This is a hidden beach that few know about, mostly because you need to drive toward the Portage…read morePoint Inn (be sure to fill your water bottles at the artesian spring, just past the camp), and then keep going right past it on a VERY dinky, one lane road. Head past the marina and yacht club, take a right, and up the dune to the parking lot (free). There's a single room changing area with a pit toilet (needs must), well lit. There are two gazebos and a wooden walkway at the south end of the small parking lot, and a gazebo with benches at the north end of the parking lot. There are dog bags, if you're walking your dog (thank you for cleaning up after them!). I especially love the new addition this year of a barely inclined wooden walkway, with a handicap mat (not sure what to call it, but it is plastic netting that is a stable place for you to walk or wheel down). There's a pier, and a lighthouse at the end. There are 4 fire rings, if you are inclined to have a lovely beach sunset fire (bring supplies). This is my favorite hidden beach in Michigan, and the swims - and sunsets - are glorious.

Such a beautiful place to see! Great for finding sea glass. My husband and I enjoyed seeing the…read morepeaceful water with only one other couple there! Recommend 100% even saw a black squirrel

Overall enjoyed exploring this beach! There is not a staircase down near this parking lot so it's a…read moremix of walking in dirt/sand to get up and down. On the beach: There is a bunch of stuff that washes up here! You can find petotskys, beach glass, unakite, and other rocks! It really just depends on the time of day and how many other people are here

Love this area! Just north of Ludington with way less traffic and completely different adventures!…read moreYou can walk in and camp basically right on the beach here, which is absolutely dreamy and there are just such wonderful hiking trails throughout that offer you challenges and just the most gorgeous sights as well! This spot definitely isn't for everyone and there won't be any "easy" hikes. Nordhouse Dunes makes you work for it, but the payoff is immense and completely worth it! Uninterrupted access to Lake Michigan and stunning vibes - what more could you ask for?! Love Nordhouse Dunes!!

It's crowded but the hike is nice. We were there the first week of September and I was surprised to…read moresee the campground full of campers. I got some great shots with my cannon and my kids enjoyed the hike...it was longer than we thought it would be!

My friends and I were supposed to go to a music festival out of the state last fall but of course…read moreplans changed, so we decided to book a camping weekend at Orchard Beach State Park instead. Located in Manistee, there is plenty to do nearby but unfortunately the weather was pretty rainy for most of the weekend we were there. The access to the beach was closed due to erosion but there are other beaches available. Checking in was easy and there is onsite ice and firewood for sale. The host site was awesome with lots of books for use and a whiteboard with local info. Our site had water and electric hookup, so we were tucked in amongst several RVs and motor homes. The campground was very quiet, which was nice! The restroom facilities were clean and functional, although one had a small set of stairs leading into the actual bathroom area which made it not so accessible. We were on spot 95, which is right near the highway. We knew this going in and could see from the photos that it didn't look that close. Well, it was pretty close, and very loud with road noise. This wasn't a big deal for us but if noise bothers you I'd skip this part of the campground. Another thing to note is that some of the sites hold water when it's been raining, so maybe not the best for tent camping. Our site seemed ok but it was mostly dirt so it did get a little muddy. Nothing too terrible, though. Overall we enjoyed our stay but this definitely wasn't my favorite of the state parks we've visited or camped at. There is a nice lookout point over the lake that made for some nice photos, and getting into town was easy.

Small compared to other state parks across Michigan, but a stunning state park nonetheless located…read moreon bluffs above Lake Michigan! The campground is wonderful and we really loved that it was one that was more underrated and less trafficked. We had a prime camping spot with an uninterrupted view of the lake and even though the weather we had during this weekend wasn't the best, we made do with cozy time in the tent, did a hike through the state park that was lovely and well maintained, and explored the nearby downtown of Manistee, of which Orchard Beach State Park is located just 5-10 minutes north! A wonderful weekend and state park in my books!

