Wander Southwest Michigan Like a Local

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After meeting a Michigan man during my travels in Vietnam, I found myself living in a very small town in southwest Michigan. As a Californian, all I knew of Michigan was Detroit, Eminem and Flint, so when I first came to visit, I was blown away by the beauty of southwest Michigan.

Southwest Michigan is a real gem right on the coast of the 5th largest lake in the world. Lake Michigan looks like the ocean, there’s no end in sight, although legend has it on a clear day you can see Chicago across the lake. The area is touristy from June through September, with trendy markets, cafes and cool events mixed in with small downtowns, local breweries, farmland, wine tasting and local diners.

When I moved out here, I raved about the area so much that my friends and family wanted to come out and see it. So this guide started as a resource for them. But let me know what I’ve missed!

How to get to Southwest Michigan?

If it’s too far to drive, you have a few flight options.

Chicago Airports: Chicago is 70 miles from Southwest Michigan and gives you two airports to choose from: Midway and O’Hare. It usually takes about 1.5 hours, but traffic through the city can affect that.
South Bend: The small airport is more expensive and has less airline options but is more convenient. South Bend, Indiana is an easy 40-minute drive to most places in Southwest Michigan.
Grand Rapids: This medium-sized airport is no more than 100 miles and give you the option to explore a Michigan cool college-town.

Where to Stay?

Skip the hotels and get a short-term rental or camp. There aren’t many hotels in the area, and the ones that are here are more for business travelers. Hotels don’t give as good of an experience compared to rentals or camping. Anywhere from St. Joseph to New Buffalo and inland are good areas to stay.

Travel Tip: My family stayed in a Bluefish rental in Union Pier that came with access to a private beach, worth looking into.

Local camping options:

Weko Beach Campgrounds: a mix of cabin and tent camping a short walk from the beach.
Warren Dunes State Park: A state park with shoreline and a few campgrounds.

Cities & Villages of Southwest Michigan

Most of the cities and village in Southwest Michigan are small with their own 1 or 2 block downtowns with at least one restaurant and bar. They are spaced about 5 miles from one another with farmland in between. As someone not from the Midwest or a small, rural area, these are so cute and quaint to me. The drives in-between provide a cool look into real country living and you’ll definitely find some U-picks, antique shops and farm stands worth stopping at along the way.

Local Tip: when driving from place to place, avoid Highway 94 and take Red Arrow Highway instead. The scenery is better.

Baroda

A small village with a 2 block downtown with a breakfast spot, restaurant and dive bar. Red Barn Brewery and Public House is a great place for some grub and a drink.

Bridgman

My current hometown. A city by the lake with a larger downtown and one of my favorite beaches, Weko Beach.

New Buffalo

The first city you hit crossing the border from Indiana to Michigan and a major tourist destination for people from Illinois and Indiana. Cool downtown with shops, a boat marina and restaurants.

Sawyer

A very small area with a cute 1-block downtown that has a new brewery and a cool market/flower nursery.

St. Joseph

The largest city in Southwest Michigan and the tourism center, St. Joseph has shops, parks, beaches, restaurants and more. Worth taking a few hours to walk down State Street stopping at some of the stores (my favorites are the Olive Cart and G&M Variety Store). Also stroll along the bluff, overlooking the lake. They have markets up there too, see when they are here.

You can rent regular bikes and surrey bikes (think self-peddling gold carts) to ride around in St. Joseph.

Stevensville

A small village with a cute 1-block downtown. Watermark Brewery is a popular local watering hole with outdoor seating, live music and other events.

Union Pier

Another very small, touristy area with a nice 1-block downtown and access to the lake.

Parks

Chikaming Township Park, Sawyer

This local park has mountain biking trails, a lake where you can usually catch a lot of small fishies, and miles of nicely mowed walking trails.

When you pull in, don’t park at the first gravel parking lot (unless you’re biking), keep driving another 1/2 mile and park at the roundabout to access the walking trails and pond.

