10 Best Places to Visit in Michigan
Discover the Most Famous Places in Michigan
The best places to visit in Michigan offer up a thrillingly diverse range of experiences. You’ll find big city culture, dining, and shopping, but you also get to explore unspoiled old-growth forests and pristine lakes in the wilderness. Discover funky university towns with a thriving music scene and a car-free island where you can enjoy horse-drawn carriage rides.
Don’t just spend time in Michigan’s better-known spots; get off the beaten path and explore further. Check out this guide to the best places to visit in Michigan when you’re on your way to the Wolverine State.
1. Detroit
From Motown to Motor City
Good for: Shoppers, History, Food
The largest city in Michigan, Detroit is known as the birthplace of 2 of the things that the USA is most famous for: the auto industry and Motown music. This lively city has a packed schedule of festivals and fun events year-round and boasts an enviable collection of museums, galleries, and other cultural spaces, including Motown’s Hitsville USA headquarters.
Art meets autos at the Automotive Hall of Fame where you can walk the floors where the first Ford Model Ts were assembled. Then, swing into the Hall of Honor to see Mexican muralist Diego Rivera’s Detroit Industry fresco cycle, widely considered to be one of the largest pieces of automotive fine art.
Detroit
2. Mackinac Island
For hikers and fudge lovers
Good for: History, Unusual
Neatly sandwiched between Michigan’s Upper and Lower peninsulas, Mackinac Island is a car-free State Park in Lake Huron. It’s accessible only by ferry or private boat. Explore the Island’s military past at Fort Mackinac, take a ride through the streets in a horse-drawn carriage, or scramble the rocks and snap photos of the 50-ft-wide (15 meters) limestone Arch Rock which soars above the water.
After burning off calories on the protected trails, take home some of the world-famous buttery Mackinac Island fudge, made in the traditional style in huge copper kettles and cooled on marble slabs.
Mackinac Island
3. Upper Peninsula
Hidden treasures in northern Michigan
Good for: History, Adventure
The less-traveled Upper Peninsula in Michigan borders 3 of the Great Lakes and is connected to the Lower Peninsula by the 5-mile-long Mackinac Bridge. Only 3% of Michigan’s residents live in the U.P., as it’s locally known, so if you’re seeking a wilderness experience amongst the soaring sugar maples and shimmering lakes, you’re in for a treat.
Boasting 1,000 miles of coastline and dozens of small towns, learn about Lake Superior’s raging storms at the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum at Whitefish Point. Afterward, stroll the boardwalk to see a 100-foot-wide waterfall at Bond Falls and learn about the original residents of this land and their living history at the Museum of Ojibwa Culture in St. Ignace.
Upper Peninsula
4. Great Lakes Bay Area
Where you’ll find Little Bavaria
Good for: Unusual, Food, Photo
The Great Lakes Bay Area runs along Michigan’s eastern freshwater coastline by Lake Huron’s Saginaw Bay, home to quaint sleepy towns, excellent hiking trails, and a terrific replica Bavarian village. Shop at Michigan’s largest antique store in Bay City or visit the 100-store outlet mall in Birch Run. Then, sail on a sunset tall ship cruise or try a glass of the locally made Riesling at a wine tasting.
Don’t miss out on spending a few hours, or days, at Frankenmuth, also known as Little Bavaria. Savor buttered noodles and fried chicken, enjoy craft beers at America’s oldest microbrewery, or experience festivals such as Oktoberfest and the Frankenmuth Dog Bowl.
Great Lakes Bay Area
5. Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore
Protected site with awe-inspiring stargazing
Good for: History, Photo, Adventure
Part of America’s National Park Service, Sleeping Bear Dunes is in Michigan’s Lower Peninsula along the northeast shore of Lake Michigan and is best known for its climbable sand dunes. Explore miles of sandy beaches, scale 450-ft (137-meter) bluffs, hike lush forests, and launch a canoe into the clear waters of the inland lakes when you visit the almost 72,000 protected acres of the Leelanau Peninsula.
Make plans to stay at one of the campsites to witness the magic of the night sky from the darkness of the park. Constellations and the Milky Way will shimmer overhead and, if you’re lucky, you might even see the Northern Lights.
Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore
6. Ann Arbor
Festivals and Fairy Doors
Good for: History, Unusual, Food
Ann Arbor is a funky, walkable university town with a great live music and sports scene just west of Detroit. With dozens of festivals, easy access to a vast trail network in wild nature, and a vibrant culture of independent stores, Ann Arbor offers something a little different.
Whimsically, Ann Arbor has something of a cult of Fairy Doors across the downtown core. There’s a small blue double door at the Ann Arbor District Library at the end of the Fairytale and Folklore section. Another famous door is on a computer tower case at the University of Michigan Computer Science and Engineering division, which lights up and shows winged fairies when you power on. How many will you find?
Ann Arbor
7. Holland
A taste of the Netherlands in the Upper Midwest
Good for: Couples, Families, Photo
Situated on the shores of Lake Macatawa which connects to Lake Michigan, make believe you’re in the Netherlands and see windmills, a Dutch village, and a tulip festival in Holland, Michigan. Snap a selfie in front of the famous Big Red Lighthouse, visit Windmill Island Gardens to see the centuries-old De Zwaan windmill, and spot cute deer and migratory birds at the beachfront Holland State Park.
Visit in May to experience the wonder of more than 5 million tulips at the Tulip Time festival, 8 days of celebrating the most gorgeous blooms with events and activities taking place throughout downtown.
Holland
8. Porcupine Mountains
Michigan’s largest state park
Good for: Adventure, Photo
The western tip of the Upper Peninsula is home to the Porcupine Mountains, or Porkies, a group of small mountains near the shores of Lake Superior. Explore the protected lands of the Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park, featuring some 60,000 acres of soaring old-growth forest, sparkling waterfalls, and unspoiled lakes, trails, and beaches.
A year-round attraction, the warmer months in the Porcupine Mountains are ideal for hiking, biking, and lazy beach days by the lakeshore. In wintertime, wrap up and head out ice fishing, or try a snowmobiling adventure.
Location: Carp Lake Township, MI 49953, USA
Porcupine Mountains
9. Bond Falls
Cascading falls on the Ontonagon River
Good for: Photo, Couples
Bond Falls is one of Michigan’s most famous waterfalls in southern Ontonagon County, in the Upper Peninsula. A favorite among all ages, the waterfall is easily reached from U.S. Highway 45, and there is an accessible boardwalk that offers 6 viewing platforms over the falls, roadside parking, and picnic tables.
The falls are generally open from around mid-May through mid-October, but well-prepared cold-weather trekkers can hike in via an ungroomed trail once the snow arrives to try and see the frozen falls.
Location: Haight Township, MI 49912, USA
Bond Falls
10. Grand Rapids
Known for excellent beer and fascinating museums
Good for: Couples, Food, Photo
Grand Rapids, the second largest city in Michigan, is in west central Michigan; a cultural hub with excellent museums and galleries, the city boasts a happening music and dining scene. With a well-earned reputation as America’s “Best Beer City,” Grand Rapids boasts some 40 craft breweries within a 30-minute drive.
Grand Rapids is also known as “Furniture City,” which dates to the 1870s when it was the premier furniture manufacturing city in the US. That creativity continues with the city’s “ArtPrize,” the world’s richest, most radically open art competition. For more art, visit the world-renowned Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, boasting a permanent collection of over 300 works of art.
Grand Rapids
This article includes opinions of the Go Guides editorial team. Hotels.com compensates authors for their writings appearing on this site; such compensation may include travel and other costs.