July 11, 2025 • 47 mins
Episode 186: Traverse City, MI – Best Beach Towns in the US (Freshwater Edition) Description: We’re heading north to Michigan for this stop in our Best Beach Towns in the US series—and it’s one we’ve loved before! Rob welcomes back Mike Kent from Traverse City Tourism to dive into what makes this lakefront gem one of the best beach towns in the country. From sand dunes and sailboats to cherry pie and goat yoga (yes, really), Traverse City proves you don’t need an ocean to find the ultimate family beach getaway. In This Episode:
- The stunning freshwater setting of Grand Traverse Bay
- A short modern history: from cherry capital to wine country
- The unique microclimate, sandy soil, and how it supports both cherries and world-class wine
- Sleeping Bear Dunes: 60 miles of shoreline and national acclaim
- Family-friendly beach options, paddleboarding, kayaking, and yes—fishing!
- Accessibility and inclusion: the first autism-certified travel destination in the Midwest
- Traverse City’s booming food scene: from farm-to-table to food trucks and cherry pie flights
- Summer festivals including the 100th National Cherry Festival
- Why shoulder season might be your best time to visit
- Mike’s favorite childhood summer memory—and how families can make their own
- The #1 thing every first-time visitor should do before leaving town
- TraverseCity.com – Plan your trip and explore all the activities, trails, and events
- Traverse City Food & Wine – August culinary celebration
- Moomers Ice Cream, Cherry Republic, Farm Club, Right Brain Brewery
- Chateau Chantal's “Jazz at Sunset”
- National Cherry Festival – celebrating 100 years in 2025!
- Autism Certified Designation – commitment to sensory-friendly experiences
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:04):
Today, I'm the Family Vacationer, Lakefront Beauty, towering Dunes, and
cherry Pie. Travers City, Michigan proves you don't need a
notion to have a perfect beachtown experience. Episode one eight
six starts right now.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
Welcome to the Family Vacationer with Robin.
Speaker 1 (00:22):
Tracy, your go to podcast for families on the move. Hey, friends,
and welcome back to the Family Vacationer Episode one eighty six.
I'm Rob and today's stop on our Best Beach Towns
in the US tour. It brings us back to a
place that we've loved before on the show, Traverse City, Michigan.
(00:43):
That's right. If you're a longtime listener, you might remember
our earlier feature on Traverse City as a fantastic year
round destination, but today we are zeroing in on it
summertime magic as a freshwater beach town unlike any other. Now,
when you think of great beach towns, your mind probably
(01:03):
goes straight to the coast, but Travers City flips that
idea on its head. Sitting on the shores of Grand
Travers Bay that's part of Lake Michigan, this town offers
a classic beach vib with sandy shores, beach bonfires, paddle boarding,
beachside eats, all with that crisp, clean, freshwater feel, and
(01:25):
the city's come a long way in the past few decades.
Once a modest lumber town and a cherry growing region,
Traverse City has transformed into one of America's most talked
about small town destinations. In recent years. It's gained attention
from National Geographic and Good Morning America, and for good reason.
It's a place where a food, nature, and family fund
(01:47):
all meet on the edge of one of the most
beautiful bodies of water in the country. Now to help
us dive into everything that makes Traverse City shine during
beach season, I'm welcoming back a friend of the show,
Mike Kent. Mike, welcome back to the show.
Speaker 3 (02:04):
Hey, it's great to be here.
Speaker 1 (02:06):
All right, Mike. For somebody who's never been, how would
you describe the vibe of Traverse City or the personality
of the city.
Speaker 3 (02:14):
So the vibe here, Okay, So this is a community,
So first of all, let's talk about where it is,
right since since you cover the globe with your audience, right,
So I'm gonna hold out my handy dandy map of Michigan. Okay,
So here's Michigan. Traverse City is right here. We're at
the end of the pinky. So this is Lake Michigan,
all right. Chicago is down here, to trade is over here,
(02:39):
Lake here on, and the other lake show over here.
So so the thing you have to remember about Michigan
overall is, you know, we're defined by the Great Lakes.
Twenty percent of the world's fresh water is in the
Great Lakes. Think about that. Twenty percent of the world's
fresh water is in the Great Lakes. It is It's
(03:00):
an enormous resource for us. It's an enormous responsibility too,
when you think about the environment, because if you mess
up that twenty percent of the world's fresh water, you know,
it's not just this generation that's going to suffer from it.
It's right many many generations that will suffer from it.
That being said, I can tell you that right now
I'm looking out at my office. I'm looking over beautiful
(03:21):
Grand Travers Bay. The bay is beautiful blue, the sky
is little wisps of clouds, and I'm watching this tall
ship go by my office window. I have probably one
of the best views in Traverse City, and maybe in
the State of Michigan. We are defined by the lakes.
We are defined defined by the water, whether it is
(03:42):
the Great Lakes or inland lakes, or rivers or streams.
This is an area where, you know, if you want
to do anything on the water, you can do it.
Like I say, sailing. Right now, there are multiple sailboats
outside my window. We you know, we are an area
where because of a unique microclimate, agriculture is huge. In
(04:07):
this area, we are the cherry capital of the world.
Seventy five percent of the tart cherries in the country
are grown in the Travers City region. So the reason
agriculture is so huge here is because we have this
unique microclimate created by Lake Michigan. It keeps things a
little bit warmer in the winter and a little bit
cooler in the in the in the summer. So like
(04:31):
right now it is, you know, it's sunny out. You know,
typically our winter, our summer is are you know, seventy
eighty degrees. Rarely does it get to ninety. And that's
because of the cooling effect of Lake Michigan. So the
other thing that is important to this area is we
have a sandy soil that is created by receding glaciers
(04:53):
from some twenty thousand years ago that that is perfect
for the growing of fruit. So that's why with the
cherry capital of the world, it gently allows the roots
to be irrigated. But about fifty years ago, some crazy
farmer said, I am going to get rid of some
of these cherry trees. It's kind of like a field
(05:15):
of dreams. Moment you know where you're You know you're
going to get rid of your cash crop, right, and
you're going to put up a baseball diamond. But instead
of a baseball diamond, this crazy farmer said, I'm going
to grow grapes and I'm going to make wine. And
all the other cherry farmers were going, you are nuts.
I mean, it's a cool climate. You can't grow grapes.
You They're going to die in the first year or two.
(05:36):
While fifty years later we have a really vibrant wine
scene here. The same conditions that are perfect for cherries
are perfect for grapes. And so it used to be.
It used to be you went to our wineries because
they had spectacular views. The wines were okay. Now they
(05:59):
are winning a wards all over the world, mostly domestically,
but you know, certainly some international competitions. And by the way,
they still have those spectacular views and and and the
thing that our wineries have learned that it can't just
be spectacular views and wonderful wine. It has to be experiential.
So you so you have a winery that has jazz
(06:22):
at sunset, for example, Shatoshintel on Thursdays in the summer,
they have this world class jazz musician that has has
a quartet and you sit there drinking this really excellent
class of wine, watching the sunset over Grant Travers Bay,
and you've got this beautiful jazz music going in the background.
(06:44):
And it's that type of thing that you see over
and over again with our wineries, whether it is goat
yoga in the wineries, you know, in the in the winter,
you've got you know, cross country skiing between the vines
and that type of thing. So it's something that our
wineries have learned that it's got to be the experience.
So you know what the vibe is here. We are
(07:07):
a small town. The town itself is about sixteen thousand,
but we hit way, way way above our weight. So
for example, we have the third busiest airport in the
state of Michigan. Okay, So you've got Detroit, you've got
Grand Rapids, and this little town of sixteen thousand of
Travers City has seven different air carriers that come in
here to twenty NonStop locations. Imagine that, you know. So
(07:31):
you can go anywhere in the world from our little
town and it's easy to get in and easy to
get out. And that's part of what I say. We
punched way above our weight. So the people who are
coming here, yes, they're doing anything on the water. We
also are home of the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lake Shore,
which was voted as the most beautiful place in America
(07:52):
by ABC Good Morning America viewers. I happen to agree
with them, but I might be a little bit biased,
you know.
Speaker 1 (08:00):
You know, well, I can't let you go past goat
yoga without getting some explanation as to what that might be,
because that sounds fascinating.
Speaker 3 (08:09):
Did I get your goat on that one?
Speaker 1 (08:11):
Yeah? Well we can make we can make bad jokes
all the queue.
Speaker 3 (08:16):
And the canned laughter. Yes. So, so we have a
couple of different wineries that actually do that. They they
bring in goats and they're doing yoga. As it says
goat yoga.
Speaker 1 (08:27):
So I'm sorry, the goats are doing the yoga.
Speaker 3 (08:30):
No, you're doing the yoga, and the goats are climbing
on your back and and and you know, just being goats.
Speaker 1 (08:37):
Well you do it, okay, I'm I'm yeah, there's got
to be video of this somewhere. I'm gonna need to
watch that.
Speaker 3 (08:43):
So wow, Okay, I'm not a yoga fishonado. Uh and
I don't fully get it, but apparently it's really popular.
Yeah that's different.
Speaker 1 (08:55):
So yes, yeah, well that's uh, that is different. You know,
for of all different types of yoga, goat yoga would
be would be new. So there you go.
