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    Oswald's Bear Ranch

    4.0 (88 reviews)

    Oswald's Bear Ranch Photos

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    Bear posing
    Marty W.

    Really nice location with lots of bears and experience to get up close. Habitats look like great location for bears and experience bears.

    Andy L.

    This was an interesting attraction to take the family to. There are a lot of bears, which was very cool to see up close. The enclosures/habitat areas were very large. I wish there was a map or something that they gave the people. I feel like we could have walked around the enclosures more but we were uncertain where the path led. We got our picture taken with the bear cub which was an experience. It was a quick in and out. Like most attractions things just cost $$$. If you like bears this can be a fun trip. You can buy apples and toss them into the enclosures to feed them, which is fun. It can also feel kinda sad to see how the bears cluster together and wait for the apples when they see humans.

    Alice K.

    Bear ranch featuring a chance to see a baby bear up close. Make sure you wear walking shoes, many paths to see a bear. Check out the gift store.

    The cubs were adorable
    Lee D.

    We were camping with friends about an hour away on an overcast drizzly day so decided to check this place out. We were afraid it might be too kitschy but we learned quite a bit about bears we didn't previously know. For example, black bears can be black, brown, cinnamon, blonde, gray-blue, or white. $30 for a carload or priced for individuals. You can buy a bag of apples to feed the bears for $4 and $10 to have your photo taken feeding a bear cub (we took advantage of all). Clean restrooms. Worth the visit!

    Alla M.

    What a wonderful place! Family owned and operated based on donations and local help. This place helps and preserves bear life. They have a great gift shop tons to explore, and you can also purchase apples to feed the bears. The best part picture with a baby bears! Worse the drive, be ready no cell connection until you get to main road.

    Bears up close - next to the fence
    Dave C.

    I've been to Oswald's a couple of times. It's a solid place. Costs $25/car as of the time we visited. They have 4 separate enclosures (newborns, yearlings, adult males, adult females) with trails that you could do the entire thing in about 1/2 mile - or see more of the grounds and cover up to about 2 miles. For a small price ($3), you can get cutup apples to feed them. We went early afternoon on a busy summer day, and many of the bears had already had enough. You can also get a photo op with the baby bears. What could make it better is to educate on why they were all there. The bears looked healthy. Many sleeping in the shade of the trees. They have a big gift shop with a wide variety; on my first trip - we got a stuffed bear for my daughter. All-in-all, nice way to spend 45 minutes.

    Mike D.

    Oswald's is a fun stop with tons of bears to look at ! You can also get your picture taken with a baby cub if you'd like . Would have been 5 stars but the place is a bit overpriced

    Female taking a swim
    Rebecca B.

    Second summer in a row we visited the bear ranch and loved it! Guy taking money at the gate was friendly as was the guy selling apples. My husband went and talked briefly to Dean (didn't want to bother him, but thank him for a great rescue). Would highly recommend it!

    Madhavi S.

    It was an awesome experience to see all the bears. Kids totally loved it too. The visits are arranged on the feeding times of bears so they are not harassed to make an appearance for the humans . They allow u to take pic with one baby near and take care that he is not traumatized . Give them rest and comfort before calling the visitors to click.

    Stephanie K.

    Zero complaints about the bear ranch. All staff was friendly and knowledgeable. The employee giving instructions for the photo with a bear cub to the group in front of us said something along the lines of "and when he's done eating, run as fast as you can out of the cage!" to like, a 7 year old boy. They totally admitted they were joking but it was hilarious! I read other reviews about people complaining about the cost. Honestly, they're TAKING CARE OF BEARS. I'm sure it's a hefty price tag to feed them. There are a lot of bears, and their enclosures are HUGE, which is reassuring. Much better than a zoo. There are some educational signs, too, so maybe they read the past review that said there wasn't any information. Granted, it's not A LOT of info, but hey, progress. I definitely plan to return when my kids are older.

    This cub loved swinging in the tire.
    Aiden S.

