Reviews: Illinois Valley Yacht Club-PRIVATE

Reviewed by: John Medlin , Knot So Fast, on Oct 16, 2024
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 43'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 4

Challenging entrance & fuel dock when strong winds; low water on Illinois River had our alarm going off (3'10" draft). Narrow fairway to fuel dock and our 18.5 freeboard had us blowing around (no thrusters). Friendly and helpful dockhand, Chris, as we came in for fuel & docking. Post season, so much is closed. Docks in good shape though low water is causing walkways to tilt in some locations (floats are grounded on land side causing deck to tilt).

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Reviewed by: Kevin Williams , m/v Blue Tortuga, on Sep 23, 2024
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 40'
Draft: 3.5'

Rating: 5

Friendly yacht club that accepts transients. About 5 miles outside of Peoria- not a bikeable area. Good restaurant onsite, good bath and shower facilities. Laundry available but few machines and the dryer doesn't work great (2 cycles). There's a pool in season. Decent pump out equipment and good help. Due to the low river levels, entrance somewhat shallow but doable for us. Marina will give you entrance guidance.

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Reviewed by: MARK GLOVER , Cool Change, on Sep 22, 2024
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 45'
Draft: 3.0'

Rating: 5

OMG!!!! What a great stop!!! The people here are amazing and Donna is a ROCK STAR!!!!!
She was basically a one man show and handled everything so well!!! All the people were so welcoming and helpful!!!!! If you need to stop in Peoria… please think about here… not the closest place to town but great amenities and can't say no about the people!!!! Please stop if you get the chance!!!!!

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Reviewed by: Douglas Morrow , Ripple, on Aug 12, 2024
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 39'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 5

This is a very nice yacht club that welcomes transients. Larger boats are usually docked farther away so it's a walk to the club house. There is also a space on the wall which is very convenient. Showers and laundry room ($1.50 each) are in the club house which is open 24/7. The members are very friendly and we were even offered a car! We arrived on a Saturday at 7 pm and they kept the grill open for 6 loopers. There is a very nice bar. Breakfast is served on Sundays and there are fried chicken dinners to go. There is a bar menu too but check the calendar. There is a large pool. Overall a very nice stop.

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Reviewed by: Karl Harris , Better Together, on Oct 16, 2023
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 42'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 4

Great place to stop. Members were very accommodating. Restaurant there is pretty good. Checks dates on when they are open.
We had an Uber take us to Alexander's Steakhouse. Great steaks. A little pricey, but with leftovers the next day it was worth it!
They have 1 washer and 1 dryer. Washer is great. I heard the dryer did not dry clothes very well. So ran it 2 cycles (1.5 hrs) and they were still very damp. Check to see if they have fixed this before you dry. They are owned by an outside business so not their issue. Had to hang everything up and let Mother Nature do her thing. ?

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Reviewed by: Scott Vanderstoep , Hope and Dreams, on Oct 13, 2023
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 30'
Draft: 1.5'

Rating: 5

We stayed two nights, tired from the journey from Hammond and several travel days in a row. Ron and Anita are excellent hosts. Great communication. We ate at the yacht club one nights, but it is only open certain nights in the off-season. As others have said, it was very shallow when we were there. My depth gauge read 1'6" in my covered slip. I assume I was sitting on soft silt so be careful when you bring water in for toilet for AS or engine. Water did rise when we were here. Excellent place to stay.

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Reviewed by: Capt Maria Langer , Do It Now, on Oct 29, 2022
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 32'
Draft: 2.5'

Rating: 4

We spent two nights at IVY Club on the recommendation of the Harbormaster at Herritage Harbor. It was a nice, quiet stop in a well-protected harbor. There is a bar with some food on the premises. Bathroom facilities were nice, but the ladies shower -- only one of the two was working -- had absurdly low water pressure that made for a miserable shower. It was nice to walk the dogs along a path on the breakwater. Although this location is quite far from downtown Peoria, it's walking distance from Peoria Heights, which has shops and restaurants.

