Summer in Traverse City is a Grand experience

In the summer, we go north. A lot of people who live in Michigan head “up north” each summer – to the small towns near rivers, lakes and beaches to camp, stay in a cabin or in a nice hotel or resort.

This August, we hit I-75 all the way up to Traverse City and stayed at the Grand Traverse Resort. Just outside of Traverse in Acme, Grand Traverse Resort is a hotel, golf course, spa, swimming pools, beach and a whole host of restaurants and retail shops. 

New to us this year, Grand Traverse now has a Dylan’s Candy Bar. We recently saw the original Dylan’s in New York City so we were so excited to see one in our home state. On Saturdays, Dylan’s has a make-your-own sundae and make-your-own cotton candy times to keep the kids – and adults – entertained.

But the real attraction for the kids is the indoor pool. With a water slide, floating pads, splash area and smaller kiddy pool, our kids could spend all day in one location. The pool area also has a couple of ping pong tables and some video games.

We didn’t make it to the outdoor pool at the hotel this time but we did take the short drive to The Shores, Grand Traverse’s beach and outdoor pool area. There’s a snack shack, hottub, heated pool and a beach area with volleyball, beanbag toss and ladderball. In August, the beach water is nice and warm and the swimming area is fairly shallow. 

Back at the hotel, we walked around outside of the spa and health club and found the outdoor tennis courts (they also have indoor ones). After an hour or so of family tennis, we once again landed at the indoor pool to cool off.

For an adventure off the resort, we walked around Traverse City’s front street, with a customary stop at Cherry Republic and some other stores. We also have a tradition of putt-putt up north, so this year we hit both hot spots – Pirates Cove and Pebble Creek. The kids were big enough this year to try the ropes course at Pirate Cove and they both did a great job. I’m happy that we’re raising our kids to be adventurous, even if mom is standing on the sidelines watching!

Sad to see our weekend end, the kids begged for more fun – more pool, more tennis! – but sadly we had to head out for the drive home. But if you’re thinking of a finding a destination for the family, Traverse City and the Grand Traverse Resort will not disappoint.