Ludington State Park is HUGE, and we absolutely loved it! We paid $12 to get into the park and…read morestarted with the hike to Big Sable Lighthouse. It's about 1.8 miles each way, so just under 4 miles round trip. The trail to the lighthouse is a wide, sandy path that runs through the campground and then continues out toward the lighthouse. It's an easy path, but it is long and definitely sandy, so be prepared for that. The lighthouse area is really cute, and while we didn't care about going inside this time, they do offer tours. It was $8 per person when we were there. There are also picnic tables where you can sit and enjoy the area around the lighthouse. After our hike, we headed over to the beach, and WOW. The beach is absolutely massive and beautiful. It's sandy rather than rocky, incredibly clean, and the water was crystal clear. It was definitely brisk, but so beautiful that I didn't mind! There's a designated swimming area, volleyball nets, and really nice facilities. There are no lifeguards, though, so keep that in mind. It also looked like there were some really cool trails through the sand dunes, but unfortunately we didn't have enough time to explore those on this trip. We needed to grab lunch, rest, and hit the pool before coming back later for sunset. And I am SO glad we came back. The sunset here was absolutely spectacular. Watching the sun go down over this huge, beautiful stretch of sandy beach was one of the highlights of our entire trip. This park really has everything: the lighthouse, miles of trails, huge sand dunes, a beautiful beach, swimming, volleyball, camping, and some incredible views. We only scratched the surface of what there is to explore, and I already know we'd love to come back and spend an entire day here. Definitely one of the highlights of our Ludington trip and absolutely worth the $12 admission!

I stopped in here for half a day to do some hiking and get my nature fix before moving on to my…read morenext road trip destination. The road to the entrance is full of sand dunes and beaches on Lake Michigan before turning into a wooded area at the actual park. We got to see a Bald Eagle perched upon a tree as we entered the park. The park has several RV camp sites that to me looked to be right on top of each other. They pack them in like sardines but I think that is the norm at these type of places these days. Not sure what the cost is to camp but for non-residents to come in for a day pass it was 11.00 per day. We decided to do the Lost Lake trail which is a loop across a couple islands on Hamlin Lake (yes there are bridges, you don't need to bring your snorkel). The hike was relatively void of people only passing a few along the way. I did see a hand full of people kayaking on the lake and a few more kayaks parked on the bank near the campground. The hike is 2.1 miles long and relatively flat the whole way. I wanted to do the lighthouse trail as well but there wasn't enough time. Great place to get your nature fix via kayak or foot. Not sure I would want to camp here on a weekend though unless you want Billy Bob and Mary Sue's 7 rugrats running around your site screaming.

Great little golf resort. I'm looking forward to the activities ahead, they have a really nice…read morelounge in the lobby a great lobby. The people were very friendly when we came very easy to get to. Rooms are clean and very large with a little sitting area. Ours was the Payne Stewart room with all kinds of pictures of Payne Stewart. Beautiful views out the window, a pool in the back a ton of fire pits. I know there's more to come.

First things first…read more.. Stacy and the rest of staff were amazing ! Ate at The Grille, staff there were amazing too! Desiree was our server and did a great job. Golf course is in very good condition. Played the short course, enjoyed it thoroughly, but if I'm being honest I can't say it's worth $49 for a 9 hole par 3 course. First morning my wife had no hot water at 9:30 a.m. No king size beds...

Beautiful public golf course in Northern Michigan. We just came here to check out the pro shop…read more Really nice high-end shop lots of shirts and other accessories for golfing balls, hats, and everything you could need. Is really nicely displayed beautiful space very helpful staff, an incredibly beautiful building with picture views everywhere along the way. Looks like a beautiful course and hope to get back here someday to play it.

Place is incredible. Pebble Beach of the Midwest without the attitudes. Staff is fantastic!read more

Really nice Riverwalk, a whole lot of boat docks, for charters, for fishing or just evening…read morecharter. Lots of walking places to sit a couple nice little parks and tributes throughout. No stores or retail down on the Riverwalk you have to go up a block to get to all of that so it's really nice. You can just walk and look at the water, pretty views and watch the boats and the fisherman sailing out to the lake

We were planning on walking down along the River, went down by the Rasdell building…read more We decided not to step down since there were several less desirable folks down there than there there was the two of us. It's a mostly quiet and dead Sunday in town and we didn't feel comfortable enough to walk down on our own. We viewed the River from the first set of stairs instead, a safe distance in an unfamiliar area.