A Trip to the Cherry Town Traverse City

June 24, 2025 – Traverse City 🍒 After lunch, we left Charlevoix and drove to Traverse City 🚗💨. As the largest city in Northern Michigan, it lies along the shores of Lake Michigan’s Traverse Bay. Famous across the U.S. for its cherries, it’s known as the “Cherry Capital of the World” 🍒🌎. Among Michiganders, Traverse City is definitely a top 5 must-visit destination—thanks to its thousands of miles of hiking trails and the stunning Grand Traverse Bay shoreline 🥾✨. After a 1.5-hour drive through downtown Traverse City, we arrived at Leelanau Peninsula 🏞️. The peninsula is covered with cherry and grape orchards and is home to many wineries 🍇🍷. Late June is usually cherry-picking season, but this year the cherries weren’t quite ripe yet 🍒😢. So we picked strawberries instead—$6.99 for a small basket 🍓💸. We then drove to the very tip of the peninsula—Old Mission Point Park ⛲. The iconic Mission Point Lighthouse ⛯ has stood there for over 100 years. Next to it is a cute little summer house 🏡. On the beach, families were splashing in the water, and a few people were fishing farther out on the lake 🎣👨👩👧👦. After that, we drove 20 minutes to our floral-themed hotel 🏨🌺, then another 10 minutes to Costco to fill up on gas (almost $1 per gallon cheaper than in Chicago! ⛽😍) and pick up some vitamins to bring back home 🧴✈️. Around 6 PM, we headed downtown 🏙️. For dinner, we tried the popular Italian spot—The Flying Noodle 🍝👌. We had to wait 45 minutes for a table, but it was worth it! We ordered two pastas and some delicious fried calamari 🦑😋. While waiting, we strolled along the main street—bustling with tourists and full of energy 🎉✨. We passed the historic opera house, a large clock engraved with “Traverse,” and a gorgeous mural promoting Traverse City 🕰️🎨. #PerfectGetaway #TravelGoals#TraverseCity