Michigan’s Upper Peninsula is is one of the most purely wild places in the United States. You can drive for miles without seeing another soul. Plus, you can find hidden lakes with no boats, houses, or humans. Also, you can see ospreys and eagles fighting mid-air in a show worthy of National Geographic. And all of this you can do amid stops for ice cream and fresh fish as you make your way through “Gods Country” on this Upper Peninsula road trip. So continue reading to find the perfect itinerary for your Upper Peninsula road trip that will help you find the “pure” part of Pure Michigan.
This 5-day Michigan itinerary is a one way drive from Sault (pronounced Soo) Ste. Marie to Copper Harbor. However, if you want to make this into a loop you can. Simply leave out Kitch-iti-kipi as you drive the northern shore of the Upper Peninsula and then loop your way back through the south shore on your way back and visit Kitch-iti-kipi on the way back through. Highway 2 is one of my favorite roads in the country. So while there aren’t a lot of stops along the south shore of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, the drive is beautiful.
If you make this into an Upper Peninsula road trip loop, you’re able to start and stop from the same place which is definitely a bonus if you’re planning on flying to this road trip. There are no cheap or easy to access airports in the UP, however Escanaba would probably be your best option. But since most people drive to the UP, we’ll write this 5-day itinerary for our Upper Peninsula road trip as though it is a one way trip.
Where to Stay in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula
We’ll provide you with some locations to stay each night that will allow you to be near restaurants and also set you up to do minimal extra driving. However, we’ve visited so many times and stayed in so many different places, we aren’t going to bother giving you exact recommendations. There are plenty of campsites, clean hotels, and cute home rentals in the UP, so we’re confident you can find something perfect for your needs.
One thing to know when making reservations, the Upper Peninsula’s home rentals tend to be targeted to large groups and come with the price tag to match. So if you are looking for a large group, go with a home rental. But if you are looking for a small family or couples vacation, hotels will be your best bet.
Our links in the U.P. road trip itinerary below will take you to hotels in the area. If you’re interested in home rentals, use the search bar below.
However, also consider camping! The Upper Peninsula has a ton of public land! This means that you’ll find lots of cheap and well maintained campgrounds scattered throughout the peninsula. You can search and make reservations for these campgrounds here.
Upper Peninsula Road Trip Itinerary
Day 1 – The Soo
Arrive in the UP and make your way to Sault Ste. Marie (aka The Soo). You’re probably driving from somewhere else, so you probably won’t arrive until the afternoon. However, if you do arrive earlier, consider spending some time in St. Ignace in the morning.
While in The Soo, the one must-do is watching the locks or even riding through them. You can watch the locks operate from shore or you can choose between one of the tour companies that will take you through the locks. This is a really cool experience for the whole family. I loved riding through these locks as a child. You’ll get to experience the world’s largest locking system from within the system! You’ll also get to ride through these locks alongside some of the largest ships to sail the 7 seas, or the 5 Great Lakes, in this case.
Day 2 – Lake Superior
Drive from Sault Ste. Marie to Whitefish point. Once at Whitefish Point, explore the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum. This is a really cool museum that explores all of the shipwrecks that have occurred on the Great Lakes, mainly Lake Superior. You’ll find that special attention is paid to the mystery of the Edmund Fitzgerald – and yes they play the song a lot. This is a great stop for people interested in unsolved mysteries, scuba diving or boating.
You’ll also find a beautiful lighthouse here that you can climb for an extra fee. The beach along Lake Superior here is a great place to spend some time playing in so very cold waters. This sand beach is a great place for a lakeside picnic lunch.
After lunch, head south to Taquamenon Falls. This is the most popular waterfall in Michigan. Here you’ll find two sets of falls to explore. The upper falls are the biggest set, which is most popular for viewing. However, make sure to take the short drive to the lower falls to get the full effect. At both stops, you’ll find that there are really short hikes to the waterfall viewing points. Also, you’ll find some spots along the hike where you have the opportunity to splash about in the Tahquamenon River. The kids will love this spot if you let them play in the water 🙂
Stay the night in or around Newberry. Accommodations in this area are limited so you could also stay another night in Sault Ste. Marie.
