Date of stay: December 15-18, 2025. We booked the Empire Lakeshore in somewhat last minute to help an elderly parent that was having surgery in Traverse City. We called to book, and Linda was so helpful and personable. We booked the King Suite (the largest) for $109 a night. We thought that was extremely fair. We got there after dark, retrieved our room key from the box, as directed, and was really pleased with how clean and comfortable the room was. There were very few guests, given the winter season. The office wasn't open either, but it was fine. It was quiet, and someone replaced towels and k-cups each day, and emptied the trash. The kureig, microwave, and fridge were very helpful. Note - the fridge was not tiny, it was about three feet tall. The tv and WiFi worked great, we both had to work from the room at different times, and had no problem on video calls. It was a quick walk to the BP for snacks, drinks, breakfast sandwiches (yum!), very convenient. There are two great restaurants open year round, joes friendly tavern and empire pizza. We would be very happy to stay here again and will recommend it to friends. read more

Empire Lakeshore Inn - Work station and kitchen area - Hotels Near Me - Empire, Michigan

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I requested a price match through Priceline, but Priceline required the hotel owner to approve it. The hotel owner refused, telling me directly that they do not follow Priceline's price-match or best-price-guarantee policies. This raises a serious question: If the hotel does not honor Priceline's policies, why is it listed on Priceline? And why does Priceline allow a hotel that ignores its guarantees to remain on the platform? This feels like a failure on both sides and is very misleading to consumers. Below is the text message I received from the hotel (all personal identifiers removed to protect privacy): read more

Empire Lakeshore Inn - Hotels Near Me - Empire, Michigan

Close to Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes. Nice quiet hotel. Pet friendly, but only Rooms #1 and #8, so be sure to check with them for availability before booking. Clean and comfortable room. In the little Village of Empire. The girl behind the desk was very sweet. She was so busy handling a lot of different tasks by herself, but it didn't affect her sunny disposition. That's a great employee! We were there just after Labor Day, so the area was very quiet. read more

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It was clean and nice. We were above the office and on the first night we were setting our bags on the floor and the office was hitting the ceiling with a pole. It was before 10pm quiet time. My daughter got up out of the chair and they started hitting the ceiling again. We felt like we were walking on egg shells the rest of the time there. I couldn't wait to be done with the place. read more

Booked this place online last year (winter) without talking to a human or interacting with one on-site. It was late when I arrived and still under Covid times, so I picked my key up in a Dropbox. The overall appearance was clean and nice from the outside to inside the rooms. The parking lot was pretty busy so that was definitely a good sign for a late arrival. Settled into the room and quickly notified that there was a draft. It began obvious that both of the windows in were not locked and indeed cracked. I'd consider that a little security concern, but nothing a lock couldn't resolve. Also worth mentioning is that the walls are pretty thin if you know what I mean They had a little coffee maker and fridge for the necessities. Overall clean and definitely doable if your in the area and need lodging read more

Extremely quiet and clean. Located next to Sleeping Bear welcome center. Easy walk to Empire and short drives to Glenn Arbor and Frankfort. Very friendly housekeepers. read more

The photos on yelp are outdated. We had to relocate from a VRBO last minute. Linda is the BEST! She was able to get us a room same day! 5 humans and one dog. The rooms are recently renovated clean bright and welcoming. Mini fridge and a Kurig. The location is great walking distance to everything and a close drive to the dunes. Would come back again. read more

We stayed here on 8/23/23. We reserved the King Suite in the new hotel. Our room was above the office. We wanted to reminisce about our great vacations at Platte River campground in Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore for our 42nd Anniversary, coming to Empire for pizza at Empire Village Inn Pizza and swimming at the city beach. Unfortunately the Pizza Inn was closed the night we stayed there and opened up later the next day than we could stay in Empire. The weather was not cooperative either and we did not go swimming in Lake Michigan. Now back to our stay. The room was okay, clean, but the 1 chair was not comfortable to sit in more than an hour. Our bed was hard and our HVAC unit had the beginning of a blower fan failure with humming all night until I shut it off at 4am. The thermostat on the wall did not control it, I had to manually shut it off on the unit. The 2 little chairs and table for breakfast were more for decoration than functionality. "Felt" furniture is never good! My wife had a cup of their "in room" coffee which was adequate. At 6:30am we heard talking and laughing below us in the office. Really? Finally after 7:30, I couldn't sleep anymore and took a HOT shower, which was fantastic! It was just okay in the new hotel, if we stay again, we may try the old but remodeled hotel across the street. Because we overlooked the gas station and heard the traffic while it was open. read more

