Inn · Mid-range
Bay View Inn
On Woodland Avenue in Bay View, on Little Traverse Bay
A Victorian country inn from the 1880s in the Bay View Association, run for more than 60 years by Stafford Smith and his family before new owners took over.
Bay · Charlevoix & Petoskey
Little Traverse Bay
A Lake Michigan bay with marinas in Petoskey, Harbor Springs and Bay Harbor, swim beaches at the state park and Zorn Park, and Petoskey stones in the shallows.
Little Traverse Bay is a summer bay for boaters and beach days. Two resort towns with city marinas face each other across the water, a state park beach sits between them, and the shallows are where you hunt for Petoskey stones.
Boaters have three harbors to choose from. The Petoskey City Marina has transient slips, fuel and pump-out. The Harbor Springs Municipal Marina sits in what the visitors bureau calls one of the deepest natural basins on the Great Lakes, a short walk from downtown, with private marinas alongside, and Bay Harbor has its own deep-water marina on the south shore. Off Harbor Springs, mind the slow no-wake zones near town and around the mooring field. Beyond them the open bay has no special limits.
For a swim, Petoskey State Park has a mile of sandy beach between the two towns, and Zorn Park Beach in downtown Harbor Springs has a marked swim area and a floating raft. Anglers fish the bay for trout, salmon, bass and steelhead.
It is a notch in the Lake Michigan shoreline at the top of the Lower Peninsula, about 45 square miles in all. The Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council ranks it the fourth-largest bay on Lake Michigan, after Green Bay, Grand Traverse Bay and Bay de Noc. It runs about 10 miles from its mouth, is about 8 miles wide between Nine Mile Point and Seven Mile Point, and narrows to about 3.5 miles between Petoskey and Harbor Springs.
Petoskey sits on the southeast shore, where the Bear River reaches the bay and Bayfront Park and the city marina line the waterfront. Harbor Springs faces it from the north side, tucked behind Harbor Point, a sand spit that waves and wind-driven currents are still slowly building. Bay Harbor lies on the south shore west of Petoskey, where you can still see the old limestone shoreline.
At Petoskey State Park, dune trails climb Old Baldy above the beach and the stony shallows are where people look for Petoskey stones. The Little Traverse Wheelway, a paved trail, follows the bay past the park entrance, so you can bike in.
Resort communities grew up around the bay in the 1880s, and the shoreline is still the region’s main summer draw.
On the water
Motorboats and rules
Off Harbor Springs, boats 26 feet and longer must keep to slow no-wake inside the line from Harbor Point to Zoll Street. Smaller boats must go slow no-wake close in off town (between Judd Street and Glen Drive) and within 200 feet of shore, docks, pierheads and anchorages. A further slow no-wake zone covers the water around the Harbor Springs mooring field.
Swimming
Swim at Petoskey State Park, which has about a mile of sandy beach on the bay, a swim beach and a beach house. You need a Recreation Passport for vehicles. In downtown Harbor Springs, Zorn Park Beach has a designated swim area, a floating raft, restrooms and a lifeguard on select summer days. In Petoskey, Magnus City Park has about 1,000 feet of shoreline within walking distance of downtown and is a known Petoskey stone spot. Bayfront Park in Petoskey is not a swimming beach.
Public access
Petoskey State Park, run by the Michigan DNR, is your main way onto the bay: about a mile of sandy Lake Michigan shoreline with swimming, a beach house, paddling and two campgrounds. You need a Recreation Passport for vehicle entry. In Petoskey, Bayfront Park gives the city about 7,800 feet of public shoreline, though it is not a swimming beach.
Boating
Petoskey and Harbor Springs both have municipal marinas with transient slips, and the Harbor Springs Municipal Marina has a boat launch and hoist. Bay Harbor has its own marina on the south shore.
Fishing
The main catches are trout, salmon, bass and steelhead. Check current Michigan DNR rules before fishing.
Stocking
Lake whitefish were stocked off Harbor Springs in 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2022 through 2025. Brown trout were stocked off Petoskey from 2016 to 2023 (and off Harbor Springs in 2015), and lake herring from 2016 to 2020.
Public boat launches
Marinas
Petoskey City Marina
City marina on the Petoskey waterfront with 72 transient slips listed from May to October, broadside dockage, a fuel dock with diesel and ethanol-free gasoline, and pump-out.
- Harbor Springs Municipal Marina
City marina a short walk from downtown Harbor Springs, with seasonal and transient slips, pump-out, showers and laundry. Fuel is sold by nearby businesses, not at the city marina.
