Illinois Office of Tourism Grants

Under the Illinois Office of Tourism, this grant family supports hotel occupancy and visitor traffic across Illinois. It includes the Local Tourism and Convention Bureau Program, the Tourism Attractions and Festivals Grant, and route- or region-specific marketing grants, all inside DCEO's broader tourism portfolio. The route is annual, and the active rounds show how the program moves through separate calls for different destination marketing needs. The Tourism Attractions and Festivals Grant carries a $10.8 million pool, while the current round list includes the Route 66 Centennial Grant, the International Tourism Grant, and Tourism Marketing grants for Balance and Cook County, with June 2026 deadlines. Certified convention and visitors bureaus are the direct applicant type, and private for-profit companies are not direct grantees. This is a delivery-partner model, so success depends on a credible case for tourism lift, event traffic, or destination marketing impact. Applicants that can show a clear link between funding and increased travel, stays, or regional visibility fit the program best, especially where the local tourism infrastructure is already in place. The program works best when the destination organization can point to measurable visitor lift and repeatable local benefit.

Each grant below is a distinct funding opportunity with its own eligibility, scope, and deliverables.