Michigan

Northern Michigan in 5 Days

5 Days
6 Rounds
$2,000–$3,600 Per golfer
June–September Best time

Estimate: per golfer, 4 nights sharing lodging, six rounds at summer rates including carts where required, excluding flights, 2026 rates.

Northern Michigan costs far less than the coastal destinations, and on a July evening on the Lake Michigan bluffs you won't feel shortchanged. This trip suits a group that likes variety. You'll play cliff-top Lake Michigan golf, sandy inland heathland, a reversible Tom Doak course and a classic parkland layout, and the drives between them are mostly two-lane roads through the woods.

The routing is a triangle out of Traverse City. Start on the lake at Arcadia, cut inland to Forest Dunes for a 36-hole day, then head north to Bay Harbor and Charlevoix. Summer daylight lasts until after 9 p.m., so an evening replay is realistic almost every day.

Day by day

  1. 1

    Arrive and hit the bluffs

    Arcadia Bluffs Golf Club – Bluffs Course

    Land at TVC by late morning and drive about an hour southwest to Arcadia. Take an afternoon tee time on the Bluffs. The light over the lake in the evening is the reason you came. Stay on site.

  2. 2

    South Course, then inland

    Arcadia Bluffs Golf Club – South Course

    Morning round on the South Course, then drive roughly two hours east to Forest Dunes. Check in, putt on the Hilltop putting course after dinner, and play the Bootlegger short course if you still have energy.

  3. 3

    36 at Forest Dunes

    Forest Dunes Golf ClubThe Loop

    Play Forest Dunes in the morning and The Loop after lunch on a prebooked replay rate. Check the calendar to see whether you'll get the Red or Black routing that day. If you like it, come back for the other direction on a future trip.

  4. 4

    North to Little Traverse Bay

    Bay Harbor Golf Club – Links/Quarry

    Drive about two hours north to Bay Harbor and play the Links/Quarry combination in the afternoon. Petoskey's downtown is ten minutes away for dinner.

  5. 5

    Belvedere and out

    Belvedere Golf Club

    Play an early round at Belvedere in Charlevoix, finishing before the members' noon–2 p.m. block. Fly out of Pellston (about 45 minutes) or Traverse City (about 1 hr 15 min).

The courses

Arcadia Bluffs Golf Club – Bluffs Course

Warren Henderson and Rick Smith · 1999 · public

Fescue-covered bluffs about 200 feet above Lake Michigan. Wind is the main defense.

Arcadia Bluffs Golf Club – South Course

Dana Fry and Jason Straka · 2018 · public

Inland of the Bluffs, with wide fairways and old-school square greens and bunkers. More fun than hard.

Forest Dunes Golf Club

Tom Weiskopf · 2002 · public

Sandy pine-forest golf that ranks among the best public courses in the country. 2026 summer green fees are $185–$215 plus a $30 cart fee.

The Loop

Tom Doak · 2016 · public, walking-friendly

Reversible: it runs the Red routing on even calendar days and the Black routing on odd days. Same price as Forest Dunes, with discounted prebooked replays.

Bay Harbor Golf Club – Links/Quarry

Arthur Hills · public (Boyne Golf)

The Links nine runs along the Lake Michigan shoreline and the Quarry nine drops into an old shale quarry. Boyne went cashless for 2026.

Belvedere Golf Club

William Watson · 1927 · private club that takes outside play (no guest tee times noon–2 p.m.)

Golden Age parkland with excellent greens. In-season walking rate is $150, and carts are $30.

Booking it

Every stop takes public tee times online or by phone, but the stay-and-play packages at Arcadia, Forest Dunes and Boyne usually beat booking rooms and rounds separately. Forest Dunes prices replays two ways: a prebooked replay can be reserved ahead, while the cheaper 'availability replay' can only be booked the same day. Book July and August weekends several months out.

Worth knowing

  • Bring a rain shell and a midlayer even in July. Lake Michigan wind can make an evening feel 15 degrees colder than the forecast.
  • Forest Dunes and The Loop don't allow denim and require collared shirts. Belvedere has the same dress code.
  • Mid-week rates at Forest Dunes run $30 cheaper than Thursday through Sunday, so schedule the 36-hole day for Monday through Wednesday if you can.
  • Pellston is small but saves over an hour of driving at the end. Price flights from both PLN and TVC.

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