Indulge in these ten fabulous reasons to take a Northern Michigan winter getaway at The Homestead in Glen Arbor, a Lake Michigan resort tucked into Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.Â
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1. We love … Gliding off the Sunnyside lift first thing in the morning to behold Sleeping Bear Bay and the Manitou Islands unfurled at our feet. An inhale, an exhale, then a schuss down the corduroy-covered Forget-Me-Not trail. Can you say, Ahhhh!
Tip: The Homestead’s friendly ski school offers ski and snowboard lessons for people of all ages.
Photo by Andy Wakeman
2. We love … resting between runs with family and friends around a firepit in Mountain Village and getting juiced for our afternoon runs with a pint of locally made Smackintosh Tandem Hard Cider ordered up from Whiskers.
Photo by Andy Wakeman
3. We love … Gliding off the Whatta-View chairlift at sunset—in time to see the orb dip below the Sleeping Bear Dunes.
Photo by Andy Wakeman
4. We love … Taking a culinary trip to Northern Italy (specifically, Liguria, Piedmont and Lombardy) courtesy of Chef John Piombo whose family is from that region. This winter, Chef Piombo’s menu at The Homestead’s famously intimate Nonna’s restaurant hones in on his family’s heritage there. Think polenta, homemade sausage, creamy risottos and homemade pasta. Chef Piombo is also ready to stretch our palate horizons with dishes like tripe and salt cod. We’re in. Are you?
Tip: Make your reservation for dinner at Nonna’s when you book your lodging.
Photo by Andy Wakeman
5. We love … Heading out to snowshoe or cross-country ski on the Bay View Trail that winds through Sleeping Bear National Lakeshore. A spur called the Moosewood Trail connects the Bay View Trail to The Homestead. This trail is a charmer: It winds along Lake Michigan and through the Port Oneida Historic District—a cluster of 19th-century farms that the park has preserved to help pass along the area’s pioneer history. A six-mile loop gets us back to the Mountain Village where we are ready for #6.
Tip: The Homestead offers both snowshoe and cross-country ski rentals.
Photo by Andy Wakeman
6. We love … Tucking our exhausted and hungry selves close to the crackling fireplace in Whiskers and ordering up a grilled smash burger made with fresh, house-ground beef. We’ll take ours with mushrooms, caramelized onions and Swiss cheese thank you!
Photo by Andy Wakeman
7. We love … Lingering by the Whisker’s fireplace with a Baileys Peppermint Hot Chocolate. Yup, we say yes to the whipped cream.
Related Read: Instagram-Worthy Day at The Homestead in Glen Arbor.
8. We love … Winding, up, up and more up to Spa Amira at the tippy-top of The Homestead’s grounds. This boutique spa offers facials and massages. Wrap up in a soft robe and lay back as The Homestead’s certified esthetician revives your complexion with a regimen of Naturopathica treatments. Next, we make the serene move to the room next door for a Swedish or Deep-Tissue massage. And afterward, when they offer us a glass of wine to sip at the window-panorama of Sleeping Bear Bay, we don’t turn it down!
9. We love … Following up that spa-bliss by picking up a house-made pizza and a bottle of local wine (The Homestead is surrounded by more than two dozen wineries that make up the award-winning Leelanau Peninsula Wine Trail) to take back to our cozy lodging. After that, it’s sweet dreams!
Photo by Andy Wakeman
10. We love … a lazy breakfast at CQ’s Cabin in Mountain Village. First stop coffee, second stop a made-to-order omelette from the omelette station.
Photo by Andy Wakeman