Stayed here for a few days in August for a trip to the Sleeping Bear Dunes. The management was lovely and the room was adequate. The manager was very present and checked on us a few times to make sure we had what we needed during our stay. Great location, close to the dunes and empire beach. Not too expensive either! Would come back for another trip to Michigan. read more

Great location so near to the lake. Front desk was extremely friendly and helpful when booking.com messed up my reservation. Super clean and updated room. read more

Do not rent here! Bed bugs. Rude staff, charged my card even though we didn't stay due to bed bugs, hung up on me and blocked my number. I was extremely polite, they had not reason to be so hateful. Terrible management!! I purchased the room on booking.com, when I arrived, no one was on site. I called, was told there were no more rooms but a room was available at their other location, a key was in the mailbox, they already charged my card that was on booking.com. Upon arriving at 9:30 pm, the room was incredibly warm, the air was not on although it had been in the 80s all day. I took a shower, laid back on the bed and noticed something black on the ceiling. We inspected closer to find it was a bedbug. I called the office again, the lady I spoke with was very rude and unprofessional! I notified her of the bed bug issue(it looked as though they may be nesting in the smoke detector, as there was a lot of feces on it) she laughed at me and said they have never had bed bugs and if it was a bedbug it would be in the bed not the ceiling, and they have been fighting fruit flies in Michigan, it's probably just a fruit fly...I tried to explain that it wasn't a fruit fly, and bed bugs can be in many other places other than a bed, she continued to talk over me and said, what do you expect me to do at 10 o'clock at night. Unfortunately, we were very limited in the area, lodging options were closed or not vacant. When I asked her name, she hung up on me. She then refused to answer my call. We had to leave and find somewhere else to stay...Which was 30 minutes out of our way and twice the cost! The next day, I tried to call the main number, didn't get an answer, They had blocked my number! I have tried to contact the hotel multiple times to get refunded. Finally, I had a friend call with me on the line, a man answered, I asked to speak with a manager or the owner and he sternly said what do you need...I said may I speak to mgr, he repeated WHAT DO YOU NEED! Over and over until I finally told him we needed a refund, the room had bedbugs, I was charged, he said for a room you stayed in. I said no we didn't, he argued that I left the next morning, which was not true! He took my number and hung up on me. read more

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We were there last Saturday & paid $300 for a night in a basic room that reeked of vomit. Called to notify the office the next day. We left a voicemail. No one called back. read more

Where do I start? Why not begin with the ownership. Rude is one description. It started with the phone call to set up the reservation. When you're told you can go elsewhere that is a clue and had it been on the phone I would have accepted his advice. I'll stay in Traverse City before I go to this place again. While staying there we used the phone number to contact them about an issue. Annoyed at being interrupted is being kind in describing his response. Why are you in the business if you can't be bothered with customers? Maybe it is time to retire. Yes, I have nothing nice to say about him. The wife, I can only assume she is his wife as they are in the same age range, provided us with the wrong directions to get to our room. You own the place and it is small but you still tell us to go in the opposite direction? The room is no frills which is fine. You get a refrigerator, maybe a microwave, and a coffee maker with cheaper coffee - Member's Mark K-cups. This place goes cheap, so you can gain an idea of how things are run. You get one key for the room, so good luck with people wanting to go in different directions and returning at different times. For the price you pay, you're overcharged. The rooms are clean and from what I recall the maids will not make your bed. If I can I recommend people to avoid this place due to ownership attitude. They don't have to bend over backwards but at least act like you want people to stay there. read more

We stayed last night in the newly constructed Empire Lakeshore Inn. Although the inn is not luxurious, everything was new and very functional. The living area had two queen size beds, which were very comfortable. The room was climate controlled with a wall mounted HVAC unit. There was also a refrigerator, a microwave and a Keurig coffee maker. On the wall was a large screen TV. There was even a sound generator that could simulate rain, thunderstorm, and various other sounds to enhance getting to sleep, with settings to turn it off after 15, 30 and 60 minutes. The bathroom was small, but efficiently designed with a toilet and bathtub. Outside the bathroom was a wide counter with sink in the middle. We very much enjoyed the facility, and the staff was congenial and helpful. I recommend the Empire Lakeshore Inn for anyone who is traveling in the Sleeping Bear Dunes area. Make sure you stay in the new building, however, and not in the old annex. In fairness, there are two areas where we feel that the Inn could make improvements. One is security and the other is privacy. Regarding security, the Inn's room keys have the name of the Inn and the customer's room number on each one. Should the customer lose custody of the key, anyone finding it would have easy access to their room and belongings. This needs to be remedied. For privacy, the rooms have no way of admitting ambient light without sacrificing privacy. The only window covering is an accordion style blackout shade. It would be helpful if the facility had sheer curtains that allowed light and limited view of the outside without revealing the persons in the room. read more

