INCREDIBLE FULLY-LOADED TOUR includes:

• Motorcoach Transportation
• 6 nights lodging with 4 consecutive nights in LAKEFRONT lodging which includes heated indoor pool and whirlpool spa, heated outdoor pool and whirlpool spa, beachfront bonfire with marshmallow roast and a FREE HOT breakfast. Luggage handling included.
• 13 meals: 6 breakfasts, 2 Lunch and 5 dinners
• Henry Vilas Zoo
• Mackinac Bridge Narration and GREAT Stories
• City Tour St. Ignace
• City Tour of Sault St. Marie
• Walk along Beach Boardwalk, shop or relax
• See the Straits of Mackinac
• Visit the City of Sault Ste. Marie
• Soo Locks from a different perspective
• Tour Great Lakes Ship Wreck Museum
• Guided Tour of Mackinaw City
• Visit Colonel Michilimackinac
• Visit Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse
• Ferry Ride to Mackinac Island
• Guided Tour of the Grand Hotel
• Grand Hotel Buffet Lunch
• Carriage Tour of Mackinac Island
• Gordon Lightfoot Tribute Dinner Show
• Guided Tour of History Museum at the Castle (Houdini’s)
• Visit Simon’s Specialty Cheese
• On board Tour Leader

Welcome Aboard! We’ll depart our pick-up locations for a nice ride across the states to our en route hotel in Appleton, WI. On our way, we will visit the Henry Vilas Zoo. This is 28-acres of beautiful zoo featuring exhibits and attractions for the whole family as we enjoy a self-guided tour!  Afterwards, we will enjoy Dinner (On Own) in several restaurant choices. Then check into the hotel for the evening.  Water and snacks provided on coach.

This morning we will enjoy breakfast at the hotel before traveling to our Lakefront hotel in St. Ignace for four nights. Our hotel includes heated indoor pool and whirlpool spa, heated outdoor pool and whirlpool spa, beachfront bonfire with marshmallow roast and a FREE HOT breakfast. It is also located within walking distance of the Mackinac Island ferries, shopping & restaurants. We will enjoy Dinner (Pre-Paid) before retiring to our hotel.

Enjoy breakfast at the hotel. Depart for the day for a tour to include:, Guided Tour of the City of St. Ignace, Soo Locks and the Shipwreck Museum and to include a wonderful Lunch (Pre-Paid) at Antler’s Restaurant. The City of St. Ignace holds a tremendous amount of history and culture, from the Huron and Ojibway Indians who lived along the shores to the modern-day residents who cross the “ice-bridge” with snowmobiles to Mackinac Island. Why do area residents bring their Christmas trees to a small park along the beach? What is there to see in St. Ignace? Let us take you “behind the scenes” for a glimpse of the old and new you never knew existed! The Soo Locks affectionately called the “Linchpin of the Great Lakes” by the United States Army Corps of Engineers, is an engineering marvel with roots dating back to the mid-1800s. Each year it’s estimated that 500,000 people visit these iconic locks that connect Lakes Superior and Huron. The Soo Locks are the centerpiece of any visit to this border community. With a combined population of nearly 100,000 residents, the “Twin Saults” comprise the Ontario and Michigan cities that guard the locks and its equally important border crossing between the United States and Canada. Our guide will take us to a covered viewing platform to watch the freighters as they pass through the locks as well as enticing us with wonderful stories of the locks. We’ll time it so if a freighter goes through the locks, from our view point, we’ll be there to see it! This is a great way of seeing it all in action! Roughly 7,000 vessels pass through the Locks yearly hauling nearly 86 million tons of cargo. See how freighters, barges, tugboats and more are lifted and lowered the 21-foot difference between Superior and Huron here. From here, Lunch at Antler’s and off to Lake Superior to the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum. Deceivingly beautiful, yet the big lake’s unrelenting fury has earned her the reputation of being the most treacherous of the Great Lakes. Throughout the museum gallery visitors see dramatic shipwreck legends come to life. Artifacts and exhibits tell stories of sailors and ships who braved the waters of Superior and those who were lost to her menacing waves. The bell of the famous Edmund Fitzgerald is displayed in the museum as a memorial to her lost crew. Whitefish Point marks the critical turning point for all ships entering or leaving the lake. After, we’ll return to hotel to freshen up then to Dinner (Pre-Paid).

