Downhill and Cross Country Skiing at Boyne Mountain

It was our second full day at Boyne Mountain Resort in Michigan and we were having a blast.

I had brought along my friends Brittany and Angela, and Angela’s daughter Kylie. Boyne Mountain put up in a very spacious Salzburg Suite in the Main Lodge. It had a cozy living room, full kitchen, three bedrooms and two bathrooms.

Angela and I each claimed the larger bedrooms and the (grown) girls had a lot of fun in the colorful kids room, which had two bunk beds.

We once again had breakfast downstairs at Everett’s, where the buffet had a nice selection of choices and the Vanilla Bean Pancakes and French Toast, in a vanilla cinnamon custard, are amazing.

From Everett’s we could also see snow-filled views of the Boyne Mountain’s Alpine Village .

After breakfast we went down to the village and walked around the shops until it was time for Brittany and Kylie’s ski lessons.

The Skier Services building is huge. It’s where you get equipment, register for lessons, and purchase ski packages. It’s extremely organized and everyone there is very helpful, whether you are a beginner (as they were) or an advanced skier.

While they were skiing, Angela and I enjoyed some coffee and girl talk. There are benches outside to watch the skiers, and also the Kids Camp, where young non-skiers were having a lot of fun playing while their parents hit the slopes.

After the skiing, we all went to Kilwin’s Fudge Shop for some hot chocolate, followed by lunch at Forty Acres Tavern. We had liked it so much the day before we decided to return.

In the afternoon, I wasn’t feeling great and decided to stay back at the suite while they went Cross Country Skiing. 

They had a great time – Brittany liked it much better than downhill skiing – and thought the path’s Boyne Mountain had available were terrific.

We stayed in the room for some pizza for dinner. After we ate, we went outside to the bonfire and enjoyed s’mores. It was another complimentary amenity the resort had.

It had been a long day of winter fun and everyone was exhausted. We hit the beds pretty early to rest before our last day at Boyne Mountain Resort, Boyne Falls. 

Winter Fun at Boyne Mountain

Last year I had a great trip up to Boyne Highlands with my brother, youngest niece and nephew. 

While we were there, we heard a lot of great things about its sister resort, Boyne Mountain.

It didn’t take much convincing when I was offered a trip to go check it out for myself.

I brought along friends Brittany, Angela, and Kylie for a girls/family getaway at this Michigan resort.

The adventure began on Thursday morning as we headed up for the eight-hour drive to Boyne Falls.

Boyne Mountain Resort has many different accommodations.

We would be staying in the three bedroom, two bath Salzburg Suite, a duplex with a full living room and kitchen.

We arrived early evening and checked in quickly. After we unpacked our groceries and got changed, we headed straight to the Avalanche Bay Indoor Waterpark.

It is located in the Mountain Grand Lodge and Spa building we were staying in.

The waterpark was a lot of fun and we enjoyed a few hours of sliding and relaxing in the tubes of the lazy river, as well as the hot tubs.  

There is a restaurant, Apris Ski Pub, upstairs from the waterpark, but we were all pretty tired and decided to head back to the room, put on our PJs, and enjoy some of the mac n cheese I had made for the trip.

In the morning, we headed downstairs to Everett’s for breakfast. I had remembered the great breakfasts at Boyne Highlands and I wasn’t disappointed in the selection here either.

We decided to walk off some of the meal by exploring the grounds and buildings before our lunch with Erin Ernst, the Director of Communications for the Boyne properties.

We met Erin at the Forty Acres Tavern, the newest food options in the resort village at Boyne Mountain.

It’s a nice casual eatery at the foot of the slopes. They also have a full bar and big beer selection, with live music at night.

The menu had something for everyone. We started by sharing some of the delicious Grilled Artichoke Dip and Calamari with Mango relish, which my tablemates raved about.

