This summer, my husband and I found ourselves in Grand Rapids, Michigan for about 48 hours. This beautiful little city is situated on the Grand River and is located 30 miles east of Lake Michigan. If you have a trip to the Midwest in mind, or even if you don't, be sure to plan a stopover at some point and check out some of the highlights - you will be glad you did. Here's what to see and do if you have 48 hours in Grand Rapids.
Things not to miss: Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park, Downtown, the Heritage Hill Historic District, Meyer May House
(designed by Frank Lloyd Wright), and dinner at Grove Restaurant.
The absolute must on any trip to Grand Rapids is a day at the incredibly beautiful Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park. Situated on 158 acres, there is so much to see (do not forget your camera) - the gardens include (but certainly are not limited to) an English Perennial and Bulb Garden, a Japanese Garden with an authentic Japanese tea house, and a Frostic Woodland Shade Garden. Also, you cannot miss the five-story tropical conservatory (with a room dedicated to carnivorous plants). My favorite area (as you will see from the pictures below) is the 30-acre sculpture park containing over 50 works from major artists expertly situated among ponds, meandering paths, and meadows. This is a truly spectacular property and really is a must for any art, nature, and photography lover.
If you are traveling with the kiddos, not only will they enjoy exploring the gardens and viewing the sculptures, they are certain to have a blast in the five-acre interactive children's garden. Sculptures, a huge Grand Lakes-shaped water play table, a butterfly maze, an entire tree house village, and a log cabin just are just a few of the highlights.
And, if you plan to spend the day, don't worry about lunch, the onsite cafe is superb with a variety of options for the entire family (options include regular fare such as soups, salads, chicken salad sandwiches, and cheese-steaks and also more creative options such as a buffalo cauliflower wrap and a sriracha shrimp & kale wrap. Kid's options include pizza, PB&J, fluffernutters, and melted cheese sandwiches).
For dinner, I highly, highly, highly (yes three "highlys" are required) recommend heading to Grove Restaurant (you might want to find a sitter if you are traveling with the kids). Tucked away in a cute little neighborhood and consistently ranked as the best restaurant in Grand Rapids, Grove describes itself as an "earth to table" restaurant, and, if you are into that kind of thing, you will not be disappointed - the dishes are inventive, incredibly fresh and so, so good. The "Taste of the Grove" is definitely the way to go if you want to try your choice of one of each of the three courses (excluding dessert), and, it is a great deal at $39 (a custom wine pairing is available as well). The menu changes often but includes dishes such as Fried Green Tomatoes with lamb neck caponata, aubergine, pea pesto, and lentils for a first course; House-made Liverwurst with whiskey pickled cherries, cherry mustard, whiskey bread, and smoked walnuts for a second course; and Grilled New York Strip with kale, tomato, white bean, shallot, chili molasses, and smoked lemon for the third. Dessert, Cream Cheese Panna Cotta. (This is some of the things we tried. Now I am getting hungry. Yummmm....
If you have another day in Grand Rapids, plan to drive through downtown and see the Grand River, which runs right through downtown. Also, plan to drive through the Heritage Hill Historic District (where there are several hundred beautiful homes that date from 1843) and be sure to find the Meyer May House, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright in 1908. On Sundays (1-4pm), Tuesdays and Thursdays (10-1pm) you can stop in and tour the home (takes about 90 minutes). According to the Meyer May House website, the Prairie-style house was "meticulously restored" and opened to the public in 1987, and, the "Meyer May house provides the rare opportunity to experience a Prairie house exactly as Frank Lloyd Wright intended." While we did not have time to tour the house, we were able to walk around and take a few pictures.
Grand Rapids may not have been on my list of "must-see" cities but it should have been. The Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park alone is worth a trip in and of itself- exceptionally beautiful and inspiring.
I did not receive compensation for this story and all opinions are my own.