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Hotel is newly renovated, is very clean and quiet. The owners were on premises and do accept dogs. You have to call office as they DoNOT check messages on Airbnb website. They are very clean and mindful of allergies. Unfortunately I forgot to take pics but I can say the beds were super comfortable and so were the pillows. The bathroom and bedroom was spotless. Location was great too. Not too far from main attractions. They will charge extra for pets for extra cleaning. read more

This hotel happily charges rip-off prices for subpar accommodations and zero customer service. Avoid like the plague. My partner and I travel heavily for our jobs and spend more time in hotels than our own home; we have stayed in rooms around the world, from top end chains to tiny independents in small towns. Nowhere have I dealt with such lack of standards when charging so much. Also notice on Yelp and TripAdvisor that the owner never responds to reviews. Our first interaction with the front desk (which keeps very odd and restrictive hours, very unprofessional) was walking in to what appeared to be someone's extremely filthy and unkept home. The front desk agents children were running around wildly and had to wake their mom to check us in. When she finally rolled out of bed, she did nothing but verify our names and announced how much we owed for the stay. She had the attitude and appearance of someone who has a huge ego from running a small town hotel. I would not be surprised if this woman has never left Empire. Room is sparsely decorated. Barely functional consumer grade window unit AC. Bathroom is comically oversized and laid out very poorly with tons of wasted space. A small shelf and a tiny sink area is all the storage you have, aside from a crappy home built "closet" space, weirdly in the bathrooms. Water sprayed from the faucet sideways. TV (which we don't really care about, but still nice to have) is way too small for the distance it's placed from the bed. The linens are tired and need replacement. There is a telephone jack wall panel inexplicably in the center of the headboard. No amenities other than slow WiFi. Mosquito carcasses in the shower. Zero standards and a profiteering owner. Also, they use real room keys (unlike most decent hotels anywhere), and the keys they use are not the copy protected type. Not safe. The next morning, we noticed the room did not have an iron or hair dryer. Upon going to the front desk, the desk attendant laughed a loud, sarcastic laugh in my face when I asked for a hair dryer. Then proceeded to get one, acting like i was a huge inconvenience. This is the type of place that allows people to dry a whole suitcase worth of laundry in the parking lot, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised. The front desk person needs to be fired immediately. Her level of customer service is amateur at best. And it's obvious the owner is taking advantage of the location to gouge for a sub standard product. This place makes Super 8 look like a Hilton. Plan ahead and find a good Airbnb rather than risking it here. read more

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Great location within walking distance to the beach, welcome center, and restaurants. We arrived at the main location to a note that relayed information that the office was not always open, look for room key in the box. Located envelope withe name and a note that our room was located at the annex across from the gas station (which we couldn't see from the current location). The annex was maybe a block away across from the BP, we walked around the side of the main building until we saw the gas station and headed in that direction. The room seemed clean and included a mini fridge, TV, and Keurig. There was a noise machine on the bedside table, but it didn't work or wasn't plugged in and we couldn't reach the outlet to check. You could tell there had been some renovations. The bathroom had new flooring. The tub was likely original. There was hot water in the sink but we couldn't get hot water in the shower. The shower fixture was pretty old a loosely fitted. No ice available in the machine (maybe a Covid safety precaution- but no sign to explain). read more

