DESTINATION PETOSKEY AREA
IDEAL LAKESIDE LOCATION
Boyne Country sports it, and it’s ready to show off. B Y B I L L S E M I O N
YOU KNOW THE OLD SAYING: It’s all about location, location, location. This gorgeous Petoskey region, collectively called Boyne Country after its premier resort facilities, is perfectly situated to make a great northern Michigan location for gatherings. It also offers guaranteed fun postconference activities, paired with great meeting facilities, small and large. The region stretches from Boyne City in the south through Harbor Springs and the famed Tunnel of Trees along M-119, to Good Hart and Cross Village in the north, to the lakes near Alanson in the east, to that blue horizon of Lake Michigan on its sunset shoulder. It’s one of Pure Michigan’s best locations. But don’t think that even with all we’re about to detail, that the Petoskey Area Visitors Bureau is sitting on its laurels—or its golf courses, its huge meeting spaces, its renowned restaurants, shopping and waterfront views, and that genteel, country elegance that the entire area exudes. “Not no way, not no how,” says the bureau’s
longtime Executive Director Peter Fitzsimons. “We’re one of the largest convention and visitors bureau regions in the state geographically,” explains the Michigan CVB sage. “We like to think of ourselves as a natural resourcebased, outdoor recreation area where we set the stage for people to enjoy themselves. We have hiking, biking, skiing, kayaking, canoeing, rafting, golfing, performing arts …” and he went on to describe loads of other activities that lure legions of visitors there year around.
City Charms “If you’re sitting in downtown Petoskey, you’re within 20 miles of 18 championship
golf courses,” he says. Then there’s the city’s historic Gaslight District, home to dozens of fashionable shops, many with twin locations in places such as Palm Beach, Florida. Chic Bay Harbor, and its summery Inn at Bay Harbor nearby on Lake Michigan, is the latest iteration, he continues. “Our area has historically been defined by summer resort communities that have been home to ‘old money’ since 1875. What that means is a lot of services have grown up to support the lifestyle, so we have very fine shops, restaurants and one of the best regional referral hospitals in the north. Those types of things aren’t readily seen in a small town,” Fitzsimons says. “You get a sense here that there’s something different about the area.” Let’s begin with an elegantly compact venue that’s been here for more than a century, and now owned by Stafford’s Hospitality. Stafford’s Bay View Inn, which was built in 1886, in the historic Bay View Community, is just down
P H OTO S : P E TO S K E Y A R E A V I S I TO R S B U R E AU ; ( O P P O S I T E ) H E A D L A N D S I N T E R N AT I O N A L D A R K S K Y PA R K ; B OY N E R E S O R T
The Inn at Bay Harbor recently completed the final phase of its room and suite renovations.
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