Your Suttons Bay / Traverse City CME conference.

Suttons Bay after your study day

Study days finish at 2:00 PM local time. For an easy afternoon, stay on the Leelanau Peninsula: Traverse City Tourism lists a brewery and a cidery in the village. The village website lists Marina Park and Sutton Park, so a quiet walk by the water is another option. Check the hours of any tasting room before you plan around it, because most are open year-round but a few close for winter and many cut their hours.

Travel, accommodation and tasting-room visits are arranged separately. Your conference is built around your specialty and interests; the village is the setting you choose for it.

Wine country without a long drive

The Leelanau Peninsula Wine Trail covers more than 20 wineries between the Sleeping Bear Dunes and the West Arm of Grand Traverse Bay. Traverse City Tourism describes the peninsula as larger and more spread out than Old Mission Peninsula, closer to a choose-your-own-adventure, with Suttons Bay, Northport and Leland among the towns along the route.

Old Mission Peninsula, by contrast, has ten wineries along a 19-mile stretch, which makes it easier to visit several without doubling back. The tourism board says to check hours or book ahead in peak seasons, and it suggests a guided wine tour if you would rather not drive.

Leland, Northport and the lighthouse

Leland is known for Fishtown, a historic fishing village of old shanties beside the river that joins Lake Leelanau to Lake Michigan. Traverse City Tourism suggests stopping in the old shanties for snacks before your next stop. Northport is farther north and the Grand Traverse Lighthouse sits at the tip of the peninsula.

Leelanau.com says the lighthouse museum is staged to show a keeper’s life in the 1920s and 1930s. Traverse City Tourism says visitors can climb the tower, while its lighthouse page lists the grounds and a museum and does not mention climbing. Because the two pages differ on what is open, check the lighthouse’s current status before you drive up.

Sleeping Bear Dunes, a longer trip

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore is about 30 miles, or roughly 40 minutes, from downtown Traverse City, according to the tourism board, so treat it as a longer outing from Suttons Bay. The park service suggests that visitors with under three hours drive the 7-mile Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive, climb the Dune Climb, explore Glen Haven or relax at Loon Lake. Its Philip A. Hart Visitor Center is in Empire, where you can pick up a map and watch the park film, and the tourism board puts it about 30 minutes west of its Traverse City visitor center.

At Glen Haven the park service describes buildings that show how Surfmen of the U.S. Life Saving Service lived and worked, a blacksmith shop and a general store, open and staffed from Memorial Day to Labor Day. Outside that window the beach and the accessible Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail are still there, but the buildings may be closed.

Weekend ideas at Sleeping Bear

For a longer day, the park service lists a ranger-led program, a walk or bike ride on the Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail, a river paddle, a visit to Port Oneida and the park’s hiking trails. The lakeshore spans Leelanau and Benzie counties and has been part of the national park system since 1970. Open the park’s own page for current conditions before you go, especially in winter, when operating information changes.

The Manitou Islands from Leland

Traverse City Tourism’s lighthouse page describes ferries from Leland to the Manitou Islands. On South Manitou Island, a tour lets visitors climb the lighthouse’s 117-step circling staircase, which the page says is about a half-mile walk from the dock. The page does not give a schedule, so look up the ferry season before you plan a trip around it.

A stroll in Glen Arbor, a sunset at Empire

Traverse City Tourism’s Leelanau itinerary suggests walking downtown Glen Arbor and finishing at Empire Beach for sunset. Empire is also the village where the park’s visitor center sits, so it combines easily with a park stop.

When to visit Suttons Bay

May–June and September–October are the seasons Shift suggests for planning. Traverse City Tourism’s fall page points to apples in September and a corn maze in October. It also notes that lodging deals run from September to mid-December. Winter pages describe snow-covered trails for skiing and snowshoeing. Use the local forecast when you plan outdoor time.

Getting to Suttons Bay and your study setting

Cherry Capital Airport, also listed as Traverse City Airport (TVC), is the arrival point shown in this guide. The village website places Suttons Bay fifteen miles north of Traverse City on the Leelanau Peninsula, so plan ground transport from the airport. Traverse City Tourism lists public buses on its transportation pages.

The map shows straight-line distances from Shift’s designated center. These are orientation distances, not driving distances or travel-time estimates. Check your exact address against the conference’s check-in area before booking.