Things To Do Around Traverse City
Overall vibe of Traverse City, Michigan:
Traverse City is absolutely MAGICAL. It’s right on the beautiful Lake Michigan, has a super cute downtown with shops and restaurants and there’s tons of nearby adventures. You can lounge on a beach, go for a boat ride, grab a beer at a brewery, go shopping downtown or explore one of the beautiful nature spots.
We went in July and it was 80 and sunny pretty much every day. I definitely recommend going sometime in the summer.
Lake Michigan (from the Nauti-cat Boat Cruise)
Quick Guide to Traverse City:
Overall vibe: lake, cute downtown, good food, beautiful nature
How long to stay: 3-4 nights
Where to stay: near downtown or between Traverse City and Suttons Bay
Getting around: rent a car (downtown is walkable if you stay there but a car is definitely necessary if you want to adventure more)
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Where to stay in Traverse City, Michigan:
We stayed in this Airbnb and it was absolutely perfect. There’s a semi-private (shared with 1 other house) beach across the street right on the lake where you can lounge and swim and a firepit in the backyard. It’s 15 minutes from downtown and is a good location for getting to other areas near Traverse City that are worth exploring.
Birch House-Family friendly house with shared beach
Best restaurants in Traverse City
Apache Trout Grill (Instagram: @apache_trout_grill): we really wanted to go here but the wait was 2 hours but it seems like the best waterfront restaurant for seafood in the area.
West End Tavern (Instagram: @westendtavern_): another great spot for seafood with a nice patio with water views. The walleye sandwich and halibut meal were amazing!
Folgarellis (Instagram: @folgarellis): awesome deli with sandwiches, wine, cheese, deli meats (the best I’ve ever had), etc. Highly recommend getting a sandwich or order lunch meat and cheese here to make sandwiches.
Playa Bowls (Instagram: @playabowls): really good smoothies!
Hoplot (Instagram: @hoplotbrewingco): awesome brewery in a beautiful forest with string lights and great food. The cherry salad was so good!!
Omelette Shoppe: great spot for breakfast!
Low Bar (Instagram: @lowbartc): really cool underground cocktail bar with speakeasy vibes. The drinks were super good!
Don’t Go:
Harrington’s: it looked really cute on the outside but the food wasn’t good at all. I’d skip it!
Best coffee shops
Higher Grounds (Instagram: @highergroundstradingco): awesome coffee shop with great coffee and matcha.
Higher Grounds Coffee Shop
Mundos (Instagram: @mundosroastingco): super cute, good coffee shop in Suttons bay (they also have locations in Traverse City). Coffee was good but matcha wasn’t.
Best things to do in Traverse City
Sleeping Bear Beach: awesome beach to swim and relax. There were other people but wasn’t crazy crowded. This photo doesn’t do it justice by the way - the water is beautiful and clear!
Sleeping Bear Beach
Sleeping Bear Dunes Lookout: AMAZING lookout point of Lake Michigan. I was shocked how beautiful it was…seriously as beautiful as some beaches in Greece.
Walk Around Downtown: explore the shops, grab lunch, etc.
Nauti-cat Boat Cruise: I was skeptical about doing a group boat cruise but it was so magical and one of my favorite parts of the trip!
Nauti-cat Boat Cruise
Glen Arbor: cute little town with restaurants and shops on way back to Traverse City from Sleeping Bear Dunes.
Suttons Bay: another cute town on the way back from Sleeping Bear Dunes.
Clay Cliffs Natural Area Manitou Lookout: easy, less than a mile, trail through a peaceful forest to a nice view of Lake Michigan. Sleeping Bear Dunes Lookout is much better so definitely prioritize that but this one is nice if you want a little nature/hiking.
Leland Historic Fish District: cute town on the water. The Cheese sandwich place looked amazing!
Farmers Market: great Saturday farmer’s market downtown. The flowers were amazing!
Google Map of All Traverse City Recommendations
I saved all of my recommendations for you in the map below to make it super easy to get around! Here’s the full link so you can save it: https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/3/edit?mid=1NAFashwcJ2dEAWnemNn57o45FABVGus&usp=sharing.
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