The focus of this category is on attractions in Michigan.
Touching on four of the five Great Lakes, Michigan has a 3.228-mile shoreline peppered with maritime museums and historic lighthouses, a 3.78 square-mile island on which cars are not allowed, a 5-mile suspension bridge connecting its two peninsulas, and numerous other attractions, including race tracks, roller coasters, water parks, zoos, aquariums, as well as historic forts, museums, and Native American attractions.
Michigan includes five national parks, including Isle Royale National Park, the least visited in the continental United States, while the Detroit Institute of Arts operates one of the top ten museums in the country.
Michigan's Adventure, the state's largest amusement park, began as a petting zoo in 1956. The first ride was installed two years after the park opened. In 1968, a new owner sold off the animals began adding attractions to the park, including live shows.
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources manages more than a hundred state parks, as well as sixteen state harbors on the Great Lakes. The DNR also operates nearly seven hundred and fifty boat launches on 57,000 acres of designated public water access sites, and a hundred and thirty-eight state forest campgrounds, some for equestrian use, and oversees the state's trail system.
Michigan is home to four major-league professional sports teams, all of which are located in the Detroit metropolitan area. These are the Detroit Tigers, the Detroit Lions, the Detroit Red Wings, and the Detroit Pistons.
The state also hosts a number of minor league sports teams. Included are ten collegiate or minor league baseball teams, thirteen professional basketball teams, four hockey teams, a professional indoor football team, and two teams playing in the Women's Football Alliance. There are eight soccer teams, six roller derby teams, four roller hockey teams, and several ice hockey teams.
Although many of them are local or county affairs, several festivals, fairs, and other events are held throughout the state each year, including seasonal affairs heralding Michigan's distinct spring, summer, fall, and winter seasons.
Statewide sports associations and regulatory bodies for attractions and events in Michigan are also appropriate for this category.
While the focus of this category is on things to do and places to go in Michigan, those that are purely local should be listed in the Cities & Towns category that represents the geographic location. Others, including those with multiple locations or statewide impact, such as the state's professional sports teams, may be listed here as well as in the category representing their home location.
Recommended Resources
The professional American football team competes in the National Football League as a member of the National Football Conference, North Division, playing its home games at Ford Field in downtown Detroit, Michigan. Its front office roster and career opportunities are posted, along with a team roster, coaching staff, game schedules, depth chart, statistics, and an online store selling promotional and fan products. Season tickets, single-game tickets, and premium seating may be available.
https://www.detroitlions.com/
Competing in the National Basketball Association as a member of the Eastern Conference’s Central Division, the Pistons play their home games at Little Caesars Arena in Midtown, Michigan. Founded in Fort Wayne, Indiana in 1941, the team moved to Michigan in 1957. Memberships, premium seating, and group offers are featured, along with game schedules, rosters, team and player statistics, standings, and contacts are presented, along with video and a fan zone.
https://www.nba.com/pistons/
Based in Detroit, the Red Wings are a professional ice hockey team competing in the National Hockey League as part of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. Founded in 1926, the team was known as the Detroit Cougars until 1930, the Falcons until 1932, then taking their current name. Single-game tickets, special ticket packages, group tickets, and premium seating offers are featured, along with game schedules, a team roster and media guide, scores, and statistics.
https://www.nhl.com/redwings/
Competing in the American League, Central Division, of Major League Baseball, the Tigers began as a minor league team in the Western League in 1894, and was a charter member of the American League in 1901, playing their first Major League game against the 1901 Milwaukee Brewers, who later became the St. Louis Browns. Ticket sales, season tickets, and a seating map are featured, along with game schedules, scores, statistics, rosters, video, and a shopping area.
https://www.mlb.com/tigers/
Operated by the Detroit Zoological Society and the Belle Isle Nature Center, the Detroit Zoo is actually located, not in Detroit, but in the neighboring suburbs, Huntington Woods and Royal Oak. Situated on 125-acres, it is home to more than 2,400 animals from 235 species, and the first in the United States to use exhibits without bars exclusively. Its location, pricing, group information, and scheduled events are featured, along with profiles of each of its animals.
https://detroitzoo.org/
Enchanted Forest Guide to Northern Michigan
Featuring Northern Michigan businesses and organizations the site includes the Northern Lower Peninsula and the Upper Peninsula, the site divides its guide into the Northeastern Lower Peninsula, the Northwestern Lower Peninsula, and the Upper Peninsula, subdividing it by county, and city or village. Within each section, attractions, entertainment and recreation venues, services, and places to stay are highlighted. Advertising opportunities are also available.
http://www.theenchantedforest.com/
Mackinac Island Tourism Bureau
Located on Lake Huron, at the eastern end of the Straits of Mackinac, the island and resort area is known for its lack of cars, although it also has a storied history. Presented by the Mackinac Island Tourism Bureau, the guide highlights things to do and see on the island, as well as its hotels and resorts, restaurants, nightlife, and regularly scheduled island events. Besides its historic hotels, the island includes B&Bs, cottages, and private homes. A printed visitor guide is available.