Speaker 3 (09:06):
And well you come on, you come on up here,
and you and I will do goat yoga. I've never
done yoga in my life, but you and I will
do it. Okay.
Speaker 1 (09:16):
Will there be paramedics standing by? That's that's the only
question that I have because I'm gonna need that.
Speaker 3 (09:22):
Get the paddles going on us right right right exactly.
Speaker 1 (09:27):
Well, and you've you've talked some about this already, but
what sets your city apart from other beach towns along
the Great Lakes.
Speaker 3 (09:38):
Is it really is that the the freshwater whale watching.
I think could could be it. Okay, no, there's no
and the goats there's there's there's no such thing. As
we did actually for for an April first joke, we
did actually produce a video uh that is available at
Traverse City dot com plug plug about freshwater we watching.
(10:00):
So you know, for me, I would think, I mean literally,
we have hundreds of miles of beaches. You know, for example,
I started to talk about Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore,
which is a phenomenal on National Park, and you know
they've got sixty miles of shoreline, So sixty miles of beaches,
(10:25):
and that's just one small segment. I mean through you know,
you have got this little pinky area that I told
you with two different bays. You know, Michigan has has
more shoreline than any other state in the Union, even California.
But when you think about it, it's because it's that mitton.
You know, all this is lake and then you put
(10:46):
on that you've got thousands and thousands of inland lakes.
So if you are essentially looking for a deep water experience,
so it might be charter fishing on Lake Michigan and
going after those monster fish that are you know, salmon
and that that are out there. You can do that.
If you're looking for a nice little family beach that
(11:11):
you know it's kind of remote, you can find those too.
You know, an inland beach. You know, Lake Michigan obviously
is going to be you know, it's going to stay cooler.
Uh you know, it does warm up in August, and
it is it is swimmable. But you know, if you're
looking for something that is swimmable throughout the summer, you
know you're going to go to one of the inland
lakes and do that. So, like I say, anything to
(11:34):
have to do with that, and then you would you
put into that hundreds of miles of trails, you know,
Sleeping Bear, like I say, it has a trail system,
but in addition to that, we've got a huge trail
system throughout the Traverse City region. And it's this network
of hundreds of miles of trails and it's biking trails,
it's hiking trails. You know, some of them are very easy,
(11:55):
some of them are perfect for taking you know, the
little kids to Like Sleeping Bear has these wonderful walks
that you know, it's just a it's just you know,
a mile or less than a mile and easy to
take your kids to do that. Uh. And accessibility too,
you know, many many of our of our beaches and
our trails you know are very accessible. You've got you've
(12:17):
got accessible boat launches and kayak launches and you know
Sleeping Bear has a has has track wheelchairs. We have
a program in Benzie County which is in the Frankfurt
area where where they have volunteers that put you on
a special bike if you know, if mobility is an
(12:37):
issue with you and you can pedal, uh, you know
you have a volunteer that pedals you around these trails.
So you know, accessibility is something that is is very
much taking care of here also. But now hopefully that
that kind of sets the vibe of what we have,
the whole combination of the natural resources that are in
(12:59):
our area. In addition, because it is because it is
a regional hub and easy to get into it and
easy to have, the culinary scene that we have here
is incredible. We have we have a creative base here
that a town of sixteen thousand has no right to have.
(13:22):
But if you are creative and in that creativity could
be artists. It could be ai, it could be culinary,
it could be wine makers. I mean the whole gamut.
If you can do your work anywhere in the world,
and we really saw this during the pandemic. If you
could be your work anywhere in the world and you're
(13:43):
going to look in in I love big cities, don't
get me wrong. You can do this in the heart
of a big city with buildings all around you, or
if you're going to do it with a view of
Grand Travers Bay, creators are going to come to place
like Grand Vice Base. So that's why we see a
culinary scene here and again tied into the agriculture of
(14:06):
the region. And I hate to use the term, but
it is so appropriate, which is farm to table. And
I hate to use it because farm to table gets
overused to the point that it's lost its meaning. We
have a place called farm club, for example, This is
just one of many farm club. You literally can be
sitting at your table and ten feet away are the
(14:26):
crops that are growing that are going to be put
on your table that night. That is farm to table.
Plus they have they have a larger farm just a
quarter mile away from their restaurant where the weight. Staff
is required to work the farm because they need to
know what is growing today and being a harvested today
(14:49):
that's going to be produced and put on the table
that night. They actually helped produce it. That's farm. It's
amazing and we see that relationship around the area. So
a place, for example, called Moomour's ice Cream. Moomour's ice
Cream is literally on the farm, and if you go
there in the summer, you will see people lined up
around the that's not a block, it's because they're in
(15:11):
a farmer's field. Literally, you can see the cows that
produced the milk for the ice cream that you're having
that is farmed. The table, Well, it doesn't get to
the table because you're eating the ice cream before he
gets to the table. But they buy the boomers. By
the way, again, I'm going back to ABC Good Morning America.
Their viewers voted it as the best ice cream in America. Well,
(15:34):
it's because of that freshness that they bring, you know,
they'll put you know, they have so many of their
ice cream that have cherries in it. Wow, why would
you do that, because we're the cherry camp allot of
the world.
Speaker 1 (15:49):
Yeah, well all right, so you're jumping ahead on me.
Let's put a pin because we're going to talk about food.
I remember when we had you on before the culinary
scene and all the great rats. So we're going to
talk about that in a minute. But I want to
go back to the accessibility because we were talking offline
about a designation that you guys are working towards or
(16:10):
already have received. Let's you've achieved, all right, let's talk
about that, just because, as we were talking about before,
when people think accessibility, you're thinking about folks in a wheelchair,
and certainly that's part of it, but that's not the
entirety of it. So talk about that that designation.
Speaker 3 (16:27):
We have been identified as an autism friendly travel destination
uh and one and the first in the Midwest to
get that designation by an organization. Ib SS I believe
it is is the acronym for it, and what that
means is we had to get literally thousands of people
(16:49):
trained that are in the hospitality industry. And that could
be you know, food and beverage, it could be the
lodging partners. It certainly is traverse city tourism that understand
people with like sensory sensitivities and autism concerns. So, for example,
(17:10):
one of the things that we did, you have to
understand that Travers City Tourism is right off the bay.
It is in the middle of one of the biggest
festivals in the Midwest, of the National Cherry Festival, which
just ended last week, and so there's a lot of
hubbub down here. There's a lot of activity that's going here.
So when the Cherry festival's on, for example, they'll have
(17:31):
an air show and a quarter million people will be
here to watch the air show. Remember it's a town
of sixteen thousand, and you get a quarter million people
coming in to watch the air show. So we created
a comfort room, we created a quiet room. So what
we saw and what we continue to see, are people
who have especially sensory sensitivities or autism concerns where they
(17:56):
know that they can bring somebody in this room. And
we've seen the these kids especially come in to our
welcome center totally distressed and crying. They go into that
room for fifteen minutes half whatever they need and they
come out laughing and settle down, and that type of thing.
It's a matter of just an awareness more than anything else.
(18:19):
So you know, so for example, we've got museums or
lodging partners that are trained to become aware of this
and that yes, indeed, accessibility is not just mobility, it's
not just hearing, it's not just a vision. There are
so many areas of accessibility that we want to make
travel and you and I talked about the value of
(18:43):
travel and what it means to especially parents that have
their kids and the memories that they're going to create.
It needs to be available to everyone, whether it's accessibility
concerns or you know, LGBTQ plus all these other areas
that you know, we have to be a welcoming destination
(19:05):
to everyone. And I think that that's one of the
advantages that Traverse City has had is is there is
that recognition that this is this is a miraculous place.
It really is. We can't keep it to ourselves. We
have to share it to others.
Speaker 1 (19:22):
And well, we we say all the time that you know,
travel is for everybody. So it's it's an amazing commitment
on your town's part, you know, to train all the
people that you have to train just to be able
to to see folks that that you know probably feel
unseen at times. Right, So that is an amazing commitment
(19:44):
and I applaud you guys for doing that.
Speaker 3 (19:46):
It's been it's been an eye opening experience for not
just the people that travers city tourism, but for this community.
And and yes, we we got that designation about a
year ago. We're going to the re registration and the
retraining of that again. Uh and we're bringing on new
(20:07):
partners all the time that have trained their staff for that. Also,
it doesn't take that much, but it does take a
time commitment, and not everyone is good at doing that
time commitment.
Speaker 1 (20:18):
Sure, sure, well, and you know that kind of awareness
is not a destination, it's ongoing and it's great. It's
great that you guys are making that ongoing commitment. So yeah, yeah,
I bet so well, considering that this we're in the
middle of a series, you know, the best beach towns
(20:40):
in the US, which you guys are our only freshwater
beach town on our list, So that's that's an honor
in and of itself.
Speaker 3 (20:49):
By the way, right, we are the best.
Speaker 1 (20:54):
And humble. That's good. That's good. Well, let's talk about
beach activities. What beach activities are popular in your area?
Speaker 3 (21:04):
What do you want to do, because I mean, it's
it's anything. You know, it could be parasailing. Like I said,
I'm you know, I'm looking at the sailboats out in
front of my office right now. There goes the Discover Recruits.
