Trip builder

Lake Michigan Circle Tour

10 days, 16 stops and about 19 h 20 min behind the wheel. Change anything below; the link always holds the latest version.

Total driving19 h 20 min
Distance1,032 mi (1,662 km)
Days10
Stops16
Longest dayDay 8, 7 h 35 min

Day 8 has more than 6 hours of driving, before any stops. Spread the driving over more days or move a stop.

Best order Even out the days
Add a day Add a place Directions & downloads

  1. Day 1

    Around Chicago

    No driving

    1. 01

      Trip starts here

      Chicago Town · IL · Lake Michigan
      Later Remove
    Overnight in or near Chicago Remove day 1 (stops join the next day)

  2. Day 2

    Chicago to New Buffalo

    1 h 18 min driving72 mi (116 km)

    1. 02

      54 min · 48 mi (77 km) from Chicago

      Indiana Dunes National Park Park & beach · IN · Lake Michigan
      Earlier Later Remove
    2. 03

      24 min · 24 mi (39 km) from Indiana Dunes National Park

      New Buffalo Town · MI · Lake Michigan
      Earlier Later Remove
    Directions in Google Maps Overnight in or near New Buffalo Remove day 2 (stops join the day before)

  3. Day 3

    New Buffalo to Ludington

    3 h driving181 mi (291 km)

    1. 04

      1 h 29 min · 89 mi (144 km) from New Buffalo

      Holland Harbor Lighthouse Lighthouse · MI · Lake Michigan
      Earlier Later Remove
    2. 05

      1 h 32 min · 92 mi (147 km) from Holland Harbor Lighthouse

      Ludington Town · MI · Lake Michigan
      Earlier Later Remove
    Directions in Google Maps Overnight in or near Ludington Remove day 3 (stops join the day before)

  4. Day 4

    Ludington to Point Betsie Lighthouse

    1 h 39 min driving76 mi (122 km)

    1. 06

      11 min · 7.4 mi (12 km) from Ludington

      Big Sable Point Lighthouse Lighthouse · MI · Lake Michigan

      There is no road to the lighthouse: park in Ludington State Park and walk about 1.8 miles each way along the beach or the sandy service road.

      Earlier Later Remove
    2. 07

      1 h 28 min · 69 mi (110 km) from Big Sable Point Lighthouse

      Point Betsie Lighthouse Lighthouse · MI · Lake Michigan
      Earlier Later Remove
    Directions in Google Maps Overnight in or near Point Betsie Lighthouse Remove day 4 (stops join the day before)

  5. Day 5

    Point Betsie Lighthouse to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore

    30 min driving24 mi (38 km)

    1. 08

      30 min · 24 mi (38 km) from Point Betsie Lighthouse

      Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore Park & beach · MI · Lake Michigan

      Directions go to the Dune Climb.

      Earlier Later Remove
    Directions in Google Maps Overnight in or near Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore Remove day 5 (stops join the day before)

  6. Day 6

    Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore to Traverse City

    38 min driving28 mi (45 km)

    1. 09

      38 min · 28 mi (45 km) from Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore

      Traverse City Town · MI · Lake Michigan
      Earlier Later Remove
    Directions in Google Maps Overnight in or near Traverse City Remove day 6 (stops join the day before)

  7. Day 7

    Traverse City to Petoskey

    1 h 22 min driving67 mi (108 km)

    1. 10

      1 h 22 min · 67 mi (108 km) from Traverse City

      Petoskey Town · MI · Lake Michigan
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    Directions in Google Maps Overnight in or near Petoskey Remove day 7 (stops join the day before)

  8. Day 8

    Petoskey to Sturgeon Bay

    7 h 35 min driving403 mi (648 km)

    1. 11

      6 h 20 min · 361 mi (581 km) from Petoskey

      Peninsula State Park Park & beach · WI · Lake Michigan
      Earlier Later Remove
    2. 12

      30 min · 13 mi (22 km) from Peninsula State Park

      Cana Island Lighthouse Lighthouse · WI · Lake Michigan
      Earlier Later Remove
    3. 13

      45 min · 28 mi (46 km) from Cana Island Lighthouse

      Sturgeon Bay Town · WI · Lake Michigan
      Earlier Later Remove
    Directions in Google Maps Overnight in or near Sturgeon Bay Remove day 8 (stops join the day before)

  9. Day 9

    A free day

    No driving

    No stops planned: a day to linger, hike or wait out the weather. Add a place to this day with the form, or remove the day.

    Remove day 9

  10. Day 10

    Sturgeon Bay to Wind Point Lighthouse

    3 h 15 min driving183 mi (294 km)

    1. 14

      1 h 46 min · 108 mi (175 km) from Sturgeon Bay

      Kohler-Andrae State Park Park & beach · WI · Lake Michigan
      Earlier Later Remove
    2. 15

      55 min · 52 mi (83 km) from Kohler-Andrae State Park

      Milwaukee Town · WI · Lake Michigan
      Earlier Later Remove
    3. 16

      36 min · 23 mi (36 km) from Milwaukee

      Wind Point Lighthouse Lighthouse · WI · Lake Michigan
      Earlier Remove
    Directions in Google Maps Remove day 10 (stops join the day before)

Your route

Your trip on the map.

Loading the map. The links and itinerary below are always available.

Lines join your stops in visiting order; they are not roads. Use the directions links for turn-by-turn routes.

Black-and-white basemap by OpenStreetMap. Great Lakes highlighted in color. Hold Ctrl (or Command) while scrolling to zoom. Use two fingers on touch screens.

Lake outlines: Natural Earth (public domain). Town centers: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). Not for navigation.

Good to know

How the trip builder works.

How are the drive times calculated?
Drive times and distances come from OpenStreetMap road data routed with OSRM, calibrated against typical published travel times. They assume ordinary traffic and include island ferry crossings where a stop needs one. Allow extra time for summer weekends, construction and border crossings.
Can I save or share my trip?
Yes. The whole trip lives in the page address, so bookmarking or sharing the link saves everything: stops, days, start date and starting point. Nothing is stored on our servers and no account is needed.
Can I take my trip into Google Maps or a GPS?
Every day has a Google Maps directions link (long days are split into parts, because Google Maps allows nine stops per link). You can also download a calendar file with one event per day, or a GPX file for GPS units and apps such as OsmAnd and Gaia GPS.
What does “Best order” do?
It reorders your stops to shorten the total drive, keeping your starting point fixed and finishing back home if you chose a round trip, then spreads the stops over the same number of days so each day's driving is as even as possible.

Drive times and distances: OSRM routing over OpenStreetMap data (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), calibrated to typical travel times. Times are estimates for planning, not navigation. Check road, border and ferry conditions before you travel.

More planning tools: circle tour planner, ferry or drive calculator, northern lights forecast, water temperatures and the ship watcher.