Detroit

Book a room at the striking blue 30-story tower of the 400-room Greektown Casino hotel and then check out the 2,500 slots and video poker machines, more than 60 tables of gaming fun and a Poker Room. Satisfy your appetite at Bistro 555, International Buffet, or Shotz Sports Bar & Grill, or step outside and enjoy a choice of ethnic restaurants and nightspots in the heart of Greektown. Eclipz features live entertainment every Friday and Saturday night along with food and drink specials.

The dramatic Art Deco exterior of the MGM Grand Detroit makes a grand impression that continues throughout the million-square-foot casino, hotel, and spa. Original art and striking decor sets the scene for some 4,000 slots and video poker, over 100 table games and Poker Room. Indulge in a treatment at IMMERSE spa and dine at one of three signature restaurants: Wolfgang Puck’s Grille, Bourbon Steak and Saltwater by Michael Mina. Or relax at one of the casual dining spots, Palette or Breeze. Sip something of your choice at five lounges or high energy nightspots, or take in live entertainment before retiring to one of the 400 plush rooms or suites. Ask about the spa and hotel packages for a pampered stay.

Colorful strips of neon wrap around the exterior of MotorCity Casino and signal the electricity inside at the 2,800 gaming machines plus table games and Poker Room. The 400 guest rooms and suites are AAA Four Diamond rated, as is the beautiful 2011 Hour Detroit magazine Restaurant of the Year, Iridescence, atop the hotel tower with an amazing view. Amnesia Ultra Lounge on the 16^th floor boasts the hottest DJs on weekends, and there’s live music and DJ entertainment at three additional clubs. You can also please your appetite at the Assembly Line Buffet, Pit Stop for sandwiches and burgers, Grand River Deli and the D.Tour Spa with luxury services to soothe any traveler.

Southwest Lower Peninsula

Four Winds Casino in New Buffalo, just 75 miles east of Chicago, boasts the Midwest’s only World Poker Tour Poker Room on top of 3,000 slots and 100 gaming tables. Enjoy a great meal at the Copper Rock steakhouse or choose one of the casual dining spots and relax over a beverage at one of four bars. Take in live entertainment or do some boutique shopping in a beautiful setting of stone and wood, and retire to one of the 165 deluxe rooms or suites.

There are poker tournaments every Wednesday at FireKeepers Casino in Battle Creek, plus 2,680 slot machines, a 120-seat 24/7 Poker Room and 78 game tables. Satisfy your sweet tooth at the chocolate fountain on the dessert bar at the Mijem (food) buffet, one of five eateries. Hear live music and DJs at Kabaret or sip a local micro brew and watch the 14 large screen TVs at Dacey’s Sports Bar.

Gun Lake Casino is in Wayland Township, halfway between Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo. The contemporary casino offers 1,200 slot machines, 36 tables, entertainment at Stage 131 and casual dining at the Sandhill Café. Crossroads features beverages and big screen sports.

Northern Lower Peninsula

The stunning décor of Petoskey’s 50,000 square-feet Odawa Casino Resort includes a 16-foot tall wine tower in Sage Restaurant, known for seafood and prime beef. Waas-no-de (Northern Lights) Buffet offers more than 100 choices from sandwiches to wood-burning pizza. The sleek O Zone night club “party pods” are hot spots and top names perform at the 1,000-seat Ovation Hall. The Rendezvous Lounge is convenient for drink on the casino floor which, by the way, offers 1,500 machines, 17 table games and Poker Room. Nearby, half of the Odawa Hotel’s 127 guest rooms boast views of Little Traverse Bay and offers a shuttle to the casino.

Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort in Mt. Pleasant is one of the largest casinos in North America, with 4,400 slots, 70 tables, 24/7 Poker Room and High Stakes Bingo on the weekends. The AAA Four Diamond hotel has 514 rooms and suites, a full service spa, and dining choices include Isabella’s for Italian specialties, Siniikaung Steak and Chop House, Firefly Buffet, Water Lily Lounge and the Native Grind Coffee Shoppe. The indoor pool has Italian glass tiles and underwater music and lights, and for the family there’s Kids Quest hourly childcare and Cyber Quest entertainment center.