I never expected this place to be dishonest in their dealings, because Empire is a wonderful village, but today their manager told me that it was the third-party's policy to charge for a full night upon cancellation, when indeed, when checked, it was explicitly their policy. I double checked this with the third party, and they confirmed that if the cancellation could not go forward, it would be ONLY because the Inn wouldn't allow it. They are ready to cancel, and wished me well about the Covid. I read the Inn's policy on the web, but it seems that if one is being quarantined because of a Covid exposure, and one expresses the desire not to chance infecting anyone, the Empire Lakeshore Inn would bend over backward to assist in the cancellation, or at least support the third party, which wanted no cancellation. It also seems that if the Inn has a relationship with the third party, they shouldn't blame customers for booking through them. The manager made it seem like I deserved the penalty because I went through the third party. (That seemed nutty to me, since I found them through the third party-- and was paying more for the room through the third party, truth be told.) Beware of this place and its manager Linda, who will not supply you with a way to contact the owners and who insisted that she would do nothing about the penalty. She also would not pick up the call from the third party. She struck me as not caring at all to be helpful in resolving things and indeed almost taking satisfaction in my distress. We began interrupting each other, and she hung up on me. I was shocked that she was so unhelpful. I have recently bought property in the area, and I won't be sending any of my guests there. I had hopes of having them as friends. But with this work ethic, there is no way I can recommend them. If they do resolve this problem, I'll post again to say that this has happened. Till then, be very careful with this property. Better to stay where the business is truly honest. read more

Convenient location to the lake, the dunes, and more! Easy check in. Recently updated rooms in annex hotel made for an enjoyable stay. Two sinks in the room made it easy for this family to get ready before hitting the dunes for the day! Super easy checkout as well. Highly recommend to anyone looking to spend time at the National lakeshore. read more

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DISHONEST Owners and Disgusting Sheets! My family stayed at this inn and booked two rooms, only to find a bed that was absolutely disgusting. Blood from a recent prior guest was stained all over on the sheets! The bed sheets had not been changed at ALL! Just made to look all fluffed and tucked in. They cut corners and didn't have the due diligence to actually turn down all the beds of an occupied room, even though someone made it look like it had not been slept in. Well it had definitely been slept in! And it was absolutely disgusting and filthy!! Crusted blood not more than a day or two old, splattered all over on the sheets from when that room was last occupied. The thought of it just makes me throw up. What a gross violation. Not to mention health regulations for a hotel!? I reported all of this to Bob, one of the owners, and he stated that he would credit that room back to the credit card we used. Well, not only did he NOT do that, but a mysterious second charge for a room was applied to the card first! And then a "credit" was applied to that bogus charge, as if we wouldn't notice that they gave us NO real credit AT ALL toward the original transaction! This was NOT right. I called and asked them to rectify the situation and to simply abide by the verbal agreement that Bob made to us to credit us for that disgusting room. But no, he flat out hung up on me. No apology for a blood-crusted bed, or bogus charges. Nothing. Just hung up like a guilty person whose word means absolutely squat. The worst part of this whole thing is, after 14 months of my elderly parents' isolation during Covid, and after we all got our vaccines, my parents finally felt safe to head out again. This Inn was the place we chose to spend time together as a family, to visit Lake Michigan, and make new memories. We drove across the country to be there. And now, it's all badly tainted, literally and figuratively, with this whole gross, bloody experience. This Inn is run by DECEITFUL and dishonest people! And if you stay there, who knows if they've changed your sheets! read more

I would've love to recommend this hotel, but unfortunately our trip got canceled because our child care, my 83 year old parents and my sister tested positive for Covid . I booked through Travelocity so Travelocity tried to work with the hotel to get them to waive the cancellation fee, and the hotel refused. My caution with this property is that they will not waive the cancellation fee even if you have a family emergency. read more

We had decided to book this stay because of the location and the advertisement of being pet friendly, I had booked this stay three months in advance paying the extra pet fee. We had read everything about the pet policy online coming from 7 hours away that is the only resource you have so you would think that the rules they have outlined would be correct, nothing online or even when we first checked in stated that your pet has to be with you at all times. We had a good first night stay , but come the morning of the second day of our stay my boyfriend and I were getting ready to go to breakfast, leaving our dog in the room in a crate during hours that were not described as quiet time hours, he doesn't bark he is crate trained so he is used to being in his crate, We are getting ready to get into our car and the owners rudely looked at us only knowing we had an animal because there are two rooms that pets are only allowed in, and made a comment "your pet needs to be with you at all times", rolling her eyes and walking up the stairs very unprofessionally. I then explained that we had read all the rules and even talked to one of their employees the day before that told us as long as he was in a crate it is okay to leave him during hours that weren't described as quiet time hours, and she rudely again stated "no one told you that, your dog needs to be with you." I then explained to them that they need to make this rule more clear, because no where in any hand book, online, or check in papers was this stated. I explained that if this was the case i would have looked into some where else to stay, and she then continued to ask me if I had any "common sense", I was baffled by her demeanor and the way she got so defensive saying that it's her business and she can make up any rule she wants. She then threatened to remove our dog from our room that we paid for not knowing that my boyfriend is a police officer and knows the laws that she obviously has never looked into. The other owner was a man and he was actually way more understanding than she was but her rude and negative attitude kept talking over him and talking for him. The inn itself was pretty nice but the customer service and the interaction with the owner ruined the whole experience of the inn. I would never give my money to someone as rude and disrespectful as her again! read more

