Mackinac, Petoskey or Harbor Springs?
 

We're planning a week vacation for the last week of August, to include grandparents and children. Which place would be better suited for renting a house/aimless wandering/lounging about/beach access? Any suggestions?

Suggest focus on HS and M, not P - just returned yesterday and covered the area you're visiting. Golf and boating!! Best restaurants are in HS. By all means have MI tourist agency mail you some materials - they have tons. The best air service is through Traverse City - 90 minutes south, via American - regional jet service from O'Hare - under one hour. Ciao, L

Victoria: I would stay in Harbor Springs, and take day trips from there. I could not imagine an entire week on Mackinac Island - there is NOTHING to do there.

Victoria, <BR>I am a Michigan resident - trust me when I say you do not want to spend a week at Mackinac. <BR>Plan to take a day trip there. It's interesting to see, but you will soon grow tired of it.<BR>It's mostly souvenier shops, horse manure, and fudge. <BR>ronr

I grew up in Michigan-my family only took day trips to Mackinac Island as well! I was hoping things may have changed-guess not.

Harbor Springs is nice, but you might also consider Charlevoix. It's a great little town to spend a week in, and you have both Lake Michigan and Lake Charlevoix to beach on. Our family once rented a townhouse in town on the harbor, which was very nice to walk out from into the town, to the beaches, to the movies, etc. We all liked it, and the kids had more to do and could rollerblade.<BR><BR>Mackinac would be awfully hard to spend a whole week.

Agree w/others. You don't want to spend a week on Mackinac - go there for the day - maybe overnight. Harbor Springs is great as is Petoskey - they're very close - about 15 minutes apart. Bayview is in between and also has places to stay. You could check out Bay Harbor (www.bayharbor.com) and The Inn at Bay Harbor (www.innatbayharbor.com). Just south of Petoskey right on the lake. Expensive but very nice. The Inn is a resort where the rooms (really condos) are individually owned but rented out and the place is run like a hotel. It is at Bay Harbor but owned by Boyne. Bay Harbor has condos that can be rented but also include hotel like services, maid service, room service. Probably less expensive for a family. We've been going to Harbor Springs/Petoskey for 15 years and Bay Harbor for the last two - plan to make it an annual trip now.

Another option is to check out Traverse City...lots of beaches and many inland lakes. More for kids to do in Traverse City as well (children's museum, zoo, zoo train rides, parks)<BR>Check with cottages.org or michiganresortrentals.com. I live in TC and it's a good starting place to go to many of the places previously mentioned for day trips. You can go north to Bay Harbor, Petoskey, HS, Charlevoix, Mackinaw bridge,etc. and west to beautiful Leelanau Peninsula, sand dunes, etc. <BR><BR>Don't sell Mackinaw Island short, though. I agree that a week might be a bit much (especially with children) but at least one overnight there is wonderful. After the last ferry boat leaves for the night, the place gets quiet, quaint, and very nice...nothing beats waking up to the clip-clop of horse hooves...soooo relaxing.

I am a native Michigander. All of the suggestions you have received are good. I agree that you should not spend a week on Mackinac Island, however, you should take a day to visit the Island. When we go "up North", we usually stay a place called Lakeside Club (on the road between Petoskey and Harbor Springs). Lakeside Club is a condominium complex on a small inland lake (Round Lake). They offer anything from studios to three bedrooms with loft. There are tennis courts, indoor pool, etc. Very nice complex and in an execllent location. Petoskey State Park is across the street. From here, you can easily drive to Petoskey and Harbor Springs (obviously) and also to Charlevoix and Mackinac City/Island.<BR>Traverse City is another option (we stay at The Beach Condominiums on Grand Traverse Bay). However, keep in mind that Traverse City is approximately 60 miles from Petoskey and Harbor Springs. <BR><BR>Good luck - I'm sure you will have a great vacation!<BR><BR>

Also check into The Homestead Resort in Glen Arbor. We had a wonderful long weekend there. It's beautiful and there are many areas to choose from.

Several people beat me to the punch! I was going to suggest Traverse City as opposed to making a choice of the 3 towns you suggested. Bigger, more to do and see, lovely area, yet close enough to explore the other towns if you're willing to drive a bit. <BR><BR>I lived for a year in Cheboygan quite a few years ago and made day trips to all of the cities brought up already. Gorgeous areas! No matter where you ultimately choose, you can't go wrong. Enjoy!

Don't forget to visit Sleeping Bear Dunes (great sandy cliffs that remind me of Gay Head on Martha's Vineyard). A decent beach and if you are lucky and the warm wind is blowing from the west and all the warm water is washing up on the shore it'll be a very lovely day on the beach.

I suggest you stay at White Birch Lodge on Elk Lake in Elk Rapids. So much for kids to do with the staff -- water skiing, tubing, tennis, sailing, windsurfing, arts, crafts -- that the adults get a chance to relax without watching the kids -- or cooking!<BR><BR>http://www.whitebirchlodge.org/frame2.html

Victoria, I agree with Jerry and with antmaril. We have visited the area several times and love it. Petoskey is always fun with a variety of things to do. The specialty shops are always fun to do for a day. The beach at Petoskey State Park is GREAT if you walk down to the campground area. Wear your water shoes, and walk out pretty far looking for Petoskey stones. Last summer, we would go to the beach really early, it would be like glass, and the kids tried to catch all the little fish. Priceless! Bay Harbor is kinda neat. It used to be an industrial area that somebody cleaned up and built high dollar condos. It's quiet. The best breakfast awaits you at The Original Pancake House in Bay Harbor. Have fun!

Thanks for all of the great suggestions. We are renting a large condo at Lakeside Club, with an overnight plans for Mackinac Island, not to mention day trips to Traverse City and Petoskey. Looking forward to the trip!

Hey, wait...make plans to visit Saugatuck on your way back down south. West Michigan (Grand Haven, Holland and Saugatuck) is a must for beautiful beaches and culture.

Would also like to add that while your in the area of Traverse City, if you get a chance to go to Interlochen Music Center do so. In the summer, they have concerts and it is a wonderful sound to hear around a campfire, as we stayed at the State Park across from Interlochen Music School.

We were in Holland and Saugatuk a few years ago and enjoyed our stay very much. This trip, however, will take us through Ann Arbor on our way up north(must show the children their future alma mater! Go Blue!)and the Detroit area on the return to visit friends. We also have Interlochen on our list-I'm starting to think that a week might not be enough! Thanks again, everyone!

Me again. We've got the lodging reserved for our week in August, and the day trips loosely thought-out. What about restaurants? We'll be celebrating a birthday and would like a more upscale restaurant, particularly if the restaurant serves local specialties. Harbor Springs, Petoskey, Traverse City, Mackinac, etc are all considerations. Thanks!

I would suggest renting a large cottage on Lake Leelanau for a week. The dunes are great. You can charter a boat on Lake Michigan. You can all be together and drive almost anywhere. You do not want to spend more than one day on Fudge Island.