We Ranked Every Major Beach in Michigan - Here Are the Top 25!

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Somewhere along the way, Michigan got overlooked as a beach destination. I don’t totally understand it, but I suspect Florida has great marketing.

The craziest thing (that most people don’t know) is that Lake Michigan in July is turquoise. The kind of turquoise that makes you double-check you’re still in the Midwest.

The dunes at Sleeping Bear are legitimately massive. Oval Beach in Saugatuck shows up on national “best beaches” lists next to places in Hawaii.

And the Upper Peninsula has beaches so remote and dramatic that if you showed someone a photo without context, they’d probably guess Iceland.

Michigan has nearly 3,300 miles of Great Lakes shoreline. More than any other state except Alaska. We have been collectively sleeping on this.

Let’s jump into the best beaches in the state:

25. Petoskey State Park Beach

Most people who show up here stay way longer than they planned.

The beach itself is nice, the water on Little Traverse Bay is lovely in summer, but the real reason people lose track of time is the Petoskey stones.

These are fossilized coral pieces, around 350 million years old, that wash up along the shoreline constantly. When dry, they look like ordinary rocks. Wet them and a honeycomb pattern shows up.

Once you know what you’re looking for, you’ll be scanning the waterline for an hour without noticing.

Here, you’ll find a sandy beach with some rocky patches. It’s busy in peak summer but manageable.

Where To Stay Near Petoskey: Courtyard by Marriott Petoskey

24. Tawas Point State Park Beach

People have been calling this the Cape Cod of the Midwest for years, and honestly the comparison isn’t too crazy.

It’s a narrow sand spit curling out into Lake Huron with a historic lighthouse at the tip, calm shallow water on the bay side, and open lake on the other. It has a windswept, coastal feel that doesn’t quite feel like Michigan.

The bay side is where most people swim because the water is warmer and shallower.

Hundreds of bird species move through here during spring and fall migration, which makes it a genuine destination for that crowd too.

Lake Huron gets so much less attention than Lake Michigan does for beaches, and in my opinion, that’s a gift for anyone who knows about Tawas.

23. Empire Beach

Empire is the quieter, lower-key door into the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.

Pull off in the town of Empire, walk down to the beach access, and you’re looking at the same water color as the more famous spots in the park, with none of the parking chaos and crowds.

The town is tiny. There’s ice cream. And the dunes are visible in the background.

We think this is the best option if you want the Sleeping Bear vibe without committing to the full dune climb situation.

22. Warren Dunes State Park

This is the Lake Michigan beach for Chicagoans. The park is about 90 minutes from downtown Chicago, and on a summer weekend the parking reflects that.

Get there early or prepare for a long wait.

Once you’re in, Tower Hill rises about 260 feet above the lake. On a clear day you can see the Chicago skyline across the water, which is certainly one of those things I love about this stretch of the coast.

The dune climb is brutal, but everyone does it anyway.

21. Tunnel Park, Holland

The gimmick here is real and genuinely fun. There’s a concrete tunnel bored straight through a sand dune that takes you out to the Lake Michigan beach.

You walk into the dark for a moment and come out on the other side to wide open sand and the lake in front of you. It’s been there since the late 1920s.

It sounds like a novelty, and it is, but the beach on the other side is great. It’s wide, clean, family-friendly, with volleyball courts and a good playground.

If we’re in the Holland area, this is where we’d spend the afternoon.

Where To Stay Near Holland: SpringHill Suites by Marriott Holland

20. Muskegon State Park Beach

Muskegon is where you go when Holland and Saugatuck feel too crowded. The beach here is Lake Michigan, and the whole park has a more rugged feel than the beaches further south on the coast.

It’s less polished. I personally love that about it.

The crowds are more manageable, which is the main reason families keep coming back.

Muskegon as a city has also been coming into its own lately if you want more than just a beach day.

Where To Stay Near Muskegon: Delta Hotels by Marriott Muskegon

19. North Beach Park, Grand Haven

Grand Haven fully commits to the beach town identity. The pier is iconic. The red lighthouse at the end of it is one of the most photographed spots on Lake Michigan.

Sunsets here are genuinely ridiculous, and we mean that as a compliment.

North Beach Park is the main public beach and it delivers: wide, sandy, well-maintained.

A boardwalk connects it to downtown so you can walk to dinner without touching your car.

We’ve found ourselves planning to stay for three hours but staying for the sunset.

