Posts Tagged ‘Michigan Bed and Breakfast’

Michigan B&Bs Invite You to Explore Winter’s Secret Gardens of Delight

January 6th, 2012 by linda

Welcome to the first in a series of secrets our Michigan Bed and Breakfast members are going to share with you…. and only you. So shhh. Don’t tell.

Our first secret garden is a true delight, revealed by Paulette Clouse, innkeeper of J. Paules Fenn Inn B&B in Fennville. Now, you might think visiting Fennville in the middle of winter is…. well…. dull? You would be so wrong. These next two months are when Fennville comes alive with the Salt of the Earth Mid-Winter Concert Series providing world-class musical entertainment every Sunday night starting January 8 and continuing through February 26.

Starting Sunday, January 8 with the Midnight Cattle Callers performing country swing; and ending Sunday, February 26 with Riely O'Connor, Molly Moon, Dave Boutette and Josh Rose in the "Winter Songwriters Summit," enjoy concerts at 7 p.m. every Sunday evening. Table reservations are a must. Call 269-561-7258.

 

Salt of the Earth in downtown Fennville promises “Honest Food and Friendly Folks.”

First, a word or two about Salt of the Earth. It’s a rustic, unique and authentically-American restaurant that specialzes in fresh and locally-grown foods and artisan breads. It advertises “honest food and friendly folks.”  It takes pride in listing its local food sources on its website. For example, there’s Crane Orchards, another signature attraction in Fennville; CJ Veggies in nearby Zeeland; Mud Lake Farm in neighboring Hudsonville, Farm Country Cheese House just north of Grand Rapids in Lakeville — and a raft of other local sources. Isn’t it refreshing to know the food you are eating is fresh and produced in Pure Michigan gardens, fields and pastures?

Shoud you go, be sure to make reservations in advance — both for the music and for lodging. If J.Paule’s Fenn Inn is full up, The Kingsley House is a half-mile away and Heritage Manor Inn is just six miles out.

Search for nearby B&B’s here. Or use this handy search tool, pictured left, located on the home page of the Lake to Lake website.

If you’re new to our blog, you need to know that B&Bs are not only a better way stay, B&Bs that are members of the association are the best way to stay. They are virtually guaranteed to meet, if not exceed, your every expectation for comfort, safety, cleanliness and professionalism. First to become a member, then regularly thereafter, Lake to Lake members must pass intensive “Quality Assurance” inspections conducted by third-party professionals, passing a demanding checklist of more than 100 standards. When you choose to stay at a Lake to Lake-member B&B, we promise you can “rest assured.”

 

 

 

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Posted in Bed and Breakfast, Fresh and locally grown, Michigan, Michigan Travel, Music and Concerts, Salt of the Earth | 1 Comment »

Michigan is Home to The Most Beautiful Place in America

August 18th, 2011 by linda

Michigan's Sleeping Bear Dunes: The Most Beautiful Place in America

If you haven’t been to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore recently — or ever, it’s time to get cracking. By next summer, it will be busier than ever after ABC’s “Good Morning America” announced today that it was voted The Most Beautiful Place in America. Our beautiful lakeshore won out over better-known tourist areas like Cape Cod, Sedona, Aspen and Lanikai Beach in Hawaii!

The video link above shows footage of the entire “Good Morning America” announcement, which is as significant a publicity piece as winning the honor. ABC spent a full segment of its popular morning show rhapsodizing over the quaint dunes-area communities, locally-grown foods and fabulous restaurants. After you watch the piece, be sure to forward it to all your friends and family.

According to an article in today’s Detroit Free Press, a 2009 survey of tourists to Sleeping Bear found 47 percent were first time visitors to the 71,000-acre park, while a whopping 25 percent had visited at least six times before. Some 56 percent said the Dunes Lakeshore was the primary reason for their visit to the area.

So First-Timers and Repeat Visitors, avoid the crowds. Plan a visit to the most beautiful place in America now, right in your own backyard. When you go, be sure you have your reservations made for nights of pure comfort at nearby Lake to Lake-member bed and breakfast inns. The are quality assured for your enjoyment and peace of mind.

 

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Posted in Bed and Breakfast, Lake Michigan, Michigan bed and breakfasts, Michigan Travel, Sleeping Bear Dunes | No Comments »

Celebrate Life: Celebrate Spring at Dewey Lake Manor B&B in Michigan

April 6th, 2011 by linda

 This is the first in a series of photos documenting the slow but certain coming of spring to Pure Michigan by member innkeepers of the Lake to Lake B&B Association. These photos were shared by Barb and Joe Phillips of Dewey Lake Manor in Brooklyn.

Dewey Lake Manor B&B in Brooklyn, near Jackson MI.

Just weeks ago, Barb and Joe Phillips’ bed and breakfast in Brooklyn looked like this. Dewey Lake Manor has waited months under drifts of snow for the arrival of spring. Officially, that happened March 20. Finally, little by little, tiny promises of life are pushing up and peeking out from under last year’s detrius. Spring may not yet be fully sprung, but Barb’s photos prove the adage that it’s just around the corner.

bed and breakfast michigan

Like tiny jewels, crocus are the first welcome sign of spring at Joe and Barb's place on Dewey Lake.

Dewey Lake Manor fresh eggs chicken.

The April sun has gained some warmth, as the Phillips' heat-basking chickens can attest. What's for breakfast?

