Ready, Set, Locals Summer! Tourist hot spots become local haunts once more

These four destinations all have locals on the brain as the seasons turn

By Anna Faller | Aug. 22, 2026

With our dreamy beaches, farm-fresh agriculture, and nationally acclaimed hospitality industries, it’s no secret (especially not to locals) that northern Michigan is becoming an increasingly popular destination for out-of-town tourists.

“Local flavor is what makes a place cool,” Lake Ann Brewing Company co-owner Matt Therrien notes. “When you go on vacation, you always want to know what the secret place is.”

Releasing that secret to the masses, however, is often enough to keep residents at home until their go-to haunts free up in September—many with a seasonal lineup of locally-focused events and features. How are northern Michigan’s busiest spots making space for regional regulars this summer? Northern Express has the local lowdown!

Lake Ann Brewing Co., Lake Ann

Per Therrien, the Lake Ann business model starts with curating a local space that “allows tourists,” and not the other way round. “You get your flavor from the locals,” he says. “When you go to a hometown place, you need hometown people to be there.”

Nestled in the heart of Lake Ann, Lake Ann Brewing Co. hangs its hat on curating funky neighborhood vibes, and the combination of lively outdoor spaces, alongside a freshly-constructed all-season pavilion, means the facility can accommodate dozens of people. Add to that multiple rotating taps, shared picnic tables for socializing, and a jam-packed seasonal music lineup, and you’ve got summer crowds by the crush.

Therrien says year-round residents account for a significant portion of that business, even in peak season, so LAB kicks off the autumnal transition by returning to its regular programming.

Trivia Thursdays, for instance, which the brewery pauses at the end of May, are set to return in September, as are Wednesday open mic nights; meanwhile, live performances are limited to Friday and Saturday sets. 2026 also marks the brewery’s first season with a second stage, making the space’s signature performances (and adjusting to inclement weather) easier to facilitate.

Maintaining reasonable prices, Therrien notes, is also a key part of local draw. “We don’t have a mug club, and we don’t run specials. We just charge local prices year-round, and it works well for us,” he says.

Other seasonal fun includes specialty sips, like stouts and spiced ciders for cooler weather, as well as the taproom’s annual Oktoberfest celebration on Oct. 3.

“People come from around the world to Traverse City, and we get to see the world come to us all summer,” adds Therrien. “I think the reason we have a local following is because we’re beholden to them and treat them well.”

Check out Lake Ann Brewing Co. at 6535 First St. in Lake Ann. lakeannbrewing.com

River Club, Glen Arbor

With its 18 holes of landscaped putt-putt, signature “Mexigan” eats (aka, Mexican flavors-meet-Michigan sourcing), frosty beverages, live music, and more, River Club in Glen Arbor is an undeniable hotspot for visitors seeking some peak-season fun.

“We aim to be the no-veto entertainment option,” co-owner Mike Sheldon notes. “Everyone from [ages] three to 93 can putt-putt. It’s a something-for-everyone destination.” This goal, however, can lead to serious lines—in fact, Sheldon estimates that the club sees upwards of 1,500 guests per day in the summer!

Though he underscores that this number inevitably represents both tourists and townies, it’s not until things cool off in September that the club can stretch its local legs. For starters, there’s the highly-anticipated return of the Mucho Macho Nachos—served in an “absurd” sheet pan-sized stack—which the kitchen is forced to suspend for the summer. Various fall-themed cocktails are also on the early fall docket, as are football watch parties for game days (projected via the club’s five jumbo TVs), and several premier special events.

Those include the River Club’s first annual “Run Club and Hole in One,” which is scheduled for Sept. 12 and offers 5K and 10K options, followed by prizes, food, and other goodies. The club is also slated to host the pre-party for Frankfort’s Ironman 70.3, complete with free athlete meals, on Sept. 18.

Other locals-only programming includes buy-one-get-one golf for the month of September (don’t forget to bring your ID!), as well as the launch of open mic and karaoke nights, though Sheldon notes that the latter is still in the works.

“Locals are the backbone of River Club,” he adds. “We’re doing this to serve our local community. It’s good business and good for the region.”

River Club is located at 5963 S Oak St. in Glen Arbor. rcglenarbor.com

Farm Club, Traverse City

Celebrating local flavor has long been the name of the game at Farm Club, where onsite produce reigns supreme—in fact, co-owner Gary Jonas estimates a whopping 90 percent of the eatery’s veggies are estate-grown—and other goodies like house-brewed beer and baked treats make taking a bite out of northern Michigan as easy as cracking a menu.

Summer tourists and weekenders, however, are just as eager to dig in, and with north of 1,000 visitors passing through Farm Club on a typical day in July (especially in comparison to the 250 or so of early April), securing a spot in the dead of summer can be far easier said than done.

This is where Mother Nature comes in, marking the start of the seasonal shift with earlier nights, cooler temperatures, and the long-awaited return of onion rings to the Farm Club fryer.

“Every year, we save our onion rings for locals,” says Jonas, which the kitchen crafts from a giant sweet onion variety called Ailsa Craig. Per Jonas, these whoppers aren’t typically ready for harvest until the end of August, but an unusually fruitful 2026 yield means they might hit the menu before summer’s out.

Other locally-focused fun includes the farm’s yearly (and free!) Field Socials on Sept. 17 and 24, where locals can sip on new beverage releases while mingling with farmers and brewers. Farm Club’s Annual Corn and Chile Roasting Festival also takes place later that month, headlined by the year’s take of green chiles—fresh, dehydrated, roasted, you name it—and a regular hoedown of heirloom corn shucking before autumnal flavors hit the menu.

“We have an amazing community,” he adds. “Doing this project only feels good if we can do it with the people that live here in mind.”

Find Farm Club at 10051 Lake Leelanau Dr. in Traverse City. farmclubtc.com

Shorts Brewing, Bellaire + Elk Rapids

With more than 20 years, multiple northern Michigan outposts, and a tastebud-boggling array of craft beverages under their belt, Short’s Brewing Company has fermented its way into a statewide entity that belongs to everybody.

“I think it’s our people side of things that makes [Short’s] so magical,” marketing and brand director Christa Brenner says. “At the end of the day, you want to go somewhere where you feel welcome, and you feel that when you’re here.”

Add to that offerings like top-notch eats, dedicated outdoor space, and a range of eclectic events from trivia to live music and beyond, and the Short’s staff is pretty much consigned to slinging food and drinks at warp speed each summer. (In fact, they sold nearly 7,000 pints of Local’s Light in July and August 2025!).

So, it comes as no surprise that locals summer at Short’s also intersects a serious product drop.
This year, a highly-anticipated line of hard refreshers enters the ranks. Starcut’s Apple Cider Donut cider is back for another season of frenzied sipping, as is Local’s Honey Crisp (that’s a light lager flavored with apple and honey), and the Rocktoberfest German-style lager, which is specially brewed for the Rocktoberfest beer garden party in Bellaire in late September.

Per Brenner, local sponsorships, like chairlift rides at Shanty Creek in support of Pure Michigan are also on the docket, as is programming like the return of bingo nights at the Elk Rapids Pull Barn (a cutthroat affair, she jokes), along with various weekly features, community partnerships, and ongoing plans for Short’s Landing in Traverse City.

“It’s really about taking care of the community,” Brenner adds. “These are our neighbors. At the end of the day, we want to take care of them because they’re taking care of us.”

Find Short’s Brewing Company’s Bellaire Pub at 121 N. Bridge St. in Bellaire and the Elk Rapids Pull Barn at 211 Industrial Park Drive in Elk Rapids. shortsbrewing.com