Budget Michigan Birthday Trip

[FLAngie]

We will be in Michigan over my DD's 9th birthday and are looking for a place to celebrate it. Probably two nights. We looked at Mackinaw Island and I am not sure there is enough to entertain the girls (yes they are spoiled Disney girls) We have also looked at Kalahari Resort and Great Wolf lodge. Any thoughts on these? or suggestions of other places?

 

[Leajess99]

What about going to Frankenmuth and staying at Zehnders?? Or there is Michigan Adventures. What part of Michigan are you heading to or are you willing to go anywhere?? My kids loved Mackinac Island but they loved learning some of the history and knowing that it was one of my favorite places as a child.

 

[FLAngie]

We will be in the thumb area. About 30 minutes north of Detroit. We are pretty much willing to go anywhere within about a 6 hour drive. I think that we may plan a day trip to Frankenmuth. I have been there before, but all I remember is shops I guess our problem is that we live just outside of Orlando so we are at Disney 2 to 3 times a month. I hate to spend money on someplace that the kids will say 'this isn't as fun as Disney". Yes, like I said, they are spoiled.... but then again, is anything as fun as Disney. They haven't been real interested in the few history places that we have been to. I love Mackinaw Island, I am just not sure the kids would like it.

 

[Colleen27]

Mackinac wouldn't be my first choice for a 9yo. It is fun, but more of a subdued type of fun. If you do want to go there, I'd suggest looking at Mackinaw City hotels. Some of them have indoor and/or outdoor waterparks or at least slides now, and in the waterfront tourist area there are some fun things to do in the city.

Zehnders is really fun now that they've got the indoor waterpark and they're a lot cheaper than Kalahari & Great Wolf. On our first visit there we had the most perfect room, a family suite with a balcony that looked out over Bronners. There is something so magical about sitting on the balcony on a warm July night, watching the Christmas lights twinkle. And Frankenmuth is just such a fun town to explore, with all the little shops, the awesome fudge, the old-fashioned arcade, etc.

You might also want to look at Boyne Mountain, depending on where in Michigan you're going to be. There's not as much to do around there unless you're/they're outdoorsy types, but they've got a nice sized indoor waterpark and they're smack in the middle of some of the most beautiful scenery I've ever seen.

On the west side of the state, there's the Double JJ ranch which has an indoor waterpark, outdoor waterslides/pool, and horseback riding too. It isn't too terribly far from Michigan's Adventure amusement/waterpark either, so you could spend a day there if the girls want or just hang out at the resort.

 

[figment52]

It is in Ohio but closer to Detroit than Mackinac Island - look into Cedar Point. It is definately an amusement park with lots of coasters.

 

[cjnix29]

I second Boyne Mountain. There is the indoor waterpark. You can take the ski lift up to the top and it's a nice hike down. We saw a lot of deer, and a really cool ultimate frisbee course. It's only about an hours drive to mackinaw, so you could do both of them. We had a nice day trip the last time we were up there. And my 6 year old LOVED mackinac island. He was fascinated by the fort. We are headed up there for the 4th of July weekend. We have a timeshare, right next to the mountain. have fun whatever you decide to do.

 

[dfchelbay]

You can come visit me....I'm tons of fun

 

[danjoealexis3006]

We live somewhere in the "Thumb" and we often take our kids to Zender's Splash Village in Frankenmuth for a night. I think your kids will love it. My kids (DS8 & DS11) are spoiled Disney Brats but they love the Village. The good thing about going in the summer is you can usually get a really good deal. Be prepared though my kids only want to stay in the Water Park!

 

[bear_mom]

I would probably go somewhere up north'ish where you could do more than one thing. I don't think I could spend two nights in Frankenmuth - a day would be more than plenty.

I think someone above posted a good suggestion of going to Boyne. You could spend sometime in the water park, ski hill and town and then spend a day at Mackinac Island. My girls 10 and 8, like going to the Island for a day. We go to the butterfly house, do the carriage tour or visit the fort (we alternate), relax in the park, ride bikes. It is relaxing to go there, there is no rush, rush, rush.

Emily

 

[FLAngie]

Frankenmuth does sound like a good day/1 night trip. Where does everyone stay at Boyne? This might be a good option. It looks like there is a lot of things to do. Then we could head over to Mackinac Island for a day and then leave early if the kids don't like it.

 

[Jennifer in MI]

Mackinac is great!!! We've stayed on the island a few times now (the Grand is AWESOME!). There's horseback riding, butterfly house, bike rides, carriage rides (we did a guided tour once), rock climbing, the fort, life size chess pieces (on the porch of the Grand), etc. Of course, what my kids liked best? Throwing rocks into the lake!!! LOL

There's also Sault Ste. Marie just an hour north. You can get an awesome boat tour of the Soo Locks. We did that this year. It's absolutely fascinating. ALL my kids enjoyed that.

If you go into the UP, just over the border, there's a place called the Mystery Spot. GO!!! It was cheap ($25 for my family) and there's all sorts of optical illusions. My whole family talks about that place still!!!

There's also a place just outside Mackinac City (in the lower peninsula) where they have ziplining. I don't remember the name of the place, but it's supposed to be great! We skipped it last time because it was raining.

Have fun planning!! I LOVE Michigan!!

 

[Ciciwoowoo]

A few suggestions:

You can do the Frankenmuth trip. I agree with the others that the water park might be the place to stay! Alternatively, you can rent a cabin at the Jellystone park which is located across the street. They have lots of activities, especially on the weekend, and they have an indoor pool.