Lake Township Park, Bridgman

A large community park with baseball fields, basketball courts, a few playgrounds, a disc golf course, a small lake for fishing, a few pavilions and paved walking and biking area.

Lions Park Beach, St. Joseph

Lions Park is a park on the beach. It has really great play structures with an unbeatable view. You can’t swim on this beach because of the erosion but is worth stopping there if you have kids.

Whirlpool Centennial Park, St. Joseph

An eye-catching “park” walking distance from Silver Beach in St. Joseph.

It has a huge compass of water fountains where kids can run around and cool off. There’s plenty of park benches around the fountains to chill or join the little ones in the fountains!

Baroda Township Park

A small park with a lake for fishing, kayaking and SUPing, a s 1-mile walking trail through big trees where you can spot mushrooms, a playground and lots of grassy area.

U-Pick Fruits

The area has a few options for u-picks. Depending on the season, you can pick strawberries, blueberries, cherries and apples.

Check out a few options:

Beaches

This is what people come to Southwest Michigan in the summer for: the beaches.

Silver Beach, St. Joseph

A popular tourist beach in St. Joseph with a lighthouse. Recommended to get there early.

Weko Beach, Bridgman

A local beach that fills up fast on the weekends. They have the Bridgman Beach Bus that will pick you up and drop you off while using the free public parking downtown.

Warren Dunes State Park, Sawyer

Southwest Michigan is known for the dunes. Large sand dunes lining Lake Michigan from Indiana to Michigan. The best place to experience them is at Warren Dunes, a large lakefront expanse of beaches with huge sand dunes in the background. You can climb up the dunes and run down. In the winter, its used as the ultimate sledding hill!

After a day at the beach, grab some ice cream at the Beach Bucket right across from the entrance to Warren Dunes.

New Buffalo Beach

A popular tourist beach with boat harbor and high-end homes and condos lining the water, it’s a cool walk from downtown to the beach, stopping at the stores and maybe a bar or two along the way.

Town Line Beach, Union Pier

A beautiful beach that takes a little effort to get to. There is a small parking lot that fills up very fast with a few flights of stairs to reach the beach. If you stay in union Pier, this will be walkable.

Tiscornia Park, St. Joseph

Beautiful, popular beach with a lighthouse. Worth visiting to walk to the lighthouse as you explore other parts of St. Joseph.

Kayaking, SUPing & Hiking

Southwest Michigan is ideal for water activities. There is a great mix of wavy and calm lakes and rivers perfect for kayaking and SUPing.

You can rent watercrafts from Third Coast Paddling.

Gailene River

A local river that feeds into Lake Michigan.

A perk: Third Coast Paddling will deliver and pick up the kayaks or SUPs to the riverbank.

Always a turtle sighting on the Gailene River

Gailene River Overlook

Not quite a hike, but a nice few miles walk to a 200-foot overlook of the Gailene River and then along planks through the marsh to the river. You can sometimes see turtles and fish in the water.

Walking up the stairs to the Gailene Overlook

Singer Lake

A beautiful small lake surrounded by beautiful homes and nature. Good for kayaking and SUPing.

Lake Michigan

Depending on the waves and wind, it’s good for kayaking and SUPing. Places like Weko Beach, New Buffalo Beach and Silver Beach have rentals for kayaks, SUPs, boogie boards and more.

North Lake Park

Another small lake with homes surrounding it. Sometimes it is filled with lily pads and isn’t accessible, but when it is it’s a nice kayaking spot.

Baroda Township Park

A small park with a lake for fishing, kayaking and SUPing. It can be full of lily pads that may make kayaking, fishing and SUPing difficult.

Stuff for Kids

Captain Mike’s Fun Park

A small-town fun park with go carts, miniature golf, water games, a small arcade and other kids games. You can spend a few pennies there but its a blast.

Bowling

You can bowl at Peat’s Cider and Bowl in Stevensville or Strikers in St. Joseph.

Curious Kids Museum

Unfortunately, some parts are closed for now due to a fire but check here for more information.