Ludington State Park
Ludington, MI
Ludington State Park, north of Ludington, has miles of Lake Michigan beach, the Big Sable River, and the Big Sable Point Lighthouse. A 1.8 mile path leads to the lighthouse, where you can climb 130 steps to the top. The park is huge and varied, with dunes, forests, and inland lakes.
Beaches, a river, and a lighthouse, though it's a big park and popular in summer.
How we score beachesHike or bike to the lighthouse and climb to the top for the view. Tubing down the Big Sable River is another local favorite.
A Michigan Recreation Passport (or nonresident pass) is required.
The main beach is close to the lot; the lighthouse path is sand and gravel.
The lighthouse is open for climbs from May through October. The campgrounds are booked solid all summer, so day visitors should arrive early.
This isn't one entrance, it's a stretch with a few. Here's where locals actually meet up.
Main Day-Use Beach
The main beach near the Big Sable River mouth, with the park's beach house and facilities.
Get directions →Big Sable Point Lighthouse
The beach at the black-and-white striped lighthouse, reached by a 1.8 mile path on foot or bike.
Get directions →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.