We’re proud of our Midwestern hospitality.
The Bloomington-Normal area is a vibrant community offering a remarkable quality of life and a traditional Midwestern lifestyle and values. Whether you are here for a weekend, attending an event, or on business, we hope you enjoy your visit and return often. We invite you to discover the wealth of exciting attractions BN has to offer. BN is home to a multitude of arts, culture and entertainment, trails and parks, fairs and festivals, restaurants, hotels, and shopping centers.
Plan your visit in BN
Visitor Guide
The Bloomington-Normal Area Visitor Guide is your go-to resource for things to do in McLean County! Discover all of our attractions, unique eateries, beautiful nature areas, Route 66 spots, and so much more.
Visitor Guide Visitor Guide
Events Happening
Stay up to date on events happening daily in the BN area.
Events Happening Events Happening
Visit Uptown Normal & Downtown Bloomington
So much to discover! Shopping, dining, arts, festivals and more!
Uptown Normal & Downtown Bloomington Uptown Normal & Downtown Bloomington
BN is ideal for meetings and conventions.
Plan a meeting in BN
Located at the interchanges of Interstates 55, 74, and 39, and only two hours from Chicago and St. Louis, we are the destination for maximum attendance in the state of Illinois. We can help coordinate the details of your next meeting from site selection to post-convention follow up.
BN is a world class sporting event destination.
Plan a sporting event in BN
We have hosted numerous successful international, national and regional tournaments and sporting events. Teams love our central location. Our outstanding range of sporting facilities include stadiums, arenas, baseball, softball and soccer fields and complexes, an ice center, swimming pools, university facilities, and parks and recreation grounds.
The Bloomington-Normal Area Sports Commission can help you plan your sporting event, and ensure your teams have a wonderful experience when they come to BN.
BN Facts
City of Bloomington – 77,330
Town of Normal – 54,469
McLean County – 171,517
*Source: EDC Demographic Profile
BN’s quality of life, attractions and events are consistently regarded as among the best in the nation. The following awards and accolades confirm our conviction that BN is a great place to live and work!
- In 2019, PennyGeeks.com rated Bloomington as the #1 Top City for Recent College Graduates
- In 2018, Bloomington was named one of “The Greenest Cities” by Insurify.
- In 2016, Huffington Post named Bloomington one of the “11 Amazing Cities You’ve Never Thought To Live In, But Should.”
- In 2015, Normal was ranked #3 on the list of Best Small College Towns in America by College Values Online.
- In 2014, Movoto.com, a real-estate research blog, recently ranked Illinois’ 50 most-populated cities looking at factors including crime, education, home values, amenities, cost of living and employment. Normal was considered the best place to live in downstate Illinois. Bloomington followed closely in the #2 position.
- In 2013, The City of Bloomington recently announced that the Illinois Policy Institute (IPI) has scored the City’s website for transparency at 77.2. Bloomington currently ranks 11th out of the 25 Largest Illinois Municipalities. The average score of the top 25 is 67.2, exactly 10 points less than Bloomington. The IPI rates each municipality based on the documentation available to the public in the following 10 categories: Elected & Administrative Officials, Meeting Information, Public Records, Budgets, Financial Audits, Expenditures, Salary & Benefits, Contracts, Lobbying, and Taxes & Fees.
- In 2013, Venues Today, an international trade magazine ranked the Grossinger Motors Arena among the top venues in the Midwest.
- Even as other municipalities face challenges in the wake of the recession, Bloomington stands among the country’s fastest-growing cities. According to the Financial website, NerdWallet, Bloomington ranked as number 11 based on a ranking of U.S. cities by growth in population, rate of employment and median income from 2007-2011.
BN is located in the heart of Central Illinois, approximately 125 miles southwest of Chicago, 155 miles northeast of St. Louis and 64 miles northeast of Springfield, the State Capital.
BN is easily accessible from any city, with access from Interstates 39, 55 and 74, as well as daily Amtrak service and flights through the Central Illinois Regional Airport. See our guide to getting here and getting around for more information.
The stability of our major employers, the choice of healthcare professionals, locally owned businesses, numerous media providers, and our central location in the state all make BN an exceptional place to call home. 171,517 people live in the area.
Our institutions of higher education include Illinois State University, Illinois Wesleyan University, Heartland Community College and Lincoln College-Normal. Our world-class healthcare institutions include Carle BroMenn Medical Center and OSF St. Joseph.
Our community is also the proud home of the headquarters for State Farm Insurance and COUNTRY Financial.