Bay Harbor

Bay Harbor is an upscale resort community on the south shore of Little Traverse Bay, just west of Petoskey on the way to Charlevoix. Come by car, bike or boat for a round of golf, a walk around the marina and a meal in the village. Much of it is homes, condos and hotels, so for a visitor the public side is the marina, the village center’s shops and restaurants, the golf club and a township park.

The marina is the center of things. Bay Harbor Lake Marina is a deep-water harbor with 150 floating-dock slips and room for yachts up to 185 feet, a short walk from the village’s shops and restaurants. Boaters stopping for a few hours can use the Shopper’s Dock, and the marina runs seasonal fishing and sunset charters. Each Father’s Day weekend it hosts an in-water boat show.

For golfers, Bay Harbor Golf Club has 27 Arthur Hills holes above the shoreline, in the woods and down in a former shale quarry. Public guests are welcome to play. The Inn at Bay Harbor is the resort’s lakeside hotel, with a spa and restaurants.

The Great Lakes Center for the Arts, a performing arts venue that opened in 2018, brings Broadway-style shows, touring headliners and a winter cinema series, so check its calendar if you are staying nearby.

For the view without spending anything, go to East Park on the village’s eastern edge. It is a public township park with a pavilion and restrooms, looking out over Little Traverse Bay and Lake Michigan, and the Little Traverse Wheelway runs right past it, so it makes an easy stop on a bike ride between Petoskey and Charlevoix.

In September, Balloons Over Bay Harbor fills the sky with hot air balloon launches, tethered rides and a craft show.