Family Road Trip Itinerary to Alpena, Michigan

We recently took a road trip up to Alpena, traveling along the east coast of Michigan. We stopped at all kinds of places along the way. Take a peek at our itinerary below and chime in with what we missed!

For every vacation we take, I ask my family, what is one thing YOU would like to do?

For this trip, my kids wanted to go in a lighthouse, go to a ship museum, go fishing, get a few pressed pennies and get candy. I wanted to see art. My husband wanted to try a new-to-us brewery. This road trip truly had things for all of us!

I will always tout the east side being one of my favorites for families. It’s much less expensive than the west side, and honestly it’s just a gorgeous. It’s a lot more “old school” type fun, which is definitely up my alley versus dealing with crowds.

{Huge shout out to Angela for providing us with a comprehensive list of ideas! They were so helpful!}

DAY 1: Traveling North

One of my road trip secrets with kids is to always pack the first day with fun. First, everyone is excited. Second, everyone still has energy — adults included 😉 The kids will likely want to sleep and just get home on the last day.

Here’s where we stopped:

Shine Bright Saginaw Art Silos – The giant silos in downtown Saginaw have recently been painted…and they are huge, colorful, and FUN!
Cabela’s Outpost in Saginaw – My kids love this store and my oldest wanted to stop for a pressed penny and a new hat.
Grabbed McDonald’s on the road – Because that’s what they like on road trips 🙂
Wilson Cheese Shop – Pinconning – We grabbed some meat and cheese for adult charcuterie later, and my middle got her wish of getting a giant jawbreaker from the candy area.
Freakin’ Pickles – Au Gres – I’ve always wanted to stop! I enjoyed the horseradish pickles the most, but you can get as many free samples as you’d like.
Gateway Park – Tawas City – This quirky park with large cement animals hasn’t changed much over the years, and is a fun spot to get out and run around. Just look out for goose poop!
Ben Franklin Store – East Tawas – One of the neatest souvenir/gift stores in the state IMO. Plus, they have pressed pennies!
Sturgeon Point Lighthouse – Harrisville – Check hours because the schoolhouse, tour and tower climb {$3/kids, $5/adults} are really cool! We absolutely loved the docents here, too.

By the time we wrapped up all of our stops, it was time to check-in to the cottage, enjoy the lake, and have dinner at the house.

DAY 2: Alpena

On this day, we stuck around Alpena to check out the different sites.

Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Center – This was a great place to start our day! It is such a neat museum that highlights the more than 200 shipwrecks that lay in the bay around Alpena. And it’s FREE to visit!
Shipwreck Boat Tour – Unfortunately ours was canceled due to wind, so we had to improvise with some other ideas. I wanted to include the link though because I hear it’s amazing!
Besser Museum for Northeast Michigan – This was our rain day plan, and I’m so glad it worked out! It was such a neat museum for an affordable price {$5/adults; $3/kids}. We enjoyed the planetarium, old streets, and the animal exhibits. There also is a fossil digging area in the back, but rain kept us from visiting.
Austin Brothers Brewery – {closed Sunday and Monday – FYI) We visited for a late lunch/early dinner. This place not only had great beer {I’m super picky}, but also food. We all enjoyed our meal here, and the hubby was happy to try a cool brewery.

Back home to relax for awhile. Since it was raining, we opted to head back into town for some more fun.

Bob’s Bullpen – Played games for 30 mins for $5 each and enjoyed some old school arcade games
Downtown Scoops – Had to get some ice cream, because if your kids are like mine, ice cream = vacation.

Lee’s Mini Golf was also on our radar, but the rain kept us away. This is the oldest miniature golf course in Michigan!

DAY 3: Ossineke & Alpena

We started the morning with a photo op! Because how can you not pull over for yet another Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox sculpture? {There are lots in Michigan!} Fun fact: This was made by the same artist the created Dinosaur Gardens.
Connie’s Cafe – This cute breakfast spot has a beautiful garden, a Little Free Library, and grilled cinnamon rolls that are to die for.
Dinosaur Gardens – This prehistoric park is classic roadside attraction fun dating back to the 1930’s. It’s $10/person to walk through and so much fun.

After some relaxing back at the cottage, we ventured out again.

Fishing on the Thunder Bay River – This is one of our favorite pastimes, so we always bring some fishing poles on vacation. We only caught some baby rock bass, but it was still fun to try.
Cedar Panning Co. – This tourist destination allows patrons to pan for gemstones and crystals. Buckets range from $10-$100. My kids came away with some cool gems!

On the way home, we grabbed pizza from Mancino’s and enjoyed the beauty of Lake Huron.