Day 3 – Waterfalls and Pictured Rocks
Wake up early and head to Kitch-iti-kipi springs. Kitch-iti-kipi, or Big Springs, is a big clear pool of bright blue water fed by an underground spring. This short detour on your route is really a fun one.
However, if this is too much of a detour for you to take, consider driving along the lakeshore between Newberry and Munising. Whatever you do, do not take the Seney stretch (Highway 28), which is known by all Michiganders for being the most boring stretch of road in the state. Seriously, it’s so boring and straight that you can land a space shuttle on it.
Next, head to Munising. Grab lunch at one of the cute local restaurants. If you really want the full UP experience, try a pasty at Muldoon’s. Muldoon’s is considered by many to be the best pasties in the UP.
Waterfalls
Afterwards, mix together some waterfall watching and the vistas of Pictured Rocks as you explore Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.
First, stop at Munising Falls. This short walk will take you in to the woods to see this beautiful waterfalls. Take in the vistas from the upper and lower viewing decks.
Next, Head to Miners Falls. Here, you’ll walk just short of 1 mile to see this waterfall in the woods. The upper viewing deck doesn’t give the best views. However, pretty much everyone there seems to jump off the viewing deck and scramble down to the river to take in the views from the bottom of the falls. This is not an official path, it is hard to climb back up, and you probably shouldn’t be there since, again, it’s not an official path. But that being said, the view from the upper deck really isn’t great (NPS, please make a lower deck viewing area so us rule followers can get a better view).
Pictured Rocks
Next, go to Miners Castle. This is the most picturesque of the rock formations along the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. Plus, this stop takes just a few short minutes to hop out and see the Upper Outlook, which is the best view of Miners Castle.
If you would like to then walk to the Lower Outlook, it will take about 30 minutes. This outlook will give you the view of Lake Superior from behind Miners Castle.
Finish out your trip into Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore with a stop at Miners beach. This is one of the best beaches on Lake Superior and is a great place to dip you toes into the freezing waters. Or if you’re brave (or a small cold-resistant child) consider spending a bit of time here doing some actual swimming.
After exploring Pictured Rocks by land, you’ll definitely want to explore them via water. This is one of the best ways to see the beautiful cliffs. You can chose to take either a boat tour or a kayak tour. My favorite tour is the glass bottom boat that operates out of Munising. You can see the cliffs up close and get to see some cool shipwrecks in the harbor as well. They also have sunset cruises if you’d like to take an evening journey, it’s one of the best tours out there. You should plan on dedicating 3-4 hours to this. This is also one of the few things you should book in advance. Tours often sell out, especially the sunset cruises and weekend tours.
Have diner in Munising. We like Pictured Rocks Pizza! Stay overnight in or around Munising.
Day 4 – Marquette
Head to Marquette in the morning. On your way there stop to drive or walk through the Lakenenland. This self proclaimed Junkyard Art park is home to some pretty cool outdoor sculpture. Even better for the kiddos, several of these sculptures allow you to play on them.
Arrive in Marquette and explore one of the few large towns that the Upper Peninsula has to offer.
Make sure to head to Presque Isle Park, one of the gems of town. Also, consider hiking to the top of Sugarloaf Mountain for some great views.
If you’re natured out by this point in your trip, consider exploring the small downtown area and doing some beer tastings at the breweries.
Leave Marquette in the late afternoon and make your way to Houghton. As you head to Houghton, make sure to stop at Da Yoopers Tourist Trap. It ridiculously touristy and doesn’t even pretend to be anything else. But there is something so incredibly UP about it and it will give you some insight into all the little Yooper jokes. This is just some plain ole’ dumb fun to be had.
