What to Do on Mackinac Island
Mackinac Island Downtown, 05 Sep 2021.
Dress Phenomenal x Hill House x Bridgerton, similar here; summer hat Nordstrom; wallet on chain YSL; cable bracelet David Yurman; classic bracelet Daniel Wellington; T Smile necklace Tiffany; Elsa Peretti Bean necklace Tiffany; Burberry sunglasses, similar here.
It’s been a week since my boyfriend and I spent our long Labor Day weekend at Mackinac Island, MI. We had great food and fun activities on the island.
About Mackinac Island
Mackinac Island sits in Lake Huron in between the Upper and Lower peninsulas in Michigan. Derived from the word “Mitchimakinak”, which means “Big Turtle” in Native American Ojibwe language, the Anishinaabe people thought the island resembles a turtle. This island has neither cars nor chain hotels. Instead, you’ll find horses, bicycles, and local hotels all around the island. The downtown area is lined up with local shops that you can spend hours and hours on.
Getting There
From Lake County, IL to Mackinaw City where we stayed at, it took us (my boyfriend really) around 8hrs of driving including our quick stops at Target to buy some supplies and to get Starbucks coffee, Meijer to get lunch, and an MDOT Rest Stop to use the bathroom and to enjoy the view of Lake Huron. It would take around the same amount of hours if you’re coming from Chicago. We took the Wisconsin route all the way north to the Upper Peninsula and went back down to the Lower Peninsula where Mackinaw City is located at.
Fifty percent of the drive was close to the lake so it was very scenic and peaceful. Some areas don’t have good reception for internet browsing so be mindful of that. We listened to several podcasts on the way there to keep ourselves entertained. It was such a beautiful drive! There is a $4 toll fee to drive through the Mackinac Bridge. Remember that Mackinaw City and Mackinac Island are in the Eastern Time Zone so an hour was added to our time.
Accommodation
To be completely transparent, I only planned this trip two weeks ahead. The hotels on the island were all booked especially for Labor Day weekend. I found a couple of hotels and motels in Mackinaw City, which is only a 20-min ferry ride away from the island. We stayed at Mackinaw Lake Trail Motel located 3mins away from the Starline Ferry Dock. We decided to stay at a motel since we were staying on the island most of the day.
We checked in at Mackinaw Mill Creek Camping (1min down the road). They also rent out cabins for bigger groups and has lakefront RV sites with full hookups. The campground was voted “Michigan's Favorite Campground” by TV viewers. Check in at the site was quick and easy. They gave us a parking pass and our keys.
The motel was surprisingly cute and clean. The room was a good size with a queen bed, a comfortable semi-firm mattress, and a night stand. There’s a wooden bench right when we entered the room and a coat rack to hang our clothes. The bathroom was small but renovated and functional. It had enough space for my hairdryer (not provided in the motel), hair straightening iron, curling iron, toiletries, and skincare/makeup products. There was a 40” tv and an old AC that worked well. They provided a set of towels, a couple tubes of shampoo, conditioner, body wash, and lotion but there weren’t any hand soap nor toothbrush and toothpaste. There’s also no maid service so be sure to pack more towels and toiletries. There was a coffee hut at the back with some coffee, tea, and a microwave. It was very quiet during our stay and we enjoyed staying here.
Transportation
Star Line Ferry
There are two ferry companies in Mackinaw City and St. Ignace: Star Line and Shepler’s. Since we planned to stay on the island for 3 days, we purchased a multi-day ticket from Star Line for $50/person, unlimited rides. A regular roundtrip ticket from both companies is $27/adult, $16/child (ages 5-12), and $13/bike. Infants, strollers, and pets ride at no charge. There are also free and paid parking.
Note that Star Line leaves on time, so make sure to be there at least 15mins before the scheduled departure. There was only one time that the line was so long we had to wait for another ferry to arrive to accommodate us. It arrived before the next time slot so the wait wasn’t that bad. Also, be mindful of the weather. If there’s a chance of rain, try to sit on the main deck.
Horse Drawn Taxi
There are no cars on the island. Most of the places are walking distance but if your feet are getting tired or you wore the wrong type of shoes, you can call the horse taxi service at 906-847-3307. Just let them know where you need to get picked up and your destination, and they will send a horse taxi at your location. They will text you the name of the driver once they’ve dispatched the horse taxi. The usual rate is $6/person + tip and you can only pay with cash. Other rates can be found here.
Bicycles
This is one of the most convenient way to see the island. It was raining on and off during our stay and there were a lot of people so we opted not to rent one. However, there are bike rental shops everywhere and you can park your bike almost anywhere. Their highway M-185 is the only one in the US where cars aren’t allowed and you can take it to circle the island. We are planning to do this on our next trip to Mackinac Island.