It's a two decker you know, kind of a place
if you want to have a a bachelorette party or something,
you could do it there. You know. You know, one
(21:27):
of the areas that that we we don't spend a
lot of time talking about, but it's it's very popular
is fishing. You know, so you've got you've got some
phenomenal uh stream fishing, river fishing and year round too.
It's it's interesting to see. We had we had some
writers come in last winter and do a story about
(21:49):
about women and doing fly fishing in the winter, which
was a really cool story that they were working on.
You know. So so you know, any kind of fishing
activity and like I said earlier, you know, if you
want to get a charter boat to go out and
look for the big Lake Michigan co hoss you know,
easy to do and really you know, stand up panel boards, kayaking,
(22:13):
this you know, we we have we have a main
river that goes through Traverse City called Wardman River, and
several years ago they embarked and it used to be
it it used to be very much of a controlled
river because there are dams set up along the way. Well,
they they have been taking out all of the dams.
(22:34):
The last one is being worked on even as we speak,
right in the city. And it's a huge, multimillion dollar
project because they have to. They have to. They have
to create a new system of controlling because the fish
go up to spawn, so they have to control you know,
what what is what are the proper species of fish
(22:56):
to go up and what are invasive species. So so anyway,
what I'm getting to is, once they remove these dams,
you have got a river that is that is going
back to its natural state, which was one hundred and
fifty or plus years ago. And that means all of
a sudden, you've got these wonderful rapids for kayaking that
(23:20):
weren't there just a few years ago, and now they are.
And it's a blue ribbon of fishery, which means, you know,
you don't you don't have a lot of plant to fish,
and these are these are fish that are they're going
to have some fight in them is my understanding of
what you mean by a blue ribbon fishery. So so
(23:41):
you've got that going on. But yes, you know kayaking,
we have, you know, one of the cool one of
the cool things that we have as a kayak bike
and brew uh which they have kayaking biking and then
stopping at breweries. So you're hoping at kayak and you
go down the Boardman River and then you stop at
right Brain Brewery and you have a wait for it,
(24:05):
wait for it, you have a whole cherry pie brew Yes,
they have that, and quite frankly, it's really very good
and it's a seasonal thing. It's only available in the summer,
but you know, it's part of it's part of the
water and part of the Traverse City experience to be
able to do something like that. And then yes, you're
(24:27):
you're hopping on a bike and you're you're going on
one of the trails. They just there is a Boardman Lake,
which in any other city would be the center of
the city, but because we have Grand Travers Bay in
Lake Michigan, it's kind of the forgotten lake, right. But
last year they put in they invested eight million dollars
(24:48):
and finished up the Boardman Lake Loop, which is about
a four mile loop around the lake. Absolutely gorgeous and
it's an easy bike ride. And yes it goes right
next to Right Brain Brewery, so that you know, that's
you know, uh so that's part of the experience here. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (25:08):
Well, for our fishermen that are in the audience, what
kinds of fish are you fishing for in the area.
Speaker 3 (25:15):
Don't stunt me on that too much. But but you're
you're you know, you're talking about trout. You're talking about
you know, salmon, especially coho salmon.
Speaker 2 (25:24):
Uh.
Speaker 3 (25:25):
And there there's a bunch of others that yeah, you know,
I am It's been years since I've done any fishing, gotcha.
But yeah, you know those are going to be your
and and the other thing too, you know. The other
restaurant fish is whitefish. Uh Okay, that's being caught in
the Great Lakes. But you know, any any restaurant that
(25:47):
you're going to hear, you know, that is going to
be the mainstay of of the of the fish that
are going to be in the restaurant as whitefish. And
it's it's a very tender, mild type of fish that
that is excellent.
Speaker 1 (26:01):
We should not do this around dinner time.
Speaker 3 (26:04):
I hear you're talking.
Speaker 1 (26:05):
Yeah, well, that's an excellent segue to get back in
the conversation about the food scene. Let's talk about some
of the restaurants in the area that families absolutely have
to try. And we got to go back to ice
cream as well, because I want to talk about the
ice cream flights. I remember that from last time, So
(26:26):
talk about the restaurants.
Speaker 3 (26:28):
All right. So let me preface this by saying, the
whole food and wine scene here really has been our
story in the last few years, and I'm convinced it's
going to be our story over the next decade plus,
especially as we see climate changes. It is having an
(26:49):
impact here. But what is happening is it's moderating our winters.
It's creating a longer growing season. So an area that
was just known for white wines, for example, now it's
getting some renowned for red wines. So let me preface
this by saying, one of the brand new things that
(27:09):
your audience might want to be aware of is Traver
City food and wine. So coming up in August, you
are going to see August twentieth through twenty fourth, our
first ever Travers City Food and Wine. So that is
(27:29):
it's about fifty different events. Again, the mainstay is going
to be across the street from me. It's what's called
the open Space, and you are going to have top
known chefs like Tyler Florence from the Food Network is
going to be here, and a bunch of others that
have some renown, and there's going to be anywhere from
(27:50):
small intimate dinners with them and wine pairing to this
huge event that's going to be in the open Space
where yes, there will be interviews with with top chefs,
there will be food bites and wine tasting and wine
experts talking about that combination. So it really becomes a
celebration of the whole food and wine culture that we
(28:15):
have seen spring up here in the last fifty plus
years and a way to celebrate what that culture that
you and I have already been talking about. So yeah,
it's going to be you know, it's gonna be the
first year for it, and it's something that Travers City
tourism is behind, and yet really the best way to
find out more about that is to go to Travers
(28:35):
Cityfood and Wind and spelled out food and Wine dot
com to find out more and like I say, it's
an exhaustive list of fifty different events that are going on.
First year we've done it, it looks like it's going
to be a fantastic event. But what is happening is
going back to you know. All right, so what you're
talking about is is what are the good restaurants? Okay, yes,
(29:00):
it all depends what you.
Speaker 1 (29:02):
Want, you know, let's just assume I want all of it.
Speaker 3 (29:05):
So okay, all right, so let's start. Let's start off
with because because because I know what you do, you
get paid a lot of money for what you do.
So let's start off with the.
Speaker 1 (29:15):
Highway do hang on?
Speaker 3 (29:17):
Hang on?
Speaker 1 (29:18):
Somebody else is getting the money.
Speaker 3 (29:21):
Oh well, so you know there are plenty of restaurants
here that that you know are going to be more elegant.
You know. We've got area which is the top of
Grand Travers Resort and spat. It's it's the tallest building
in the area, goes up sixteen stories and you can
see both east and west Grand Trivers. May The food
food is excellent. You've got a place like a boat
(29:42):
House which is out on Old Mission Peninsula right on
the water, specializes in a lot of seafood, but but
more than that. So you've got the higher end restaurants,
and then you have got you know, the middle of
the road ones. You know what we talked about with
Farm Club, which is is really unique and just kind
(30:05):
of a fun place. And then you've got a place,
you know like Jacob's Farm, which serves up pizza and
it literally is on the farm and the pizza is
great and they usually have live music throughout the summer
and you take your kids and your kids can go
there to the playground and you're having a pizza and
(30:25):
a beer and and enjoying enjoying the outdoors and listening
to to some great music. Then you have the whole
food truck scene, and you've got a place called the
Little Fleet that has multiple food trucks that have you know,
it's it's Asian cooking. It is you know, ribs and
(30:46):
things like that. You know, a variety of different food
trucks that are out there. And and then you've got
lots of different places downtown like I'm a Call that
that you know just you know, it has a French background,
but as really it has expanded their their menu and
it just has this cool downtown vibe, a cool downtown atmosphere.
(31:10):
An artisan at DeLamar, which is right on the water
on Grand Triver's Bay, that is really striving to up there.
Up there not only the food quality but their service
and every time you go there, their service is just phenomenal.
So and then you've got you know, you've got the
bars that have unique type of food too. You know,
(31:31):
you have got Little Bows and you know so many
other places that have unique kind of food. Really, uh,
for a town this size to have the variety that
we have unheard of. But when when in the summer,
(31:53):
you know you're bringing in a quarter million people for
the air show, you know those restaurants are going to
be full. But let me tell you at you know,
some of the best travel time is in our shoulder seasons.
So you know, if your kids aren't going in school.
You know, one of my favorite times to to to
encourage people to come here family or friends is like September.
(32:14):
You know, you've got there starting to change colors, the
kids are siff. You know, if you don't have kids,
this is the place, this is the place to come
and come here the springtime, which again, you know, if
kids are in school, you know, you're having to stay home.
But you've got two million cherry trees that are sprouting blossoms,
and you don't have those those big crowds. You know,
(32:35):
it's easier to get a reservation. You go into a
winery and you do a wine tasting, and you meet
with with the wine makers and they have time to
tell you about what makes their wine different. So those
shoulder seasons are really great times to travel. You know,
we're you know, typically the fall color is here, you know,
(32:56):
in the September beginning of October eight. You kind of
have to time it careful. Same as in the springtime
when the blossoms are hitting. You kind of have to
time it carefully because it's so dependent upon the amount
of rain that you get, you know, has the wind
to come through and knock the leaves off the trees
and that type of thing. But it's worth the effort
(33:16):
and when people come up with experience those change of seasons,
it's an experience you don't forget.
Speaker 1 (33:23):
Yeah, well, I know you guys do a couple festivals
in the area. Since we're focusing on summer, let's talk
about that areas that time of year specifically. But what
about what are the festivals or summer events that you
guys have going on that's kind of tied to the
beach community.
