Great Lakes Best Family Vacation Beach Spots in Ohio, Wisconsin, Illinois, and Michigan. The Great Lakes area offers hundreds of rewarding beach spots and some of the very best water parks can be found on dry land. From waterslides and wave pools to swingsets, beaches and campfires the options are many. We have a few energizing suggestions for your consideration.
Clinich Park Beach Traverse City, Michigan – Swimming, sailing and cherry pie. Clinch Park Beach is the most popular of Traverse City's six public beaches with more than 1,500 feet of shoreline stands just a few minutes' walk the city center. From the beach watch tall ships a sail as a mini train chugs past the parking lot.
Off Beach Bonus: Visit the impressive Sleeping Bear Dunes; sail on a tall ship; enjoy a drive-in movie, and make certain to sample a cherry pie from the Cherry Capital of the World.
Discovery: Bike trails abound and two of the best are the Traverse Area Recreation and Transportation (TART) Trail, whose signature trail stretches east-west across the city, and the new Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail, a paved pathway between Glen Arbor and Empire. (Traverse City Tourism 101 West Grandview Parkway, Traverse City, MI 49684. (231) 947-1120 or toll-free 1-800-872-8377 or
www.traversecity.com)
Holland, Michigan - Summer Theatre, and Awesome Sand Dunes. The area in an around Holland, Michigan is home to many parks which offer year round recreational and educational opportunities. Swimming and sunbathing on along the sandy Lake Michigan beaches, canoeing, fishing, or participating in a naturalist-led walk along wooded trails are just some of the many great activities. The town of Holland is an American beach town with a distinctly Dutch flavor, Holland offers tulips, windmills and a choice between two refreshing lakes, Michigan and Macatawa.
Off Beach Bonus: Great entertainment can be found at the Hope Summer Reparatory Theatre staging musicals, plays, a cabaret and two children’s plays on alternating nights from mid-June through August. (616) 395-7890 or
www.hope.edu/hsrt)
Discovery: No trip to Western Michigan is complete without a cruising the Dunes of Saugatuck with the famous Saugatuck Dune Schooners. Take a ride and discover the slopes and valleys of the dunes, and roll though the primitive unspoiled areas of surpassing natural beauty. (6495 Washington Road, Saugatuck. (269) 857-2253 or
www.saugatuckduneride.com) Holland Area Convention and Visitors Bureau 76 East 8th Street, Holland. Toll-free 1-800-506-1299 or
www.holland.org)
Knight's Action Park, Bumper Boats, a Wave Pool and Abraham Lincoln in Illinois. Beach and water fun is still possible even without one of the Great Lakes. Springfield’s home for entertainment, excitement, and refreshing summer fun is Knight’s Action Park - a part of the Springfield area for over forty-five years. Today, Illinois’ favorite family fun park is home to water slides, batting cages, a fifty tee driving range, the classic Big Wheel, a giant wave pool, providing guests with a beautiful natural setting as well as plenty of fun & excitement with entertainment for all ages. The thrill of the Devil Ray water slide, the crashing splashes of the Bumper Boats, or a leisurely trip aboard the Peddle Boats across the wide lake all provide amusement options for every age.
Discovery: The park offers sheltered picnic pavilions, catering menus with delicious food choices, and a group services staff to assist in anyway necessary. (1700 Recreation Drive, Springfield. (217) 546-8881 or
www.knightsactionpark.com)
Off Beach Bonus: As any 10-year-olds will tell you Springfield is Abraham Lincoln’s home. Free Ranger led tours of the Lincoln Home are the central feature of the site. The Visitor Center offers orientation and interpretive films. Exhibits are located within the neighborhood. Take a tour of the two-story home of Abraham Lincoln, the only home he ever owned. Abraham and Mary Lincoln lived there from 1844 until Mr. Lincoln's election to the Presidency in 1861. (Knight's Action Park. 426 South Seventh St. Springfield IL. (217) 492-4241 ex.221 or
www.nps.gov/liho)
Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, Shipwrecks, Kayaks and Campfires in Wisconsin. Windswept beaches and cliffs on the 21 islands and 12 miles of mainland greet visitors to the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore. Lighthouses shine over Lake Superior and the new wilderness areas. Visitors can hike, paddle, sail, or cruise to experience these Jewels of Lake Superior. The rich history of the islands includes Native Americans, voyageurs, loggers, quarrying, farmers and commercial fisherman.
Off Beach Bonus: Free guided tours of the lighthouses at Devils, Michigan and Sand islands are available from mid-June through September.
Discovery: Make sure to join park staff at the Presque Isle campfire circle on Stockton Island nightly from late June through Labor Day. The free talks last about 45 minutes and cover such topics as bears, wilderness, bears, and shipwrecks (and bears!). Starting times vary through the season. (Apostle Islands National Lakeshore. 145 Washington Avenue, Bayfield, WI. (715) 779-3397 or
www.nps.gov/apis or
www.bayfield.org)