A ride in a horse-drawn carriage at the turn? Only on this tiny island in Northern Michigan
Grand Hotel's golf course, appropriately named The Jewel, sits between Lake Huron and Lake Michigan.
Connor Federico
Resort golf is full of unique places and experiences: great food, stunning views and quality courses are the reasons we pack our bags. But ferries, fudge shops and rides in horse-drawn carriage rides? Yeah, we thought you’d be interested.
Northern Michigan is already known for great golf, but on Mackinac Island, Grand Hotel serves up even more.
You start by taking a 20-minute ferry ride from Michigan’s mainland to the island, where the only things on four wheels are horse-drawn carriages and golf carts. You’ll get very familiar with both, as the horse-drawn carriage will be your transportation to The Jewel’s two distinctly different nine-hole courses. Up at the hotel, you’ll be greeted by the longest front porch (literally) in the world. It’s over 660-feet long, was built in 1887 (the same year the resort opened) and is the perfect spot to take in a fresh breeze or view of the Great Lakes.
On the Grand Nine, the scorecard’s modest length (2,400 yards from the tips) might have golfers licking their chops. But in reality, the Golden Age design is protected by narrow fairways and challenging pin placements. But you’ll definitely want to play it a second time.
Enjoy the views of Lake Huron from an elevated tee box on the long par-3 7th hole, then test your nerves on the 9th when you play your final approach into a green that’s next to a bustling crowd of Grand Hotel visitors.
Then comes the most unique part: a 15-minute carriage ride that transports golfers to a different end of Mackinac Island — away from the busy downtown — to the aptly named Woods Nine. This side is longer, wider and more reminiscent of what you’d expect to find at a resort course. On this part of the island, you’ll catch glimpses of Lake Michigan.
“You get to see the front nine, which is a Golden Age-style golf course, very short, very scenic,” said Grant DeMoss, the hotel’s director of golf. “And then you go to the back nine and you get the woodlands and that carriage ride. I mean, where else can you see that?”
Plus, from a key battle in the War of 1812 to the filming location of “Somewhere in Time,” the island’s history is always on display. The hotel’s decor, much like the entire experience, is anything but minimalist. There are some rules, too, but we were happy to abide by them, like that formal wear is mandated after 6 p.m. in the parlor and main dining rooms. But this place is a throwback, perfect for those seeking something historic and charming and with scale. From yellow-striped wallpaper to old wooden libraries, every room in the hotel feels like stepping into a time machine.
“We don’t tie ourselves to any one era,” said David Jurcak, the Grand Hotel’s president of operations. “You’ll go to some historic hotels that love this period of time they like to talk about, but we want to celebrate the 136 years we’ve been here.”
Breweries (our favorite was Great Turtle), boutiques and fudge shops line Mackinac Island’s main strip, just a 10-minute walk from the Grand Hotel. The fudge is a big deal here — there’s a handful of different local companies each with a couple of shops in the span of a few hundred yards. (We enjoyed some on site and even shipped some directly to family members from the store.)
Mackinac Island is a perfect spot for families, and a large percentage of their guests are Midwesterners who’ve been coming for years, across generations. But a certain 20-something couple from the East Coast — that’s us! — certainly had a blast too.
“I spent every summer here growing up; I love this place,” said DeMoss, the director of golf. “It’s unlike any other place you can be.”
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