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We've stayed at the Empire Lakeshore Inn a few times, using the new building each time. The rooms are always clean and comfortable. It's clearly all new construction, and I was glad we could find modern accommodations. We've also found the staff to be friendly and always helpful. Finally, the location is impossible to beat! We will be back, again and again! read more

Owners/inkeepers , rude, awful and unprofessional! My friend and I traveled to MI on a road trip from PA to see some family and friends. We arrived in a crazy thunderstorm very late at night. (The key was left for us in the mailbox since no one was there.) Now obviously, it is no fault of the motel that the power was out but the way it was handled (or lack of handling) was inexcusable. 2 days later, no power, no emergency lighting, AND NO communication from motel AT ALL. We had called upon arrival and left a message. 2 days later we had left 3 additional messages and had not received a call back until the 4th message just this morning. They said they were having phone issues. (So go somewhere they had power like we did all day?) She was extremely rude telling me "they did everything they could" and felt she did us a favor allowing us to stay. Apparently, someone was at the hotel office yesterday but, being on vacation, we were not here. When I tried to ask what she did to reach guests who were not there to speak with in person, she hung up on me. We are livid and will be refusing the charges. Again, power failure, not anyone's fault. Unprofessionalism, rudeness and carelessness is my issue. I would avoid this place at all costs, which is a shame since- when we can see it in the daylight- it looks pretty nice. Maybe they will get new owners. read more

FRAUDULENT OWNERS. DO NOT STAY HERE. If I could give a negative 100, I would. After calling to cancel well within the allotted 48 hours and speaking to the female owner, the owners still charged my credit card for our stay. Upon trying to call and ask for a refund, THEY BLOCKED MY PHONE NUMBER. What kind of business does that? So I called from another number and they answered. Said they didn't recall any conversation with me and would call me back when their "system was back up". Called me back and said there was no record of my cancelling. Yelled at me on the phone and hung up on me. DO NOT STAY HERE. THEY ARE HORRIBLE HUMAN BEINGS. TERRIBLE BUSINESS OWNERS. LIARS. read more

It was a bit confusing as to where the new motel is located. It says across the street, but is actually across the street and on the other side of the gas station. We could walk or bike to restaurants and the beach. Easy parking and in and out. The room was very comfortable and the beds/pillows were great. The staff was also great. The only thing I would recommend is using top down blinds. It would be nice to get in some fresh air and light, but since everyone walks past your window, you must keep the blinds down for privacy. It would be nice to be able to have the top down and still have privacy. I would book this again. read more

Crotchety and rude owners highlight your stay at the Lakeshore. Once your past your "give me your money welcome" upon arrival, you realize fully your stay cost is a total gouge. Even for non-campground folk, you're better off buying a tent and paying for showers at the local campground. Nicer people there and you'll save money. read more

We chose this place because of proximity to the beach in Empire (short walkable distance) and the scenic drive inside the Dunes park (5 minute drive). You can't beat the convenience, it's excellently located. The front desk clerk was extremely courteous and helpful, and he made sure to stock our room with all towel and coffee needs. The hotel and room, however, had some issues. I agree with other reviewers that it seems to have had some room updates; new furniture, paint, and carpet. But the chronic issue is the noise. The walls are very, very thin. Our upstairs neighbors sounded like they were Riverdancing, but I could tell they were just unpacking like we had. And with the hotel being such a tightly confined lot, you hear just about everyone who's coming and going. To add to that, the AC is a window unit, and it also sounded angry the entire night. Two other bad spots were: - Found a very long string of hair tangled in my towel. - With it being summer and the room facing the outside world, I expected to have to dispose of a critter or two. But I spent the first 10 minutes of the evening disposing of 6 or 7 spiders, a couple of beetles, and a couple of flying things. Not bad if you're used to that, but my kids think every spider is a flaming tarantula with a knife, and everything that flies is a Bee. The problem seemed to be that the area near the entry door wasn't addressed as well as the other areas, as the spiders seemed to have had some time to get comfortable. All that being said, I'd probably give it another try because I feel like the staff would fix any issue you presented (within reason), and the issues I mentioned can be mitigated somewhat with headphones and a good pre-occupancy cleaning once-over. It's good for a one night stay, but I don't think we could bare to stay longer. read more

