Hotels Near Universities and Colleges

Southern Illinois University at Carbondale - - Transportation

The closest major airport is Lambert-Saint Louis International Airport, located in Saint Louis, Missouri, at a distance of 94 miles from the city center of Carbondale, IL.

Getting around in Carbondale, IL

Public Transportation

Carbondale is served by Amtrak, which provides 3 daily trains to and from Chicago, and one daily train to and from New Orleans and Memphis. The bus service, within the city limits of Carbondale is offered by The Saluki Express, which serves the SIUC students, staff and faculty, including the Greater Carbondale community. There are 11 bus routes which operate 7 days a week, when the university is in session, and one "break route", when the students are on their breaks.

Car

Carbondale is located at the crossroads of Illinois Highway 13 and US Route 51. Most f the visitors, who drive into the city, arrive via IL 13, from Marion, where it intersects with I-57. A much more scenic route would be to drive from Saint Louis, and take IL 3, south to IL 149 East, which intersects with IL 13 in Murphysboro, during which you can see the picturesque Mississippi river town of Chester, IL and get fantastic views of the river itself, as well.

Getting around by car in Carbondale couldn't be easier. The street roads are pretty straight-forward, with just a few one-way streets: Walnut St. East-bound, Main St. West-bound, Illinois Ave. North-bound and University Ave. South-bound. Perhaps the most challenging thing about driving in Carbondale is to find a parking spot near the SIU campus, while classes are in session. Most of the campus spaces require a special sticker which is only for students and faculty staff.

However, there are approximately 1100 parking spaces in the downtown area, which are conveniently located near the city's major shopping spots, so if you're staying in one of Carbondale's downtown hotels, you shouldn't have any problems in finding a spot to safely park you vehicle.

Bike

All the major streets, throughout Carbondale, have bike lanes. If you plan to get a little exercise and sightsee in Carbondale, at the same time, perhaps this might come in handy: try Grand Avenue, toward Crab-Orchard Lake or the Illinois Highway 13, which leads west from Carbondale to the neighboring city of Murphysboro, which is as bike - friendly and as scenic as the City of Carbondale.

Taxi

There are also great taxi services in Carbondale, which also accept credit cards as payment (very convenient). The wait time is usually of 10 minutes, and many of the cabs are located near Carbondale's bars and restaurant, especially on Illinois Avenue and downtown.

How to get to Southern Illinois University at Carbondale campus?

Easy! Just follow the driving directions listed below!

From Lambert-Saint Louis International Airport: Start by heading northwest on Airport Access Road, toward Air Cargo Rd/Natural Bridge Rd/E Terminal. Turn left at Natural Bridge Road and continue onto Air Cargo Rd/Garage Parking/E Terminal. Take the ramp to I-70 E/St Louis and merge onto I-70 E. Take exit 250 A, toward M L King Bridge/Llinois/Arch-Riverfront and turn left at Dr Martin Luther King Bridge (enter Illinois). Continue onto Martin Luther King Memorial Bridge and merge onto I-55 N/I-64 E/I-70 E/IL-3 N, via the ramp to Louisville/St Clair Ave. Take exit 50 for IL-127, toward Carlyle/Nashville Il., and turn right at IL-127 S. Turn left at IL-15 E/E St Louis St., and then right at US-51 S. Turn left at E Poplar St., and turn right at US-51 S/S Washington St. Make a slight right at S Illinois Ave., and take the 1st right onto Lincoln Dr. The SIUC campus will be located somewhere on your left.