Daffodils at Dewey Lake Manor B&B

Just a few more days of sunshine and an April shower, and these daffodils will burst into a profusion of yellow blossoms.

Spring at Dewey Lake Manor B&B

You rarely see pussy willows in people's backyards anymore as you do at Dewey Lake Manor. The quentessential sign of spring, their furry "blossoms" are like magnets for honey bees.

At Dewey Lake Manor, even the resident kitty cat takes time to smell the flowers, especially when they signify the start of another glorious Pure Michigan summer.

If you’d like to share your photos of an emerging spring with others, just email in jpeg format to innfo@laketolake.com anytime this month.

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Posted in Bed and Breakfast, Breakfasts Bed and Breakfast Inns, Brooklyn, Michigan Travel, Spring Flower Photos, Spring Flowers | 1 Comment »

B&B Lovers: When Did You Ever Describe a Hotel Stay As…..

February 23rd, 2011 by linda

….Fun. Local. Historic. Amazing. Memorable. Crafty. Delicious. Outdoorsy. Countryside. Adventurous. Personal. Breathtaking?

I was just watching a video made by and for innkeepers by the international inkeeping asssociation, PAII.  It begged the question. While the 25,000 independently-owned bed and breakfast inns across North America are all too often overshadowed by large chain hotels and motels, the fact is that few of their guests have ever used any of these words to describe their stays.

Innkeepers: Chime in with your comments. Tell us where you fit with these descriptive words.

Off the top of my head and inside it, I see The Kalamazoo House, a member of this Michigan B&B Association, snuggled in the heart of the downtown that made “I Got a Gal….” famous. If you want motels, they are nearly all out by the interstate where no one really lives. The Kalamazoo House is…. well…. local, historic, memorable and a whole lot more.

I envision  Adventure Inn in North Lakeport, hugging the Lake Huron shoreline, as an adventure in contemporary elegance with stunning views of the bluest blue water I’ve ever seen. Countryside is found at At Willow Pond in Fenwick, north of Grand Rapids, where the resident hens lay your morning eggs and you can cath your dinner in their trout pond. And believe it or not, you can pet the llamas at Topliff’s Tara, a working llama ranch in Williamston.

Crafty would be the the lovingly-restored 1912 Arts and Crafts bungalow in Whitehall, called The Coca Cottage B&B for its delicious “all things chocolate” theme. Outdoorsy defines Wind in the Pines in Traverse City, a contemporary “up north” log cabin home. Dapple-Gray, Big Bay Point and Pinewood Lodge B&Bs are all breathtakingly perched over memorable views of Lake Superior in the Upper Peninsula.  And of course there’s Chateau Chantal on Old Mission Peninsula with its aerie-like views of both the east and west arms of Grand Traverse Bay.

Then there are all the inns and all the adjectives I’ve left out, including 120 more member B&Bs, all unique in their own right  – not to mention the word, ”delicious,” which is the other half of the bed and breakfast equation – and the word “personal,” which is the essence of B&B hospitality.  There’s not enough room in this blog. You’ll have to explore their merits for yourseves and apply your own descriptive words.  It’s easy.  Just visit our website by clicking here.

ML2L Innkeepers: tell us about yourselves in the comment section below.  Who’s delicious? Adventurous? Historic? Personal?

Readers: what adjectives would you use to describe your B&B experience?

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Posted in Hotel Chain Alternative, Lake Huron, Lake Superior, Michigan Travel | 2 Comments »

A Michigan “Bed and Breakfast” Special — WHERE?

August 3rd, 2010 by linda

The  Michigan Lake to Lake Bed and Breakfast Association just received an email from a large Michigan resort hotel offering a two-night “Bed and Breakfast” Special!  C’mon. Who’s kidding whom? 

There are resort hotels on the one hand. There are bed and breakfast inns on the other. There are resort hotels that serve a complimentary breakfast (they’ve learned a thing or two from B&Bs) made in a hotel kitchen and served in a hotel dining room occupied by tables of strangers. Then there are bed and breakfast inns – the real McCoy — that serve scrumptious homemade breakfasts hot from a home kitchen on real china in a tastefully-decorated dining room at a table where the conversation may be the most memorable part of the stay. 

Topliff's Tara near Lansing, working llama farm and bed and breakfast Michigan

Cria is the hit of the season at Topliff's Tara, a working llama farm and a family-friendly B&B in Williamston, just east of Lansing.

Bed and breakfasts are unique lodging options, often an attraction in themselves. Each is distinctive: it may be a working llama farm; a Victorian home brimful with antiques or a contemporary log cabin nestled in the woods. These often picturesque inns can be found in cities, suburbs, the countryside, forests, harbor communities or small towns. Whatever its location and style, each bed and breakfast has its own personality.

Michigan law defines a bed and breakfast as “a private residence that is also the innkeeper’s residence; has
sleeping accommodations meant for lodgers; has no more than 14 rooms; and that serves breakfast at no extra charge to the lodgers.” 

The resort hotel simply does not meet the qualifications. So why would anyone want to experience a pseudo B&B when they can enjoy the real deal? Just look at all these inns to choose from!

A resort hotel is certainly one of many lodging options for a get-away. But why would a big guy like that resort hotel want to pass itself off as a charming little B&B? If it looks like a hotel, if it has stackable rooms-in-rows like a hotel and a parking lot for lots of cars like a hotel – then by golly, it’s a hotel.

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Posted in Bed and Breakfast, Michigan Travel | 3 Comments »