Choosing the best places to spend a day at the beach is easy in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Visit Escanaba! With over 200 miles of Lake Michigan shoreline in Delta County, you are never more than a few minutes from enjoying your favorite water sports, swimming, building sand castles, spiking a volleyball or soaking up some rays with a good book. Here are nine beautiful beaches to add to your Upper Peninsula best beaches bucket list.

Escanaba Municipal Beach

Aronson Island | Bath House Road | June to mid-August 

This beach, near downtown Escanaba, has many family-friendly amenities:

• Spacious, sandy beach with Red Cross-certified lifeguards on duty from noon to 7 p.m.
• Public restrooms, changing facilities and showers
• Easily accessible by car, bike or on foot from your boat slip at the island’s municipal marina or the nearby boat launch parking lot
• ADA-accessible fishing pier
• Adjacent to Ludington Park, a mile-long, year-round play area with bike and walking paths, disc golf, picnic areas, sand volleyball courts, Sand Point historic lighthouse and museum, live music concerts and outdoor movies in the summer and much more. 

Take me to Escanaba Municipal Beach!

Gladstone Beach

Van Cleve Park | 1224 Lake Shore Drive

Parents love bringing the kids to play in the shallow, warm water that laps this sandy shore. Amenities include: 

• Spacious beachfront with a nearby marina and boat launch
• Public restrooms, changing facilities and showers
• Concession stand
• Hawaiian beach umbrellas and a water slide add to the summer fun
• Van Cleve Park entertains all ages with its Kids Kingdom playground, skate park, bike paths, volleyball court, baseball diamond and basketball court
• The Gladstone lighthouse, one of the newest beacons in Michigan
• ADA-accessible fishing pier; wet your line to reel in trophy walleye, perch, bass and panfish. 

Take me to Gladstone Beach!

O.B. Fuller Campground & Beach

850 State Highway M-35, Bark River

Ask locals where they like to camp and they will direct you to this lakefront campground 20 miles south of Escanaba. Its natural beach is perfect for swimming and playing in the sand. Amenities that bring people back: 

• Lake Michigan beach on Green Bay, picnic area and playground
• 40 campsites and two cabins; bathhouse and laundry facilities
• Shallow small-craft boat launch; popular with paddlers
• Shoreline fishing on the Bark River

Take me to Fuller Campground & Beach!

Fayette Historic State Park & Townsite

4785 II Road, Garden | 8 a.m.-10 p.m., year round | Requires Michigan Recreational Passport or Day Pass

One of the nation’s premier historic company townsites is south of U.S. 2, Take M-183 17 miles down the Garden Peninsula. Pack a picnic and beach gear and plan to spend at least two hours exploring the once booming iron smelting town’s 20 buildings before relaxing on this Lake Michigan beach. Amenities:

• Sandy beach; restrooms and picnic area
• Slag Beach, by the townsite, with scuba diving and snorkeling to see artifacts and aquatic life in Snail Shell Harbor; a permit from the park office is required
• Gorgeous place to kayak, canoe, stand-up paddleboard, or boat. The Snail Shell Harbor’s white limestone cliffs and ancient cedars rival the beauty of the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore on Lake Superior. 
• Biking and hiking trails

Take me to Fayette Historic State Park!

J.W. Wells State Park

N7670 Highway M-35, Cedar River | 8 a.m.-10 p.m., year round | Requires Michigan Recreational Passport or Day Pass

This beautiful, 678-acre park is 30 miles south of Escanaba and 25 miles north of Menominee. Amenities:

• Sandy beach is great for swimming and relaxing
• Large picnic area and restrooms
• Modern playground equipment
• Additional activities include fishing, boating, hiking and paddling sports

Take me to J.W. Wells State Park!

Ford River Beach

Bark River

Park at the Ford River Boat Launch and walk east on the trail next to the launching dock. It’s a long hike but worth it! Pack food, water, and weather-appropriate clothing and a beach blanket or chair. Bring your fishing gear if you want to shore fish along the river on your way to the beach. Amenities: 

• Sandy, swimming beach
• No shower or changing facilities
• Activities: river fishing and paddling 

Take me to Ford River Beach!

Indian Point Beach

10 minutes from Nahma, off Ee 25

As you drive into Nahma on Ee 25, keep your eyes on the right-hand side for a turnoff that dips down a hill to a gravel parking area. Park by the boulders then hike along the trail. Within minutes you will be on a stretch of sand that is a local secret. Amenities: 

• Sandy, good swimming and book-reading beach. The size of the beach depends on Big Bay de Noc’s water levels. 
• Picnic tables nearby
• No shower or changing facilities

Take me to Indian Point Beach!

Portage Point Beach

M-35 to Portage Point 11.4 Lane, Escanaba

To reach this expansive beach beyond the Portage Point Marsh, drive south from Escanaba on M-35 and turn left on Portage Point 11.4 Lane. Follow the road until it dead ends at the parking lot. The 10-minute walk to the beach is well worth the extra steps. Bring your picnic and blankets. Amenities: 

• Lots of sandy beach and great swimming water
• Piers 
• No shower or changing facilities

Take me to Portage Point Beach!

Sac Bay Beach

Access on Garden Peninsula from County Road 438

This is your place on the water to swim, enjoy a picnic, hike or bike on a nearby trail or paddle. You will enjoy some of the best Lake Michigan scenery in the U.P.! Amenities: 

• Small, sandy beach only 15 minutes from Fayette Historic State Park
• Picnic tables with great views of the water
• A destination to practice sea kayaking
• No shower or changing facilities

Take me to Sac Bay Park Beach!

Check ahead the weather in and around Escanaba 

Current beach weather