https://www.mackinacisland.org/
Michigan Association of Fairs & Exhibitions
Agricultural fairs are an economic and social asset to communities throughout the state, serving as a showcase for Michigan agriculture, and are a significant factor in the state's tourist sector. Each year, more than half the state’s population passes through the gates of an agricultural fair. Created in cooperation with the Michigan Department of Agriculture in 1885, MAFE offers workshops on fair and event management, agricultural and educational exhibits, and other topics.
https://mifairs.com/
The non-profit organization promotes chess education and participation for juniors and adults through its publication, Michigan Chess, through its website, and by aiding schools, chess clubs, and local chess events with publicity, information, and supplies. The Michigan Chess Association also organizes state championship events. Membership information is put forth, along with a calendar of events, results, and contacts. Chess clubs are noted, and a team rating calculator is included.
https://www.michess.org/
Michigan Department of Natural Resources Recreation Search
State parks, campgrounds, shelters, and trails managed by the State DNR are featured here. Viewers can find state parks, recreation areas, and state forest campgrounds on an interactive map of the state or as an alphabetized list. Features and amenities available at each are shown, and more detailed information is available by clicking on the link for the facility or site that a visitor may be interested in, including maps, contacts, requirements, and events.
https://www2.dnr.state.mi.us/parksandtrails/
Representing the Michigan Festivals & Events Association, a statewide non-profit organization serving communities, events, festivals, fairs, businesses, and volunteers throughout the state, which promotes local events, festivals, and destinations and provides technical assistance, training, and education to its members. Its membership policies and types are described, attractions throughout the state are listed on a map, and a calendar of events is included.
https://michiganfun.com/
Michigan Interactive is a guide to things to do in Michigan, including boating opportunities, fishing lake maps, a harbor guide, and fishing photos, golf courses within the state, as well as hiking, biking, and cross-country ski trails, waterfalls, ATV trail maps and trail reports, and places to canoe, kayak, raft, or tube. Winter snowmobiling opportunities are highlighted, and tour maps can be found for several counties, listed on an interactive map. Lodging facilities are included.
http://www.fishweb.com/
Michigan International Speedway
Situated in Brooklyn, the two-mile speedway is within seventy miles from Detroit, Ann Arbor, Lansing, and Toledo, Ohio, and used primarily for NASCAR events. Situated on more than 1,400 acres in southeastern Michigan, the track’s history is told, and season memberships and ticket sales may be conducted through the site, which features a calendar of events, campground maps, and rules, travel packages, maps, and partnerships. Employment opportunities are put forth.
https://www.mispeedway.com/
Created for the purpose of encouraging and promoting the game of squash in Michigan, Michigan Squash is a member organization of US Squash. Through the payment of dues to US Squash, Michigan residents automatically become Michigan Squash members. Reduced fees are available for juniors. Michigan squash leagues and registration data are offered, along with a calendar of events, tournament schedules, and sponsorships. Its Juniors leagues are highlighted.
http://michigansquash.org/
Originally held from 1849 to 2009 in Detroit, the governor declined to fund it in 2009. In 2011, the Great Lakes Agricultural Fair was organized, as an effort to continue the event, and is now organized by the private Michigan State Fair LLC, and held in the Detroit suburb of Novi. An overview of the fairgrounds facilities is put forth, fair schedules, and a calendar of other events held at the fairgrounds are included. Ticket options are presented and may be purchased online.
https://www.michiganstatefairllc.com/
Michigan State Park & Harbor Reservations
Maintained by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, harbor reservations can be made online up to six months before the date of arrival, as is the case with campsite reservations, with options for campsite or backcountry camping. Overnight lodging reservations can be made up to a year before the date of arrival, with modern lodging facilities available. Day use reservations can also be made up to one year before the date of arrival. Gift cards are also available.
https://www.midnrreservations.com/
The 250-acre amusement park in Muskegon County is the largest in the state, with fifty-two rides, as well as an outdoor water park, WildWater Adventure. Directions and park hours are published to the site, along with job opportunities, group offers, daily tickets, and season passes. Its rides, special events, the WildWater Adventure park, and drink and dining facilities are included. Partnerships are acknowledged, a lost and found area is included, and contacts are included.
https://www.miadventure.com/
Formally known as the James W. Miller Auditorium, the performance venue is at Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, Michigan. With a seating capacity of 3,497, it is the fifth-largest auditorium in Michigan, featuring three separate seating sections, each divided into two seating areas. A calendar of events scheduled at the facility is presented, along with its ticketing policies, online ordering of tickets, subscriber benefits, and Broadway subscriptions.
https://www.millerauditorium.com/
University of Michigan Athletics
Intercollegiate competition began at the U of M in the 1865-1866 school year, when its baseball team won its first three contests, and its football program began in 1879, followed by women’s varsity athletics in 1973-74. Today, the Michigan Wolverines comprise twenty-nine varsity sports teams. Its history is told here, including traditions, awards, and honors, with each of its programs highlighted in its own section, with schedules, ticket information and sales, and a fan section.
https://mgoblue.com/
Also known as the UPState Fair, the event is held each year in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, at its fairgrounds in Escanaba. Before 2010, it was one of two official state fairs in Michigan. Due to the cessation of state funding, its operations have been handled by the UP State Fair Authority, which includes representatives from each county in the UP. Schedules, admission prices, and online ticket sales are featured, along with fair and fairground information.
https://www.upstatefair.net/
