your day memorable and seamless. They provided the experience we wanted - choice to hire local caterers, setting up and taking down without feeling rushed, hair/makeup done on site easily, day of coordinating/point of contact, etc - without the hassles other venues in the area put you through. Not to mention, it is in the perfect location downtown Champaign. The whole place is stunning and spacious; we couldn't have asked for a better experience. (Photos by Sara Gardner photography)

A bride to be, just came into my place of work and told me that this venue pulled the rug right out…read morefrom under plans to have a reception and they canceled them. Only to have someone that was paying more money in their place.

Coordinators were personal and very professional while attending to every one of my requests. The…read morespace was beyond beautiful and the atmosphere was so elegant! The staff took care of all the details to help make my ceremony and reception was a best experience of my life!!

Where do I start?! Chris Chestnut is an absolutely AMAZING person and Events Coordinator!! From the…read morevery start of planning the reception to us walking out the door at the end of the reception, HE WAS THERE!!!! He's reliable, beyond thorough, oversaw absolutely everything that had to do with the reception, even staying for the whole night!! He and his staff decorated everything sooo beautifully, and were extremely pleasant to work with!! The Refinery is a perfect place to have a reception, or any event!! 1,000 out of 10 our family would DEFINITELY recommend!!!!