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Reviewed by: Graeme Walker , Confirmed Aquaholic, on Oct 23, 2022
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 54'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 4

Very shallow entrance, 6" under the props in 09/2022. Stayed on the fuel dock, not particularly nice but they were full. Great friendly bar, had conversations with two past Commodores, good food. Quick one night stay, worth it.

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Reviewed by: Linda McCormick on Aug 19, 2022
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 39'
Draft: 3.5'

Rating: 4

Docks are aging a bit, but fuel, great bar, restaurant, pool, one washer and dryer, gang washrooms and showers. Loaner vehicle available to re-provision and uber if you prefer. Like many facilities their tendency is to put transients as far from amenities as possible, but it might be possible to negotiate a different slip.

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Reviewed by: Rob Dare , Liberty Call , on Sep 24, 2021
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 46'
Draft: 4.5'

Rating: 4

Shallow entrance due to the River being down but we were given great directions getting in. Nice place with a good bar and restaurant. Very well protected harbor. Friendly helpful staff. Good WiFi. Enough spots to walk the dog.

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Reviewed by: Bill Mcmahon on Sep 24, 2021
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 40'
Draft: 3.5'

Rating: 4

Nice club. Very nice showers and restrooms. Great bar. Very helpful and friendly staff. WiFi worked, but was slow. A tight turn to get in and out of the basin, but certainly doable. It has a very long "C" shaped dock, so if you are on the far end, like we were, it is a long walk to the facilities.

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Reviewed by: Robert Hansen , Soulmate , on Sep 21, 2021
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 60'
Draft: 4.5'

Rating: 4

The Illinois Valley Yacht Club is a very well run facility with excellent accommodating staff! Ron the Harbormaster kept me up to date regarding the lower water level and our 4' 6" draft. First class are the words!

The grounds, docks, dock pedestals and facilities are very clean and in very good condition.

The bar is beautiful and dining and was very good and both have a great view and excellent service!

WiFi was adequate.

We will be back!

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Reviewed by: Jack Shuff , Jackpot, on Sep 10, 2021
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 48'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 5

A really great stop along the Illinois River. The members make you feel as if you are one of them. The staff is great and helpful. Restaurant/bar is great and the pool is fantastic. We will be back!

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Reviewed by: Robert Webb , Doc's Aweigh, on Jul 27, 2021
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 54'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 4

Nice folks in a cozy spot. Bit tight for our 54' and water only 4-5' in channels, but ok. Great bar and restaurant to see; unfortunately it was closed on the Monday we were there. Helpful staff; clean bathrooms. Only negative is that their docks are needing some renovations soon; but they were fine for us. Would come again.

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Reviewed by: Steve Hines , Six Feet Under, on Mar 10, 2021
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 52'
Draft: 4.6'

Rating: 5

I ended up spending 4 months after COVID hit and the locks closed on the Illinois river for the summer for maintenance. The staff here is terrific and this is the only deep water marina from Peoria lock to starved rock. River stage was at 12 and I saw at least 5.6 at a small hump from main channel but the rest was 7 to 8 into fuel dock. Saw 6.5 at slip. This is a great stop and is certainly a safe harbor.

Steve Hines

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Reviewed by: Captain Gene Of Galene on Sep 20, 2019
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 39'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 5

Wonderful stop on Illinois River. Nice well kept facilities and friendly staff. Pool is larger than most with nice shower/ change facilities. Nice views from restaurant and bar. Great place to just relax and chill out. Fuel dock has gas and diesel. Good WiFi.

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Reviewed by: Bru Brubaker on Aug 13, 2018
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 49'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 5

In a word, the IVY Club is TERRIFIC. We love this place. We got our Krogen Express in here even at low water because the harbor channel off the Illinois River is well marked and buoys accurately placed. Due to a mechanical issue, our two day stop turned into more than a week and we’ve enjoyed every minute. The club members have welcomed us, offered rides, invited us to events, and in general made us feel like, well members. The facilities are very nice - bar, restaurant, and pool - and the docks are in excellent condition and well protected from river traffic. The bar and restaurant have a wonderful, elevated panoramic view of the Illinois River, the restaurant offers very good food at reasonable prices, and Steve the bartender is great. Don’t miss the IVY Club.

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