Nice little hotel, location is great. 10 minute walk to the beach and just what we needed for a mid-week getaway. Only complaint would be we stayed in the annex building and as someone else said, the small window unit a/c didn't seem to be enough to keep the room cool. Overall tho, we'd highly recommend the Lakeshore Inn! read more

This was my 3rd year staying here and it was by far the worst experience yet. The outlets in the room barely work. The appliances are small and outdated. Our room was never touched while we stayed there. No new towels or even the trash removed. The only thing that worked was the heat. So much so that it was 80 degrees all the time when we turned the heat off. Their advice? Wear less clothing. Not worth it read more

This was very clean and pet friendly but it was nearly impossible to get a reservation because the management never seems to answer the phone. I left multiple messages but it was a long game of phone tag. I appreciate it is a small town, and that there is a worker shortage - but since you were sold out surely you can afford to be at the office to allow people to check-in until midnight or something. And, please answer the phone. I don't have anything negative to say about the hotel itself but the ineffective communication was a real drag. The woman that we spoke with was very rude one minute and then friendly the next. It is such a gem of a location and has been in business so long - but reading the other reviews I am shocked to see that my experience was good compared to others in terms of interaction with the management. I really hope this can get sorted out. I was really looking forward to staying there, but next time I'll check recent reviews here on Yelp before I reserve. read more

Great little quaint hotel within walking distance to the beach and a short drive to the dunes. Since the new owners have taken over the rooms they have done a 360. It was nice before, but now it is just better. Meagan at the front desk is a real sweety and will help you with your stay from getting you more shampoo to directing you to local restaurants. Empire beach is probably one of the nicest beaches I have been to. The sunset is amazing. read more

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I stayed at this property in early May 2014 with my wife and my elderly parents. I ended up booking two rooms at this property via email communication with Megan for $59/ room/ night. As such we had a pleasant stay here. Although the formal check-in time was between 3 to 7 p.m., I arranged with Megan to come in later during the evening at 9 p.m. One of the rooms we stayed in had a microwave that we made use of for dinner on the evening we drove in. The location of the hotel was excellent (that was the prime reason for having chosen it in the first place) and was literally a stone's throw from the Philip Hart Visitor Center to the Sleeping Bear Dunes. The place was not without its drawbacks however. The hotel does not provide a breakfast and so isn't quite a B&B. But neither is it a hotel with a front desk that is staffed through most of the day. This being the lean season, there was no one on the property for the 16 hours or so we were here. A number of toiletries were absent from our room and we ended up sharing some toiletries with our parents who were in an adjoining room. I also noticed that the phone in my parents' room wasn't working and when I tried checking whether it was plugged into the outlet or not, I found the area behind the desk where the phone was placed to be pretty pretty dirty :( Sadly, that wasn't the only thing which was dirty. The toilet in our room was also not perfectly clean and I found a stain on one of the towels in our room. I also agree with the comments that were left by some of the other reviewers who noted that as this hotel is located right at the intersection of two arteries (M-22 and M-72), it could get fairly noisy during the summer. The parking space at this property is also quite limited and if the place is completely full, then it may be difficult getting a parking space during the peak summer season. Would I stay here again? Well, after having stayed in Empire, one of the things that I would say is that one doesn't have to stay in Empire or Glen Arbor to get a feel for the Sleeping Bear Dunes Lakeshore. Unlike other national parks where I have been, staying in Empire or Glen Arbor isn't quite the same as staying within a national park surrounded by dense green foliage. Staying at Traverse City and driving for 45 minutes to get to the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive would not distract from enjoying the wonderful beauty of the Sleeping Bear Dunes and if I were making another trip to the Sleeping Bear Dunes, I would certainly consider staying in Traverse City rather than being hung up about staying in Empire or Glen Arbor. But if it turned out that prices at hotels in Traverse City were comparable with prices at the Lakeshore Inn, I would consider staying here again. read more

