As a Southeast and Mid-Michigan wedding photographer who’s photographed 70+ weddings, I’ve traveled around Michigan and know the best areas to get married. Hi, friend! I’m Catie Eovaldi and I’ve been photographing weddings for the past 3 years. Heading into my fourth year of wedding photography, I believe your wedding day shouldn’t feel cookie cutter- it should feel like you. From the colors, the vibes, and details, you want a day you will make the most of and remember for a lifetime. The easiest way to wedding plan is one step at a time, and that first step (after your engagement of course) is to choose a venue. A little disclaimer: there are several lakefront venues in Michigan but I personally only write about the ones I have experience at. That’s not to say one that’s not on this list isn’t a good venue, I just haven’t worked there! As time goes on and I continue to photograph weddings I’ll add more venues to this guide!
About Michigan Lakefront Weddings
Selecting your venue is the first step in bringing your wedding day vision to life, and trust me when I say I know how overwhelming it can be. From historic homes, to museums, to barns, to vineyards. There are so many wonderful Michigan wedding venues, but there’s just something about the water. I’ve seen my share of days at the lake and life by the water slows down. Michigan is so unique in that we are never far from some kind of lake or body of water. Whether that be a Great Lake or an inland lake, there’s always some from of water nearby. Lake life is often just a part of life here. It means relaxing by the water and serene views for Michiganders.
While you may not think Michigan when you hear “destination wedding”, I’ve worked with several out of state couples who have chosen Michigan lakes for their nuptials. Choosing our picturesque shores to exchange vows on is something you won’t regret!
4 Tips for Hosting A Lakefront Wedding
Pick The Right Season
The best time for a lakefront wedding in Michigan is summertime. The waves are calming, the sun is shining, and the breeze is wonderfully warm. The seagrass (or lakegrass in this case) and trees are beautifully green and the waters so blue. Fall weddings at the lake can be beautiful as well, but expect the breezes to have a chill to them and the water to be cold. The fall foliage around the water is a stunning image.
Pack the Bug Spray
Summertime in Michigan is beautiful, but a not so beautiful reality of it are fishflies. If you’re from Michigan already, chances are you know exactly what I’m talking about. If you’re not local, fishflies are large bugs that hang out around the lakes. They attach themselves anywhere and everywhere. They’re more annoying than harmful, but if you’re anti-bugs then a lakefront wedding is not going to be for you. The sweet spot to avoid them time wise is June. I start to notice fishflies in July and August. My professional opinion is that these are more annoying than anything and you shouldn’t let them deter you from having a lakefront wedding. But you should be prepared to see them if you choose a summer outdoor wedding.
Embrace the Water
I greatly encourage you to make the water a main character on your wedding day. Take portraits on a boat. Enter your ceremony on a boat. Sit on the dock together to read private vows. Jump in at the end of the night. If you’re having a lakefront wedding, take advantage of the environment around you to make your day unforgettable!
Work with a Wedding Planner
For a relaxing lakeside wedding, I highly encourage you to hire and work with a wedding planner. Planners are a godsend. Not only do they handle the logistics and moving parts such as moving the timeline along, communicating with vendors, and designing a gorgeous wedding, but they handle the problems, too. With outdoor weddings come weather. Wedding planners often will have a plan B or C to enact and fix things behind the scenes, so much so that couples often don’t know some things even went wrong in the first place.
Southeast Michigan Lakefront Wedding Venues
St Clair Inn in St Clair
Quick Venue Facts:
- Address: 500 N Riverside Ave, St Clair, MI 48079
- Website: stclairinn.com/weddings
- Cost: starting at $5,000
- Capacity: up to 250 guests
- Style/Vibe: Neutrally Nautical with a touch of Vintage Elegance
- Catie’s Quick Tip: To elevate your experience, rent out a cottage or 2 for yourself and some friends. Turn the experience of your wedding day into a relaxing wedding weekend spent on the water.
The St Clair Inn is in a unique position water-wise. The St Clair River flows from Lake Huron, making it a waterfront venue and incredibly close to the lake. You’ll have views of boats and freighters all throughout your day and even get some congratulatory horn blasts if you wave to them! The St Clair Inn is a venue that’s local to me and is one that I absolutely love. This wedding venue is pretty all-inclusive. Included in their costs, you can host both your ceremony and reception and will also have their catering and bartending teams onsite.
This waterfront wedding venue will host your ceremony outside on the lawn, which overlooks the dock and river. Your cocktail hour will be held right outside the grand ballroom, on the patio where guests will eat delicious appetizers and watch the boats float by. Your reception will flow right into the ballroom, which has a wall of windows looking out on the water to ensure you have that perfect view. For a deeper dive on this venue, you can check out this blog post on the St Clair Inn!