Speaker 3 (33:42):
Well, you know, the biggest one just ended, so playing
your trip for next year, and that's the National Cherry Festival.
The National Cherry Festival is one of the biggest festivals
in the Midwest. It's an eight day event. This year
we celebrated the ninety ninth year for the National Cherry Festival.
So if my Catholic school math is correct, that means
(34:03):
next year is the oh, one hundredth anniversary of the
National and it will fall on the two hundred and
fiftieth anniversary of the founding of America. Okay, so you
know it will be a huge event, and it always is.
So it's a matter of you know, like like I
(34:25):
told you earlier, an air show, several different parades, concerts
that will take place, and contests like wait for it,
wait for it, cherry pie eating contest, cherry pitts fitting contest.
You know, next year they will have they will have
a bed race downtown Traverse City. You'll have a milk
(34:47):
carton boat regatta on the Bay. You know, just and
I believe eighty percent of those events that they have
are free. So yes, it's already happened. It happened just
recently here. But to plan to come to it next year, yeah,
it'll it'll be worth the effort. So there are a
number of other festivals throughout throughout the region. Uh you
(35:10):
know again, some of them have already taken place because
you know, they're usually earlier in the in the in
the season, then later in the season because it just
gets too busy to bring in another quarter million people. Right,
But you know you've got things like the Mushroom Festival.
You've got the co Hoo Festival in in Honor. That's
(35:32):
that's a fall event that takes place. Uh. So there
there's and and and in addition to the festivals, you've
also got you know, you've got events that are taking place,
like we have we have an Ironman competition a little
take place in Frankfurt, So you and I should be
(35:52):
participating in that this year because it's.
Speaker 1 (35:55):
That's that's after the goat yoga, right yeah.
Speaker 3 (35:58):
And it's a it's a half marrion and uh you know,
a swim and and the bike race you know, all
rolled into one. But it brings world class athletes to
this area. And you know, sporting events are just you know,
just a part of the attraction here too. For example,
this is this is considered hockey town North and if
(36:21):
there are any hockey fans down in your area, uh,
you know, this is the the summer. This is the
training camp for the Detroit Red Wings. Okay, and and
so so you know, come right before the season starts.
The Red Wings are here and they've got their prospects
(36:42):
coming here and and it's it's great hockey if you
love hockey coming here in the in the in the
you know, the September when the training camp is going,
it's it's it's a unique experience. So yeah, So as
far as festivals go, yeah, you know the summer festivals,
the National Cherry FESTI well, really is the big one.
There are others that are taking place throughout the area,
(37:03):
but that really is the big one.
Speaker 1 (37:07):
Well, what's your favorite summer memory from the time that
you spent in the area, maybe with family, maybe maybe not.
What's your favorite summer memory.
Speaker 3 (37:18):
Oh, you're getting personal now, aren't you.
Speaker 1 (37:20):
Yeah. Oh, I've got to put you on the spot.
Speaker 3 (37:25):
For me, it would be camping, okay for me, as
a kid. You know, we came from a very blue
collar background. My parents didn't have a lot of money,
and my dad would work all year long to be
able to come up to Traverse City State Park a
Travers City, yes, Travis City State Park, and we would
(37:48):
spend a week here. And we lived in the Detroit
area at that time. And to the point that with
my own kids when I moved here that with my
own kids, camping was was really phenomenal. And yes, we
would go to Traver City State Park, or we would
(38:09):
go to other areas throughout northern Michigan and sometimes even
into Canada and and just to sit at a campsite
and be able to make a campfire and smell the
campfire and the aromas and realized that the beach is
just a few feet away. You know, we still have
(38:30):
that and we have plenty of our members that you
know timber Ridge, for example, that you know, sometimes there
are cabins, sometimes it's camping. But for me, being able
to access everything that Traverse City had to offer, that
(38:50):
was very accessible to us. And you know, the camping
experience for me was one that was remarkable and memorable.
Speaker 1 (38:59):
And I'm sure you have so many memories from that
time that have stuck with you your entire life.
Speaker 3 (39:05):
Yeah, you and I talked off off the air about
you know, that's what we create, right with travel, create
these memories that that never leave you. I I you know,
as we talk, I can still smell the campfire right right,
and and the memory of that, and it creates this
(39:26):
warm glow within you. And and I know my kids
shared the same thing. You know, my kids were involved
in boy scouting and they you know, it opened up
all kinds of camping and outdoor experiences for them, hiking
and you know, hitting trails and doing environmental things too.
(39:48):
It stays with you, It stays with you.
Speaker 1 (39:51):
Yeah. Well, wrapping it up, what's one thing, just one
thing that every first time visitor should do before they
leave town.
Speaker 3 (40:04):
You need to walk in downtown Traverse City and take
it all in. Okay, Okay, And even if you don't
like shopping, it doesn't matter. I mean it's a shopping district, sure,
but you know, incredible restaurants, a bunch of you know,
beverage tourism things, whether it's wine tasting or distilleries or breweries,
(40:32):
you know, coffee shops. You know you're gonna find it there.
And because we're the cherry Did I mentioned we're the
cherry capital of the world. Because we're the.
Speaker 1 (40:41):
Cherry let's say, I'll have to go back and listen.
I think you did mention that once or twice.
Speaker 3 (40:45):
But yes, because of that, you can go to a
place like Cherry Republic. Cherry Republic has over two hundred
cherry products, whether it's chocolate covered cherries or cherry wine.
You know, I love that They've got a cherry concentrate
that I will put on ice cream. And you know, Okay,
(41:08):
if there's something made of cherries, you're gonna find it
at Cherry Republic, you know. Or go to Grand Travers
Pie and what would you get at Grand Trevor's Pie. Oh,
I'm thinking like a cherry pie, right, you.
Speaker 1 (41:24):
Know, right right?
Speaker 3 (41:26):
You got to take take a while to slow down. Yeah,
take a while, and you know, if there is a
scenic stop, take it. You know, we have we have
these scenic roads like M twenty two that goes around
the leland Off Peninsula. We have we have an old
Mission of Peninsula Drive that you know, it's it's about
(41:47):
a fifteen minute, fifteen mile drive. It's going to take him,
you know, a long time to do that drive, because
there are so many scenic routes scenic stops that you
really should take in. You can get from point A
to point B very quickly around here, but don't slow down,
(42:08):
enjoy the enjoy the moment we mentioned sleeping there. I mean, yes,
there are. You know you've got the pure stocking scenic drive.
Take it and take every single stop along the way
because each one of those scenic views are worth taking
a look at and and getting a picture of it
(42:29):
and taking a picture of your kids at it, because
you will remember that. So I guess that's what I
would say is slow down.
Speaker 1 (42:39):
Enjoy it.
Speaker 3 (42:41):
Maybe spend an extra day if you can. If you can't,
that's fine. Just just take in everything and don't be
so worried about getting to this and this and this right,
but enjoy each of those experiences along the way and
take as much time. So you know, we we we
talked about the experiences at the winery. Uh well, I
don't know if we've ever talked about jazz at sunset?
(43:02):
Have we?
Speaker 1 (43:05):
I don't know that we have.
Speaker 3 (43:06):
Okay, So shautoshin Tel is this beautiful winery on Old
Mission Peninsula, and they've got this world class jazz musician,
Jeff Haes. And on Thursdays in the summer, he's got
this trio of jazz musicians. And you're sitting there drinking
this award winning wine, watching the sunset over Grand Travers
(43:30):
Bay and Power Island and Jeff Hawes is playing jazz music.
You've got to enjoy it. You've got it. You know,
you can't be in a hurry to experience that. You've
got to sit down, relax and enjoy it. And I
guess that's the message I would say is you don't
have to take it all in on one trip, plan
(43:51):
on coming back another time, but get the full out
of every one of the stops along the way because
it's a remarkable area. It has so much to do
and you know, and and such a variety of things
to do. You know, if you just want to sit
at the beach and you know, put your toes in
in some really nice sand and you know, soak in
(44:13):
some sun, you can do that. You know, if you
want to go on an aggressive bike ride, you know,
that's hundreds of miles you can do that. There was
a little something for everyone in this area and find
out what you want to do. Uh. You know the
one stop, the best stop to go to is traversity
dot com. Uh, it is our website that is just
(44:36):
packed full of information. So that would be my encouragement.
Slow down, take full advantage because you are going to
leave here with an experience that you won't soon forget.
Speaker 1 (44:48):
Well, that is great advice, Mike. Always a pleasure. Thank
you so much for joining us again, and thank you
so much for your time.
Speaker 3 (44:55):
It's been a total joy. Thank you very much.
Speaker 1 (44:57):
Whether it's families climbing the dow, watching the sunset from
Clinch Park Beach, are just enjoying a good cherry ice
cream cone, Traverse City really delivers something memorable for every
kind of traveler. If you'd like to learn more about
Traverse City or you want to start planning your own
summer escape to northern Michigan, you'll find links and resources
(45:19):
in our show notes. And as always, if you're enjoying
this series on America's best beach towns, be sure to
subscribe to the Family Vacationer, leave us a rating wherever
you listen to your podcast, and follow us on Instagram
at the Family Vacationer or on substack for more travel tips,
destination guides, and behind the scenes content. Remember, folks, to
(45:41):
keep your passports and your hearts open. Save travels everyone.
