Glen Haven Beach
Glen Arbor, MI
Glen Haven Beach runs along Sleeping Bear Bay in front of the restored lumber-era village of Glen Haven. The Sleeping Bear Point Maritime Museum and the Cannery Boathouse Museum, full of old Great Lakes boats, both sit at the sand. On clear days you can see the Manitou Islands and the bluffs of Sleeping Bear Point.
History, clear water, and a dune view in one stop, though tour groups crowd the village on summer afternoons.
How we score beachesCatch the Coast Guard lifesaving drill at the Maritime Museum on a summer afternoon, then walk west along the bay toward the point.
A National Lakeshore park pass is required; parking is in the village lots off M-209.
Flat, short paths lead from the village lots to the beach.
Leashed pets are allowed to the right of the Maritime Museum when facing the water, past the Cannery and D.H. Day Campground.
The museums keep summer hours, and the bay is warmest in late July. Winter brings cross-country skiers along the shoreline trails.
More Great Lakes beaches
Sleeping Bear Dunes Beach
Empire, MI · Great Lakes
Freshwater Lake Michigan surf below towering sand dunes, some over 400 feet tall, with water clear enough to rival a coastline and a hike back up the dune to burn it off.
New Buffalo City Beach
New Buffalo, MI · Great Lakes
New Buffalo City Beach is the first real Lake Michigan beach you hit crossing from Indiana, a wide stretch of sand at the end of Whittaker Street beside the harbor and the Galien River channel. Chicago weekenders fill it in summer. The town's shops and restaurants are a five minute walk back up the street.
Warren Dunes State Park
Sawyer, MI · Great Lakes
Warren Dunes State Park in Sawyer has roughly three miles of Lake Michigan shoreline and some of the tallest dunes in southwest Michigan. Tower Hill rises about 260 feet above the lake, and climbing it and running back down is a rite of passage. On a hot July Saturday the beach feels like a small city.