Put Michigan On Your List!

First things first, if you haven’t put Michigan on your list of future travel, you need to! I had high expectations and I was not disappointed! My friend and I spent four days driving through various parts of the state and only scratched the surface. For reference, we stayed two nights in Traverse City in an Airbnb and one night in a hotel on Mackinac Island. We payed a bit more for lodging than I would have liked, but we booked only a few weeks before we left, so not much left in inventory. Let me take you through our itinerary ! (Warning: tons of pics in this blog!!)

Day One

My friend Laurie and I were up bright and early to catch a flight from Buffalo to Detroit. Once we landed, we grabbed the shuttle to pick up our rental car and then we were off to start our drive up North. Our drive was just over four hours to the first stop. Here is the breakdown of day one:

Day Two

After a great night of sleep, we were up and ready for day two. I had arranged ahead of time to hire Designated Driver TC to take us safely around the area to some wineries. There are so many to choose from and Designated Driver TC has some suggestions if you don’t know where to begin. I was thrilled when I discovered this service online! We were given an awesome driver and not only did we feel safe, but we had the best time with Cameron. After wine tasting all day, we grabbed some dinner and headed back to our Airbnb. Here’s the breakdown of day two:

  • Bubbies Bagels (for a quick breakfast and a coffee and so yummy)

  • A stop at the Traverse City Mural (right in town and easy to find)

  • Black Star Farms winery - beautiful property and also an Inn)

  • Green Bird Organic Cellars (loved it here, good wine and beautiful property)

  • Another sunflower field (this one near Northport)

  • Two K Farms (my absolute fave stop)

  • Suttons Bay Ciders (really fun atmosphere and views for days)

  • Back to Little Fleet for dinner (so many great choices and great cocktails)

**At many of these places on the peninsula, cell service was not great. Keep that in mind if doing your own navigating.

Day Three

Day three brought a new town and more exploring! We were up pretty early to pack up our Airbnb and get ready to hit the road towards Mackinac Island. A few things to note: I pre-purchased any activities that needed tickets to save time and also offset the cost a bit so that most things were paid for before we got there. This included our ferry tickets and valet parking, tickets to the Sip n Sail Cruise and sunrise kayaking. Day three went like this:

  • A stop at Slabtown Cookies! (WOW! but keep in mind this is not an actual store, see pics)

  • Mundos Coffee (for breakfast and coffee, highly recommend)

  • Pond Hill Farm (absolutely beautiful farm with a winery, gift shop and lunch)

  • Tunnel of Trees!!!! (I was driving and didn’t get any pics but google it. This is a must see in the fall)

  • Wilderness State Park - (dunes and beaches, off the grid but a beautiful drive)

  • Star Line Ferry to Mackinac Island ($27 round trip ticket and $35 for overnight valet parking)

  • Pink Pony (Fun stop on the water for drinks and food)

  • Checked in to the Island House Hotel (Location was 10/10 but the rooms could use some updating)

  • Sip n Sail Cruise (our favorite part of the trip to Mackinac, seriously so much fun)

  • 3D Maze of Mirrors (lots of fun after a few drinks haha)

  • Doud’s Market ( great stop for anything you may need like snacks, water, beer)

** some things to note about Mackinac Island: no cars allowed so the only way to get around is on foot, by bike or by horse drawn carriage. In my opinion, try and go during the week if going in the summer. It was VERY crowded. Try and find things that are off of the Main Street to avoid the crowds and pay the $10 to check out the Grand Hotel. The grounds are beautiful.

Day Four

Even though we were leaving today, we had a full day of activities planned since our flight didn’t leave until 10:45 pm. Unfortunately, the weather derailed the sunrise kayak tour we had booked so we weren’t able to go. I still would highly recommend using Great Turtle Kayak Tours if you ever get to Mackinac Island. They refunded our money right away and offered to rebook. I hope to get back there and try again next summer. Day four breakdown:

  • Water Color Cafe (smoothies, breakfast, coffee right on Main Street)

  • Island House Bike Rental ( we biked the 8.2 mile path around the island in the rain! Wow so fun!)

  • Arch Rock (the most famous rock formation on the island)

  • The Grand Hotel (iconic hotel on the island, grab a drink and sit on the gigantic porch overlooking the grounds)

  • Shopping on Main Street (so many cute shops to stop in for souvenirs

  • Moomers Ice Cream (yum)

Around 4 pm we had to make our way to the ferry. The hotel had taken care of getting our luggage to the dock so we never had to worry about transporting it and because we booked the valet option when we parked our car, I just had to text them our ticket number and our car was waiting for us in Mackinac City. Totally worth the money! Our drive to Detroit was around four hours and we made a pitstop at Culvers for a burger about half way there. Very easy drive!

Our time in Michigan went so fast, but it ended up being one of my favorite trips ever. My friend and I were actually trying to figure out a way to get back there this fall because we loved it so much. Feel free to ask any questions about our trip or leave me a comment about things you’ve done if you’ve ever been to Michigan. As always, I hope this gives you a little travel inspiration!

x, Julie

Michigan Travel, US TravelJulie Fago1 Comment