I've got it.
Speaker 2 (45:56):
Places in the hotel staces is I'm using the park
rids and water slides.
Speaker 1 (46:04):
Mountain ranges and seasonal changes.
Speaker 3 (46:08):
I'm here to serve.
Speaker 2 (46:10):
I'm the family vacationers.
Speaker 3 (46:16):
I've got skin full on other beach places and hotel spaces.
Speaker 2 (46:23):
Amusement park rats and water slides, mountain ranges and seasonal changes.
Speaker 3 (46:31):
I'm here to serve.
Speaker 2 (46:32):
I'm the family vacationers, your family vacationer, your family vacation.
Speaker 1 (46:45):
Now day, I've got to let me want to see
a frame. It's this isn't
Today, I'm the Family Vacationer, Lakefront Beauty, towering Dunes, and
cherry Pie. Travers City, Michigan proves you don't need a
notion to have a perfect beachtown experience. Episode one eight
six starts right now.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
Welcome to the Family Vacationer with Robin.
Speaker 1 (00:22):
Tracy, your go to podcast for families on the move. Hey, friends,
and welcome back to the Family Vacationer Episode one eighty six.
I'm Rob and today's stop on our Best Beach Towns
in the US tour. It brings us back to a
place that we've loved before on the show, Traverse City, Michigan.
(00:43):
That's right. If you're a longtime listener, you might remember
our earlier feature on Traverse City as a fantastic year
round destination, but today we are zeroing in on it
summertime magic as a freshwater beach town unlike any other. Now,
when you think of great beach towns, your mind probably
(01:03):
goes straight to the coast, but Travers City flips that
idea on its head. Sitting on the shores of Grand
Travers Bay that's part of Lake Michigan, this town offers
a classic beach vib with sandy shores, beach bonfires, paddle boarding,
beachside eats, all with that crisp, clean, freshwater feel, and
(01:25):
the city's come a long way in the past few decades.
Once a modest lumber town and a cherry growing region,
Traverse City has transformed into one of America's most talked
about small town destinations. In recent years. It's gained attention
from National Geographic and Good Morning America, and for good reason.
It's a place where a food, nature, and family fund
(01:47):
all meet on the edge of one of the most
beautiful bodies of water in the country. Now to help
us dive into everything that makes Traverse City shine during
beach season, I'm welcoming back a friend of the show,
Mike Kent. Mike, welcome back to the show.
Speaker 3 (02:04):
Hey, it's great to be here.
Speaker 1 (02:06):
All right, Mike. For somebody who's never been, how would
you describe the vibe of Traverse City or the personality
of the city.
Speaker 3 (02:14):
So the vibe here, Okay, So this is a community,
So first of all, let's talk about where it is,
right since since you cover the globe with your audience, right,
So I'm gonna hold out my handy dandy map of Michigan. Okay,
So here's Michigan. Traverse City is right here. We're at
the end of the pinky. So this is Lake Michigan,
all right. Chicago is down here, to trade is over here,
(02:39):
Lake here on, and the other lake show over here.
So so the thing you have to remember about Michigan
overall is, you know, we're defined by the Great Lakes.
Twenty percent of the world's fresh water is in the
Great Lakes. Think about that. Twenty percent of the world's
fresh water is in the Great Lakes. It is It's
(03:00):
an enormous resource for us. It's an enormous responsibility too,
when you think about the environment, because if you mess
up that twenty percent of the world's fresh water, you know,
it's not just this generation that's going to suffer from it.
It's right many many generations that will suffer from it.
That being said, I can tell you that right now
I'm looking out at my office. I'm looking over beautiful
(03:21):
Grand Travers Bay. The bay is beautiful blue, the sky
is little wisps of clouds, and I'm watching this tall
ship go by my office window. I have probably one
of the best views in Traverse City, and maybe in
the State of Michigan. We are defined by the lakes.
We are defined defined by the water, whether it is
(03:42):
the Great Lakes or inland lakes, or rivers or streams.
This is an area where, you know, if you want
to do anything on the water, you can do it.
Like I say, sailing. Right now, there are multiple sailboats
outside my window. We you know, we are an area
where because of a unique microclimate, agriculture is huge. In
(04:07):
this area, we are the cherry capital of the world.
Seventy five percent of the tart cherries in the country
are grown in the Travers City region. So the reason
agriculture is so huge here is because we have this
unique microclimate created by Lake Michigan. It keeps things a
little bit warmer in the winter and a little bit
cooler in the in the in the summer. So like
(04:31):
right now it is, you know, it's sunny out. You know,
typically our winter, our summer is are you know, seventy
eighty degrees. Rarely does it get to ninety. And that's
because of the cooling effect of Lake Michigan. So the
other thing that is important to this area is we
have a sandy soil that is created by receding glaciers
(04:53):
from some twenty thousand years ago that that is perfect
for the growing of fruit. So that's why with the
cherry capital of the world, it gently allows the roots
to be irrigated. But about fifty years ago, some crazy
farmer said, I am going to get rid of some
of these cherry trees. It's kind of like a field
(05:15):
of dreams. Moment you know where you're You know you're
going to get rid of your cash crop, right, and
you're going to put up a baseball diamond. But instead
of a baseball diamond, this crazy farmer said, I'm going
to grow grapes and I'm going to make wine. And
all the other cherry farmers were going, you are nuts.
I mean, it's a cool climate. You can't grow grapes.
You They're going to die in the first year or two.
(05:36):
While fifty years later we have a really vibrant wine
scene here. The same conditions that are perfect for cherries
are perfect for grapes. And so it used to be.
It used to be you went to our wineries because
they had spectacular views. The wines were okay. Now they
(05:59):
are winning a wards all over the world, mostly domestically,
but you know, certainly some international competitions. And by the way,
they still have those spectacular views and and and the
thing that our wineries have learned that it can't just
be spectacular views and wonderful wine. It has to be experiential.
So you so you have a winery that has jazz
(06:22):
at sunset, for example, Shatoshintel on Thursdays in the summer,
they have this world class jazz musician that has has
a quartet and you sit there drinking this really excellent
class of wine, watching the sunset over Grant Travers Bay,
and you've got this beautiful jazz music going in the background.
(06:44):
And it's that type of thing that you see over
and over again with our wineries, whether it is goat
yoga in the wineries, you know, in the in the winter,
you've got you know, cross country skiing between the vines
and that type of thing. So it's something that our
wineries have learned that it's got to be the experience.
So you know what the vibe is here. We are
(07:07):
a small town. The town itself is about sixteen thousand,
but we hit way, way way above our weight. So
for example, we have the third busiest airport in the
state of Michigan. Okay, So you've got Detroit, you've got
Grand Rapids, and this little town of sixteen thousand of
Travers City has seven different air carriers that come in
here to twenty NonStop locations. Imagine that, you know. So
(07:31):
you can go anywhere in the world from our little
town and it's easy to get in and easy to
get out. And that's part of what I say. We
punched way above our weight. So the people who are
coming here, yes, they're doing anything on the water. We
also are home of the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lake Shore,
which was voted as the most beautiful place in America
(07:52):
by ABC Good Morning America viewers. I happen to agree
with them, but I might be a little bit biased,
you know.
Speaker 1 (08:00):
You know, well, I can't let you go past goat
yoga without getting some explanation as to what that might be,
because that sounds fascinating.
Speaker 3 (08:09):
Did I get your goat on that one?
Speaker 1 (08:11):
Yeah? Well we can make we can make bad jokes
all the queue.
Speaker 3 (08:16):
And the canned laughter. Yes. So, so we have a
couple of different wineries that actually do that. They they
bring in goats and they're doing yoga. As it says
goat yoga.
Speaker 1 (08:27):
So I'm sorry, the goats are doing the yoga.
Speaker 3 (08:30):
No, you're doing the yoga, and the goats are climbing
on your back and and and you know, just being goats.
Speaker 1 (08:37):
Well you do it, okay, I'm I'm yeah, there's got
to be video of this somewhere. I'm gonna need to
watch that.
Speaker 3 (08:43):
So wow, Okay, I'm not a yoga fishonado. Uh and
I don't fully get it, but apparently it's really popular.
Yeah that's different.
Speaker 1 (08:55):
So yes, yeah, well that's uh, that is different. You know,
for of all different types of yoga, goat yoga would
be would be new. So there you go.
Speaker 3 (09:06):
And well you come on, you come on up here,
and you and I will do goat yoga. I've never
done yoga in my life, but you and I will
do it. Okay.
Speaker 1 (09:16):
Will there be paramedics standing by? That's that's the only
question that I have because I'm gonna need that.
Speaker 3 (09:22):
Get the paddles going on us right right right exactly.
Speaker 1 (09:27):
Well, and you've you've talked some about this already, but
what sets your city apart from other beach towns along
the Great Lakes.
Speaker 3 (09:38):
Is it really is that the the freshwater whale watching.
I think could could be it. Okay, no, there's no
and the goats there's there's there's no such thing. As
we did actually for for an April first joke, we
did actually produce a video uh that is available at
Traverse City dot com plug plug about freshwater we watching.
