Paired with our Western Michigan Guide, this includes our favorite spots at the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore & Glen Arbor. We recommend bringing a bike!
We visited Sleeping Bear Dunes & Glen Arbor as a part of a larger trip, for the stops in between & on the way back south, you can find all the places in the full Summertime in Western Michigan Guide.
We first started talking about visiting Michigan about a year ago. Anytime we brought up Michigan with someone who'd been to Michigan - they told us to go to Sleeping Bear Dunes. It was quickly at the top of our list and when we lucked into a campsite at the DH Day Campground in July 2023, we were on our way.
We arrived on a Thursday afternoon and left on a Monday late morning - while I would have loved more time, it was also the perfect amount of time to settle in, explore, and enjoy so much of what this area has to offer.
First, it's important to note that Sleeping Bear Dunes (and any of the dunes you come across) are living and breathing places. When you visit, you'll see signs where it's okay to climb dunes & where it's not. If it says not to - it's important to listen not only for your physical safety, but also to help prevent erosion of the sand.
Where to Stay
We stayed at the DH Day Campground, which is a rustic campsite. It was perfect for us since we are in a self-sustaining campervan complete with our own shower tent & water source. If you're camping here, you can bring an RV less than 15 feet long, tents, and you'll have access to vault toilets and drinking water spigots throughout the property.
There are some other options for accommodations and while we haven't stayed at all of them, we'll list them here as options.
If you're equipped to camp at a rustic site and there's availability to book - don't hesitate! It's a beautiful campground that's wonderfully situated in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore with access to neighboring town, Glen Arbor, just 2.5 miles away (available by the Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail).
A modern campground located near the southern area of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. Across the street from one of the canoe & kayak put-ins at the Platte River, this campground has all the modern amenities you'll need (showers, toilets, water, electric).
We specifically wanted to cycle and spend time at the beach. We were able to spend the majority of our days doing both of these things with the addition of so much more. The one thing we didn't do this trip was walk on any of the hiking trails - of which there are plenty (over 100 miles to be exact!). The National Park Service app or website has a lot of details on the trails and once at the park, there are printed maps available for a donation-price throughout the parks visitor centers.
Running from Empire, MI, to Good Harbor Bay, this is an approximate 22 mile one-way cycling trail. Parts of the trail are shared with roads (including about 2.6 miles in Glen Arbor).
The stretch between Empire & the Dune Climb are rather hilly so be mindful, while the stretch from the Dune Climb to Good Harbor is mildly hilly. Just passed Glen Arbor towards Good Harbor, the trail is gravel so you'll need a bike capable to safely cover this terrain.
There's plenty to do and see along the trail if you're doing more of a leisure ride or a workout.
We did both utilizing the trail system from our campground at DH Day within the park to commute and also to train for endurance mileage.
A spectacular challenge for a quick trip or an endurance hike from the parking lot to Lake Michigan. It's a 2ish mile trip one way if you're going to the Lake. Be sure to take plenty of water and sunscreen (and I would also recommend snacks!).
We did the first two climbs to overlook Lake Michigan from afar and Glen Lake to the east. There are benches at one of the highest points that made for a great meditation spot.
This was an incredibly fun adventure - we rode our bikes to do the climb, but wouldn't recommend if you're in the middle of an endurance training ride. Moving uphill on the sand in the sun can take it out of you!
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Sleeping Bear Point Coast Guard Station Maritime Museum
On Fridays in the Summer, the Friends of the Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail host a donation-based yoga class from 10am - 11am on the beach in front of the Maritime Museum.
It was a gentle & restorative yoga class - it was so wonderful to experience yoga with the Lake in front of us and dunes behind us.
This is a must do! We stopped at Picnic Mountain and had a ... picnic :) We recommend stopping at each of the overlooks and ESPECIALLY the Lake Michigan Overlook. While it may sound rather obvious what you'll see, we weren't prepared for the stunning vistas overlooking the lake.