- Walstrom Marine (Harbor Springs)
Private marina on East Bay Street with seasonal slips of 35 to 75 feet, a few transient slips, fuel and pump-out, as listed.
- Irish Boat Shop (Harbor Springs)
Full-service marina for power and sailboats on the edge of downtown, with floating-dock dockage, showers and parking for dockage customers.
- Bay Harbor Lake Marina
Deep-water marina with floating docks in the Village of Bay Harbor on the south shore, for yachts up to 185 feet, with a boaters' lounge, laundry and bike rentals. Book online.
Fishing, launching at a state site or parking at a state park? See licenses and passes for what you need before you go.
Anything not listed here is unverified. Do not assume public access across private shoreline. Check the Michigan DNR boating access listings and the current fishing regulations.
Through the seasons
Location
Map of Little Traverse Bay
4 places on an OpenStreetMap map
Places to stay near Little Traverse Bay
Lakefront cottages and homes are listed by the local rental managers and booking sites below.
Hotels and inns
Upscale
Inn at Bay HarborAAA Three Diamond · Featured by the Petoskey Area Visitors Bureau
Mid-range
Hotel PerryFeatured by the Petoskey Area Visitors Bureau among historic hotels and inns
Budget
Holiday Inn Express and Suites PetoskeyAAA Three Diamond
Search all hotels in Petoskey: Booking.com · Expedia · Hotels.com · Google Hotels
We don’t take bookings or earn anything from these links. Rates, availability and any booking problems are handled by the booking site.
More places to stay in Petoskey
- Bay View Inn · A Victorian country inn from the 1880s in the Bay View Association, run for more than 60 years by Stafford Smith and his family before new owners took over.
- Terrace Inn · A historic hotel in the Bay View Association that opened on June 1, 1911, and still houses the 1911 Restaurant.
- Petoskey Area Visitors Bureau lodging · The visitors bureau's guide to hotels, historic inns, resorts, condos and vacation rentals around Petoskey, Harbor Springs and Bay Harbor.
Vacation rentals
- Holiday Vacation Rentals · holidayvacationrental.com
A Harbor Springs area rental manager with homes, condos and cottages around Petoskey, Harbor Springs, Charlevoix and Boyne City.
- Northern Michigan Escapes · northernmichiganescapes.com
A Charlevoix-based vacation rental and property management company serving Charlevoix, Petoskey, Harbor Springs and nearby areas.
Resort · Upscale
Inn at Bay Harbor
On Little Traverse Bay in Bay Harbor, west of Petoskey
A lakeshore inn in the Bay Harbor community outside Petoskey, with views of Little Traverse Bay, a spa and a seasonal afternoon tea.
Nearby towns
Charlevoix & Petoskey
Petoskey
A walkable bay town for stone hunting, shopping the Gaslight District and riding the Little Traverse Wheelway, with historic Bay View next door.
About 4 miles away (straight line)
Charlevoix & Petoskey
Harbor Springs
For history, harbor views and the Tunnel of Trees: a small town on the north shore of Little Traverse Bay, with two ski areas nearby for winter.
About 3 miles away (straight line)
Charlevoix & Petoskey · Small town
Bay View
A Victorian summer community beside Petoskey for history lovers and concertgoers, a National Historic Landmark with music and lectures you can attend.
About 5 miles away (straight line)
Nearby attractions
Straight-line distances from the map point.
State park
Petoskey State Park
A mile of Lake Michigan beach on Little Traverse Bay between Petoskey and Harbor Springs, with wooded dunes and the climb up Old Baldy.
About 6 miles away (straight line)
Trail
Little Traverse Wheelway
A paved, non-motorized trail along Little Traverse Bay linking Charlevoix, Petoskey and Harbor Springs, much of it with open views of the water.
About 4 miles away (straight line)
More lakes and rivers nearby
River · Charlevoix & Petoskey
Bear River
A short, fast river through Petoskey, with a quarter-mile whitewater course, a canoe livery for easy family floats and brook trout above the dam.
- Rentals
Lake · Charlevoix & Petoskey
Round Lake (Emmet County)
A small, shallow all-sports lake behind the Petoskey State Park dunes, with a small DNR launch and a nature preserve with easy trails and a boardwalk.
- All-sports
- Public launch
Lake · Charlevoix & Petoskey
Walloon Lake
A deep, clear all-sports lake south of Petoskey with marinas at Walloon Lake village, small township beaches and launches, and ice fishing in winter.
- All-sports
- Swim beach
- Public launch
- Rentals