Lake Erie 2-3 day get away
 

I have 2-3 days in august to go on a road trip with my mom (we are 45 & 65). leaving from Ft. Wayne. Last year we went to Saugatuk, Mi. and had a great time, this year we thought we would head east into Ohio. Any suggestions? A spa proved to be too expensive and we don't know the area. Is Kelleys Island familiar to anyone? How about anywhere in NW or NCental Ohio? Thanks!

Put-in-Bay on South Bass Island is worth a look.

Put in Bay is very nice. There's also a National Monument there - the name escapes me. We also LOVE Cedar Point, the best (and most?) roller coasters in the world. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland was fun, and the stadium (Indians) is beautiful, similar to Coors Field. Also enjoyed lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe (DS fave place at the time.) Have a great time, so nice you can travel with your mom!

I just returned from visting friends in Catawba Island, which really isn't an island. It was a very nice place. thre was a hotel there--forget the name of it, right on the beach in "Lakeside". It's just outside of Sandusky.

Put-in-Bay, particularly in the summer is full of partiers & college kids. (Think Spring Break in the summer). Kelleys is much more laid back & relaxed. I believe they still have the winery on the Island that is worth a look, as well as the glacial grooves. If you just want to relax, it is the best. Try kelleysisland.com, kelleysislandchamber.com or kelleysislandnature.com.

I would recommend Kelly's Island or Put-in-Bay. Kelly's is quieter and not as crowded but we love them both. On both you rent golf carts to get around. (we take our car over on the ferry but leave it at where we stay and take a cart) Actually, if you want to just make a day of it on both islands you can take the Goodtime 1 out of Sandusky,$23.00 for you, $21.00 for your mom, www.goodtimeboat.com, 1-800-446-3140, and spend 1 1/2 hours on Kellys, which is time to rent a golf cart for $14.00 and drive to the glacier grooves. You could even stop at the very small winery. It is an hour back on the boat to get to Put-in-Bay (they sell wine and drinks on the boat)and then rent another cart for $13.00 an hour and spend the 3 hours alloted exploring or shopping or whatever, The Boardwalk is a great place to have lunch! Right on the water and the best Lobster Bisque! As you can tell, we had friends from Indiana last weekend and did this and it was so much fun! Perry's Monument was closed for repairs but be sure to visit (Put-in-Bay) if open.

Thank you all. We booked a room at the Inn on Kelleys Island and are looking forward to exploring the area.The second day we may head south to Springfield area. Anything we should know? Along the way?

Unless you have a particular reason to visit Springfield there is little there to keep you busy. Columbus or Dayton would be better destinations. 1 day is not sufficient time to explore Kelleys either, particularly since you'll need to catch the ferry over & back also.

I can't think of anything I would want to see in Springfield ( unless you're talking family) I would spend a day and night at Kelley's and then take the ferry to Put-in-Bay for the day.

Thank you again, saving us from boredom!! We will take you advise and pass on Springfield!
Now, that second night... we would like to be somewhere between Kelleys I. and Ft. Wayne, but where? Don't want to feel like our adventure is over til it's over! We have all day on the 3rd day.

If you don't come up with any other ideas, there's a Presidential Home, Museum and Library in Freemont, Ohio - Rutherford Hayes. Certainly not the most exciting prez we've ever had :) but we as a family have tried to visit ALL the presidential libraries/homes across the country.

Oh, and you might want to stop at Tony Packos in Toledo, famous from the Jamie Farr / M.A.S.H. days. Don't go for the food but to see the walls - all covered in weenie buns with celebrity siggies! Kinda fun! :)

Anyone been to the Great Stone Castle Bed and Breakfast in Sidney Ohio?

I had to report on our trip! Kelleys Island was a lot of fun. Started out terrible tho, our B&B was so horrid we had to find other accomodations. We had booked a room at the Carriage House and when we got there, it was a dump! This woman really has made no effort to create a nice place. I have stayed in B&B's all over the country and have rarely been disappointed, but this was awful. No locks on the rooms, NO BREAKFAST! The dark damp room was furnished with old, yucky, dirty furniture and the floors and rugs looked like she just stopped the dogs from chewing them. When my mom sat in the one chair provided, the throw shifted, revealing all the yucky foam stuffing! There wasn't any upholstery on the chair!! Couldn't open the dresser drawers, and then we checked out the shared bathroom! OMG! The towels smelled like mildew! There was a dingy plastic laundry basket for throwing the used towels into, next to a stack of towels that looked very worn! Shower was unacceptable! All of this at ONLY $100.00 a night! Talk about taking advantage of your location! Oh, and the "beachside fire ring" does NOT exist!
What was very disappointing was that we booked this room from the island's chamber of commerce website. That they would allow this place to represent their lovely island is a disgrace to them!

Now, the good news, we took a walk and found a lovely B&B down the way! the House on Huntington
http://www.houseonhuntington.com/ was just a delight. The great owner loaned us her golf cart so we could go back to pick up our luggage at the other place. We lost our $50.00 deposit, but boy was it worth it! Patty at the House on Huntington was a real doll and knows how to make one feel right at home. Beautiful rooms, cleanest bathrooms ever! & coffeecake to die for! Couldn't have been nicer! i did send a letter to the Kelleys Island Chamber of Commerce and never received a reply! It is a shame that someone else may be as unfortunate as we were and book a room at the Carriage Inn. Worse yet, to form an opinion on the Island based on that place! We were 10 minutes from getting back on the ferry when we found the nicer place!
We had been told by the Jennifer smith of the Carriage House, that we wouldn't need our car. A mistake I think, but, renting a golf cart did end up to be a lot of fun! Glacial grooves are good for 5 minutes, but cruising around the island and stopping at the beach, shops, etc. was a lot of fun.
Had dinner at the Village Pump, great sweet potato fries, great fish,(but not enough on my plate for the $) and my mother's mussels, even tho they are frozen and from Florida, were still tasty! Had a haogie for lunch at the Caddy Shak and it was very very good, however, it took 20 minutes to make and this was with nobody in line!!