In 2011, Good Morning America named Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore in Michigan the Most Beautiful Place in America. It beat out Aspen, CO, Cape Cod, MA and Lanikai Beach, HI among others, taking many people by surprise. But it shouldn’t have!

We spent an idyllic four days in the area in June 2019. I would highly recommend it for a trip. The National Lakeshore includes 64 miles of beaches along Lake Michigan, two islands (North and South Manitou), 26 inland lakes and over 50,000 acres of land. The region more widely includes large inland lakes, Midwest-size mountains (Crystal Mountain), and sits proximal to Traverse City and to the beautiful Leelenau Penninsula.   

Some highlights from our trip:

The Dunes themselves are astounding. Many of them are huge and steep expanses sloping down into the lake. From some viewpoints, including many along the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive, all the eye sees is sand sharply meeting water. Many of them should not be climbed! The park posts numerous warnings of the danger of making it down – but not back up the shifting sands. Each year there are approximately 60 search and rescues and individuals will see fines of $2,000 or more for the rescue effort. For those interested though, The Dune Climb is a designated area for dune ascent and descent. Bring water!

We found numerous beach playgrounds in the area. These were basically a dream come true for our two girls, reinforcing that it’s really the simple things that bring joy. 

The region includes the sweet town of Glen Arbor with one of most adorable independent bookstores I’ve ever been to – The Cottage Bookshop. We also enjoyed a brewery in Frankfurt and hiking trails in Empire.  

Northern Michigan is famous for its cherries. We closed out our time at Sleeping Bear Dunes with dinner at The Cherry Hut, a restaurant that opened in Beulah in 1922. The trip was everything a vacation should be with opportunities for activity and rest while surrounded by water, sand, grass, trees and sky.