Not far away in Standish, the Saganing Eagles Landing Casino brings over 800 slot machines including high limit slots and a variety of electronic table games to Michigan’s Sunrise Side.

In the Traverse City area the contemporary Turtle Creek Casino & Hotel in Williamsburg offers 650 slots from one cent  to $100, plus popular table games and a Poker Room. The casino is redesigning the game floor and will include a new High Limit area. Savor international flavors at Seasons Buffet plus the Coffee Spoon and Deli. Turtle Creek offers comedy and live music, and an outdoor patio for a change of pace. Some of the hotel’s spacious rooms or suites have balconies overlooking the rolling Grand Traverse terrain.

Play and stay on the eastern shore of the Leelanau Peninsula at Leelanau Sands Casino & Lodge in Suttons Bay. Favorite tables and 480 slots entertain along with comedy and music in Elements Lounge, and touring performers at the 1,000-seat Leelanau Sands Showroom. Sleep at the 51-room Lodge, 2-bedroom Chalet, or Cedar View cottage.

There’s a northern lodge resort air about the Little River Casino Resort in Manistee with 1,500 slots, popular table games, three dining choices, entertainment at The Grove and big name acts performing in the 1,700-seat event center. In addition to the 292 hotel rooms, guests can stay at the resort’s full-service 95-site RV Park, and have access to the hotel’s pool, sauna and fitness center.

Upper Peninsula

Visit the Kewadin Casinos with non-stop entertainment including national talent headliners at the Sault Ste. Marie Casino. Kewadin’s five locations across the UP, from Hessel to Christmas and Manistique, offer a combined 86,000 square feet of gaming space with 2,000 slot machines and 50 game tables, seven restaurants and delis, eight lounges, four gift shops, two on-site hotels and 25,000-square foot convention facility. The St. Ignace location has 820 machines, 22 tables, entertainment and an 81-room hotel on Lake Huron with pool and fitness center. Sault Ste. Marie has 700 slots, 19 tables, and 400-seat Bingo, plus a 318-room hotel and 1,500-seat Dream Makers Theater.

On the banks of the St. Mary’s River in Brimley, the Bay Mills Resort & Casino Brimley has nearly 1,000 slot and video poker machines, many game tables, and Poker Room. There’s a 76-space RV Park within walking distance of the casino and the 142-room hotel nearby at Waishkey Bay has a Jacuzzi in every suite. A shuttle bus services both to the Bay Mills and Kings Club Casino, also in Brimley. Kings Club, with 250 machines, was the first tribally-operated blackjack casino in the US. Be sure to try the local whitefish dinner basket at Chums Café. In addition, golfers will enjoy the 18-hole Wild Bluff golf course, rated tops in the UP.

The 18-hole golf course at Lac Vieux Desert Resort Casino in Watersmeet also gets great reviews for its beautiful setting in the Ottawa National Forest—and there’s a mini casino in the course clubhouse. The main casino features 670 slots, favorite tables, Poker Room on weekends and Cribbage on the third Saturday each month, Bingo every Sunday, Tuesday and Wednesday, plus bars and theme dinners at the full-service restaurant. Stay at the 132-room Dancing Eagles Hotel that offers an indoor heated pool, or hitch-up at the 14-space RV Park/Campground.

The UP offers gaming fun at two Ojibwa Casinos, in Marquette and Baraga. The Ojibwa Casino Marquette offers a 7-site RV Park and is convenient to the variety of dining and lodging in that city. The casino has slots, table games and bi-weekly Texas Hold ‘em tournaments. Ojibwa Casino Baraga has a 40-room hotel plus 12-site RV Park, on site bowling lanes, lounge and sports bar. Enjoy a meal at the Red Apple Family Restaurant or the Press Box Sports Bar. Play at 300 slots or at popular table games.

Escape to the tropics at the Island Resort & Casino in Harris, west of Escanaba. There are 1,400 state of the art slots including the new virtual horse racing, plus top table games, Live Poker five days and Bingo seven days a week.

