Looking for the best Southern Michigan weekend itinerary?
Dreaming of a weekend getaway in Southern Michigan that mixes roller coasters, charming Dutch streets, and a Bavarian-style beer hall?
This three-day itinerary packs in Michigan’s top highlights without hours of endless driving.
Ready to map out your own Southern Michigan getaway?
Let’s dive into the full itinerary.
Southern Michigan Weekend Getaway Itinerary
We built this trip around finally checking two big things off our Michigan bucket list: a visit to Michigan’s Adventure theme park (included with our season pass) and a day in Frankenmuth, Michigan’s “Little Bavaria.”
Along the way, we added stops in Holland, Grand Rapids, and Kalamazoo to turn it into the perfect road trip.
This guide is for travelers who want a balance of thrills, local culture, and cozy Midwest charm, whether you’re a couple sneaking away for the weekend or a family looking for an easy mini-vacation.
Here’s a preview of what you’ll experience:
🎢 A full day of rides and water slides at Michigan’s largest amusement park
🌷 Dutch-inspired shops and architecture in Holland
🍷 A night out in lively Grand Rapids, complete with great food and a ghost tour
🥨 Bavarian vibes, beer, and shopping in Frankenmuth
Here’s a little pre-trip background about why we stayed in Kalamazoo, instead of starting the itinerary in Muskegon (which I recommend doing).
We were driving from Dayton, Ohio after work one night, so we weren’t able to drive all the way up to Muskegon, where Michigan’s Adventure is.
For us, we were able to drive about 4 hours north to Kalamazoo and stay at the Homewood Suites there.
This got us within about an hour and a half of Michigan’s Adventure, which worked well for us because the park doesn’t usually open until later in the morning anyway.
Here is a video tour of the hotel we stayed in:
Click Here To Book Your Homewood Suites by Hilton Kalamazoo Stay Today!
Day 1: Michigan’s Adventure
The real itinerary starts with spending the day at Michigan’s Adventure amusement park (and water park).
For more details, here is our full Michigan’s Adventure amusement park one day itinerary.
This is a smaller amusement park, with an attached water park that doesn’t really take a full day to visit.
It’s only open seasonally, so you would only be able to do this part of the itinerary if you’re visiting around Summer time.
Where To Stay: Hampton Inn Muskegon
At the end of your night, drive about 15-20 minutes south to Hampton Inn Muskegon.
It’s affordable, has free parking, and offers free breakfast.
It’ll also get you closer to the destination for day 2.
Click Here To Book Your Hampton Inn Muskegon Stay Today!
Day 2: Holland & Grand Rapids
From Muskegon, it’s about a 45 minute drive down to Holland.
Holland is a historic town with Dutch architecture and shops.
The shops and restaurants aren’t open super early, so that’s why I recommend not driving down until the morning rather than driving down on night 1.
Holland
For all the details about everything to do in Holland for the day, check out our full Holland one day itinerary.
A great way to get acquainted with a new town, especially if you’re waiting for the shops and restaurants to open is through a self-guided audio walking tour.
We do these (and self-guided driving tours) on most of our trips because they are so cheap and tell us everything we’d want to know about a new place.
It uses the GPS on your phone to navigate you through town and it’s very user friendly.
Click Here To Download Your Self Guided Audio Walking Tour Today!
On our trip, we actually drove all the way to Frankenmuth on this night, but I don’t really recommend that.
Instead, I recommend splitting your day between Holland and Grand Rapids.
Grand Rapids
Once you’re finished with everything you want to do in Holland, it’s a little over a 30 minute drive over to Grand Rapids.
The main activity you want to make time for in Grand Rapids is the Gerald Ford Presidential Museum.
Then, I HIGHLY recommend having dinner at Scholar for an upscale date night.
Here is everything we had:
For our first appetizer we shared Medjool Dates with goat cheese stuffing, cashew nut butter, huckle-blackberry jam, and candied jalapenos.
Then, we had Deviled Eggs with dijon, cornichon, lardon, paprika, and chive.
For our entree, we shared the Salisbury Steak with whipped potato, roasted carrots, buttered peas, mushroom gravy, and crispy shallot.
