Chain O' Lakes, Illinois Marinas for Sale

The Chain O' Lakes is the busiest inland recreational waterway per acre in the United States, comprising 15 interconnected lakes and 7,100 acres of water linked by the Fox River and 29 miles of natural and dredged canals, all within 50 miles of downtown Chicago. Summer weekends draw 30,000-plus boaters; holiday weekends approach 100,000. The Fox Waterway Agency, which manages dredging and navigation, purchased the historic Bauske's Boat Marina in 2025 for $2.4 million using state IDNR capital grants. A separate 9-acre Fox Lake redevelopment site with existing marina operations, gas, and storage is currently listed for sale with potential for multifamily-plus-marina mixed use. The seasonal operating window (roughly May through October) and freshwater environment keep maintenance costs lower than coastal markets.

Chain O' Lakes, Illinois currently has 2 marina listings tracked by Marina Deal Flow. 2 have publicly listed asking price. Across all of Illinois, there are 4 marinas currently listed for sale.

Asking prices for marinas in Chain O' Lakes range from $1.8M to $6.0M, with an average of $3.9M.

The Chain O' Lakes marina market offers approximately 166 total slips across 2 properties.

Our database includes 1 recent marina transaction in Illinois, providing comparable sales data for buyers evaluating the Chain O' Lakes market.

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For more context, read our guides on how to value a marina, price per slip benchmarks, and our first-time buyer's guide.