(10:00):
So you know, for me, I would think, I mean literally,
we have hundreds of miles of beaches. You know, for example,
I started to talk about Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore,
which is a phenomenal on National Park, and you know
they've got sixty miles of shoreline, So sixty miles of beaches,
(10:25):
and that's just one small segment. I mean through you know,
you have got this little pinky area that I told
you with two different bays. You know, Michigan has has
more shoreline than any other state in the Union, even California.
But when you think about it, it's because it's that mitton.
You know, all this is lake and then you put
(10:46):
on that you've got thousands and thousands of inland lakes.
So if you are essentially looking for a deep water experience,
so it might be charter fishing on Lake Michigan and
going after those monster fish that are you know, salmon
and that that are out there. You can do that.
If you're looking for a nice little family beach that
(11:11):
you know it's kind of remote, you can find those too.
You know, an inland beach. You know, Lake Michigan obviously
is going to be you know, it's going to stay cooler.
Uh you know, it does warm up in August, and
it is it is swimmable. But you know, if you're
looking for something that is swimmable throughout the summer, you
know you're going to go to one of the inland
lakes and do that. So, like I say, anything to
(11:34):
have to do with that, and then you would you
put into that hundreds of miles of trails, you know,
Sleeping Bear, like I say, it has a trail system,
but in addition to that, we've got a huge trail
system throughout the Traverse City region. And it's this network
of hundreds of miles of trails and it's biking trails,
it's hiking trails. You know, some of them are very easy,
(11:55):
some of them are perfect for taking you know, the
little kids to Like Sleeping Bear has these wonderful walks
that you know, it's just a it's just you know,
a mile or less than a mile and easy to
take your kids to do that. Uh. And accessibility too,
you know, many many of our of our beaches and
our trails you know are very accessible. You've got you've
(12:17):
got accessible boat launches and kayak launches and you know
Sleeping Bear has a has has track wheelchairs. We have
a program in Benzie County which is in the Frankfurt
area where where they have volunteers that put you on
a special bike if you know, if mobility is an
(12:37):
issue with you and you can pedal, uh, you know
you have a volunteer that pedals you around these trails.
So you know, accessibility is something that is is very
much taking care of here also. But now hopefully that
that kind of sets the vibe of what we have,
the whole combination of the natural resources that are in
(12:59):
our area. In addition, because it is because it is
a regional hub and easy to get into it and
easy to have, the culinary scene that we have here
is incredible. We have we have a creative base here
that a town of sixteen thousand has no right to have.
(13:22):
But if you are creative and in that creativity could
be artists. It could be ai, it could be culinary,
it could be wine makers. I mean the whole gamut.
If you can do your work anywhere in the world,
and we really saw this during the pandemic. If you
could be your work anywhere in the world and you're
(13:43):
going to look in in I love big cities, don't
get me wrong. You can do this in the heart
of a big city with buildings all around you, or
if you're going to do it with a view of
Grand Travers Bay, creators are going to come to place
like Grand Vice Base. So that's why we see a
culinary scene here and again tied into the agriculture of
(14:06):
the region. And I hate to use the term, but
it is so appropriate, which is farm to table. And
I hate to use it because farm to table gets
overused to the point that it's lost its meaning. We
have a place called farm club, for example, This is
just one of many farm club. You literally can be
sitting at your table and ten feet away are the
(14:26):
crops that are growing that are going to be put
on your table that night. That is farm to table.
Plus they have they have a larger farm just a
quarter mile away from their restaurant where the weight. Staff
is required to work the farm because they need to
know what is growing today and being a harvested today
(14:49):
that's going to be produced and put on the table
that night. They actually helped produce it. That's farm. It's
amazing and we see that relationship around the area. So
a place, for example, called Moomour's ice Cream. Moomour's ice
Cream is literally on the farm, and if you go
there in the summer, you will see people lined up
around the that's not a block, it's because they're in
(15:11):
a farmer's field. Literally, you can see the cows that
produced the milk for the ice cream that you're having
that is farmed. The table, Well, it doesn't get to
the table because you're eating the ice cream before he
gets to the table. But they buy the boomers. By
the way, again, I'm going back to ABC Good Morning America.
Their viewers voted it as the best ice cream in America. Well,
(15:34):
it's because of that freshness that they bring, you know,
they'll put you know, they have so many of their
ice cream that have cherries in it. Wow, why would
you do that, because we're the cherry camp allot of
the world.
Speaker 1 (15:49):
Yeah, well all right, so you're jumping ahead on me.
Let's put a pin because we're going to talk about food.
I remember when we had you on before the culinary
scene and all the great rats. So we're going to
talk about that in a minute. But I want to
go back to the accessibility because we were talking offline
about a designation that you guys are working towards or
(16:10):
already have received. Let's you've achieved, all right, let's talk
about that, just because, as we were talking about before,
when people think accessibility, you're thinking about folks in a wheelchair,
and certainly that's part of it, but that's not the
entirety of it. So talk about that that designation.
Speaker 3 (16:27):
We have been identified as an autism friendly travel destination
uh and one and the first in the Midwest to
get that designation by an organization. Ib SS I believe
it is is the acronym for it, and what that
means is we had to get literally thousands of people
(16:49):
trained that are in the hospitality industry. And that could
be you know, food and beverage, it could be the
lodging partners. It certainly is traverse city tourism that understand
people with like sensory sensitivities and autism concerns. So, for example,
(17:10):
one of the things that we did, you have to
understand that Travers City Tourism is right off the bay.
It is in the middle of one of the biggest
festivals in the Midwest, of the National Cherry Festival, which
just ended last week, and so there's a lot of
hubbub down here. There's a lot of activity that's going here.
So when the Cherry festival's on, for example, they'll have
(17:31):
an air show and a quarter million people will be
here to watch the air show. Remember it's a town
of sixteen thousand, and you get a quarter million people
coming in to watch the air show. So we created
a comfort room, we created a quiet room. So what
we saw and what we continue to see, are people
who have especially sensory sensitivities or autism concerns where they
(17:56):
know that they can bring somebody in this room. And
we've seen the these kids especially come in to our
welcome center totally distressed and crying. They go into that
room for fifteen minutes half whatever they need and they
come out laughing and settle down, and that type of thing.
It's a matter of just an awareness more than anything else.
(18:19):
So you know, so for example, we've got museums or
lodging partners that are trained to become aware of this
and that yes, indeed, accessibility is not just mobility, it's
not just hearing, it's not just a vision. There are
so many areas of accessibility that we want to make
travel and you and I talked about the value of
(18:43):
travel and what it means to especially parents that have
their kids and the memories that they're going to create.
It needs to be available to everyone, whether it's accessibility
concerns or you know, LGBTQ plus all these other areas
that you know, we have to be a welcoming destination
(19:05):
to everyone. And I think that that's one of the
advantages that Traverse City has had is is there is
that recognition that this is this is a miraculous place.
It really is. We can't keep it to ourselves. We
have to share it to others.
Speaker 1 (19:22):
And well, we we say all the time that you know,
travel is for everybody. So it's it's an amazing commitment
on your town's part, you know, to train all the
people that you have to train just to be able
to to see folks that that you know probably feel
unseen at times. Right, So that is an amazing commitment
(19:44):
and I applaud you guys for doing that.
Speaker 3 (19:46):
It's been it's been an eye opening experience for not
just the people that travers city tourism, but for this community.
And and yes, we we got that designation about a
year ago. We're going to the re registration and the
retraining of that again. Uh and we're bringing on new
(20:07):
partners all the time that have trained their staff for that. Also,
it doesn't take that much, but it does take a
time commitment, and not everyone is good at doing that
time commitment.
Speaker 1 (20:18):
Sure, sure, well, and you know that kind of awareness
is not a destination, it's ongoing and it's great. It's
great that you guys are making that ongoing commitment. So yeah, yeah,
I bet so well, considering that this we're in the
middle of a series, you know, the best beach towns
(20:40):
in the US, which you guys are our only freshwater
beach town on our list, So that's that's an honor
in and of itself.
Speaker 3 (20:49):
By the way, right, we are the best.
Speaker 1 (20:54):
And humble. That's good. That's good. Well, let's talk about
beach activities. What beach activities are popular in your area?
Speaker 3 (21:04):
What do you want to do, because I mean, it's
it's anything. You know, it could be parasailing. Like I said,
I'm you know, I'm looking at the sailboats out in
front of my office right now. There goes the Discover Recruits.
It's a two decker you know, kind of a place
if you want to have a a bachelorette party or something,
you could do it there. You know. You know, one
(21:27):
of the areas that that we we don't spend a
lot of time talking about, but it's it's very popular
is fishing. You know, so you've got you've got some
phenomenal uh stream fishing, river fishing and year round too.
It's it's interesting to see. We had we had some
writers come in last winter and do a story about
(21:49):
about women and doing fly fishing in the winter, which
was a really cool story that they were working on.
You know. So so you know, any kind of fishing
activity and like I said earlier, you know, if you
want to get a charter boat to go out and
look for the big Lake Michigan co hoss you know,
easy to do and really you know, stand up panel boards, kayaking,
(22:13):
this you know, we we have we have a main
river that goes through Traverse City called Wardman River, and
several years ago they embarked and it used to be
it it used to be very much of a controlled
river because there are dams set up along the way. Well,
they they have been taking out all of the dams.