As a side, we also shared the Scholar House Salad with VPF greens, cherry tomato, radish, spring onion, cucumber, farm cheese, and croutons.
We finished off our meal by sharing an Old Fashioned, JP’s favorite drink!
I like to drink the last few sips that have been watered down and eat the cherries.
After dinner, there’s a tiki bar across the street that I recommend checking out called Max’s South Seas Hideaway.
Then, I’d end the night with a ghost tour through the city.
We’ve been doing ghost tours all over the country on our trips and it’s another great way to get acquainted with a new city and learn some of its history.
Click Here To Book Your Grand Rapids Ghost Tour Today!
Where To Stay: Homewood Suites by Hilton Grand Rapids Downtown
Since you’ll already be downtown for all the recommended activities and restaurants, it’s best to just stay downtown at Homewood Suites by Hilton Grand Rapids Downtown.
They offer free breakfast!
Click Here To Book Your Homewood Suites by Hilton Grand Rapids Downtown Stay Today!
Day 3: Frankenmuth
From Grand Rapids, Frankenmuth is about a 2 hour drive.
Again, the shops and restaurants don’t open very early, so you’re not really missing anything during your driving time.
For all the details on how to spend a full day in Frankenmuth, check out our Frankenmuth one day itinerary.
If you’re unfamiliar, Frankenmuth is a Bavarian inspired town with wine shops, restaurants, antique stores, and German architecture.
Where To Stay: Hampton Inn Birch Run/Frankenmuth
Just outside of town is Hampton Inn Birch Run/Frankenmuth.
They offer free parking and free breakfast for an affordable room rate.
This is where we stayed on our trip and it was conveniently located to everything.
Click Here To Book Your Hampton Inn Birch Run/Frankenmuth Stay Today!
Bonus Day: Windsor, Canada
If you have extra time or if you’re driving back South, there are a couple more things you can add to your itinerary.
Ann Arbor
For starters, the Gerald Ford Presidential Library is located in Ann Arbor, about an hour and 15 minutes South of Frankenmuth.
This one is just a small gallery on the first floor of a building on campus, which is why I recommended visiting the presidential museum in Grand Rapids also for the actual story of his life.
Most presidential libraries are also full museums, so this was unexpected.
It takes about 10-15 minutes to see everything here.
Windsor, Canada
On a completely different trip, we were going to Cedar Point and decided to add an extra day to drive across the border and visit Canada.
You can also fit this into this itinerary if you’re driving back South at the end of your trip.
It’s less than an hour from Ann Arbor.
Windsor is just across the bridge from Detroit and you’ll need a passport to be able to go back and forth, but it’s neat just to say you went to Canada for the day.
I recommend checking out the Caesar’s casino and then having a meal downtown at Loose Goose.
It’s pub style food that also has outdoor patio seating.
We tried a little bit of everything including poutine, nachos, hummus, and a burger with tater tots.
Then, head down to the river for some photo ops before heading back to Detroit or wherever your final destination is.
Where To Stay: DoubleTree by Hilton Windsor Hotel & Suites
If you’re staying in Windsor, I recommend the DoubleTree by Hilton Windsor Hotel & Suites.
DoubleTree is known for their hot and fresh chocolate chip cookies that you get for free when you check in!
Click Here To Book Your DoubleTree by Hilton Windsor Hotel & Suites Stay Today!
Conclusion: Southern Michigan Weekend Getaway Itinerary
Southern Michigan makes it easy to pack thrills, culture, and charm into just a few days.
Whether you’re riding roller coasters at Michigan’s Adventure, wandering through Dutch-inspired streets in Holland, savoring dinner in Grand Rapids, or soaking up Bavarian vibes in Frankenmuth, this itinerary gives you the best of the Midwest in one seamless trip.
For us, the highlights weren’t just the destinations.
It was how each stop felt completely different, yet fit together into a perfect road trip.
One night we were sipping craft cocktails downtown, the next we were wandering cobblestone-style streets under twinkling lights.
That’s what makes Michigan such a fun surprise.
If you’re planning your own getaway, use this guide as your starting point, then dive deeper into our individual day trip itineraries for even more tips.
However you customize it, this three-day Michigan weekend itinerary is proof you don’t need to travel far for an adventure that feels unforgettable.
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