Where To Stay Near Grand Haven: Harbor House Inn

Quick Links: What To Pack for Minnesota

Bug spray (nontoxic recommendation)
Moisture-wicking layers (women, men)
A waterproof outer shell (women, men)
Water shoes or sandals for lake days (women, men)
A dry bag or waterproof pouch (recommendation)
Sunscreen (nontoxic recommendation)

18. Point Betsie Lighthouse Beach

Near Frankfort, and probably the most photographed lighthouse in Michigan. It sits right at the waterline with nothing between it and the lake, which makes it dramatic in every season.

You’ll find wildflowers in summer with magical colors at sunset.

Parking is limited and the beach access is small, so this isn’t a full beach day. As a detour off M-22, though, it’s hard to beat.

17. Silver Lake Sand Dunes

This stretch is unusual by Lake Michigan standards. Silver Lake State Park has a designated ORV area where people bring dune buggies and ATVs out onto the sand.

You genuinely don’t see that anywhere else on the lake.

If that’s not your thing, the non-motorized dune area and the beach access on the Lake Michigan side are still spectacular.

The scale of the dunes rivals anything at Sleeping Bear, and we think less famous genuinely means lighter crowds here.

16. Ludington State Park Beach

Ludington is the full Michigan state park package.

There’s Lake Michigan beach, two inland lakes to swim in, and the Big Sable Point Lighthouse sitting at the end of a nearly 2-mile trail through the dunes.

Hiking out to that lighthouse and cooling off in Hamlin Lake on the way back is one of those perfect Michigan summer days I keep hearing about from people who’ve done it.

The park is big enough that you can usually find a stretch of beach that feels uncrowded even when the campground fills up.

Where To Stay Near Ludington: The Fresh Coast Inn at Ludington

15. Oval Beach, Saugatuck

National Geographic put this in their top two freshwater beaches in the country. Condé Nast put it in their top 25 beaches in the world.

Both rankings are earned, in our opinion .

The beach is wide and sandy with tall dunes behind it. Lifeguards, concessions, the whole setup.

Saugatuck itself is an arts town with good restaurants and galleries. This is the rare beach where the surrounding town makes the whole trip better, so make sure to save time for more than the beach.

If we’ve never pushed you to go to Saugatuck before, consider this the push.

14. Fisherman’s Island State Park

This state park is six miles of Lake Michigan shoreline south of Charlevoix, and most people have never heard of it.

The park is named for a small island just offshore. The shoreline is a mix of sandy stretches and pebbled coves with cedar shade.

Petoskey stones wash up here the same way they do up at #25. Fall is the best time for stone hunting, when the crowds have cleared out and the leaves are turning.

This is my favorite type of Michigan beach. A little rough, very quiet, and very beautiful.

13. Miners Beach, Pictured Rocks

Fair warning up front: Lake Superior is cold. Even in August, this is a wade-in situation for most people, not a full swim.

But that’s not the reason to come.

Miners Beach sits inside Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore near Munising. The color of the water against those mineral-stained sandstone cliffs is incredible. It’s hard to believe this is the Midwest!

Walk the Miners Castle overlook, come down to the beach, and pack a lunch. But again, don’t expect a swim.

12. Bay View Beach, Elk Rapids

This one almost didn’t make the list because it’s on Elk Lake, not Lake Michigan.

But the water clarity and color in summer is on par with the best freshwater swimming in the state, and Elk Lake runs warmer than Lake Michigan, which means you can get in without almost dying.

It’s a small beach with limited parking, which keeps things manageable.

It’s a locals’ pick in the Traverse City area, and in my experience, locals tend to get these calls right.

11. Traverse City Beaches (West Arm, Grand Traverse Bay)

The water on the west arm of Grand Traverse Bay gets genuinely warm by July.

We’re talking comfortable swimming, not the brace-yourself Lake Michigan experience. That alone sets the Traverse City beach scene apart from a lot of what’s on this list.

Clinch Park is the main in-town access point. The town around it makes this beach extra special; you can walk from the beach to downtown for lunch or dinner, which isn’t something you can say about most places here.

East arm or west arm, Traverse City is one of the best beach towns in Michigan.

10. Presque Isle Park Beach, Marquette

Presque Isle Park sits on a peninsula jutting into Lake Superior just north of downtown Marquette.

Rocky in spots but with swimming access, and the sheer scale of Superior out there makes the Great Lakes feel appropriately enormous.

Mike and I think this works best as part of a broader Marquette trip. You’ll find good food, a solid craft beer scene, and the best kind of small-city energy.

The beach is part of the package, not the only reason to go.

9. Van Buren State Park Beach

The dune overlook here is the thing.

You climb up and you can see the full sweep of the Lake Michigan shoreline in both directions, and it’s the kind of view that makes you just.. stop and stand there for a minute without saying anything.