I chose the Loaded Grilled Cheese sandwich, with aged cheddar, provolone, feta, Cherrywood smoked bacon, caramelized onion, avocado, and a sun-dried tomato aioli on Texas toast.

Even though I decided to go vegetarian and take the bacon off, it was sinfully delicious.

Shortly after lunch we went snowshoeing. I had only been once before, in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, and really enjoyed it.

The trails at Boyne Mountain Resort are much longer and I confess that I barely made it through! Brittany, Angela, and Kylie have more stamina than me, though, and even headed tubing when they were done with the snowshoe.

In the evening, Brittany’s Aunt Teresa came to join us. We picked up some hot chocolate (with RumChata and vanilla vodka for the adults) and took a horse drawn carriage ride through the property. It’s one of the complimentary activities at this resort and it was a lot of fun.

They even provided heavy blankets to keep us warm during the ride.

After the ride, we went into the indoor/outdoor pool for a bit and relaxed in the whirlpool.

It was a great way to end a day filled with fun at Boyne Mountain, but we needed to get some sleep to keep up with the schedule the following day.

A special thanks to GetOutfitted, who provided us with ski clothes for the trip. It's a great service that delivers -- and picks up -- right from your hotel so you don't have to lug everything around. 

Enjoying a Winter Wonderland at Boyne Highlands

I had arrived at Boyne Highlands Resort in Michigan the previous evening with my brother, Mark, and my nephew and niece, Jacob and Moriah. Everyone was excited about a weekend full of activities. Well, almost everyone.

I had broken my arm just two weeks before and wouldn’t be doing anything adventurous. 

I have to admit I was a bit bummed before I arrived, but once I settled into Boyne Highlands Resort, the views and other things I could do had eliminated my gloomy outlook.

We were up early for breakfast in the Dining Room of the Main Lodge. I was impressed by the huge buffet. There was an omelet station, as well as hot and cold dishes, fruits, muffins, pancakes, and more.

We were all full when we left to head outside, where the temperature was hovering around zero degrees. It was, after all, Michigan in the winter, I reminded my Californian family.

I followed everyone along to the Snow Sports Academy Desk in the Day Lodge, where they were checked in and fitted for their equipment.

Moriah and Jacob, who had skied quite a few times at Lake Tahoe, California,, had a two-hour group lesson before they were off to some ski time of their own.

Mark had decided that he wanted to try snowboarding and he too had a lesson. Boyne Highlands Resort is very well equipped for every winter sport in every level.

I enjoyed relaxing and watching them. I hadn’t seen the kids in about a year and the mountain was just beautiful.

Everyone finished up a bit before our lunch and we decided to try tubing. It was a lot of fun, and something I could experience with the cast on.

We then headed to lunch with the entire press group in the Zoo Bar of the Day Lodge. We had pre-ordered lunch so we had a chance to chat and ask any questions we had to Boyne’s Director of Marketing, Erin Ernst.

I had ordered the Slider Trio of Avocado Turkey, Thai Beef, and Black Bean, and it was delicious. Everyone was happy with the other options, including an Ahi Tuna Wrap, too.

Erin had arranged for my spa appointment to be while Mark and the kids went zip lining so we went our separate ways for a while.

I thoroughly enjoyed the relaxing Milk & Honey Pedicure and they had a fun time zip lining.

We rested a while before heading to dinner at Petoskey Brewing Company, which was just a few minutes away.

I requested a tour of Petoskey’s facilities, which were bigger than we expected, before we sat down for some beer tasting and warm pretzels, followed by burgers and sandwiches.

Moriah had stayed back at the lodge to study. When we returned, we all went into the hot tub for a while. There’s nothing quite like watching the snow mountains in freezing temperatures while you stay warm in the hot tub.

Despite the fact that I was the only one who didn’t have an adventurous day, I think I was the first one asleep after all the relaxing.

I would get to join in on more of the fun Saturday at Boyne Highlands as we were starting with dog sledding.


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