![Is Petoskey or Traverse City the Best Small Town in the Midwest?](http://travelthemitten.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Petoskey-Hemingway-Statue-Best-Small-Town-470x140.jpg)
It’s one of our favorite times of year, as USA Today launches a round of 10Best Reader’s Choice polls centered around small towns. Michigan is…
![Betsie River Campsite is Perfect for Summer Trips to Frankfort and Sleeping Bear Dunes](http://travelthemitten.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Betise-River-Campsire-Frankfort-Michigan-470x140.jpg)
We mostly stay in Michigan state parks when camping each summer, but sometime we check out new privately owned campgrounds that better fit our destination….
![2022 Visitor Numbers Show Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore Is As Popular As Ever](http://travelthemitten.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/20220625_094210-e1679773021821-470x140.jpg)
It has been more than a decade since Michigan’s Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore was named the “Most Beautiful Place in America” by Good Morning…
![Michigan Roadside Attractions: Alligator Hill Kilns at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore](http://travelthemitten.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Alligator-Hill-Kilns-Sleeping-Bear-Dunes-Cover-Photo-470x140.jpg)
Michigan Roadside Attractions is a periodic feature on Travel the Mitten that will explore the many interesting things that can be found on the highways,…
![Michigan's Best Sunsets: Point Betsie Lighthouse](http://travelthemitten.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Point-Betsie-Lighthouse-Cover-Photo-Best-Sunset-470x140.jpg)
The Lake Michigan shoreline in Michigan is known for spectacular sunsets, and over the years we have been fortunate to experience some great photo opportunities…
![Michigan Lighthouse Guide and Map: Benzie County Lighthouses](http://travelthemitten.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Point-Betsie-Lighthouse-Sand-Dunes-Benzie-County-Michigan-470x140.jpg)
For our seventh edition of the Michigan Lighthouse Guide and Map series we head back to Michigan’s west coast to check out the Benzie County…
![Happy Birthday Michigan: A Look at 185 Michigan Places We Love](http://travelthemitten.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/2021-Favorite-Michigan-Photos-Bond-Falls-Upper-Peninsula-May-470x140.jpg)
On January 26, 1837, President Andrew Jackson signed a bill that made Michigan the 26th state. The Michigan Territory had pushed for statehood for a…
![2021 Was Another Record Breaking Year for Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore](http://travelthemitten.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Sleeping-Bear-Dunes-Sand-Dunes-Michigan-470x140.jpg)
It wasn’t by much, but Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore set an all-time visitor attendance record in 2021. We like starting off a new year…
![Is Michigan's Platte River Campground the Best Campground in America?](http://travelthemitten.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/20200801_125432-470x140.jpg)
Just in time for the last two months of summer, a new set of Reader’s Choice polls are up at 10best.com. Current contests are focused…
![A Deeper Look at a Record Breaking 2020 at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore](http://travelthemitten.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Michigan-Photos-2020-Pyramid-Point-Sleeping-Bear-Dunes-National-Lakeshore-470x140.jpg)
2020 was a year of constant change and constant surprises due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and many of our national parks saw a decline in…