(22:34):
The last one is being worked on even as we speak,
right in the city. And it's a huge, multimillion dollar
project because they have to. They have to. They have
to create a new system of controlling because the fish
go up to spawn, so they have to control you know,
what what is what are the proper species of fish
(22:56):
to go up and what are invasive species. So so anyway,
what I'm getting to is, once they remove these dams,
you have got a river that is that is going
back to its natural state, which was one hundred and
fifty or plus years ago. And that means all of
a sudden, you've got these wonderful rapids for kayaking that
(23:20):
weren't there just a few years ago, and now they are.
And it's a blue ribbon of fishery, which means, you know,
you don't you don't have a lot of plant to fish,
and these are these are fish that are they're going
to have some fight in them is my understanding of
what you mean by a blue ribbon fishery. So so
(23:41):
you've got that going on. But yes, you know kayaking,
we have, you know, one of the cool one of
the cool things that we have as a kayak bike
and brew uh which they have kayaking biking and then
stopping at breweries. So you're hoping at kayak and you
go down the Boardman River and then you stop at
right Brain Brewery and you have a wait for it,
(24:05):
wait for it, you have a whole cherry pie brew Yes,
they have that, and quite frankly, it's really very good
and it's a seasonal thing. It's only available in the summer,
but you know, it's part of it's part of the
water and part of the Traverse City experience to be
able to do something like that. And then yes, you're
(24:27):
you're hopping on a bike and you're you're going on
one of the trails. They just there is a Boardman Lake,
which in any other city would be the center of
the city, but because we have Grand Travers Bay in
Lake Michigan, it's kind of the forgotten lake, right. But
last year they put in they invested eight million dollars
(24:48):
and finished up the Boardman Lake Loop, which is about
a four mile loop around the lake. Absolutely gorgeous and
it's an easy bike ride. And yes it goes right
next to Right Brain Brewery, so that you know, that's
you know, uh so that's part of the experience here. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (25:08):
Well, for our fishermen that are in the audience, what
kinds of fish are you fishing for in the area.
Speaker 3 (25:15):
Don't stunt me on that too much. But but you're
you're you know, you're talking about trout. You're talking about
you know, salmon, especially coho salmon.
Speaker 2 (25:24):
Uh.
Speaker 3 (25:25):
And there there's a bunch of others that yeah, you know,
I am It's been years since I've done any fishing, gotcha.
But yeah, you know those are going to be your
and and the other thing too, you know. The other
restaurant fish is whitefish. Uh Okay, that's being caught in
the Great Lakes. But you know, any any restaurant that
(25:47):
you're going to hear, you know, that is going to
be the mainstay of of the of the fish that
are going to be in the restaurant as whitefish. And
it's it's a very tender, mild type of fish that
that is excellent.
Speaker 1 (26:01):
We should not do this around dinner time.
Speaker 3 (26:04):
I hear you're talking.
Speaker 1 (26:05):
Yeah, well, that's an excellent segue to get back in
the conversation about the food scene. Let's talk about some
of the restaurants in the area that families absolutely have
to try. And we got to go back to ice
cream as well, because I want to talk about the
ice cream flights. I remember that from last time, So
(26:26):
talk about the restaurants.
Speaker 3 (26:28):
All right. So let me preface this by saying, the
whole food and wine scene here really has been our
story in the last few years, and I'm convinced it's
going to be our story over the next decade plus,
especially as we see climate changes. It is having an
(26:49):
impact here. But what is happening is it's moderating our winters.
It's creating a longer growing season. So an area that
was just known for white wines, for example, now it's
getting some renowned for red wines. So let me preface
this by saying, one of the brand new things that
(27:09):
your audience might want to be aware of is Traver
City food and wine. So coming up in August, you
are going to see August twentieth through twenty fourth, our
first ever Travers City Food and Wine. So that is
(27:29):
it's about fifty different events. Again, the mainstay is going
to be across the street from me. It's what's called
the open Space, and you are going to have top
known chefs like Tyler Florence from the Food Network is
going to be here, and a bunch of others that
have some renown, and there's going to be anywhere from
(27:50):
small intimate dinners with them and wine pairing to this
huge event that's going to be in the open Space
where yes, there will be interviews with with top chefs,
there will be food bites and wine tasting and wine
experts talking about that combination. So it really becomes a
celebration of the whole food and wine culture that we
(28:15):
have seen spring up here in the last fifty plus
years and a way to celebrate what that culture that
you and I have already been talking about. So yeah,
it's going to be you know, it's gonna be the
first year for it, and it's something that Travers City
tourism is behind, and yet really the best way to
find out more about that is to go to Travers
(28:35):
Cityfood and Wind and spelled out food and Wine dot
com to find out more and like I say, it's
an exhaustive list of fifty different events that are going on.
First year we've done it, it looks like it's going
to be a fantastic event. But what is happening is
going back to you know. All right, so what you're
talking about is is what are the good restaurants? Okay, yes,
(29:00):
it all depends what you.
Speaker 1 (29:02):
Want, you know, let's just assume I want all of it.
Speaker 3 (29:05):
So okay, all right, so let's start. Let's start off
with because because because I know what you do, you
get paid a lot of money for what you do.
So let's start off with the.
Speaker 1 (29:15):
Highway do hang on?
Speaker 3 (29:17):
Hang on?
Speaker 1 (29:18):
Somebody else is getting the money.
Speaker 3 (29:21):
Oh well, so you know there are plenty of restaurants
here that that you know are going to be more elegant.
You know. We've got area which is the top of
Grand Travers Resort and spat. It's it's the tallest building
in the area, goes up sixteen stories and you can
see both east and west Grand Trivers. May The food
food is excellent. You've got a place like a boat
(29:42):
House which is out on Old Mission Peninsula right on
the water, specializes in a lot of seafood, but but
more than that. So you've got the higher end restaurants,
and then you have got you know, the middle of
the road ones. You know what we talked about with
Farm Club, which is is really unique and just kind
(30:05):
of a fun place. And then you've got a place,
you know like Jacob's Farm, which serves up pizza and
it literally is on the farm and the pizza is
great and they usually have live music throughout the summer
and you take your kids and your kids can go
there to the playground and you're having a pizza and
(30:25):
a beer and and enjoying enjoying the outdoors and listening
to to some great music. Then you have the whole
food truck scene, and you've got a place called the
Little Fleet that has multiple food trucks that have you know,
it's it's Asian cooking. It is you know, ribs and
(30:46):
things like that. You know, a variety of different food
trucks that are out there. And and then you've got
lots of different places downtown like I'm a Call that
that you know just you know, it has a French background,
but as really it has expanded their their menu and
it just has this cool downtown vibe, a cool downtown atmosphere.
(31:10):
An artisan at DeLamar, which is right on the water
on Grand Triver's Bay, that is really striving to up there.
Up there not only the food quality but their service
and every time you go there, their service is just phenomenal.
So and then you've got you know, you've got the
bars that have unique type of food too. You know,
(31:31):
you have got Little Bows and you know so many
other places that have unique kind of food. Really, uh,
for a town this size to have the variety that
we have unheard of. But when when in the summer,
(31:53):
you know you're bringing in a quarter million people for
the air show, you know those restaurants are going to
be full. But let me tell you at you know,
some of the best travel time is in our shoulder seasons.
So you know, if your kids aren't going in school.
You know, one of my favorite times to to to
encourage people to come here family or friends is like September.
(32:14):
You know, you've got there starting to change colors, the
kids are siff. You know, if you don't have kids,
this is the place, this is the place to come
and come here the springtime, which again, you know, if
kids are in school, you know, you're having to stay home.
But you've got two million cherry trees that are sprouting blossoms,
and you don't have those those big crowds. You know,
(32:35):
it's easier to get a reservation. You go into a
winery and you do a wine tasting, and you meet
with with the wine makers and they have time to
tell you about what makes their wine different. So those
shoulder seasons are really great times to travel. You know,
we're you know, typically the fall color is here, you know,
(32:56):
in the September beginning of October eight. You kind of
have to time it careful. Same as in the springtime
when the blossoms are hitting. You kind of have to
time it carefully because it's so dependent upon the amount
of rain that you get, you know, has the wind
to come through and knock the leaves off the trees
and that type of thing. But it's worth the effort
(33:16):
and when people come up with experience those change of seasons,
it's an experience you don't forget.
Speaker 1 (33:23):
Yeah, well, I know you guys do a couple festivals
in the area. Since we're focusing on summer, let's talk
about that areas that time of year specifically. But what
about what are the festivals or summer events that you
guys have going on that's kind of tied to the
beach community.
Speaker 3 (33:42):
Well, you know, the biggest one just ended, so playing
your trip for next year, and that's the National Cherry Festival.
The National Cherry Festival is one of the biggest festivals
in the Midwest. It's an eight day event. This year
we celebrated the ninety ninth year for the National Cherry Festival.
So if my Catholic school math is correct, that means
(34:03):
next year is the oh, one hundredth anniversary of the
National and it will fall on the two hundred and
fiftieth anniversary of the founding of America. Okay, so you
know it will be a huge event, and it always is.
So it's a matter of you know, like like I
(34:25):
told you earlier, an air show, several different parades, concerts
that will take place, and contests like wait for it,
wait for it, cherry pie eating contest, cherry pitts fitting contest.