The War Memorial in Grosse Pointe
Quick Venue Facts:
- Address: 32 Lake Shore Drive, Grosse Pointe Farms, MI 48236
- Website: warmemorial.org/weddings
- Cost: Not listed publicly online, but an estimated minimum budget of $40,000 is recommended for large weddings
- Capacity: 450 seated guests
- Style/Vibe: Refined elegant manor situated on lakefront property
- Catie’s Quick Tip: For better water views, book the lakeview ballroom for a reception with a clear view. With windows all around the ballroom, you’ll have unlimited views compared to Alger House.
There are 2 parts of this property that make up this lakefront wedding venue. The first is the smaller Alger House. Able to host smaller events up to 70 guests, this house was the original structure of the venue and also functions as a museum. With different rooms your guests will be immersed in, they’ll be able to have views of the lake out the manor windows. This part of the estate is more historical and architectural in nature. Your day will have a coastal and opulent feel.
For larger wedding days, the lakeview ballroom is available for receptions. I also recommend incorporating the smaller Alger House by holding your ceremony on the lawn. Your backdrop will be the house while the waves softly crash in the background. The ballroom part of the venue feels more refined and modern than the home, but no less elegant! The War Memorial is similar to St Clair Inn as they also have in-house catering and bartending. I have a deep dive on this venue that you can read here!
Lake St Clair MetroPark
Quick Venue Facts:
- Address: 31300 Metro Pkwy, Harrison Township, MI 48045
- Website: metroparks.com
- Cost: $2,200
- Capacity: up to 300 guests
- Style/Vibe: clean aesthetic that is easily dressed up for your day
- Catie’s Quick Tip: I highly recommend booking transportation if you have your wedding here. This Metro Park gets very busy in the summer and the last thing you want is to have issues finding parking in between events of your day. The lots onsite are all public parking lots and from experience if it’s busy you will have to walk far to your reception.
This Metro Park is right on the beachy shores of Lake St Clair. This venue allows for both ceremony and reception rentals. You’ll have a wedding ceremony under the gazebo, which looks out over the lake. Not far from there, the activity center is what is used for wedding receptions. Able to accommodate up to 300 guests, this reception space has windows all along the sides so guests have an almost 360 view of the surrounding park. This is a completely open concept floor space, and has a stage perfect for a band or DJ.
You will have to bring in outside vendors such as catering and decor, but the rental price point is low enough that you’ll be able to decorate the space more elegantly. The pictured couple, Cortney and Devin, held their ceremony offsite but the reception was onsite.
I think it’s important to note that alcohol is allowed here, even though it’s a public park. You’ll need to work with a licensed bartender to comply with the metro park’s rules. Additionally, your rental fees cover the cost of parking for your guests. Metro parks typically charge a fee for residents and non-residents to get in, but all your guests will have to do is tell the gate they are with the wedding and they’ll be waived on through! And of course being a public park means that there will be people outside your guest list roaming the grounds.
Tompkins Community Center in Grosse Pointe
Quick Venue Facts:
- Address: 14920 Windmill Pointe Dr, Grosse Pointe Park, MI 48230
- Website: grossepointepark.org
- Cost: $1,200
- Capacity: 150 guests
- Style/Vibe: Glass conservatory style atrium overlooking Lake St Clair
- Catie’s Quick Tip: Belle Isle is not far from this venue and is the perfect place for some portraits prior to your wedding ceremony!
The name makes this venue sound like a small banquet hall style venue, but this space is actually an amazing atrium overlooking the park and Lake St Clair. I think this is a hidden gem of a venue. The space feels private despite being in a park, and guests will enjoy the lawn and watching the boats pass by while sipping a cocktail. I will note that the atrium feels a little tightly packed for a ceremony, but you can easily expand your reception into the hall to spread everything out a bit!
Mid Michigan Lakefront Venues
Waldenwoods Wedding & Convention Center in Howell
Quick Venue Facts:
- Address: 2975 N Old US 23, Howell, MI 48855
- Website: waldenwoodsevents.com/weddings
- Cost: $68 per guest plus 22% service charge
- Capacity: up to 300 guests
- Style/Vibe: think summer camp but with a beautiful lodge and tents for an outdoor weekend
- Catie’s Quick Tip: You’ll want to schedule portrait time all throughout the day rather than in one big chunk of time for this venue. With the outdoors and lighting changes throughout the day, you will want the variety it’ll give you in a wedding gallery!
I’m going to start this one off by saying: rent the lodge. I’ve been lucky to not only work at this venue, but also attend a wedding here as a guest. Our college friends had the lodge the entire weekend and we had so much fun. It’s a wedding we still talk about today and that was years ago. It is so worth it to rent it out for friends or family!
Waldenwoods is one of those venues that is naturally beautiful. Sitting on an inland lake, this venue has gorgeous panoramic views that will be the backdrop to your wedding day. The cost for this venue seems listed out weird when you first look at it, but because they have in-house catering and bartending you’ll be able to calculate the cost yourself based on your guest count.
For a deeper dive on this venue, check out this blog post about Waldenwoods!
