15 Reasons to visit Midland, Michigan #FindYourElement

Sharing is caring!

15 Reasons to Visit Midland Michigan

There are many reasons to visit Midland, Michigan the least of which is to treat yourself to a four-star luxury stay at The H Hotel.  In the process, you will treat yourself to exceptional meals, tasty cocktails and a relaxing weekend. But that is just the beginning, as you can take your pick of all the fun, exciting, delicious, fascinating and entertaining reasons to see Midland, Michigan. From Balloon Festivals to Food Festival and Cruise & Car shows, take in a ball game, a quiet walk in the forest or browse the many quaint shops on Main Street, you will love a weekend in Midland, Michigan – I guarantee it.

Midland is a small company town home to one of the largest companies in the world – The Dow Chemical Company. Dow was founded in Midland in 1897 by Herbert H. Dow. The benefits are evident as you drive around and see the many parks, a baseball field and buildings that have the name Dow associated with it.

This town of 42,000 people may be dominated by Dow, but it is also the beneficiary of its most notable patrons. You will LOVE the beautiful flowers, greenery and gardens beds throughout the downtown area and parks. Main Street invites you to wander into quaint boutiques, sit outside at the patios and enjoy a cocktail or indulge in an outstanding meal at a high-end restaurant simply called TABLE.

1. Great Lakes Loons game

The Great Lake Loons are likely one of the luckiest AAA baseball teams. With the $40 million dollars Dow Diamond to call home, you will love to take in a game on a hot summer night. This baseball field must have been modeled against a major league baseball field (except smaller) because it’s just that impressive. The charm is size is lovely if you want an up-close personal experience, but get a big-league feel.

Dow Diamond Midland Michigan @DownshiftingPRO 4
Dow Diamond –
Home of the Great Lakes Loons

2. Stroll through Dow Gardens

2019 07 27 12.49.05

The Dow Gardens and Whiting Forest are a spectacular place to spend a hot summer afternoon.

Dow Gardens Midland Michigan @DownshiftingPRO Margarita Ibbott

Tip: If you are staying at The H Hotel, you are able to catch a shuttle to the Gardens and entrance is complimentary if you are a guest of the hotel. We were dropped off at the Dow Gardens and picked up by the Whiting Forest Cafe. So very convenient.

3. Cross over the Tridge

The Tridge at night a short walk from The H Hotel 5 @DownshiftingPRO

A very unique structure is a and tourist attraction in downtown Midland, the Tridge is the formal name of a three-way wooden footbridge spanning the confluence of the Chippewa and Tittabawassee Rivers in Chippewassee Park. Blending “tri” and “bridge”, the structure opened in 1981, and it provides access to the downtown area, 12 softball fields and a golf course.

This unique structure is beautifully lit up in the evening and a great place to take a stroll.

4. Watch an LPGA Golf Tournament

20190726 164006 e1569274987610
Teed’d Up Downtown – 2019 summer sculpture series
part of the LPGA Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational

The Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational is held-mid July. Watch world-class women’s golf and enjoy a weekend of LPGA Team Golf. In 2019 it launched the first team golf event with the winners running away with a six-stroke lead ending up -27 under.

Another fun aspect was the quirky golf ball sculptures displayed to commemorate the LPGA Invitational. For one week, this sleepy town is transformed into golf central as it hosts a world-class roster of women golfers.

5. Visit The Pines: Herbert H. & Grace A. Dow’s Home

Dow Gardens Midland Michigan @DownshiftingPRO 22

Located on the grounds of the Dow Botanical Garden, you can visit the home of H.H. and Grace Dow’s home. Built in 1899, it was the first and only home they ever owned. Within its walls, Grace Dow raised their children while outside, Herbert conducted experiments in fruit-growing and developed gardens, which continue to welcome guests today. 

As a National Historic Landmark, The Pines welcomes visitors for guided tours and special events. The home, which is still filled with the Dow family’s furnishings, provides an intimate look into their life. Guided tours run Tuesdays, Thursdays at 10:00 am and  Fridays at 10:00 am, 11:00 am. Due to limited space, reservations are recommended. There is a $7 admission fee in addition to the fee to the Botanical Gardens.

6. Grab a bike and go exploring

20190726 204319
Rent a bike for an hour or a day

If you enjoy riding a bike, rent one for a couple of hours. With six different locations that you can pick up or drop off a bike, you can see Midland easily with all of the beautifully maintained bike trails. This is an app-based service so you will need to sign up and use your phone to unlock the bike. This one was by The Tridge. Don’t forget your bike helmet, though, because they don’t come with the rental. Safety first!

Tip: If you are staying at The H Hotel, you are able to reserve bikes for your use for free! Worth the stay for the location and this service alone!

7. Enjoy the produce at the Farmer’s Market

Midland Michigan Farmers Market in front of The H Hotel @DownshiftingPRO

Your first stop will be to purchase baked goods from the Cafe Zinc stand. We could not resist buying bread and bringing it home to the kids. The pastry chef is French-trained, and it shows. All the desserts and bread were out of this world!

Your second stop will be the florist. You will fall in love with all of the summer blooms. We fell in love too, but alas, we cannot take vegetation (produce or flowers) across the border. We did buy blueberries for a snack. 😉

8 – 9. Take in the Glow Show at the Annual Balloon Fest + Midland RiverDays

Take two festivals and combine them over one weekend and you have a whole lot of fun. RiverDays is not just a hot air balloon festival, but a four-day summer celebration. There is kayaking on the river, cornhole, washers, yard games, Midland history tours, wood branding/ blacksmithing demonstrations, ziplines, beer tents and much more.

