Charlevoix Golf Trip Guide

If you're planning a Charlevoix golf trip, start with the thing that makes it work. Charlevoix is a real summer town, not a hotel parking lot next to a course. You can walk to dinner, the waterfront's right there, and the group wants to be in town after a round. That's rarer than it sounds up north, and it's why I keep coming back to Charlevoix as a home base. The other reason is the golf around it: between Charlevoix, Petoskey and Harbor Springs, you've got one of the deepest clusters of public courses in the state inside about 30 minutes.

Why Charlevoix earns its keep as a base

A lot of golf towns give you good courses and nothing to do at night. Charlevoix gives you both, and the evenings end up being half of why the trip's good. The town sits on the channel between Round Lake and Lake Michigan, so you get real waterfront, and the restaurants are a short walk or a five minute drive instead of a project.

Where you stay matters more than people expect, because it shapes how the evenings feel as much as the courses shape the days. You've got three honest options: a place right downtown for walkability, a Lake Charlevoix waterfront house for the classic Michigan lake feel, or something out on Lake Michigan for seclusion and views. For most golf groups, I'd take the Lake Charlevoix waterfront house. You get the lake house the trip deserves, you're close enough to walk or drive a few minutes into town for dinner, and the setting makes the evenings part of the trip instead of just a place to sleep. August inventory moves fast, so lock that piece first.

The marquee rounds

Two courses carry a Charlevoix trip, and they're the two I build everything else around.

Bay Harbor Golf Club, near Petoskey, is the anchor. It's 27 holes of cliff-top golf above Lake Michigan, about 20 to 25 minutes from Charlevoix, and it's the round I'd center a trip here on. I cover the three nines and the one rule that decides your round (play it in the morning) in full on the Bay Harbor Golf Club page.

Belvedere Golf Club is the round serious golfers remember, and it's right in Charlevoix. A 1925 William Watson design, it's the natural departure-day round, because you play, have lunch in town, and drive home with no backtracking. Full write-up on the Belvedere Golf Club page.

The Charlevoix-area public courses

Past the two marquees, Charlevoix itself holds more good public golf than most groups realize.

Charlevoix Country Club: I've opened a Charlevoix trip here, a fun round to shake off the travel and get the group loose before the bigger days. It's no throwaway round. A public-access Jerry Matthews design from 1993, with bent-grass fairways, big undulating greens and a strong closing stretch.

Antrim Dells, a little south toward Atwood, is another Jerry Matthews course and a long-time area value: a parkland front nine that gives way to a wooded, creek-lined back. Good golf that won't cost marquee money.

The Petoskey and Harbor Springs cluster

Fifteen to twenty-five minutes north, the Little Traverse Bay courses are where you add variety.

The Highlands, in Harbor Springs (you'll still see it called Boyne Highlands), is a four-course resort: The Heather, The Moor, the Arthur Hills, and the Donald Ross Memorial. The Arthur Hills course is the one I'd slot into a Charlevoix trip, a strong, rolling layout that plays differently from the water golf.

Crooked Tree Golf Club in Petoskey, a Harry Bowers design that opened in 1991, sits on the bluffs with Little Traverse Bay and Lake Michigan views off the back nine. A scenic, walkable change of pace.

One to know about, not to plan around: True North in Harbor Springs is a terrific Jim Engh design, but it's a private, invitation-only club, so it's off the table for a trip like this. I mention it only so you're not chasing a tee time you can't get.

Arrival-day options on the drive up

Your first round should sit on your route in, so a travel day doesn't cost you a round. Driving up I-75 from Detroit, Forest Dunes in Roscommon is right on the way and worth the stop, with the Nightmare in West Branch a forgiving, high-value backup a little south. Coming from Chicago or Grand Rapids, the Sundance course at A-Ga-Ming near Torch Lake sits naturally on the drive, and I break it down on the A-Ga-Ming Sundance page.

How I think about a Charlevoix trip

There's an order that makes these courses sing, and getting it right is most of the job: which round opens while everyone's still shaking off the drive, which one anchors the middle when the group's fresh, which one sends you home happy, and when each tee time should fall. That depends on your dates, your travel route and your handicaps, so it's the part I build for your group rather than print here. The thinking behind it is on the Michigan golf trips hub.

The evenings

Charlevoix punches above its weight for a town this size. Marek's and the Villager Pub handle the relaxed nights where nobody wants to change out of golf clothes. Bridge Street Tap Room has waterfront views and a long list of local taps for a low-key wind-down, and Vue Wine Bar sits right on the channel for a drink before dinner. The nights are good enough to be part of the trip, which is the whole reason to base here instead of next to a single course.

For the nice dinner out, Weathervane's the one I point groups to. It's the most popular spot in town, hands down, and I've yet to hear anyone come back anything but happy.

One honest piece of advice

Don't try to play every famous name in the region in four days. The temptation is real, and you end up with a lot of driving and not enough golf. Pick the rounds that each do a job, base yourself somewhere worth being at night, and play the rest on the next trip. Michigan rewards the group that comes back.

If you're still deciding whether to plan it yourself or bring someone in, the do you need a Michigan golf trip planner page is an honest read on that call.