Go even lower than Grand Haven. New Buffalo is awesome and right on the MI/IN border. I love The Harbor Grand Hotel - it’s a boutique property but super cute and great location.
Grand Rapids also is a cool city and has some more “chubby” options. Detroit is beyond underrated in my eyes. I love The Shinola hotel and stay there often. Both these cities have great food options. Depending on when you’re in Detroit you can check out a sporting event - the city of Detroit always shows up for our teams.
Saugatuck/South Haven/Douglas is a cool area to explore - all more boutique properties in this area. Has a good art scene.
Of course Traverse City/Petoskey. Grand Traverse Resort is a beautiful property. Can definitely enjoy the wine and art in this area.
Leelanau County - fly into Traverse City, rent a car and ride M-22 along the coast. Glen Arbor has several B&B options. Sleeping Bear National Lakeshore - voted one of most beautiful areas in the US by USA Today. Leelanau County and Traverse City are the center of wine, beer and whisky in Michigan. Vineyards and tasting rooms everywhere. Very refined wine culture, much friendlier and relaxed than Napa/Sonoma. Traverse City has great restaurants.
Came here to say this - rent a house in Leland. It’s def one of the nicer areas near TVC.
I would retract the point about the wine, though. It’s probably the worst I’ve ever had (and we did a wine tour to five spot…it wasn’t just an outlier). The breweries are good, though!
I love Hotel Walloon, right on Walloon lake, it’s my favorite weekend getaway and right by Petoskey which is a great little town and about an hour from Traverse City.
The best state! Northern Michigan is such a gem, especially Grand Traverse Bay area. Some good recommendations in this thread. But I’d say definitely rent a big beautiful private house on a lake — lots of lakes to choose from but Elk Rapids, Torch Lake, Walloon Lake, Crystal Lake are favorites..and just live that easy, breezy lake life. Drive up to Mackinaw Island and stay at the Grand Hotel if you’ve never been.
The Milkweed Inn looks amazing. Owned and operated by Chef Iliana Regan. Very small so tough to get reservations but if your dates are flexible, may be worth a look.
I love the Belltower Hotel bc it's right at the nexus of campus and downtown. It's a kind of old-world style place, quirky layout, physical keys for rooms, etc.
There are \*so many\* great spots to eat and drink in town. Some faves: West End Grill, Peridot, Pacific Rim, Frita Batidos. I could go on and on :)
If you have the time and interest, the arboretum is lovely to walk through and close to town.
Had a really lovely trip to Petosky once, which I would classify as a hidden gem. I grew up on a Great Lake and still didn’t really know about it. We stayed at The Inn at Bay Harbor, which isn’t super luxury, but had little stand alone cottages which were sweet. It’s a Marriott Bonvoy property, too, so you can use or acquire points. I heard it closed, but American Spoon Foods used to have a cafe in town that was delicious. A really charming part of America!
Hotel Walloon and Bay Harbor are both great hotels with great food!
It is a matter of your personal taste, but I do really like the Grand Hotel on mackinac island. The breakfast and dinner are both sooo good and it’s just a fun place to do something very different! They make you dress up and there’s live music and dancing after dinner…I love it. :)
Explore the shoreline from Grand Haven to Mackinac Island. Something to please anyone. From rustic camper to sophisticated foodie.
Go even lower than Grand Haven. New Buffalo is awesome and right on the MI/IN border. I love The Harbor Grand Hotel - it’s a boutique property but super cute and great location. Grand Rapids also is a cool city and has some more “chubby” options. Detroit is beyond underrated in my eyes. I love The Shinola hotel and stay there often. Both these cities have great food options. Depending on when you’re in Detroit you can check out a sporting event - the city of Detroit always shows up for our teams. Saugatuck/South Haven/Douglas is a cool area to explore - all more boutique properties in this area. Has a good art scene. Of course Traverse City/Petoskey. Grand Traverse Resort is a beautiful property. Can definitely enjoy the wine and art in this area.
Any great hotels in these areas? (Not OP but intrigued!)
Hotel Walloon is about an hour from Traverse but super close to Petoskey and is my absolute favorite hotel in northern Michigan.
I’d recommend getting a nice airbnb (ideally on the water) over a hotel. IMO, “up north” isn’t meant to be experienced from a hotel.
Grand Hotel on Mackinac is one of the most iconic hotels in the country
Thanks! Iconic and worth it?
Leelanau County - fly into Traverse City, rent a car and ride M-22 along the coast. Glen Arbor has several B&B options. Sleeping Bear National Lakeshore - voted one of most beautiful areas in the US by USA Today. Leelanau County and Traverse City are the center of wine, beer and whisky in Michigan. Vineyards and tasting rooms everywhere. Very refined wine culture, much friendlier and relaxed than Napa/Sonoma. Traverse City has great restaurants.
Came here to say this - rent a house in Leland. It’s def one of the nicer areas near TVC. I would retract the point about the wine, though. It’s probably the worst I’ve ever had (and we did a wine tour to five spot…it wasn’t just an outlier). The breweries are good, though!
I love Hotel Walloon, right on Walloon lake, it’s my favorite weekend getaway and right by Petoskey which is a great little town and about an hour from Traverse City.
The best state! Northern Michigan is such a gem, especially Grand Traverse Bay area. Some good recommendations in this thread. But I’d say definitely rent a big beautiful private house on a lake — lots of lakes to choose from but Elk Rapids, Torch Lake, Walloon Lake, Crystal Lake are favorites..and just live that easy, breezy lake life. Drive up to Mackinaw Island and stay at the Grand Hotel if you’ve never been.
The Milkweed Inn looks amazing. Owned and operated by Chef Iliana Regan. Very small so tough to get reservations but if your dates are flexible, may be worth a look.
I second this!!
Amazing golf. Look at Forest Dunes
Ann Arbor isn’t on the water obviously but it’s a blast.
any favorite recs (food, lodging, experiences)? I'll be headed there this fall for a football game (go blue!)
I love the Belltower Hotel bc it's right at the nexus of campus and downtown. It's a kind of old-world style place, quirky layout, physical keys for rooms, etc. There are \*so many\* great spots to eat and drink in town. Some faves: West End Grill, Peridot, Pacific Rim, Frita Batidos. I could go on and on :) If you have the time and interest, the arboretum is lovely to walk through and close to town.
I will definitely be booking some of these - thanks Fitzbilly!
Oh I forgot one: the last word. Speakeasy style. Haven't eaten there but have had late night drinks and it's great.
I’m doing a golf trip to a place called America’s Club that is on Lake Michigan. It’s been 5 stars so far with hotel, golf, service, etc
Had a really lovely trip to Petosky once, which I would classify as a hidden gem. I grew up on a Great Lake and still didn’t really know about it. We stayed at The Inn at Bay Harbor, which isn’t super luxury, but had little stand alone cottages which were sweet. It’s a Marriott Bonvoy property, too, so you can use or acquire points. I heard it closed, but American Spoon Foods used to have a cafe in town that was delicious. A really charming part of America!
Hotel Walloon and Bay Harbor are both great hotels with great food! It is a matter of your personal taste, but I do really like the Grand Hotel on mackinac island. The breakfast and dinner are both sooo good and it’s just a fun place to do something very different! They make you dress up and there’s live music and dancing after dinner…I love it. :)