Weekend Getaway | Guide to Traverse City, MI

This summer has been low-key while Jake studied for the bar. At the end of July to celebrate the end of his bar exam, we went on a little getaway! I wanted to go to a nice little beach town to really get away for the weekend and overwhelmingly people suggested Traverse City, Michigan. I couldn't be more happy with our decision! It was the perfect beach town, had delicious food and was the most beautiful drive up from Chicago. 

If you want a cute little getaway, here's our guide to Traverse City. 

We arrived at midnight on Friday night so we didn't get to do anything until the next morning. On Saturday we woke up and Googled the top breakfast spots in Traverse City. We decided to go with Green House Cafe. Best decision ever. If you go, expect a wait, but trust me it is so worth it. I got the baked potato omelette, which was so interesting! It was potatoes, bacon, green scallions, sour cream, and cheese in an omelette. Soooo yummy. Jake got the eggs Benedict, which he loved too! Oh and the orange juice was sooo good! I got a small and that is my one regret on the weekend- definitely get the large. 

Baked potato omelette with cinnamon toast, fruit and an almost eaten blueberry muffin

Baked potato omelette with cinnamon toast, fruit and an almost eaten blueberry muffin

Eggs Benedict with sauce on the side; hash browns

Eggs Benedict with sauce on the side; hash browns

After breakfast, we walked around the downtown area for a while. The town is the cutest thing I've seen and has the most adorable shops. Me being me I decided to best spend my money at Kilwins chocolate shop where I bought salt water taffy, fudge, chocolate covered Oreos and a few chocolate truffles. Worth the $50. 

After walking downtown, we decided to head to the beach. We needed to stop back at our Airbnb to grab sunscreen and thankfully we ran into our host who suggested we drive up to Good Harbor Bay to go to the beach instead of going to the touristy ones in Traverse City. Again, a great decision to listen to her. The beach was gorgeous and there were really only locals there and they were all spread out so we it almost felt like we had a private beach. We spent the rest of the day there.

Conveniently when at the beach, my friend recommended I go to LeLand for dinner if I had the chance. LeLand was only a 10-15 minute drive from the beach so Jake and I decided to just go for it. We got to LeLand a little early for our reservation so we went to Veretta Winery for a quick wine tasting. I loved every wine I tried and Jake and I decided to purchase a bottle of the Pinot Blanc to enjoy back home and remember our trip (we do this for most of our little trips now!). After walking around the little town, it was time for dinner at The Cove. It was honestly one of the best meals I've had in a while. The french fries are amazing, for future reference. I was torn between scallops and steak, and the waitress was able to get me a steak and two scallops on the side! 

While walking around the town, we saw multiple people carrying ice cream with  m&m crusted waffle cones. After dinner, it was my mission to find it. I finally found the ice cream at Harbor House. I got a cherry ice cream (cherries are popular in upstate Michigan) with the m&m cone. Jake and I watched the sunset across the lake while eating ice cream and it was the most perfect moment ever.

We drove back to Traverse City that night and the next morning we tried Brew for breakfast, another great Google recommendation. We didn't eat too much for breakfast because we wanted to fit in Little Fleet for lunch before driving back. Little Fleet is a collection of food trucks and a bar in downtown Traverse City. I decided to go with a cherry smoothie bowl and Jake got barbecue. It was the perfect ending to our little trip. 

We headed back to Chicago around noon, but I'm still thinking about that little trip and how badly I want to go back! 

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Our Trip Summary:

travelCami Fannin