Stay at the 275-room hotel or 53-site RV Park and dine at Firekeeper’s, Coral Reef Grille or Beachcomber Restaurant. Top entertainers regularly visit, and Club Four One offers music and comedy nights. The resort’s Sweetgrass Golf Club was recognized with “best course” honors by three top golf magazines in 2009.

Icing

Who needs a fancy rink?  With more than 11,000 inland lakes in Michigan it’s easy to start a pickup game no matter where you are. Because of this, pond hockey tournaments are a popular and growing past time in communities across Michigan.

The Labatt Blue UP Pond Hockey Championship in St. Ignace is one of the largest pond hockey tournaments in North America. Played on the wild ice of Moran Bay, part of Lake Huron, this is the only tournament where the 'pond' is actually one of the Great Lakes! Watch all the teams, including the Red Wing alumni team, February 17-19. 

Head to Mac’s Marina in Whitmore Lake for the Michigan Pond Hockey Classic January 27-29. Four-man teams battle it out on a 75’ x 150’ rink in both day and night games. In its fifth year, the event attracts players from Michigan, the Midwest and even Canada. Or head up north January 27-29 to the 2nd Annual Cadillac Pond Hockey Classic on picturesque Lake Cadillac. 

The 2012 Pond Hockey Championships at the Muskegon Winter Sports Complex, being held January 27-29, features a skate-up beer tent and grilled food all day long. Between games try your hand at the luge – the Winter Sports Complex has the most publicly accessible luge track in the nation – or take a run with the family down the sledding hill. 

Hockeytown USA

Home to the Detroit Red Wings, Detroit is known as Hockeytown when the puck hits the ice. Attending a Red Wings game at Joe Louis Arena is an exhilarating combination of excitement and tradition. With 11 Stanley Cups and more than 50 Red Wings in the Hockey Hall of Fame, the team remains a perennial favorite. But be sure to watch for flying octopuses! 

In West Michigan, the Grand Rapids Griffins, an affiliate of the Detroit Red Wings, play at Van Andel Arena in the heart of downtown Grand Rapids. Goalie Joey MacDonald has paid tribute to his adopted state, featuring the Mackinac Bridge and Detroit skyline on his goalie’s mask. 

The Battle Creek Revolution, part of the All American Hockey League, gets fans fired up in Battle Creek and offers an affordable family outing. Kids under four get in free and tickets start at $5.  In Muskegon, the Lumberjacks are a training ground for aspiring NHL players. The teams play at L.C. Walker Arena, and on February 10 will celebrate 50 years of hockey in Muskegon with 1980’s throw-back jerseys.

Last year, the Kalamazoo Wings won the East Coast Hockey League Championship for the first time. An affiliate of the Vancouver Canucks and the New Jersey Devils, the team plays at Wings Stadium with a dedicated Fanzone. 

Joe Louis Arena also plays host to several premiere collegiate hockey events. On February 11 the University of Michigan Wolverines will compete against rivals the Michigan State Spartans in an annual showdown at the Joe.  Joe Louis Arena will also host the 31^st Annual CCHA Championships March 16-17. Each year, the best teams from the Central Collegiate Hockey Association travel to Detroit for championship games to determine a CCHA Tournament champion. The event attracts more than 30,000 hockey fans to the Joe each year.

Leave the stick at home

If you prefer to leave your stick at home, Michigan offers great ice skating for all experience levels. A winter day in Detroit is not complete without a trip to the ice rink at Campus Martius Park, open seven days a week and as late as midnight on weekends. For only $1 you can take make figure eights at the Rosa Parks Circle ice rink in the heart of downtown Grand Rapids. There are three ice skating rinks catering to hockey, family skating, and a kiddie rink at the Muskegon Winter Sports Complex. Or meander through the 700 ft. skate trail on site. Up in Sault Ste. Marie the Pullar Stadium has been serving up quality ice for open skating since 1939 – and hockey greats, including Gordie Howe, Ed Lindsay, Sid Able and Alex Delvechio, have all skated at the facility.

Top-notch entertainment venues, fun family attractions, glitzy casinos and world class museums. These are just a few reasons to plan a weekend getaway in Detroit! Ambitious redevelopment and renovations are sparking excitement in the 303-year old city.