Holiday Season in Michigan
Anyone planning to experience the holiday season in Michigan should start planning sooner rather than later. While a last-minute, spur-of-the-moment trip is possible, advance bookings ensure you get everything you want from your trip.
Michigan’s Upper Peninsula is a wonderland full of gorgeous natural attractions, quaint villages with a Hallmark-esque vibe, and casinos for those interested in spending a bit of time gaming. Casino resorts make it easy to stay in luxurious accommodations with many amenities, all while being near the sites and scenes that make Michigan so special.
Detroit also offers casinos and plenty to experience. Campus Martius Park comes to life with ice skating, a traditional tree lighting, the lighting of the Menorah in the D, and the 30-foot Kwanzaa Kinara display. Monroe Street Midway is set up with winter activities like arctic sledding, a take on mini-golf that uses hockey sticks and pucks, interactive art, and more. Detroit is also home to a month-long winter holiday market at Cadillac Square.
Explore the best things to do and see during the holiday season in Michigan. Get tips on booking the right accommodations for your needs and what highlights you don’t want to miss.
Special Events for the Holidays
If we had to pick one thing to do during the holidays in Michigan, it would be to head to Grand Rapids for the Christkindl Market, the largest European holiday market in the entire state. The market runs from mid-November through Christmas from Wednesday through Sunday next to the Grand Rapids Downtown Market. The 138,000-square-foot market looks like a Christmas village and has food vendors, handmade gifts, live entertainment, and Santa.
For another holiday market, visit Holland for the annual Kerstmarkt. This European holiday market takes place on the 8th Street Marketplace on weekends in November and December. The street is filled with vendors, food carts, and artisans following in the style of traditional European markets.
Frankenmuth is home to Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland, a 90,000-square-foot store featuring Christmas lights, decorations, holiday collectibles, and more. You don’t even have to buy anything. Just a stroll through the stores looking at the 300+ Christmas trees is worth it. The village is picturesque and worth exploring on foot, too.
Visit a Holiday-Themed Casino
You won’t find a hotel on-site, but Kewadin Casino – Christmas is located in Christmas, Michigan, and is a holiday-themed casino with plenty of games, a small gift shop, and Frosty’s Bar & Grill. It’s near some of the area’s most attractive natural wonders like Pictured Rocks and several waterfalls.
Stay in a Michigan Casino Resort
For stay-and-play holidays in Michigan, several casino resorts provide exactly what you want. Here are some of the best options with on-site restaurants, spas, shopping, and casino floors.
FireKeepers Casino Hotel in Battle Creek
The closest casino to Holland and Grand Rapids is Battle Creek’s FireKeeper’s Casino Hotel. It boasts deluxe rooms, suites, the Aqua Fire Suite known for the water vapor light feature, and the exquisite presidential suites complete with a granite wet bar, fireplace, and piano. With multiple on-site restaurants and an expansive gaming floor, it’s a great choice.
Four Winds New Buffalo in New Buffalo
Four Winds is an expansive casino resort with more than 130,000 square feet of gaming space and the Four Winds hotel has luxury rooms, suites, and celebrity suites. There’s a retail promenade where you’ll find gifts like designer clothing, tribal artwork, jewelry, and more. The resort is also home to Copper Rock Steakhouse where there are more than 400 wines to choose from and delectable dry-aged steaks.
Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort in Mt. Pleasant
Soaring Eagle is a AAA Four-Diamond resort with a full-service spa, casino games including Bingo, and several award-winning restaurants. It’s a good midway point between the Christmas market in Grand Rapid (about 60 miles), the holiday store in Frankenmuth (50 miles), and Lake Huron (39 miles).
Spend Time in Nature
Make sure you take time to explore the natural wonders found throughout Michigan. There’s plenty to do in the winter.
While Mackinac Island is usually considered a summer destination, it’s just as glorious, if not a little quieter, in the winter. At the beginning of December, the Mackinac Tree Lighting Festival takes place with caroling, hot chocolate, and festivities. There’s also a Christmas Bazaar where the proceeds go to the island’s medical center and churches.
The Pictured Rocks in Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore are always breathtaking, but the park is home to the Ice Curtains in the winter. Water trickles down cliff faces and freezes forming ice curtains that gain color from the minerals in the rocks. While there, you can also go snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, snowmobiling, and ice fishing.
Finally, we find that one of the best things to do in the holiday season is to book a sleigh ride and explore the countryside from the warmth of a blanket while draft horses pull the sleigh you glide in. Have a hot cocoa, sit back, and explore the countryside in comfort. If you’re in Grand Rapids, there are horse and carriage rides that wind through the city for either 30 minutes or a full hour.
Tips for the Holiday Season in Michigan
Weather is hard to predict. It can be brutally cold and snowy or unseasonably warm and even rainy. When packing, bring clothes that you can wear in layers. If you get too warm, it’s easier to remove clothing than not having enough and end up cold. Bring lip balm to keep your lips from becoming chapped.
Be aware that a windy day can lead to dangerous wind chills. Even just 10 minutes in cold temperatures with a wind can start to freeze the skin. If it is windy, don’t spend too much time outside without knowing how to dress for it.
Book hotels early in the season to ensure you get the room you want. If you’re looking to stay in a quaint B&B or inn, they can fill up even faster during the holiday season, so make those arrangements as soon as you can.