Right Beaches › Lake Michigan
Lake Michigan beaches
18 beaches, with the parking, the walk to the water and the tide for each one.
Lake Michigan, Michigan · Browse all Michigan beaches (148)
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What matters today?
Narrow it down
Lists for a particular day
Dog friendly beaches
5 in Lake Michigan
Family friendly beaches
9 in Lake Michigan
Shortest walk
Park almost on the sand
Muskegon · the listing sits on the shoreline
Cape Cod · 30 ft to the water
Cape Cod · 50 ft to the water
Muskegon · 50 ft to the water
Cape Cod · 60 ft to the water
Cape Cod · 70 ft to the water
Cape Cod · 70 ft to the water
Cape Cod · 80 ft to the water
Free parking
Beaches where visitors report free parking
Manistee · free parking · mentioned by 19 visitors · 2016–2026
Wellston · free parking · mentioned by 2 visitors · 2016–2026
With little kids
Calm water and bathrooms nearby
Manistee · bathrooms nearby · mentioned by 17 visitors · 2016–2026
Honor · bathrooms nearby · mentioned by 6 visitors · 2016–2026
Honor · bathrooms nearby · mentioned by 3 visitors · 2016–2025
Muskegon · bathrooms nearby · mentioned by 9 visitors · 2016–2026
Whitehall · bathrooms nearby · mentioned by 18 visitors · 2017–2026
Wellston · bathrooms nearby · mentioned by 8 visitors · 2016–2026
Muskegon · bathrooms nearby · mentioned by 2 visitors · 2022–2026
Lake Ann · bathrooms nearby · mentioned by 2 visitors · 2016–2025
Browse
All beaches
Fifth Avenue BeachManistee · water 120 ft · parking 325 yd
Esch BeachHonor · water 350 ft · parking 40 ft
Peterson Beach Sleeping Bear Recreation AreaHonor · water 280 ft · parking 210 ft
Harbour Towne BeachMuskegon · on the shoreline · parking 190 ft
Elberta Beach (Ebeach)Elberta · water 200 yd · parking 70 ft
Duck Lake BeachWhitehall · water 110 ft · parking 175 yd
Crystal Lake Swimming AreaWellston · water 90 ft · parking 70 ft
Duck Lake ChannelWhitehall · water 225 yd · parking 150 ft
Sunset BeachMuskegon · water 50 ft · parking 30 ft
Almira Township Lakefront ParkLake Ann · water 130 ft · parking 100 ft
Hidden Valley BeachCanadian Lakes · water 625 yd
Hamlin Lake beachwater 60 ft · parking 140 ft
Beulah Beachwater 70 ft · parking 130 ft
Congressional Summer Assembly Crystal Lake Beachwater 70 ft · parking 175 yd
Congressional Summer Assembly Lake Michigan Beachwater 80 ft
North Beachwater 50 ft · parking 275 yd
1st Street Beachwater 150 ft · parking 180 ft
Lakeshore Public Access Beachwater 30 ft · parking 275 yd
Every beach
All 18 beaches, by how many people rate them
| Beach | Town | Walk to water | Parking | Fee | Restrooms |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fifth Avenue Beach | Manistee | 120 ft | 325 yd | free | yes |
| Esch Beach | Honor | 350 ft | 40 ft | paid | yes |
| Peterson Beach Sleeping Bear Recreation Area | Honor | 280 ft | 210 ft | – | yes |
| Harbour Towne Beach | Muskegon | on the sand | 190 ft | – | yes |
| Elberta Beach (Ebeach) | Elberta | 200 yd | 70 ft | – | yes |
| Duck Lake Beach | Whitehall | 110 ft | 175 yd | paid | yes |
| Crystal Lake Swimming Area | Wellston | 90 ft | 70 ft | free | yes |
| Duck Lake Channel | Whitehall | 225 yd | 150 ft | – | – |
| Sunset Beach | Muskegon | 50 ft | 30 ft | – | yes |
| Almira Township Lakefront Park | Lake Ann | 130 ft | 100 ft | – | yes |
| Hidden Valley Beach | Canadian Lakes | 625 yd | – | – | – |
| Hamlin Lake beach | 60 ft | 140 ft | – | yes | |
| Beulah Beach | 70 ft | 130 ft | – | yes | |
| Congressional Summer Assembly Crystal Lake Beach | 70 ft | 175 yd | – | – | |
| Congressional Summer Assembly Lake Michigan Beach | 80 ft | – | – | – | |
| North Beach | 50 ft | 275 yd | – | – | |
| 1st Street Beach | 150 ft | 180 ft | – | yes | |
| Lakeshore Public Access Beach | 30 ft | 275 yd | – | – |
Walk and parking distances are measured on OpenStreetMap. Fee and restrooms come from counted visitor reviews and mapped facilities. A dash means we have no evidence either way, not that the answer is no.
Questions
Common questions
Which Lake Michigan beach has the shortest walk from the car?
Harbour Towne Beach in Muskegon has the listing right on the shoreline. We measure the straight line from the listed location to the mapped waterline for every beach, so the table above ranks them all.
Do you have to pay to park at Lake Michigan beaches?
Mostly yes. Of the 18 beaches here, 2 have visitors reporting a parking or entry fee and 2 report free parking. Reported fees run from $20 to $35 a day in season, and several beaches drop the fee after 5pm or outside the summer.
Which beaches have restrooms?
12 of the 18 beaches have restrooms mapped on site or reported by visitors. Seasonal closures are common: several National Seashore beaches close their facilities outside the summer.
How current is this?
Tide, waves, wind and water temperature are fetched live in your browser from NOAA and Open-Meteo. Parking and facility positions come from OpenStreetMap; imagery from USGS NAIP. Facts counted from visitor reviews carry the year range they were written in.
How we know
Where this comes from
Place details from the public Google business listing. Beach shape, parking and facility positions from OpenStreetMap (ODbL). Aerial imagery is public-domain USGS NAIP. Tide comes from NOAA, and weather and water from Open-Meteo. Map drawings are redrawn from that aerial imagery by an image model. Markers, distances and every fact on this page come from OpenStreetMap and counted reviews, never from a drawing. Review text is never republished.