Northern Michigan Lakefront Wedding Venues
The Peninsula Room in Traverse City
Quick Venue Facts:
- Address: 13512 Peninsula Dr, Traverse City, MI 49686
- Website: peninsularoom.com
- Cost: starting at $15,000
- Capacity: up to 150 guests
- Style/Vibe: modern lodge inspired architecture with lake views
- Catie’s Quick Tip: This venue has expansive yard space, so I highly recommend having some sort of activity for guests to encourage them to use the space. My couple had custom cornhole boards and the guests that weren’t really dancers loved playing in the evening!
The Peninsula Room is tucked away from the hustle and bustle of downtown Traverse City. Located on the peninsula and surrounded by vineyards and lake views, this wedding venue is serene and is perfect for nature lovers. At this venue you’ll have access to the getting ready suites above The Jolly Pumpkin (one of the onsite restaurants), the ceremony space in the front yard, a dock on the lake, and the reception space.
This lakefront wedding venue offers in house catering- which is why the starting price feels higher than some of the other venues on this list. I feel it’s important to know that both restaurants, The Jolly Pumpkin and Mission Table, will remain open throughout the day. I recommend having the appropriate signage so your guests don’t accidentally stumble into the restaurants alongside the patrons.
Sunset Shores in Cadillac
Quick Venue Facts:
- Address: 1246 Sunnyside Dr, Cadillac, MI 49601
- Website: sunsetshorescadillac.com
- Cost: unknown
- Capacity: less than 100 guests
- Style/Vibe: private lakefront property with stone fireplace
- Catie’s Quick Tip: You’ll definitely have to reach out to them for more information, but I highly recommend renting out rooms for the weekend here.
This resort is small, but beautiful in its lake views! Filled with timeshare residents, this resort does offer rentals to people staying onsite which is why its included in this list. The clubhouse sits across the street from the condo buildings and is perfect for smaller celebrations. The guests loved that they were staying right there so they could walk back to their rooms at any time throughout the evening if needed!
This area is very quiet, so just know that a wedding here means a party ending around 9ish in the evening. For this couple, this was perfect and gave them time to relax and enjoy the summer evening together outside. One of my favorite parts of this venue were the hydrangeas all along the backside of the resort- the landscaping done here is minimal but so clean.
Lakeside Resort in Houghton Lake
Quick Venue Facts:
- Address: 100 Clearview Drive, Houghton Lake, MI 48629
- Website: lakesideresortandconferencecenter.com
- Cost: starting around $5,000
- Capacity: up to 300 guests
- Style/Vibe: Lakefront hotel
- Catie’s Quick Tip: The honeymoon suite is a 2 level room that is perfect for large wedding parties getting ready!
This inland lake in northern Michigan is in a fairly remote area. This spot on Houghton Lake is definitely an idyllic boating area and you’ll see lots of activity out on the water here. It’s such a popular spot for boating that Steff, the pictured bride below, made her ceremony entrance in her family’s boat. This ceremony was perfectly in the sun and those storm clouds rolled in just as everyone made it inside for cocktail hour. There was a rainbow just as the storm ended that made the perfect appearance in time for their portraits.
This resort is 2 levels. Ceremonies are often held outdoors right on the lake while receptions happen upstairs in the ballroom area. Your outdoor ceremony will be right outside the resort, and it’s important to know that non-wedding guests at the resort will easily be able to watch your ceremony. There were resort guests walking out of their balcony and patio doors to watch. If the thought of this bothers you then this probably won’t be your ideal venue.
Across from the aforementioned ballroom is a conference room that is used for the buffet line and appetizers. I feel it’s important to know this because the wedding I was at here had almost no one grab food during cocktail hour because they simply didn’t know where it was. The reception is spaced out, which is great honestly. Some venues pack people in and you can barely walk around the space- this isn’t that type of venue. With everything spaced out your guests will feel relaxed.
Presque Isle Pavilion in Marquette
Quick Venue Facts:
- Address: 3 Peter White Drive Marquette, MI
- Website: marquettemi.gov
- Cost: starting at $145 per hour
- Capacity: up to 68 guests
- Style/Vibe: State Park with stunning views of Lake Superior
- Catie’s Quick Tip: Make time throughout your day if possible to see some other cool spots around town. The Black Rocks are an iconic landmark here but there are so many other areas to explore!
Another park but this one is truly different than the others. Located up on the north side of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, this pavilion offers views of Lake Superior that will have your guests outside and enjoying all day. Hayli and Blake held their ceremony in the green space right across from the pavilion. Looking over Lake Superior, they exchanged vows and then held a beautiful reception in the pavilion.
This wedding day was entirely outdoors and I encourage this spot for couples who love being active together. Hayli and Blake full on hiked out onto the rocks for their portraits (which were epic), but without a little hiking you’re limited on views and being around a lot of tourists.
I’ve had the pleasure of working with amazing couples all over Michigan, and I’m just starting to branch out into traveling outside my home state. You can check out more weddings I’ve done here and also deep dives on venues I recommend here! If you’re looking for a wedding photographer I’d love to connect and chat about your vision for the day.
