Indiana Dunes State Park Beach
Chesterton, IN
Indiana Dunes State Park Beach is the central, most popular beach in the Dunes, with the Dunes Pavilion and its rooftop, lifeguards, and a huge lot. Behind the beach is the famous 3 Dune Challenge, a 1.5 mile climb over Mount Jackson, Mount Holden, and Mount Tom, the tallest dunes in the park.
The classic Indiana Dunes beach with a pavilion and the 3 Dune Challenge, though it's crowded.
How we score beachesDo the 3 Dune Challenge in the morning before the sand gets hot, then cool off at the beach.
State park entrance fee per vehicle, higher for out-of-state visitors.
Paved paths lead from the lot to the pavilion and sand.
Lifeguards are on duty in summer, and hot weekends bring long entrance lines, so arrive early. In winter, the dunes and the empty beach are worth a cold walk.
More Great Lakes beaches
Sleeping Bear Dunes Beach
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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
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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.