What a dump. TL;DR- At $200 a night, I expect way more than what could be a Motel 6 off the highway in rural Illinois. The only reason I didn't immediately turn around is that there are no other options in town - which is how the scam artists that own this place extort their customers. Checking in - we had to wake up the woman who was in bed behind the front desk at 630 pm, who then proceeded to just bark how much we owed and that was that. No greeting. This woman is a real joy. More to follow on her. Strike one. Then we walk in the room and it is just plain old tired. Dirty carpet and two old chairs to sit in. A fresh coat of paint and a new bedspread doesn't count as a renovation. I'm afraid to look behind any furniture as I'm sure no one has touched it in years. Strike two. And then there's the bathroom. For some reason, it is the same size as the room but doesn't have any counter space. The towels are straight from prison and there were squashed mosquitos in the shower that I didn't kill and were left there by "housekeeping". There's an awkward rail with hangers in the bathroom to hang your clothes if you're into not having a closet. No iron - no blow dryer. Strike three. About that blow dryer: we asked at the front desk for one in the morning and the same charming woman laughed at us like she was straight out of a Seinfeld episode. We did get one, so at least that's that. But what is with the attitude? Also - take your earphones out when talking to costumers. We are now out of strikes for this charming hellhole. The sheets on the bed are pilled and you can feel where other people have slept on them for years. I don't have fancy linens at home and my sheets don't do this - this stuff is just plain old and overused. Use some of that $200 a night to buy some sheets on Amazon for heaven's sake. Be warned - they also apparently own the new property that's being built across the street. Next time - airbnb. read more

Clean rooms, friendly service, and a convenient location near Sleeping Bear Dunes. The walls are paper-thin --- we could hear a quiet conversation in the next room, and were glad it wasn't a party --- but otherwise this this place hit the spot. The manager is there during regular hours; for early or late check-in, call ahead and he'll sort out leaving the keys in the room. Similarly for early check-out. There's not a ton of options for food or coffee during the winter in Empire; drive up to Glen Haven for that sort of thing. During the summer, there's more within walking distance of the Empire Lakeshore Inn. Definitely stay here, but bring ear plugs. read more

Great place to stay in Empire. Close to the local beach in Empire and the Sleeping Bear Dunes visitor center, also a quick drive to the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. Not exactly a 5-star resort, but the prices are reasonable and it gets the job done for a weekend trip. Off-season prices are $80 cash per night, peak-season prices are $130. The owners of the motel are very welcoming, rooms are clean. read more

Empire Lakeshore Inn - Hotels Near Me - Empire, Michigan

We found this place to be very nice, clean and moderately priced. We wanted to visit the Dunes Park and wanted plenty of time and this was very conveniently located. We were greeted by Megan at check-in. She was very friendly and explained everything to us about our room and the local attractions. The room was clean and comfortable with two double beds. It bare bones but, clean as can be. There is fuel across the street and a fudge shop next door. There are bikes to rent down the street and the Park Visitor Center is just behind the Gas/Convenience store across the street. There is a beach down the street and either a short walk or drive to see the sunset. Megan will look up the sunset time for you as well. It's also a very short drive to the Park. We had a good stay and will return. read more

DO NOT stay at this UNLAWFUL motel that treats their customers with DISABILITIES with cruelty!! They charge for pet fees for licensed service animals which is AGAINST the law under Michigan's Disabilities Act. Any reputable business would know this fact. I called them several times and they said pet fees are still charged, which is against the law, the Michigan Discrimination Act. They were super unprofessional by being INCREDIBLY mean, rude, and astounding dismissive of the charge. He even lied that I didn't complete paper work THAT WAS NEVER SPOKEN OF OR EVEN PRESENTED TO ME. While talking, the employee over talked me and hung up. He keeps saying smugly that a manager will call each time I threaten to file a complaint with the State of Michigan but they never call me back. This has been an issue for months. Taking advantage of customers seem to happen when they have your credit card numbers on file. read more

There was a mix up that happened with the reservation and the owners did everything they could to make it right. They made me happy and even bought me dinner for the trouble. How great is that?! Totally unexpected but this is the type of small town treatment we need in this world. These are great owners and they made me feel at home. Highly recommend! Clean! Very nice remodel. read more

Super little inn in Empire, just a few minutes' drive from Sleeping Bear and Glen Arbor, and a few minutes' walk from the shore of Lake Michigan. It met both of my must-haves for a return trip: clean and quiet. Mark in the office was helpful in suggesting a running route, too, which I really appreciated. (I do wish the pillows had been more comfortable but I'll just bring my own next time.) read more