With Christmas break already over, it may seem like there’s not very much free time left this season to experience West Michigan in the winter. West Michigan winters usually see snow until mid-March and sometimes even later than that, so from now until March 21st, when winter officially ends, there are 11 weekends left. That’s plenty of time to at least enjoy a few things from this bucket list, even though it may be a little late for the first two points! But, hey, at least you have some things to remember for next year!
1. Christmas Time Fun
I know not everyone celebrates Christmas, but it is a big holiday to celebrate for many people, so here’s some things that happened this past year or do on an annual basis. Check websites as December approaches again for correct dates/times.
- Every year at the Frederik Meijer Gardens, they have a really cool exhibit where there’s a Christmas tree decorated from different places around the world. It’s really cool to go around and see and learn about different traditions.
- Like most other towns, Muskegon also has a Tree lighting ceremony downtown in Hackley Park, but if you can’t make it for the lighting, it’s still pretty cool to walk around and see all the decorations they have out.
- One thing the city is most proud of is that we are home to America’s Tallest Singing Christmas Tree put on by local high school students every year the weekend after Thanksgiving. It’s an amazing show to watch. You can read more about my experience singing in it here: https://www.theodysseyonline.com/experience-singing-americas-tallest-singing-christmas-tree, or more info and fun facts about it here: http://www.monashoressingingchristmastree.com/.
- If you’re willing to drive a ways and shell out $17, Fifth Third Ballpark has a two mile long stretch where you can drive and look at all the light displays. OR if you don’t feel like driving that far, there’s plenty of neighborhoods with decorated houses that you can drive around by yourself.
2. New Year’s Eve Family Fun
There are plenty of places that have parties for families with young children to celebrate on New Year’s Eve. Here are a couple.
- Craig’s Cruisers – this year they had two parties at different times for families with kids of different ages to celebrate
- New Year’s Eve Ball drop – for teenagers/young adults, there are a few towns that hold their own ball drops. This year Ludington held theirs, and in the past Grand Rapids held one with concerts going on all night.
3. Spend some time outside/in the cold
Check websites for hours and costs for certain locations.
- Go see frozen Lake Michigan waves – when the lake freezes over, it’s really an amazing site to see how the wave freeze over in the winter, like mini hills, but be careful and don’t go out too far, you don’t know how thick the ice is.
- Visit Lake Harbor Park for sledding or to just go on a walk through the wood. Just a tip if you decide to go sledding and there’s a lot of people, find a hill off to the side, there won’t be as many people there.
- Go tubing at Double JJ Resort, or take a sleigh ride or go dog sledding
- Visit the Winter Sports Complex at Muskegon State Par for ice skating rinks/trails, cross country skiing trails, and luge
- Go ice skating at the L.C. Walker Arena or other ice rink
- Go to a Lumberjacks Hockey Game
- Go snowmobiling on Hart-Montague Trail State Park, Musketawa Trail, or get a trail map at www.whitelake.org. Or drive up north 1.5-2 hours to have access to even more trails.
- Go skiing/snowboarding at Mulligan’s Hallow, a great place to learn, or take a two hour drive and ski at a resort with more and harder runs.
- Visit a local state park to take a hike or go cross country skiing, Hoffmaster State Park, Duck Lake State Park, or Muskegon State Park
4. Have some fun inside as well
- Go to movies or have a movie night at home
- For those that like listening to Christian/Praise and Worship Music – Go to Winter Jam on January 8th in Grand Rapids for only $10 at the door. Get there early to stand in line and be able to get in. Winter Jam
- Go to Craig’s Cruisers for arcade games and other indoor fun in Muskegon, Grand Rapids or Holland
- See a show, either at the Frauenthal or somewhere else
- Paint some pottery or take a canvas class someplace like Your Plate or Mine at the Lakes Mall
5. And if all else fails, visit a museum/historical site
There are so many that one could visit, that spending a month in town, may not be enough time to see all the museums and sites. Some include:
-Hackley Library - The first floor has beautiful stained glass windows and the second floor has really cool glass floors.
-USS Silversides Museum
-Muskegon Heritage Museum
-Century Club Shops
-Frederik Meijer Gardens
-Van Andel Museum
-Dutch Village – it’s closed, but the shops are still open 9 am-5pm, Monday-Friday
-Shelby Gem Factory
-Lakeshore Museum Center
-Muskegon Museum of Art - Sometimes they have a children's "make and take" day on the second Saturday of the month
-Any of the antique shops
-Frauenthal Performing Arts Center - it was built in 1929
6. Visit a local specialty food shop or eat at a local restaurant
- Health Hutt
- The Cheese Lady - she has some of the best cheeses/oils you can find
- The Fish Monger's Wife - fresh/smoked fish, closed January 22-February 13, 2017
- Lakeside Emporium - some of the best candy around
- Wayne's Deli
- Coastline Deli - they have the most beautiful panoramic views of the city
Restaurants with an "*" serve fresh fish from the Fish Monger's Wife (see above). For full descriptions of the types of restaurants, check out the travel guide at the end of the article, but if you do, just know that The Brew House and That 70's Dough are both closed.
- G&L
- Max and Marley’s
- Fricano’s - they have some of the best thin crust pizza's you can find
- Lake House - they have beautiful views of the lake during dinner time
- Hearthstone* - little bit on the pricier end, but food to die for
- Boar’s Belly*
- Se4sons Gastro Pub*
- Mia and Grace*
- Hennessey’s Irish Pub*
- Rebel Pies
- Curry Kitchen
- Courses
- Kazumi
- El Tapatio
- Pints and Quarts
- C.F. Prime
- Rykes - they make the best baked goods around
- The Station
- Biggby Coffee
- The Coffee Factory
- US 31 BBQ
- Mr. Scribs Pizza
- Toast ‘N Jams
- soup at the Salvation Army
. . . and many, many more!
7. Take a day/weekend getaway
- Go to a resort and ski/snowboard the whole weekend or just relax inside
- Visit Great Wolf Lodge for a fun family getaway with all that their family activities and waterpark offer
- Spend a weekend at Double JJ Resort tubing, taking sleigh rides, going dog sledding, or having fun at their indoor waterpark, among their other activities
Hopefully I can help your family beat some of the winter blues and give you some ideas of what to do this winter season when the kids say they’re bored on a random Saturday! If you still need more ideas, feel free to check out www.visitmuskegon.org for an events calendar, visitmuskegon.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/MuskegonCVB_guide2016_Web.pdf for a downloadable guide to visiting Muskegon, http://muskegon.org/go-muskegon/things-to-do/ for more things to do, http://www.michigan.org/travel-guide/ where you can sign up for a free Pure Michigan newsletter and travel guide, and Www.Michigan.org for free summer and winter travel guides.
