9 Best Places to Visit in The Upper Peninsula of Michigan

I have to admit, when I first traveled through it, I didn’t expect that there were so many things to do in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and in hindsight, I wish I stayed around this region longer to do just that. But never the less, I did see a lot and in this post, I want to share 9 of the best places to see there.

Best places to visit in the Upper Peninsula:

1. Mackinac Island Arch.
2. Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.
3. Scott Falls.
4. Presque Isle State Park.
5. Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park.
6. Presque Isle River Waterfalls Loop Trail.
7. Superior Falls.
8. Eben Ice Caves.
9. Apostle Islands.

Hotel info:

Best hotels in the Upper Peninsula (see user reviews)

Mackinac Island’s Arch Rock:

Mackinac Island is a very small island that you can access by ferry once you enter the Upper Peninsula of Michigan (from the main Michigan state itself). It has a lot of attractions to check out, including trails, caves and so forth, but the main thing in my opinion would be Arch Rock. In my case, I actually realized I missed this spot because I figured the main attractions of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan were in the northern end of it. Reaching this place requires a boat though, so keep this in mind. But hopefully, you won’t make my mistake and miss it! 

Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore:

The prettiest part of the entire Upper Peninsula of Michigan has to be Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore (at least this is I thought) and it was the main attraction I wanted to see during my road trip in that area.

This is a national park area that spans for over 20 miles across the shoreline of Michigan. On it, you will find tons of awesome things to explore, from beach waterfalls, to kayak adventures and much more. See my post above on what to do in this beautiful park but for sure, if you visit the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, this has to be your main go to spot and just as well, it’s also one of the best places to see the Northern Lights in the USA.

Scott Falls:

I consider Scott Falls to be a small but cool “Easter Egg” in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. It can be found on your GPS and is identified as “Lake Superior Historical Marker Scott Falls”. It is a beautiful waterfall right off road 28 and it’s really easy to miss. In our case, we accidentally saw it while passing by and of course, we had to stop to check it out. A trail is available around the waterfall, but be sure to stop here. And right next to it is a cool little beach you can also explore if you like.

Presque Isle State Park:

Presque Isle State Park is a very small, but extremely scenic park I highly recommend checking out. They have beaches, cliff jumps, cliffs and beautiful areas to check out the sunsets, which is when we arrived there. We didn’t have much time, but we did get to see a number of things at this park before heading off to the town nearby to grab supper.

An interesting coincidence to note is that the picture you see above (of me by the beach) is at this park and it’s also an area I remembered seeing on Google well over a decade ago (possibly 2) and I never knew what this area was. What an exciting feeling it was when I realized this same beach was what I had “wished” I saw all those years ago and it finally came true there and then!

Lake of The Clouds Overlook:

After the first day of my road trip to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, my buddy and I stayed at a hotel in the Porcupine Mountains and in the morning explored and drove around the whole area, stopping by and checking out certain spots. The first place we saw was a beautiful overlook called Lake of The Clouds. It’s easy to reach and quite a sight.

Presque Isle River Waterfalls Loop Trail:

After checking out Lake of The Clouds overlook, my buddy and I drove through the Porcupine Mountains and on the way saw signs for a waterfall trail area. We checked it out, and there was a beautiful trail to walk which took you down steps, across a beautiful bridge, arch rocks, sea caves and an awesome view of Lake Superior in parts.

Superior Falls (Legion County State Park):

The last spot my buddy and I saw on our road trip through the Upper Peninsula of Michigan was this small, but also scenic park. There are 2 things worth noting here that make it worth visiting:

1. There are giant red cliffs here (east of the waterfall) and a cool trail that takes you behind an electric station and to a beautiful waterfall with giant gorges around it.
2. The second trail is what takes you to Superior Falls and there are some interactive things to do there like hiking, climbing and if the water level is low enough, going over to the other side of the waterfall.

Eben Ice Caves:

There are certain parts of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan which are best to check out in the winter time (or at least before spring begins) and one of those places happens to be the Eben Ice Caves. It is a gorge/cave area where every year (during winter), the ice formations over it cover it up almost entirely and basically cover that cave from the outside. There is a trailhead known as the Eben Ice Caves trailhead which will take you to this place. It’s only about half a mile to it, but it will likely be in snow covered areas. Once you get there, the scenery is beautiful and I have also seen this area photographed at night with lights pointing towards it (or from the inside), making for amazing colors and views to check out.

Apostle Islands National Lakeshore:

The last spot on this is officially not located in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. But it’s very close to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan’s border (about 15 miles away from it). In the Apostle Islands what you have is over 20 small islands you can explore by kayak and have an amazing experience from!

Best spots to prioritize seeing:

If you happen to be traveling through this area and tight on time like I was, I would prioritize the following attractions (in hindsight):

1. Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore (the top spot in the Upper Peninsula in my opinion).
2. Apostle Islands (it’s the best place to see near the Upper Peninsula).
3. The rest that is on this list should be secondary to the above 2 spots.

Related:

• North Shore MN
• Amnicon Falls State Park
• Best places to visit on the Oregon Coast

With the exception of the Oregon Coast which has it’s own list of amazing scenery, the other 2 recommendations are close to the Upper Peninsula area and can also be explored on a multi day road trip.