We are now considering spending a week on the island for vacation, . . . Jeni
Hi Jeni,
Please, please, please spend some money in Michigan!
I was visiting my parents in Lansing a couple of weeks ago, and the only thing letting you know that it use to have one of the largest General Motors car assembly plants in the world is the name of the freeway (“Olds Freeway”) running through town. The actual plant site is now completely leveled, cleared, vacant and waiting for something new that will likely never come its way. Very sad.
Regarding your questions, a week is way-way-way too long to spend on Mackinac Island. Most Michiganders make it a day trip. We did do an overnight there once, which was plenty to time to see and do everything on the island.
If you want to do northern Michigan like a true Michigander, you set-up shop for a week at a nice lakeside cottage or condo somewhere (like on Lake Charlevoix, or in Glen Arbor (“The Homestead”), or that Indian owned fancy-pants resort in Acme next to a casino (Grand Traverse Lodge?), or someplace beach-front in Traverse City, or Houghton Lake or Higgins Lake, or Crystal Lake, etc.) The place should be beach front and have a “sandy beach” (which you have to specifically ask about when renting less you be surprised with a beach full of weeds, rocks, mud, muck and the like). If possible, you should have access to jet skis and/or a ski boat and/or a “beer scow” (pontoon boat), and of course one of those “sunfish” sail boats or a row boat.
From this base of operations, you then take day trips to 1) Mackinac Island; 2) Sleeping Bear Sand dunes (anyone else remember the
"Mack Woods Dune Rides?"; 3) Petoskey (to look for
Petoskey Stones); and 4) a “deep sea” fishing trip on Lake Michigan.
B-List northern Michigan tourist traps include visiting that
giant cross that the truly faithful are supposed to walk up the stairs leading to it on their knees, mini-golf, finding places where Earnest Hemmingway is said to have stayed, and the
Soo-Locks (I know I may get guff from fellow Michiganders on this last one, but yes, the Soo-Locks have fallen to a B-list item in my book).
While not present when I was growing up, most of northern Michigan now has a ton these nasty biting flies. I’m not sure how to defend against them. On the plus side, also not present when I was growing up, but now everywhere in northern Michigan are lightening bugs/fire flies. Mosquitoes are the unofficial state bird of northern Michigan so bring plenty of repellent. (TIP: You can repel mosquitoes just as easily by placing a fresh smelly “BOUNCE” dryer sheet in your pocket at dusk (when the mosquitoes come out).
True Story: My wife, who had never been to northern Michigan, wanted to drive from the Traverse City airport to our rented cottage on Lake Charlevoix on her first visit. We arrived at night and shortly after driving she said, and I quote “it is raining pretty hard out there.” It was a beautiful, cloud free night. What she thought was the sound of rain hitting our windshield was actually the sound of thousands of bugs splatting against it as she drove. She learned the truth when she turned on her wipers and smeared ‘em all so we couldn’t see a darned thing. Welcome to northern Michigan!
Now to your specific questions:
1. The ferry companies all have secure and unsecure lots to park your car. I don’t recall the prices, but they were reasonable and maybe even free. As I recall, if you are staying overnight on the island, you are automatically routed to a secure lot when you enter the ferry parking area..
2. We have stayed at
"Mission Point Resort" on the island. It has a main hotel and then a few old dormitory buildings next to it. As I recall, the rooms in the dormitory all have private baths, but are pretty rough and certainly did not have any air conditioning. We didn’t know it at the time of booking, but we soon learned that we got a dorm room. It was fine for the night we were there, but certainly not for a whole week.
3. All of the hotels include free luggage transport from the ferry terminal and in cases where your hotel isn’t adjacent to the ferry terminal, free horse-drawn taxi service to your hotel. When you buy your ferry tickets you tell them where you are staying. The ticket agent will give you luggage tags for your particular hotel, and your luggage will just show up at your hotel on the island complete with a porter holding his hand out.
4. There are absolutely no self-propelled vehicles permitted on Mackinac Island (expect maybe for construction equipment needed to build a new fudge store, and disabled folks using their electric scooters). Even UPS makes its daily deliveries via horse drawn carriage. You can get anywhere on the island by walking. Bikes can be rented on the island by the hour, day, or week, and there are horse drawn carriage “taxis” available.
One of the first things you’ll notice on an island with so many horse drawn carriages is that it must have really, really stunk in big cities before cars were invented. Virtually all of the candid photos I have of my kids in the downtown portion of Mackinac Island include them covering their noses from the stench created by the pools of stagnant horse urine flooding the streets. When you think of olden times, you often forget how badly things must have smelled. Good, bad, or smelly, Mackinac Island gives you the full picture.
Have Fun!
-nodge