    An incredible experience that I'll never forget for the rest of my life. Make sure you stop by Oswald's when you visit the UP. You will be blown away. First off, let's talk politics. I had a lot of reservations about going here. I almost did not go. I felt terrible supporting a place that PETA blasted. The sad videos of the cubs made me feel awful about having this on my itinerary. The PETA videos are misleading. These bears are clearly happy to be here. Their enclosures are huge, they eat very well, and they have friends. The infamous PETA video shows cubs being sad - moving back and forth in a cage with nowhere to go. The reason for this is because cubs are restless. They constantly climb, touch, and lick every single thing in that large cage. And that is normal cub behavior. The only time the cubs seemed sad was when the other cubs were unhappy that we fed one cub honey. They were jealous. The cubs move out of that cage in less than a year, when the risk of them escaping the other enclosures is gone. The cubs are adorable. They have so much energy. They cannot stop licking everything and they kept trying to break things. One pulled back part of the fence, and when an employee brought a ladder to fix it, another cub stuck its tongue through the bottom of the fence in an effort to lick the ladder. We saw one cub take a bath in a small tin tub, and another cub swung itself on a tire connected to a rope. It was amazing. Petting one was unreal. The big bears were also amazing. I watched one bear climb super fast up an extremely tall tree and then get down in no time at all. I saw another bear that was huge, he reminded me of John Goodman. I fed some bears apples. That was really fun. They like apples. What an amazing experience. A highlight of my time in Michigan. Thank you, Oswald's!

    Tricia C.

    This place says it's a bear rescue sanctuary but we didn't get that feeling at all. We showed up with the bear cub pacing back and force along the fence and climbing the fence until it was used for pictures with guests by giving it a spoonful of something sweet to keep it still. We walked around to some of the enclosures and I felt so very sad. Some of the enclosures had trees some were out in the open. It was hot and they looked troubled. Fur seemed very thin. Another female one was walking back and forth, I don't know if maybe it was her cubs being used for pictures. The story posted said the owner was interested in bears and bought his first one. We weren't even there for 15 min and just left. If you're an animal lover it may be hard for you to see.

    The only issue that I saw was how the very young bears that they use to take $10/family with were stressed! There were three of them in a fenced in 20x30 pen with cement floor ALL DAY!!! You could easily tell that they did not like this! The one that they were using for pictures that day was scratching profusely maybe due to what they were feeding him for him to sit still on a wooden box. When he was sitting in the corner of the fencing on the cement floor, he was biting at the sheet metal that was on the inside of the enclosure, which clearly meant that he was trying to get out! The other two were fighting a bit and pacing back and forth along the fence line. THIS NEEDS TO BE REPORTED AND STOPPED! I think that a separate party should come in unannounced at least once per Summer to check everything!

    Female bears trying to catch apples.

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    3 years ago

    It's fun for the whole family! Definitely check it out if you're in the Upper Peninsula!

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    4 years ago

    Great little gem! Definitely worth the stop when in the area...which doesn't want to pet a bear cub?!?!

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    Ask the Community - Oswald's Bear Ranch

    Review Highlights - Oswald's Bear Ranch

    They love being fed the apples you can purchase and being able to take a picture with a bear cub was so cool.

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    The Original Butterfly House - Butterflies

    The Original Butterfly House

    (47 reviews)

    Why not have a butterfly greenhouse on an island that's only accessible to visitors for half of the…read moreyear? You might as well. I'm kind of jealous of these butterflies and insects that live at The Original Butterfly House. They get to flit and walk about, undisturbed, from November through April. But come May, they have to dust themselves off and fluff their hair, because visitors are coming. Mackinac Island's busy times are late spring through fall (late October), and I imagine that's when the butterfly house is also busy. We visited in fall, the week before the island started closing up. We got to see lots of butterflies in the greenhouse (apparently, there are hundreds!), plus the resident insects and even a hedgehog. At certain times of the day, some of the animals and insects will be taken out of their containers, and a docent will display them and talk about them. The hedgehog was super cute, but we didn't get to touch him -- just look at him. You experience lots of live butterflies flying and landing on you in the greenhouse. Some people (me) think that it's cool to have a butterfly land on you. Other people (my youngest child) do not think it's cool, and they are grossed out and it makes them scream. Your mileage may vary! Fortunately, if you ain't about those winged insects, you can keep it moving and just visit the other exhibits, which feature insects that live safely behind glass. But if you ask me, the greenhouse is a nice, peaceful place to sit and enjoy looking at butterflies and tropical plants. This is a small attraction, but your admission price grants you access all day. So, come and go as you please!

    Oh my goodness--all the butterflies!…read more We absolutely adored our visit to The Original Butterfly House. We came here after finding them on Yelp and really on a bit of a whim and then ended up spending more time than we had intended as we got so completely lost in the butterfly magic. After purchasing your tickets, when you first walk in, you can stop first and see a collection of live chrysalis, some with butterflies beginning to emerge and some butterflies having just emerged. It was magical and we were completely mesmerized. Then you enter the butterfly sanctuary that's rich, green, and teeming with butterfly life, It's relatively small but we so enjoyed wandering through and then eventually found a seat (careful not to disturb any butterflies, of course!) on one of their benches and just sat and enjoyed the fluttering scenery. Amazing! Get to it!

    Oswald's Bear Ranch - zoos - Updated May 2026

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