Alpena, Michigan: Holiday Inn Express and more

December 2024, week night, one night

View from king suite 407 in Holiday Inn Express Alpena, Michigan
Sitting area in king suite 407 below

Holiday Inn Express, king suite 407

I reserved a basic king guestroom in this hotel.  As a platinum member, we received an upgrade to a suite. Although we did not have a river view, the extra sitting area in the room was great. I also received the opportunity to pick a gift from the Christmas tree in the lobby, and received an extra 250 points. Some of the gifts were worth 5,000 points, so I guess I was not so lucky on that draw. 😁

King suite 407 in Holiday Inn Express Alpena, Michigan

This Holiday Inn Express still had Keurig coffee machines in the guestroom. They did not have a fresh brew machine in the lobby, like the location in East Lansing. The guestroom was spacious, comfortable, and very clean. The bathroom shower had glass doors, and a safe was provided in the entry closet.

Breakfast in Holiday Inn Express Alpena, Michigan

Lansing, Michigan: Holiday Inn Express, Visitor Bureau and area

November 2024, weekend, one night 

View from guestroom 326 in Holiday Inn Express & Suites East Lansing

I am sharing a few photos and some basic information from our Lansing visit last month.

Guestroom 326 in Holiday Inn Express & Suites East Lansing

Holiday Inn Express East Lansing, king suite guestroom 326

I reserved a basic king guestroom in this hotel. As a platinum member, I received an upgrade to a king suite. The guestroom was clean and comfortable. 

Guestroom 326 in Holiday Inn Express & Suites East Lansing

Grand Rapids, Michigan: City Flats Hotel with Expedia through AARP

October 2024, one night, weekday

Guestroom diagram in CityFlats hotel Grand Rapids, Michigan

Reservation process

This is the first time I have used Expedia, and based on this experience, I will never book through them again. The only reason I booked this way, is because I had a $100 credit from AARP. I saved a little money in the end; however, the process was not worth it. The biggest headache occurred when the $100 credit did not process correctly. First I spoke with AARP, who could not help, and then it took me an hour on the telephone with Expedia to get this corrected! The first person I spoke with was going to have the hotel cancel the reservation and have me re-book (I was on hold while he attempted this). Lucky for me, hotel staff did not answer, because the same thing probably would have happened during re-booking. After a supervisor got on the telephone, this person was also unable to correct the error. The supervisor eventually ended up crediting me back the $100. Whew! Another reason not to book through a third party, is that if you have a membership, the hotel will not credit any earned points for the stay.

View from guestroom 502 in CityFlats hotel Grand Rapids, Michigan

Arrival and guestroom 502

Our room was ready when we arrived, and the check-in process was quick. The guestroom was very small, and the view was lousy.

Guestroom 502 in CityFlats hotel Grand Rapids, Michigan

Vanderbilt, Michigan: Pigeon River State Forest Campground

October 2024, weekend - weekdays, 3 nights, campsite #1

View of campsite #1 in Pigeon River State Forest from hiking trail across river

We stayed in this campground April 2023, and you can find more information about the area in that post. I am sharing just a few photos in this post, as there was not much that was new this trip.

Campsite #1 in Pigeon River State Forest
Below: river behind campsite 1

Campsite 1

We again chose campsite 1, as it was the best river site available when we arrived on a Saturday. The campsite view to the river was a bit more overgrown that it had been in spring 2023. Other than that, and the rocks someone had piled up in the river, this campsite was pretty much the same as it had been then. 

Recreation: Discovery Center, hiking, kayaking, elk viewing

The Discovery Center next to park headquarters has a lot of great information inside. This is a short hike from the campground, and is also along the southern loop of ShingleMill Pathway. You can find hiking photos and a map in my previous post. The center had not been open last time we camped here. Fresh water is available at the ranger station, and we observed people filling their jugs when we passed by. A large portion of the trail on the west side of the river had been updated with new boardwalk since our last visit.

Above: Beaver Pond in Pigeon River State Forest
Below: pathway signage in Pigeon River State Forest

Kincheloe, Michigan: Kinross Charter Township RV Park in the Upper Peninsula

October 2024, two nights, weekdays

Arrival 

This township has two RV Parks; east and west. We had thought we would stay in the west section near the fairgrounds, as that area is a bit more like a campground; however, the water had already been turned off for the season in that section. We arrived from the west, so continuing 2½ more miles to the east campground was not a problem. A host trailer was on site in the east park near the registration area; however, we did not see the host at any time during our stay. We chose a site, and then registered and paid via envelopes provided at the self-registration kiosk.

Above: sunset from inside camper in East Kinross Township RV Park
Below: map overview of East Kinross Township RV Park

Campsite 12

I did not take any campsite photos, so I am including a marked photo above from google maps to show the campground. We were on the campsite circled in red.

All of the sites in the east campground are full hookup. Our campsite had a level concrete pad. There were not many campers in October, so the fact that the sites are open was not an issue. There is plenty of room between neighbors behind each site.