Traverse City

Traverse City is a scenic city on the Grand Traverse Bay of Lake Michigan. Directly north of Traverse City, the Old Mission Peninsula splits the Grand Traverse Bay in two, with a beautiful windswept landscape and great views of the bay on either side. Slightly to the west, the Leelanau Peninsula, with its charming small towns, forms the "pinkie finger" of the Michigan peninsula, jutting into Lake Michigan. Both peninsulas are prime winemaking regions within the state, and as such are one of the main tourist attractions in the region. Over a million visitors come each year to tour the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, a scenic lakeside park with impressively large sand dunes. It's also a very popular destination for outdoor activities, owing to the proximity of Lake Michigan in summer, the impressive autumn colors, and the high snowfalls in winter.

Understand
Traverse City is a city of 16,000 people (as of 2018) founded in 1852 in the Grand Traverse Bay Area of Northern Michigan. It is known as the "Cherry Capital of the World"; around 75 percent of the nation's cherries are grown in Michigan, and most of those come from the Traverse City area.

By car

 * Traverse City is on US-31 between Manistee and Charlevoix.

By bus

 * Indian Trails provides daily bus service from St. Ignace, Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo with connection to Greyhound service.

By plane

 * The nearest alternate airport is in Grand Rapids, about 2 3/4 hours south by car, where lower fares are often available.
 * The nearest alternate airport is in Grand Rapids, about 2 3/4 hours south by car, where lower fares are often available.

Get around

 * Rental cars are available at Traverse City airport; however, they tend to be expensive.
 * Rental cars are available at Traverse City airport; however, they tend to be expensive.

See



 * North of Traverse City is one of the area's lighthouses:

Outdoor activities

 * Farmers Markets of Downtown Traverse Sara Hardy Farmers Market, GT Commons Market.

Fishing charters
Your in one of the best salmon, steelhead and trout fly fishing areas in the Midwest as well as North America.

Eat




Wineries
Wineries are scattered throughout two areas - the Old Mission Peninsula north of Traverse City, and on the Leelanau Peninsula northwest of Traverse City. They are situated on the 45th parallel which provides excellent climate conditions for growing wine grapes. Tasting room tours are popular diversions on both peninsulas any time of the year and are a great way to explore the territory.



The five wineries in the Traverse City area are all located about halfway up the Old Mission Peninsula, just north of the city via US-31.



Sleep
Traverse City's "Motel Mile" is along US-31 between 3 Mile Road and 4 Mile Road, although you'll find lots of places to stay at just about any point along the waterfront, from downtown continuing east to 5 Mile Road.



Bed and Breakfasts

 * Cedar Creek Bed and Breakfast, 7651 East Timberwoods.
 * Chateau Chantal Bed and Breakfast, 15900 Rue de Vin. 3 rooms. Average price $247.
 * Cedar Creek Bed and Breakfast, 7651 East Timberwoods.
 * Chateau Chantal Bed and Breakfast, 15900 Rue de Vin. 3 rooms. Average price $247.

Go next

 * The Leelanau Peninsula is northwest on M-22 and M-72.
 * The Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore is about 30 minutes west on MI-72.
 * Frankfort is about 1 hour west on US-31.
 * Charlevoix is about 1 hour north on US-31.
 * Petoskey is about 1.5 hours north on US-31.
 * Manistee is about 1.5 hours south on US-31.
 * Interlochen is 20 minutes southwest on M-137.
 * North and South Manitou Islands are about 2 hours northwest on MI-204 and ferry.
 * Beaver Island is about 4 hours north on US-31 and ferry.