What you come for is the 26 balloons which launch every morning from 6:45-8:00 am on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. There is a spectacular Glow Show at 9 pm at Chippewasee Park. Lastly, don’t miss the competitive balloon flight where balloons launch from different locations, fly to Chippawasee Park and attempt to hit targets placed in The Tridge area.

10. Discover Alden B. Dow’s Home and Studio

The Alden B Dow House in the Dow Gardens @DownshiftingPRO
Alden B. Dow’s Home and Studio

This stunning 20,000 square foot complex and architectural studio were named one of The 25 Best Historic Homes in America by Traditional Home Magazine. You can see the Alden B. Dow’s Home and Studio by appointment and you can experience it as they did. The son of Dow Chemical Company founder Herbert H. Dow, Alden Dow studied engineering in order to join his father’s chemical company, but then changed careers to architecture.

Dow studied briefly at Taliesin with the renowned American architect Frank Lloyd Wright and it shows in the design of his home. The house is a home and not an untouchable museum piece. Visitors are free to walk anywhere. You will be able to sit on the Dow’s furniture, walk in their footsteps, and immerse yourself in the beauty of their home.

11. Enjoy a cocktails & dessert at Oxygen Lounge

Dessert and Cocktails at Oxygen in The H Hotel @DownshiftingPRO
Stunning Desserts from Cafe Zinc

When you have a really great meal and you’re stuffed, you may not always appreciate an outstanding dessert. You can solve this dilemma by having a late afternoon cocktail and dessert at Oxygen – located in The H Hotel complex. Relax in the cool, sophisticated lounge or take your drinks outside to the courtyard. Oxygen Lounge connects, via a corridor, to Cafe Zinc which has the best desserts in Midland!

20190727 152719
Cocktails at Oxygen in The H Hotel complex

12. Stroll memory lane at Midland’s Cruise n’ Car Show

Mid-September, watch a parade of cars in the annual Cruise n’ Car Show. Hot rods, street machines, customs, antiques, trucks and motorcycles are on display. The Saturday cruise parade starts at 5 pm at the downtown Farmer’s Market at the foot of Ashman Street, near the Tridge.

Two best cruiser awards will be given during the free Cruisers Ball from 6-8 p.m. Saturday at the Farmers Market, where cruisers will park. DJs provide music and other entertainment both during the ball and the Sunday car show.

13. Treat your taste buds to the Eat Great Food Festival

Eat Great Food Festival at Cafe Zinc The H Hotel Menu

Although I had my heart set on the Lobster Thermidor, Cafe Zinc did offer great value for your money with the Eat Great Food Festival menu. A two-week-long event held at some of the best eateries in the Great Lakes Bay Region! This festival on Main Street Midland has live entertainment, as well as local food and brews. Take advantage of the great patio seating or stroll up and down the street after a great meal!

Lobster Thermador at Cafe Zinc in The H Hotel Midland Michigan @DownshiftingPRO
Lobster Thermador at Cafe Zinc

14. Walk The Canopy Walk

Visit The Canopy Walk, the nation’s longest canopy walk, at 1,400 feet in length. It ascends 40 feet above the ground and provides spectacular views of Whiting Forest. Whiting Forest of Dow Gardens features 54 acres of woodlands, ponds, apple orchard, meadows and stream. The Alden B. Dow-designed Whiting home (see #10 above) now welcomes guests. Other features include a playground, apple orchard, Whiting Forest Cafe, restoration of Snake Creek, and two pedestrian bridges. 

Whiting Forest and Canopy Walk Dow Gardens Midland Michigan @DownshiftingPRO Collage
Whiting Forest & The Canopy Walk

15. Chippewa Nature Centre

One last good reason to visit Midland, Michigan: the Chippewa Nature Centre. Spanning 1200 acres of wetlands and woodlands with 19 miles of trails and an observation tower, the Chippewa Nature Centre offers an opportunity to enjoy an arboretum with over 100 species of Michigan-native trees, shrubs and abundant wildlife.

Stop in on Sundays for special programming at the Homestead Farm. The Homestead area features an 1870’s style farmstead with a log cabin, timber frame barn, root cellar, wagon barn, chicken coop, garden, crop fields and a (modern) outhouse. The Log Cabin is an original building relocated to the site from within Midland County, while the Timber frame Barn was built in 2016 using traditional methods. From May through November, visitors can see chickens, sheep, pigs and a cow and calf.


Visiting Midland, Michigan turned out to be a surprisingly entertaining and enjoyable weekend. We realized that one weekend would not be enough and that we would have to return to take in a few more things. I’m planning a visit to the Balloon Fest and hopefully, there will be a Loon’s game on that weekend. You have captured my heart and my sense of curiosity Midland – I’ll be back!

15 Great Reasons to Visit Midland Michigan @DownshiftingPRO
15 Reasons to Visit Midland, Michigan

A Romantic Couples Getaway to The H Hotel Midland Michigan @DownshiftingPRO 2
Read the review for The H Hotel (coming soon)
Website | + posts

Margarita Ibbott is a travel and lifestyle blogger. She blogs about travel in Canada, the United States and Europe giving practical advice through restaurant, hotel and attraction reviews. She writes for DownshiftingPRO.com and other online media outlets.