Day 5 – The Keewanaw Peninsula
Have breakfast in Houghton at Soumi’s Cafe. This is a great place for a hearty traditional Finnish-style breakfast to fill you up for your adventures.
Drive up to Copper Harbor in the morning. Explore the northern most point of Michigan and some of the best natural spaces in the state. We love driving from Eagle Harbor to Copper Harbor and stopping at all the roadside parks along the way. This will give you a really wonderful taste of the Keewanaw Peninsula and everything that it has to offer.
Head deep into the heart of Copper country with a visit to the Quincy Mine. This is a winner for the kiddos! Delve into the remains of an actual mine and explore the history of mining in the Keewanaw. You’ll learn firsthand what it was like to work in the copper mines and even get to be outfitted in a cool hard hat!
Head back to Houghton for lunch. Consider pizza at the Ambassador. PS: I like to think our food recommendations for Houghton are particularly on point as they’re coming from a Michigan Tech alumni.
After lunch, explore Houghton. Wander downtown and explore the campus of Michigan Technical College. Make sure you stop at the Mineral Museum on campus. It’s one of the best rock museums out there with really cool specimens from around the world.
Grab dinner at Joey’s for some of the best fish and chips on the planet and don’t forget to stop for a drink at the Keweenaw Brewing Company.
Want to Adjust the Upper Peninsula Itinerary
If you have extra time, consider spending an extra day exploring Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. One of the best hikes in the UP has been excluded from this Upper Peninsula road trip itinerary for the sake of time. However, if you have extra time, spend it completing in the Chapel Basin Loop hike, which will allow you to see Chapel Falls, Chapel Rock and Chapel Beach. Spend your extra time in Munising exploring some additional waterfalls. Like Alger Falls and more!
We hope this Upper Peninsula road trip itinerary has helped you to plan your own Michigan vacation. We’ve spent so much time in the UP, we really love sharing it with you. So if you have any questions, please leave them in the comments section and we’d be happy to answer them with our years of UP knowledge.
Hello! We’re planning to visit the UP in early October. We’ll be visiting from FL, but driving to the UP from the Green Bay area. Is there a central location (city) or in the UP you would recommend as a “home base” for day trips?
We’ll be traveling with our six children ages 0-12, so we would prefer to stay in one AirBnB and do day trips from there, as that makes more sense for us than having to check in and out of hotels every day. We’d probably venture as far as the Keewanaw Peninsula and to the Soo.
Thanks for such a great post!
Early October should be great for the fall colors!
We’ve done this with our families a few times too. We’ve stayed in Munising and just south of Marquette as central locations and gotten really nice cabin rentals.
Munising worked better for us as we spent more time on the east end of the UP – also we love Munising. We (and several of our family friends) have stayed here in the past: https://vrbo.com/affiliates/3509523.51Azb2d
But if you’re going to spend more time in the Keewanaw and Porkies, Marquette would be better. If you could find something in between that would be nice too but then you may have issues finding groceries/restaurants in a reasonable drive distance.
Have fun!
Thanks for the outline for a 5 day tour of the UP MI. I was trying to get information on places to stay but the links didn’t work.
When planning, I was overwhelmed by the great options but your 5 day trip nearly hit all the main stops I had hoped to make. From Michigan myself, but living in CA, I have very limited experience with the UP.
Debating the Sault St Marie and looking to maybe hike Porcupine Mt area. Any suggestions you have on that would be great. Places to stay or how to activate link would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Frank
Hi Frank! Thanks for reaching out and letting me know. I did reactivate all of those links. We wrote this UP road trip up as a though you’re driving from the Lower Peninsula (as that’s where a majority of people come from). So we didn’t include the Porcupine Mt area for timings sake. However, if you are coming from Wisconsin, or flying directly into the UP, the Porcupine Mts are definitely better in our opinion. However, we are adults with no kids. I think kids will generally prefer the Soo, due to the big boats, I know I did when I was a kid. I hope this helps you decide!