What are some fun & affordable summer vacation ideas for families in Michigan?

There are plenty of fun & inexpensive things to do with kids in Michigan this summer when you Go Great Lakes Bay, including: exploring Dow Gardens and the country's longest canopy walk; visiting zoos & farms like Grandpa Tiny's Heritage Farm, Wilderness Trails Zoo, and the Saginaw Children's Zoo; catching a Great Lakes Loons Minor League Baseball game; experiencing two of Michigan's best indoor waterparks; playing outdoor mini-golf; taking a family boat tour; soaking up sandy beaches & splash pads; and discovering spots like the Mid-Michigan Children's Museum and Delta College Planetarium.

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Dow Gardens | @awatkins4msu

Outdoors + Nature

  • Wander through colorful blooms at Dow Gardens — including an award-winning Children’s Garden — and travel a canopy walk four stories high in the trees!
  • Venture out to Chippewa Nature Center, with 19 miles of trails, a Nature Discovery Area, and Homestead Farm to explore.
  • Zoom through an aerial obstacle course of ziplines & rope bridges at Frankenmuth Aerial Park.
Grandpa Tiny's Farm | @x_stina

Zoos + Farms

Outdoor Mini-Golf

  • Get a hole-in-one, race go-karts, and run through laser tag at Funway Amusements Saginaw. Hit the batting cages, rock bumper boats, and have a blast!
  • Make it a fun-filled afternoon at Buoy 18 Mini Golf, with a course that overlooks a marina — and a free game room!
  • Choose between two mini-golf courses at Alpine Mountain Golf before jumping into bumper boats & go-karts.
  • Putt-putt around a rushing waterfall at Parkside Mini Golf, then cool off with custom ice cream sandwiches!
Buoy 18 | @shineonsunfish

Tours + Experiences

Indoor Waterparks

  • Make forever memories at Michigan’s biggest indoor waterpark & family fun center, Bavarian Blast Waterpark at the Bavarian Inn Lodge! Brave the wave pool & 16 new waterslides, or go for mini-golf, mini-bowling, and 180+ arcade games.
  • Experience two waterparks in one — each with a retractable roof — at Zehnder’s Splash Village Hotel & Waterpark! Enjoy the six-story Family Raft Ride, four-story tube slides, and an outdoor pool.
Valley Lanes | @shineonsunfish

Indoor Family Fun Zones

  • Let the good times fly at Urban Air Adventure Park, with giant trampolines, climbing walls, an indoor zipline, laser tag, and two kinds of bumper cars!
  • Bowl for strikes at Stardust, then enjoy over 60 video arcade games & two-story laser tag.
  • Drop into retro gaming fun at Crazy Quarters Arcade, packed with pinball machines & arcade games.
  • Head to Valley Lanes for bowling, indoor mini-golf, an arcade, bumper cars, laser maze, and laser tag.
  • Cool off while playing classic arcade games & pinball machines at Brinstar, then snack on creative burgers & fresh-cut fries.
  • Soar on wall-to-wall trampolines at Airborne Adventure Park and enjoy your family “hang-time” in the air!
  • Experience the River Place Game Room for 40 arcade games, then celebrate sweet victory at nearby SugarHigh Bakery or SugarRush Sweets & Treats.
  • Watch your family (literally) find your way through thousands of mirrors in the Ultimate Mirror Maze.
  • Let the kids burn energy at The Playground! Adults can kick back with a latte while kids have a ball at this indoor play palace.
  • Dig up some fun inside Little Builders Play Yard, a giant indoor sandbox filled with cool construction toys!

Museums + More

Live Entertainment

Tummy Ache Candy Store

Kids' Shopping

Kid-Friendly Summer Festivals

Camping

Johnny Panther Quests

Guided Family Boat Tours

  • Book a wildlife ecotour with Johnny Panther Quests Adventure Trips, and be able to say your family boated through the “Everglades of Michigan”!
  • Enjoy a relaxing boat ride and the chance for the kids to see a lighthouse on a summer cruise with Bay City Boat Lines.
  • Unwind aboard kid-friendly Frankenmuth FunShips on a Wine & Chocolate River Tour (with sparkling grape juice for the kids).
  • All aboard the Bavarian Belle Riverboat! Tour Frankenmuth from the water, and see iconic sights from the canopied upper deck.
Bay City State Park | @frommichiganwithlove

Beaches + Splash Pads

  • Soak it up at Spray by the Bay Splash Park inside Bay City State Park and enjoy the sandy swimming beach & playground!
  • Find sun-drenched fun at the splash pad inside Haithco Recreation Area. Enjoy this park with a lake, beach, and fishing piers — and rent paddleboats for the fam!
  • Beat the heat at Celebration Square Splash Park! Let toddlers get their feet wet in water misters, or whoop it up with big kids at geysers & water soakers.
  • Right near The Tridge, splash your way through waterspouts & dumping buckets at Gerstacker Spray Park.
  • Spend time in Frankenmuth Jaycee Spray Park’s fountains & water features. Pack a lunch — there’s plenty of shade & picnic areas for snacks between soakings!
  • Splash at Longview Spray Park and enjoy a day under the spray, with dumping buckets & waterspouts activated by movement.
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Little girl walking through rows of purple and yellow flowers at Dow Gardens in Midland
Dow Gardens | @consistently_curious
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Author
Jen W. O'Deay + Go Great Lakes Bay

By: Jen W. O'Deay | Updates: Go Great Lakes Bay | Jen is a Saginaw native and owner of Feel These Words, an independent copywriting studio & home to the free "5 Day Website MiniBoost". Jen specializes in writing that connects, delivered through website copy, branded content articles, and WingWoman writing services. You'll find Jen camping with her family, laughing, and at feelthesewords.com