You can do a side trip from there to see the Huckleberry Railroad and Crossroads village. http://www.geneseecountyparks.org/crossroadsvillage.htm

Alternatively, there is a great KOA in Port Huron with a ton of activities. They also rent cabins. http://www.koa.com/where/mi/22220/

If you wanted to do Mackinac, there are enough activities there too. A water park, lots of shopping, both on the island and off!

A great mall in the area if you are looking for one:

http://www.shopgreatlakescrossing.com/

They have a Rainforest Cafe and a Disney Store! Its kind of like my own little miniature visit to Disney when I'm really missing it!

 

[dewrlw]

We have two grandkids - 14 and 11 right now - and we are thinking about taking them to Greenfield Village for a couple of days. Any comments?

 

[Bethmsu]

I am from Ann Arbor, I suggest....

1) Henry ford and greenfield village, fun stuff mixed with history and you can also do the museum, IMAX theatre and factory tour if you have the time.

2) We love Frankenmuth, kitchy, yes! But we go every year.

3) Sandusky....Ohio. I mean if your kids will only be happy with a theme park or theme park like experience, consider Cedar Point. If you havn't already been its a brilliant park, tons of thrill rides.

4) The lakes, boat trip, sleeping bear dunes.

5) If they like sports Detroit has lots of that, or you could take in a show at one of the larger theatres.

6) Train trip to Chicago...over your time limit but then you could hit up American girl or something like that.

7) Ann Arbor also has some stuff that would be good for a day trip. Hands-On Museum, festivals etc.

Good Luck and enjoy your trip!

 

[mistysue]

www.puremichigan.org

I wouldn't count on Frankenmouth for too much fun unless you want to Christmas shop and eat fried chicken.

We went to a children's parade there this morning. We are always so excited to get there, and then about 2-3 hours later we start wondering why we wanted to go so badly. But if you like shopping, you could hang out in Frankenmouth for a bit and then head over the birch run. It is the same highway exit and it's a huge outlet mall.

 

[Jennifer in MI]

We have two grandkids - 14 and 11 right now - and we are thinking about taking them to Greenfield Village for a couple of days. Any comments?

I have two kids almost those exact ages. My kids say it's perfect! My 12 yo says that the Henry Ford is awesome because it has many of the presidential cars. It also has the chair that Abraham Lincoln was shot in. The Village is great because of the Model T Fords, and the old fashioned games on the green. They also have baseball games played by the old rules on Sunday afternoons.

My 14 yo likes the agriculture exhibit (I don't remember this!). He also liked the carbine harvesters. They also have an exhibit on flight (that may have been a traveling exhibit though.). At Greenfield Village, they both liked the working farm and the glassblowing exhibit.

It's a really fun place!!! They have great rides - you can ride in a Model T!! We are members there every other year and just love it!!!

 

[dewrlw]

Any recommendations on family-friendly hotels?

 

[Kanga+2Roos]

I'll take you in another direction--Traverse City. Of course you have your Great Wolf Lodge (sign up on their website for discount codes) but there are also plenty of hotels right on the Bay if you want your water view. If you go to the Visit Traverse City website they have some summer deals going on where you get a great rate on a room plus a package of discount coupons for the area. My advice is to check the hotel ratings on tripadvisor to get a true feel for it before you lock into one.

Besides the gorgeous views there are tons of wineries up there and the majority do allow you to bring the kids into the tasting rooms. They actually gave mine juice boxes at some stops & snacks so they weren't left out. They also have Tall Ship cruises in the summer on the Bay & even have special cruises that have Moomers Ice Cream Tasting on board (another place you have to go to in TC). TC has a nice downtown area to walk around with a huge variety of restaurants. Definitely something for everybody & one my family's favorite places to go for a short getaway.

You've gotten a lot of great suggestions from everyone & can't go wrong with any of them. Good luck deciding!

 

[sk8jdgca]

My kids love Greenfield Village- there is so much to do and if the kids are outgoing , they can be included in activities-my kids have searched for eggs and made saurcraut at the firestore farm. We never stay but there is the Pink greenfield inn- there are alot of good chain near fairlane maill too.

By the way Walt Disney planned Disney based on green field village
Walt Disney visited Greenfield Village twice, in 1940 and 1948, bringing Ward Kimball with him the second time. (A tintype which Disney had made in one of the park shops has been reproduced and is available from the museum shop.) Greenfield Village has a Main Street and a large waterway traversed by a steamboat somewhat like the Mark Twain at Disneyland—so Walt was definitely influenced by his visit.

Greenfield Village, built by Henry Ford for much the same reason that Walt Disney built Disneyland: to give kids and adults a place they could enjoy together, and to preserve a part of their past that was hard-wired into their brains—the romantic image of a small town in middle America at the turn of the century.

 

[fakereadhed]

I think Greenfield Village is a one day activity with kids unless there is a special event going on. Even a full day with kids gets to be a lot unless they are into looking at displays. We have been often with girl scouting and we usually lose some of the interest after lunch. Just throwing that out there! Might want to have a backup plan for the second day.

What about spending a day on the beach at Lake Michigan? Pentwater/ludington area is beautiful! Think Fl without all the salt and saltwater creatures.

Another fun place is the Airzoo in Kalamazoo. Admission is free, but there is a charge for some of the rides. We went there for our family reunion a few years ago and had way more fun than I expected.
http://www.airzoo.org/
Binder Park Zoo is also on the way and has giraffe feeding.
www.binderparkzoo.org/