Let’s have breakfast, then depart. Our day today includes:  the Mackinac Bridge, the Mackinaw City Tour, Colonel Michilimackinac, and Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse. First, Mackinac Bridge, Michigan’s crown jewel. At one time it was the longest suspension bridge in the world – find out where there are bigger bridges today and why the “Big Mac” may still be a greater engineering feat! Hear the dramatic tales of the brave iron workers who built this massive structure, how several of them lost their lives in the process, and what safety procedures today are in place to protect motorists, workmen, and boaters. Our guide will provide more than hearsay – in many cases these are eyewitness accounts of local history! A perfect way to start your stay in the Straits Area! Tour of Mackinaw City’s story has always been one of transportation – and of being a meeting place for hundreds of years. You’ll see local landmarks where railroads, ships, and automobile travelers gathered. You’ll hear tales of an era long ago when those who walked this land wore moccasins, sold fur pelts, and built the early infrastructure of a village projected to become “the next Chicago.” The Straits of Mackinac has documented evidence of about 200 shipwrecks beneath its icy waves, and local divers have discovered 48 of them. Our guide has visited many of these wrecks, and  tell the stories of these ships’ demise in shrieking winds, foggy calms, and frozen darkness. Hear the mysteries of the wondrous sights of schooners unseen but by a select few since the day they slipped below the waves, and the hidden dangers that still lurk below. Then, we visit Colonel Michilimackinac, founded in 1715. Treasures from the past come to life at this 18th-century fort and fur trading village. Reconstructed based on historic maps and more than 50 years of archaeological excavations that continue today, Colonial Michilimackinac offers a one-of-a-kind experience from cannon and musket firings to hearth cooking and crafts. Have your picture taken next to a 2,000-pound iron stock anchor once used by a sailing schooner of the 1800’s, since recovered by divers from the Straits. Time to visit Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse. Walk along a beach sidewalk where you can view the Mackinac Bridge, and hear the stories of those who worked as a marine reporter, a light keeper, or drove a water wagon through the village streets. Why did local residents buy water? You’ll know after this tour, and you’ll see the ingenious way that the business was made possible.  Then, we will have free time for shopping and browsing Downtown Mackinaw City before going to Dinner (Pre-Paid).

We will enjoy breakfast at hotel, then board the ferry for Mackinac Island. We will enjoy a ride to the Grand Hotel where we will tour the hotel before enjoying a Buffet Lunch (Pre-Paid) at the Grand Hotel. Then we will take a Carriage Tour around peaceful Mackinac Island to see the splendid sites like the Arch Rock and Lilac Lane. After the carriage tour, you can enjoy some free time to explore this quaint island and all the quaint shops.  Once return from Mackinac Island, we’ll travel to our dinner and enjoy the Gordon Lightfoot Tribute Dinner Show.

Let’s enjoy breakfast before begin our travel back. We will stop for a Guided Tour of the History Museum at the Castle. Affectionately known as the History Museum at the Castle, due to their location in a former Masonic Temple, the organization is a thriving cultural institution with deep ties to the local community. At the History Museum, they inspire people of all ages to discover and appreciate the rich history of Appleton and the Fox Valley. See why the world renowned magician called Appleton his hometown.  After, we will continue out travel to our en route hotel. Dinner is (Pre-Paid) this evening.

Enjoy breakfast at our hotel before departing. First, we’ll make one last stop at Simon’s Specialty Cheese store. THERE’S NO CHEESE LIKE WISCONSIN CHEESE…THERE’S NO WISCONSIN CHEESE LIKE SIMON’S! Browse their store for specialty cheese, sausage and gourmet foods.

Then we will depart for home…a perfect time to chat with your friends about all of the things we’ve done, the great sights we’ve seen, and where we will go on our next trip!