What to Do
1. Do the Carriage Tour
On our first day on the island, we arrived 10mins before the ticket office opened at 9:00 a.m. The ticket costs $42 that includes entry to the Wings of Mackinac. We were able to hop on the first tour of the day. Our driver was very knowledgeable about the island.
The tour toured us to the following places that all in all, took around 2hrs:
Surrey Hills Museum
This is a very small museum of historic carriages. You can also get small bites here and fresh doughnuts!
Wings of Mackinac Butterfly Conservatory
This conservatory is filled with different types of butterflies. Watch out where you step!
Arch Rock
You’d only have approximately 10mins to see this rock formation and take photos.
We had two different tour guides: one that took us from downtown to the first two destinations and a second one that took us to the forest and Arch Rock. At the end of the tour, we had the option to be dropped off to Fort Mackinac so we took advantage of that.
Mackinac Island Carriage Tours website.
2. Visit Fort Mackinac
Deemed as the oldest building in Michigan, this fort was built in 1780 during the American Revolution. After a lot of back and forth between the British and Americans, it was eventually returned to the latter and it remained active until 1895. The fort served as a military outpost and housed soldiers and their families.
You can walk inside the different buildings and learn about them. There are also scheduled rifle and canon firing demonstrations. Several staff members are dressed as soldiers and they give free tours at the fort. You can also visit the original fort Colonial Michilimackinac and the Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse in Mackinaw City.
We had lunch at the Tea Room located inside the fort that I will talk more about on my next post.
Fort Mackinac website
3. Kayak for 2hrs with Great Turtle Kayak Tours
This was probably our favorite excursion on the island! We had two kayak tour guides and they were fantastic. Before we paddled, they taught us the basics. They also helped us navigate through the waters when the wind was stronger than usual. We saw Sugar Loaf, Arch Rock, and Mission Point from our kayaks on one side of the island. The guides also told some facts, stories, and legends about the island and the rock formations. It was definitely fun and we surprisingly didn’t get too tired from the tour. We booked the 2hr Arch Rock excursion for $100/person.
To book a tour, go to the Great Turtle Kayak Tours website.
4. Sit on the Front Porch of the Grand Hotel
The Grand Hotel, a National Historic Landmark, was built in 1887. It took 93 days and 600 workers working day and night to finish the construction. It is known to have the longest porch in the world overlooking the Straits of Mackinac. Admission to the hotel is $10 for non-hotel guests.
There are several things that you can do at the hotel. You can dine in the Main Dining Room and have an afternoon tea from 3:00-4:30pm for $59/adult. There is a salon and spa right when you enter its doors. Our favorite was sitting in the front porch as we ordered some food and cocktail from the bar. A review of our small lunch will be in my next post.
You can also go to the very top of the hotel to get a wider view of the island while dining.
Fun fact: the outdoor ceilings of the hotel is painted sky blue to imitate the sky. The bugs get confused and never land on the ceiling for this reason.
5. Forge Knives at Forge a Memory
My boyfriend and I used to watch the Forged in Fire in History Channel. We were extra thrilled when we found out one of the contestants, Chad Osborne, has a shop on the island. So, we booked our appointment through phone more than a week ahead. We forged pony and horseshoe knives. It was a cool experience and we got to keep our knives.
6. Eat Fudge
Mackinac Island is known as America’s Fudge Capital. There are 14 stores on the island and they make 10,000 pounds of fudge in total a day! We bought fudge from two different stores: Murdick’s Fudge (butter pecan was my favorite) and May’s Candy Shop (loved their peanut butter fudge). You can also watch the staff while they make fudge at Murdick’s Fudge.
Dress Reformation; denim jacket Levi’s; sandals Hermes
7. Walk and Shop in Downtown
There are tons of shops in Downtown Mackinac Island. You can probably spend a whole day visiting every store. From clothing stores to bookstores, souvenir shops, art stores, and many others, there is so much to see and buy in downtown.
There are two other things we wanted to do but we weren’t able to because of the amount of people on the island and the weather:
8. Ride Horses at Cindy’s Riding Stable
You can rent saddles for $50/hour and with the help of a tour guide, you can explore the riding trails of Mackinac Island.
Cindy’s Riding Stable website
9. Drive a Carriage
You can also learn how to drive carriages and do it yourself on the streets of Mackinac Island for $80/hour for a two passenger carriage; $100/hour for a four passenger carriage; and $120/hour for a six passenger carriage.
Jack’s Livery Stable website
We had a really great time on Mackinac Island. Despite the on and off rain on the days we stayed there, it didn’t stop us from having a great time. This short trip was absolutely memorable and we can’t wait to go back!