The beach itself is a solid Lake Michigan stretch in the South Haven area. South Haven has a lighthouse and a waterfront that doesn’t feel overdone.

Pair the beach with dinner in town and it’s a very easy, very good day.

8. Arcadia Overlook and Beach

Drivers heading north on M-22 between Manistee and Frankfort almost always blow right past Arcadia. Don’t be that person!

There’s an overlook here with a wooden staircase up to a platform with 360-degree views of Lake Michigan.

The first time I came across photos of this online, I genuinely couldn’t figure out how it wasn’t more famous.

The beach below is quiet. Usually just a handful of people even on summer weekends.

You’ll feel slightly smug about knowing it exists.

7. Whitefish Bay Beach, Paradise (Upper Peninsula)

If you’re doing a real Upper Peninsula road trip, Paradise goes on the itinerary.

Most people come through for Tahquamenon Falls, which is worth it. The beach access on Whitefish Bay has a completely different character from anything on Lake Michigan, though.

It’s cold and it’s wild. The scale of Lake Superior is more apparent here than almost anywhere else Mike and I have seen it.

That deep Superior blue doesn’t look like the other Great Lakes. If you want a beach that feels remote and a little humbling, this is the one.

6. Holland State Park Beach

This is the Red Lighthouse beach.

There’s a decent chance that if you’ve ever seen a photo of Michigan that made you want to visit, the Holland State Park pier and lighthouse was somewhere in it.

The beach is excellent. It’s wide, sandy, and well-maintained with lifeguards in summer.

The bright red lighthouse at the end of the pier against the Lake Michigan horizon is hard to photograph badly.

Parking gets rough in peak summer, so go early and stay for sunset.

5. Sleeping Bear: Glen Haven and Platte River Beaches

You don’t have to do the dune climb to get the full Sleeping Bear experience.

The Glen Haven area has beach access with views across the Manitou Passage to North and South Manitou Islands.

And the Platte River mouth is one of the best swimming spots in the whole Lakeshore. Both are inside the National Lakeshore boundary. Both are worth full days.

4. Saugatuck Dunes State Park Beach

Oval Beach at #15 is famous. Saugatuck Dunes State Park is about two miles north and most visitors drive right past the entrance.

The hike to the beach is short (under a mile on the Beach Trail) and you come out on a long, wide stretch of Lake Michigan shoreline that’s almost always less crowded than Oval.

The dunes are dramatic and forested at the edges. There are no lifeguards or concessions. Just a really good Lake Michigan beach that most people miss.

3. Chapel Beach, Pictured Rocks

Getting here takes a real commitment.

The Chapel Loop trail is about 10 miles and takes you past Chapel Falls and Chapel Rock before it drops you onto one of the most remote stretches of beach in the Midwest.

Lake Superior here is cold and clear. The Pictured Rocks cliffs are visible from the waterline.

You’ll likely have a long stretch of this beach entirely to yourself, which doesn’t happen often at a place this beautiful.

Bring everything you need because you won’t find any amenities here.

2. Old Mission Peninsula Beaches (Grand Traverse Bay East Arm)

The east arm of Grand Traverse Bay, accessed from the Old Mission Peninsula north of Traverse City, has some of the best swimming in northern Michigan.

The bay is sheltered enough that the water gets genuinely warm by late summer, and the clarity is remarkable for a Great Lakes bay this size.

Haserot Beach is the main public access point. The drive up the peninsula through cherry orchards and vineyard rows is also half the experience.

If you’ve spent time in Traverse City and haven’t made it out to Old Mission, you’ve been missing what we think is the best part.

1. Sleeping Bear Dunes: The Dune Climb Beach

The Dune Climb is a 284-foot wall of sand that looks like a manageable hike and is not.

Getting to the top takes about 20 minutes if you’re in decent shape. Coming back up from the lake, after you’ve hiked the 3.5 miles down to the water, takes everything you have left.

That beach at the bottom of the hike, though.

The water is turquoise in a way that makes no sense for the Great Lakes while the dunes tower behind you.

There’s essentially nothing around except other exhausted people who also made the trip and can’t stop talking about it.

The round trip is about 7 miles. Bring more water than you think you need.

Michigan keeps surprising people who write it off as a flyover beach state.

Turquoise water, massive sand dunes, remote Upper Peninsula shorelines, and some of the best freshwater swimming in the world.. what else could you want?

The crowds in July and August are definitely there, especially at the well-known ones, but you should still go, and go early in the morning.

If I had to pick one for you to do first, it’s Sleeping Bear. But any on this list are bound to satisfy!

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