Michigan City East Pierhead Lighthouse — Attraction in Michigan City

We loved walking on the beach to the pier then on the pier to the lighthouse. The view of water is really nice. So is the beach. I bet it looks really pretty at night since we saw lanterns on light posts along the pier. We walked around the lighthouse which could be a little challenging for some since it’s very narrow. I absolutely love Lighthouses so this was great for me. You can’t go inside because it’s locked up but like I said you can walk around it and then walk on the beach. We walked in the water and picked up a few small shells and overall had a great day. We finished off with a great bite to eat at a local restaurant on the water which is very close called Bridges Waterside Grille. I def recommend you try that place to eat also. Yum! I would like to add though that since it is a beach you do have to pay admission to get in. The fee when we went was $20.00 there is a zoo on the property as well. The fee is for parking but it’s worth it if you’re going to spend the day. It’s a beautiful area. The only downside is the pounding of some machinery up the way which is kinda annoying but don’t let that discourage...

Took a day trip to the Indiana Dunes and the lighthouse is about 10 minutes from there! You can actually see the Dunes from the walkway which is cool. Usually charge $20 entry at the gate, but they were closed for the season when I went (mid May 2024) for whatever reason, so no entry fee. Beach is nice, but for sure crowded on nice days, and the parking is sorta confusing to figure out. Expect people from everywhere on vacation just like any other beach. And there was no regulation on what was being brought to the beach, I could tell some people were drunk and weren't trying to hide it. Yes, you can walk on a paved path all the way to the lighthouse. You cant go up into it or anything, but you can walk all the way around it. But beware of rapidly changing conditions of the lake!!! It can be nice and sunny with no wind one minute, and the next minute 10mph winds and waves coming in from the lake that go up and over the walkway! Expect people to be rude as well, everybody wants a pic and will do pretty much anything to get it, especially the...

Visited at sunset. Arrived at 7 pm and surprised we were still charged $15 for entry for our car to go through the gates and park. It seems the only parking lot is Washington beach. We mostly just wanted to walk the concrete pier out to the lighthouse. You cannot climb it, or go inside- only walk around the outside. Walks around the sides of it are narrow, and include stairs. One side has no guard rails. You can scramble the large boulders below, all along the beach side of the pier. Fishing off the other side, where it steps down. You cannot walk on the catwalk (metal tracks above) but neat aesthetic backdrop for pics. Lights in the lighthouse still come on at night. Beautiful place to watch the sunset but gets a...