Places to visit near Indiana Dunes State Park

[Tatiana]

I am planning a trip to Indiana Dunes State Park in June. I am looking for recommendations on day trips to Wisconsin and Michigan. Any ideas?

I also have been reading that Chicago would be easy to visit via train but what to do for the day with 3 pre-teens there. Any recommendations?

Thanks!

[Indy Glenn]

Originally Posted by Tatiana

I am planning a trip to Indiana Dunes State Park in June. I am looking for recommendations on day trips to Wisconsin and Michigan. Any ideas?

I also have been reading that Chicago would be easy to visit via train but what to do for the day with 3 pre-teens there. Any recommendations?

Thanks!

In Michigan, close to the Dunes: Benton Harbor, MI: City of Benton Harbor - Pure Michigan Travel

You can catch the South Shore Railroad into Chicago, one of our favorite cities, here is their URL: Convenient Train Service to Chicago and Northwest Indiana

What to do in Chicago? Eat!! LOL Make sure you have a Chicago Dirty Water Dog - sold on downtown corners at vending carts - but I must warn you - they are not as good as the Dirty Water Dogs in New York City!! LOL

Let's see, in Chicago with pre-teens: what comes to mind is the aquarium, the science museum, the 2nd tallest building in America, children's museum, North Pier (Amusement Park), Lake Shore Drive, people watching (probably more for adults)..........lots to do.

Close Chicago: What to do in Chicago - Choose Chicago

Wisconsin is probably an hours plus trip from Indiana Dunes. I know there is a large mall in Wisconsin just over the border: Gurnee Mills, Gurnee, IL

Hope this gets your planning started - I love to plan trips - helps get me through the winter !!

Let me know if I can do anything more........safe travels!

g

[Pepper2]

As mentioned above, the museum of science and industry. It can easily occupy 4 hrs.+ of your time. The library steps for people watching, there's Grant Park, the Wrigley Building, a Sox or Cubs game...

[NLOVNIT]

Here's a few I know of:

Dutch Village in Holland, MI is approx 1.5hrs away. I love the shopping there.

Although not in MI or WI, the RV/MH Hall of Fame in Elkhart IN would be a nice day trip. You can easily spend an entire afternoon there then eat at any of the many Amish/Mennonite restaurants in the area.

WI, even the southern edge is about 2hrs away & you gotta get around Chicago, but the Shorepath Walk in Lake Geneva, WI is really nice, plus they've got lake boat cruises you can go on.

Lori-

[Tatiana]

Thank you for the great recommendations! So glad I found this forum!

[Indy Glenn]

Originally Posted by Tatiana

Thank you for the great recommendations! So glad I found this forum!

Hey Tatiana - where will you be traveling from - there might be some spots to stop along the way.............

g

[Tatiana]

Hi Indy Glenn,
Here's our itinerary so far:


Day 1 –Travel Charlotte, NC to Cave Country RV Campground, Mammoth, KY – 8 hours


Day 2 - Visit Mammoth Cave National Park


Day 3 - Travel from Mammoth to Indiana Dunes State Park – 6 hours


Day 4 –– Explore Indiana Dunes area / maybe drive up to Wisconsin


Day 5 – Day trip via train to Chicago


Day 6 – Travel from Indiana to Wilderness State Park, Michigan – 6 hours


Day 7 – Explore area


Day 8 – Visit Mackinac Island


Day 9 – Explore more of upper Michigan


Day 10 - Head home / stay in Ohio somewhere – maybe Hocking Hills State Park or Salt Fork State Park (8 ½ hours)


Day 11 – Travel home to Charlotte

[TeJay]

Tatiana,
You've gotten a lot of good advice. We moved from PA to IN in 1954. I was 10 years old. I grew up a quick bike ride from the Indiana Dunes State Park. Now it's called the "Indiana Dunes National Lake Shore" Our home was absorbed by the National Park service. We were back there last October and I wanted to visit the old home. It was chained off and A local said that all the homes were vacant and to be torn down. That was kind of sad.
I spent most of my youth walking all over the park. At that time it was loosely controlled so nobody minded us kids.
I also road the train that was mentioned to HS in Michigan City for 4 years. As stated there's a lot to do right in the down town Chicago Loop area. The museums: Adler Planetarium, Natural History, Science and Industry, Aquarium are great and you'll have no problems keeping kids entertained. It is also very safe in the Loop area.
In the MI area, Hartwick Pines was a wonderful State Park. Almost every sight has woods on either side and they all had full hook ups.
There are also a lot of local winery's in the upper MI area.
We lived in MI for 10 years and have always said it was a wonderful place to visit and they had a lot of outdoor activities.

Enjoy your visit!!

TeJay

[Indy Glenn]

Originally Posted by Tatiana

Hi Indy Glenn,
Here's our itinerary so far:


Day 1 –Travel Charlotte, NC to Cave Country RV Campground, Mammoth, KY – 8 hours


Day 2 - Visit Mammoth Cave National Park


Day 3 - Travel from Mammoth to Indiana Dunes State Park – 6 hours


Day 4 –– Explore Indiana Dunes area / maybe drive up to Wisconsin


Day 5 – Day trip via train to Chicago


Day 6 – Travel from Indiana to Wilderness State Park, Michigan – 6 hours


Day 7 – Explore area


Day 8 – Visit Mackinac Island


Day 9 – Explore more of upper Michigan


Day 10 - Head home / stay in Ohio somewhere – maybe Hocking Hills State Park or Salt Fork State Park (8 ½ hours)


Day 11 – Travel home to Charlotte

What a great trip!

Mammoth Cave is just north of the National Corvette Museum (NCM) in Bowling Green, KY. You don't have to be a corvette fan to enjoy the NCM.

Also - as you head north to "The Dunes", you should be traveling up I-65 through Indianapolis. Need-less-to-say, we have a famous race track here that makes an interesting stop.

And - I do not live far from Indy or I-65 if you guys want to stop for a cup of coffee or pop...some nice truck stops just north of Indy.......always great to meet new people.

Just a thought.........

You will have fun - if you have never been here before - it is "FLAT", especially going north on I-65 - nothing but corn fields, soy beans, and wind mill farms as you get close to Lake Michigan!

Let me know if I can help with any information.

g

[purduepete97]

Old thread, but it isn't June yet. One more idea is Fair Oaks Dairy a few miles north of Lafayette. Humongous dairy and pig farm, really cool tours, almost guaranteed to see a calf being born, and probably the best toasted cheese sandwich on Earth at the restaurant. Right off the interstate, could be a 1 hr stop or most of a day.

[MJoyce]

Just wondering how it went? Your itinerary looked great. Hope you were able to get to everything on the list. What was your most and least favorite parts of the trip? We live right near O'Hare airport and am familiar with everything on the list. Did you get to any of the waterfalls in the UP?