This is a GREAT place to watch the sunset and being so, it's often very crowded so we recommend arriving early or just after the sun sets so as to either beat the crowd or find a parking spot if you're joining in.
Be cautious of the signs advising you to NOT climb down the dunes. The dunes are steep & cliff-like and also prone to erosion if walked on in fragile areas. If you do decide to climb down, be incredibly mindful of the 2-3 hour trek UP taking plenty of water with you, snacks, and sun protection.
As someone who enjoys following rules & is scared of heights, I was perfectly happy & overjoyed seeing the views from the overlook. There's plenty to explore and plenty of trails to visit.
We rode our bikes into town nearly each day we stayed at Sleeping Bear Dunes and drove the van in a couple of times, too. It was a quick 2.5 mile bike ride from our campsite and we enjoyed the shops and local food spots. Everything in town is walkable so you can park your car or your bike and walk around to explore where you want to visit.
Pro-tip: when you get in town, most places do NOT have a public bathroom (even for paying customers), however, there are very nice public restrooms throughout town for you to use.
This park was an amazing resource - we worked out at the fitness park and played a little basketball with the basketballs left out for public use.
There are tennis courts, pickleball courts, ping pong tables, and really nice public restrooms!
A great place to rent bikes while you're visiting, and a nice shop to buy any cycling items you may need.
After riding my bike on a couple of long distance rides, my rear brakes made a strange noise - I took the bike into this shop, they made the time to take a look right away, and fixed the problem in less than 10 minutes.
An incredibly nice staff & a highly recommended stop!
This was a really great store with M22 Swag (we bought cycling jerseys!), and an outdoor wine bar. The evening we stopped through they had live music outside as well. A fun stop if you have the time!
A cash-only must-stop kinda place - Matt LOVED the smoked whitefish dip and we both enjoyed an early evening Michigan beer & appetizer. This is the kind of place that's been doing what they do for quite a while and they're doing it really well. Highly recommend eating here if you've only time for one place to go!
We enjoyed a late morning coffee (incredibly delicious!), and fresh baked scones & muffins on the shaded patio. They also have gourmet pastas, sodas, and other food items for sale.
A charming bookstore with a little bit of something for everyone. I found at least five books I wanted to purchase (and only didn't because I have about five books in line to be read currently), and also a variety of custom local postcards, posters and stationary.
A charming bookstore with a little bit of something for everyone. I found at least five books I wanted to purchase (and only didn't because I have about five books in line to be read currently), and also a variety of custom local postcards, posters and stationary.
An amazing place for a bagel sandwich or bagel-anything! Matt had the bagel and lox with an everything bagel & cream cheese. I unfortunately had just eaten prior to stopping here (as it was an unplanned stop), so I am very excited to visit another time!
We stumbled across this place & it was charming! We went into the tasting room to try wines made from cherries (who knew!?), bought a bottle of the Cherrish (part grape & part cherry wine), and then made a final visit to the ice cream container (literally, a shipping container selling ice cream!), before taking off. They also had a restaurant and shop that looked very well attended and fun!
We visited here at least three times for miscellaneous food items & for fun (we enjoy going to grocery stores!). They sold firewood that we bought for our campfires. Matt actually rode his bike with a bundle of firewood we bought on his back one afternoon (he really enjoys carrying heavy things in really awkward ways...).
This is a lovely stop for some food to cook at home if you can (or campout over the fire!)
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Some of our photos :)
We hope you've enjoyed this Guide - let us know if you visit any of the spots or if you found new ones you want to share.
Hi, we're Elle & Matt! We are life coaches, retreat facilitators, yogis, endurance athletes, and recovering perfectionists living in our element with our van, Luna. We're on a journey to redefine success, continuously transforming, evolving, expanding, and learning.
Living intuitively & intentionally with a mobile-ish lifestyle, we’ll share our favorite places that help us say “yes” to ourselves and “yes” to life while living & working on the road. ✨💛