You know, next year they will have they will have
a bed race downtown Traverse City. You'll have a milk
(34:47):
carton boat regatta on the Bay. You know, just and
I believe eighty percent of those events that they have
are free. So yes, it's already happened. It happened just
recently here. But to plan to come to it next year, yeah,
it'll it'll be worth the effort. So there are a
number of other festivals throughout throughout the region. Uh you
(35:10):
know again, some of them have already taken place because
you know, they're usually earlier in the in the in
the season, then later in the season because it just
gets too busy to bring in another quarter million people. Right,
But you know you've got things like the Mushroom Festival.
You've got the co Hoo Festival in in Honor. That's
(35:32):
that's a fall event that takes place. Uh. So there
there's and and and in addition to the festivals, you've
also got you know, you've got events that are taking place,
like we have we have an Ironman competition a little
take place in Frankfurt, So you and I should be
(35:52):
participating in that this year because it's.
Speaker 1 (35:55):
That's that's after the goat yoga, right yeah.
Speaker 3 (35:58):
And it's a it's a half marrion and uh you know,
a swim and and the bike race you know, all
rolled into one. But it brings world class athletes to
this area. And you know, sporting events are just you know,
just a part of the attraction here too. For example,
this is this is considered hockey town North and if
(36:21):
there are any hockey fans down in your area, uh,
you know, this is the the summer. This is the
training camp for the Detroit Red Wings. Okay, and and
so so you know, come right before the season starts.
The Red Wings are here and they've got their prospects
(36:42):
coming here and and it's it's great hockey if you
love hockey coming here in the in the in the
you know, the September when the training camp is going,
it's it's it's a unique experience. So yeah, So as
far as festivals go, yeah, you know the summer festivals,
the National Cherry FESTI well, really is the big one.
There are others that are taking place throughout the area,
(37:03):
but that really is the big one.
Speaker 1 (37:07):
Well, what's your favorite summer memory from the time that
you spent in the area, maybe with family, maybe maybe not.
What's your favorite summer memory.
Speaker 3 (37:18):
Oh, you're getting personal now, aren't you.
Speaker 1 (37:20):
Yeah. Oh, I've got to put you on the spot.
Speaker 3 (37:25):
For me, it would be camping, okay for me, as
a kid. You know, we came from a very blue
collar background. My parents didn't have a lot of money,
and my dad would work all year long to be
able to come up to Traverse City State Park a
Travers City, yes, Travis City State Park, and we would
(37:48):
spend a week here. And we lived in the Detroit
area at that time. And to the point that with
my own kids when I moved here that with my
own kids, camping was was really phenomenal. And yes, we
would go to Traver City State Park, or we would
(38:09):
go to other areas throughout northern Michigan and sometimes even
into Canada and and just to sit at a campsite
and be able to make a campfire and smell the
campfire and the aromas and realized that the beach is
just a few feet away. You know, we still have
(38:30):
that and we have plenty of our members that you
know timber Ridge, for example, that you know, sometimes there
are cabins, sometimes it's camping. But for me, being able
to access everything that Traverse City had to offer, that
(38:50):
was very accessible to us. And you know, the camping
experience for me was one that was remarkable and memorable.
Speaker 1 (38:59):
And I'm sure you have so many memories from that
time that have stuck with you your entire life.
Speaker 3 (39:05):
Yeah, you and I talked off off the air about
you know, that's what we create, right with travel, create
these memories that that never leave you. I I you know,
as we talk, I can still smell the campfire right right,
and and the memory of that, and it creates this
(39:26):
warm glow within you. And and I know my kids
shared the same thing. You know, my kids were involved
in boy scouting and they you know, it opened up
all kinds of camping and outdoor experiences for them, hiking
and you know, hitting trails and doing environmental things too.
(39:48):
It stays with you, It stays with you.
Speaker 1 (39:51):
Yeah. Well, wrapping it up, what's one thing, just one
thing that every first time visitor should do before they
leave town.
Speaker 3 (40:04):
You need to walk in downtown Traverse City and take
it all in. Okay, Okay, And even if you don't
like shopping, it doesn't matter. I mean it's a shopping district, sure,
but you know, incredible restaurants, a bunch of you know,
beverage tourism things, whether it's wine tasting or distilleries or breweries,
(40:32):
you know, coffee shops. You know you're gonna find it there.
And because we're the cherry Did I mentioned we're the
cherry capital of the world. Because we're the.
Speaker 1 (40:41):
Cherry let's say, I'll have to go back and listen.
I think you did mention that once or twice.
Speaker 3 (40:45):
But yes, because of that, you can go to a
place like Cherry Republic. Cherry Republic has over two hundred
cherry products, whether it's chocolate covered cherries or cherry wine.
You know, I love that They've got a cherry concentrate
that I will put on ice cream. And you know, Okay,
(41:08):
if there's something made of cherries, you're gonna find it
at Cherry Republic, you know. Or go to Grand Travers
Pie and what would you get at Grand Trevor's Pie. Oh,
I'm thinking like a cherry pie, right, you.
Speaker 1 (41:24):
Know, right right?
Speaker 3 (41:26):
You got to take take a while to slow down. Yeah,
take a while, and you know, if there is a
scenic stop, take it. You know, we have we have
these scenic roads like M twenty two that goes around
the leland Off Peninsula. We have we have an old
Mission of Peninsula Drive that you know, it's it's about
(41:47):
a fifteen minute, fifteen mile drive. It's going to take him,
you know, a long time to do that drive, because
there are so many scenic routes scenic stops that you
really should take in. You can get from point A
to point B very quickly around here, but don't slow down,
(42:08):
enjoy the enjoy the moment we mentioned sleeping there. I mean, yes,
there are. You know you've got the pure stocking scenic drive.
Take it and take every single stop along the way
because each one of those scenic views are worth taking
a look at and and getting a picture of it
(42:29):
and taking a picture of your kids at it, because
you will remember that. So I guess that's what I
would say is slow down.
Speaker 1 (42:39):
Enjoy it.
Speaker 3 (42:41):
Maybe spend an extra day if you can. If you can't,
that's fine. Just just take in everything and don't be
so worried about getting to this and this and this right,
but enjoy each of those experiences along the way and
take as much time. So you know, we we we
talked about the experiences at the winery. Uh well, I
don't know if we've ever talked about jazz at sunset?
(43:02):
Have we?
Speaker 1 (43:05):
I don't know that we have.
Speaker 3 (43:06):
Okay, So shautoshin Tel is this beautiful winery on Old
Mission Peninsula, and they've got this world class jazz musician,
Jeff Haes. And on Thursdays in the summer, he's got
this trio of jazz musicians. And you're sitting there drinking
this award winning wine, watching the sunset over Grand Travers
(43:30):
Bay and Power Island and Jeff Hawes is playing jazz music.
You've got to enjoy it. You've got it. You know,
you can't be in a hurry to experience that. You've
got to sit down, relax and enjoy it. And I
guess that's the message I would say is you don't
have to take it all in on one trip, plan
(43:51):
on coming back another time, but get the full out
of every one of the stops along the way because
it's a remarkable area. It has so much to do
and you know, and and such a variety of things
to do. You know, if you just want to sit
at the beach and you know, put your toes in
in some really nice sand and you know, soak in
(44:13):
some sun, you can do that. You know, if you
want to go on an aggressive bike ride, you know,
that's hundreds of miles you can do that. There was
a little something for everyone in this area and find
out what you want to do. Uh. You know the
one stop, the best stop to go to is traversity
dot com. Uh, it is our website that is just
(44:36):
packed full of information. So that would be my encouragement.
Slow down, take full advantage because you are going to
leave here with an experience that you won't soon forget.
Speaker 1 (44:48):
Well, that is great advice, Mike. Always a pleasure. Thank
you so much for joining us again, and thank you
so much for your time.
Speaker 3 (44:55):
It's been a total joy. Thank you very much.
Speaker 1 (44:57):
Whether it's families climbing the dow, watching the sunset from
Clinch Park Beach, are just enjoying a good cherry ice
cream cone, Traverse City really delivers something memorable for every
kind of traveler. If you'd like to learn more about
Traverse City or you want to start planning your own
summer escape to northern Michigan, you'll find links and resources
(45:19):
in our show notes. And as always, if you're enjoying
this series on America's best beach towns, be sure to
subscribe to the Family Vacationer, leave us a rating wherever
you listen to your podcast, and follow us on Instagram
at the Family Vacationer or on substack for more travel tips,
destination guides, and behind the scenes content. Remember, folks, to
(45:41):
keep your passports and your hearts open. Save travels everyone.
I've got it.
Speaker 2 (45:56):
Places in the hotel staces is I'm using the park
rids and water slides.
Speaker 1 (46:04):
Mountain ranges and seasonal changes.
Speaker 3 (46:08):
I'm here to serve.
Speaker 2 (46:10):
I'm the family vacationers.
Speaker 3 (46:16):
I've got skin full on other beach places and hotel spaces.
Speaker 2 (46:23):
Amusement park rats and water slides, mountain ranges and seasonal changes.
Speaker 3 (46:31):
I'm here to serve.
Speaker 2 (46:32):
I'm the family vacationers, your family vacationer, your family vacation.
Speaker 1 (46:45):
Now day, I've got to let me want to see
a frame. It's this isn't
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