We loved every minute, beautiful location with perfect beach access. Our only problem was that the beds were too small for normal sized adults. The inside of the house, while clean and well provisioned, was on the rustic side.
Beautiful cottage on the lake, private, secluded and amazing. The view is simply beautiful and worth every penny to stay here. Cottage does have wifi and a small tv if needed, we were there this past week and the beach was amazing and the water was cold but still had a blast!
We enjoyed our stay. It was nice, peaceful and quite. It was only about a 15 minute from a supermarket, brew pub and a couple of great breakfast cafes. The Luddington state park was only about 30-35 minutes away. There was furniture and other beach items to use. Other than being a little hard to find the first time I recommend it.
The 2 large windows gave the cottage a beautiful view overlooking Lake Michigan and the walk down the steps to the lake was doable for us. The small cottage was just the right size for the 2 adults during the week , but large enough for our daughter to visit over the weekend. The location was ideal for what we were looking for. It had a view of the lake and was close enough to make it possible to visit several state parks. It made a great fall getaway.
Absolutely loved our week at this cozy cottage. The space was absolutely spotless when we arrived. The deck was freshly power washed, lawn mowed, and everything was set up just how it looked in the photos. We absolutely loved the location and beach access, and cannot wait to come back again! Only complaint was the amount of decor/items in the home. It felt like every surface had something on it, and most of the drawers were full of stuff. Made it a little difficult to find places to put our items for the week. Overall, would highly recommend!!
We had an amazing week at Sandy Shoes. The cottage is cute as a button, in a nice quiet but central location and was sparkling clean when we checked in. We enjoyed the beach so much...truly stunning (and we're from Traverse City so we know great beaches). We walked and watched the sunset every night.
Our 4 and 9 yo daughters loved it, braved Lake Michigan in the spring for a few swims and we ventured out to Lewis Farms one day, Pentwater, Stony Lake and Mac's Dune Rides.
We will absolutely be back.
My husband and I stayed here initially because we needed a place to stay with our dogs. While we didn't bring our dogs, we ended up being SO happy this is where we stayed. The location is relatively remote, my phone didn't work and there's no internet, and it couldn't be more perfect. We actually got to relax. We spent a lot of time on the beach and checking out surrounding towns. I'd highly recommend bringing some beach chairs.
We just spent a week at this great little gem of a cottage! We were looking for a place that we could disconnect from our everyday busyness and make lasting memories at the same time. This cottage nailed those two wishes. The views are stunning and the beach was a haven in itself. The cottage was very clean and stocked with the basics (pots,pans, dishes, etc...). James was very informative and available for any needs (which we didnât have!). This was the perfect get away for us and we look forward to next year! (James ... we will bring the champagne to toast with đ)
We had a great stay, unbelievable views, short walk down stairs right to the lake. Very private. If this is available during the week you are looking to book, I would book it now. Best sunsets Iâve ever seen. Cottage was perfect for a family of 4-5. No rip tides/breakwaters, water was shallow sandy, fun for swimming. Mac dune Rides is a must. Great fire pit area. Do not need many other excursions because you will be in awe of having so much private sandy Lake Michigan beachfront to yourself. Kayaks paddle boards all nice and fun to use. Grill is a Weber kettle had nice seasoning on it if you like to grill. Pictures From the listing donât really do this place justice. Had a great week, my daughters (7/10) cried when we had to leave.
Sandy Shoes was a fantastic cottage to spend a week relaxing and playing on the beach. It is in a rural area, but a quick 15 minute or so drive to the town of Whitehall, where there was a Walmart and many other stores and restaurants. We also found a small meat market in New Era called Macâs Meats that was out of this world! Next year that will be our first grocery stop! They had homemade sausages, meats, cheeses, deli salads, and even bakery items. There is also a Country Dairy and Lewis Farms in New Era that have markets and are definitely worth a stop, and Woodland Bakery and Cherry Pointe Markets are must visits in the area also. The cottage was cozy and had everything we needed for a comfortable stay. We chose to cook all of our meals there, and it was easy with the updated full size appliances and Weber charcoal kettle grill. We also really liked the updated shower and large shower head. The view of Lake Michigan was priceless and you didnât even need to leave the cottage to enjoy it. The property manager James was so personable and was available for any needs we might have, which we did not, but he was able to answer all of our questions and shared his knowledge of the area with us. This was our home away from home for a week and we absolutely enjoyed the relaxing atmosphere and will be returning next year!
This is a very cute cottage on Lake Michigan. The beach is beautiful, sandy, with lots of room to play and shallow water. There is a nice yard on the bluff where our kids (5 and 8 yrs) could play as well. The cottage is clean and was enough room for our family of 4. It has a large window providing a beautiful view of the lake from inside as well. There is a small fire pit for nightly fires and sâmores also!
There were some nice places to go for a few outings, such as the Country Dairy farm for a good lunch and fresh Ice cream and Lewis adventure farm. We had a great time at Stony Lake Stables horseback riding and MacWoods dune rides. The location is between Ludington and Grand Haven, great towns for a lighthouse and boardwalk visit.
Some things to note is that it is truly a cottage. There is no washer/dryer or dishwasher, you need to bring your linens including bath towels. Also, although we knew there was no WiFi or intermittent celllular service, we found this to be too inconvenient. There is no land line phone to make phone calls. We couldnât connect to find information and had to drive out to get cellular service to call anyone, including a vet when our dog needed care. The information book provided is extremely outdated and could use an update. Jim, the property manager, stays next door and is helpful for local info and needs!
For us, unfortunately, our timing was not great with weather. We had sun everyday, but the winds were so high on the beach 15mph, that it made the beach difficult to be on for a long period of time. We came in early June, so we donât know if it was just early in the season or we just got an unlucky windy week. We had one calm day out of a week. There is one single person kayak which was fun to try out. Our 8 year old loved it.
All in all, we give this property 4/5 stars. Adding WiFi or connectivity would make a big difference for this property, but you canât beat this sandy beach and sunset view.
Jim did a great job with answering our questions quickly and checking in to see if we needed anything throughout our stay. The property is nestled back off busy roads, in the woods, right on the water. Easy access to the beach and wonderful views of the water right from the zero gravity recliners on the porch! The breeze through the house kept it cool day and night. The only problem we had was with the fruit flies. My husband, 2 dogs, and I will absolutely be back!
âSandy Shoesâ is a peaceful, clean and spacious cottage, with so many accommodations. It is surrounded by nature and a daily ever-changing beautiful view of Lake Michigan!
Beautiful view of the lake from inside (two big windows) and outside. Appreciate that the trees and other vegetation were trimmed to open up this view but not to the point of excess. We had cool weather for our visit so especially appreciated the view from inside and the comfortable, cozy feel of the very well-equipped cottage. We found the woodsy neighborhood a great area for walking our dog. We appreciated the sturdy stairs to the beautiful white sand beach. The township park just to the south has a short boardwalk that ends with a small deck with a great bird's eye view up and down the beach. A big thank you to our host James and a friendly neighbor for sharing information about the neighborhood and the area. I'm just curious. Found a great hiking trail in the nature preserve a bit north of Stoney Lake. Liked the town of Shelby, especially the grocery store and Country Dairy is a unique experience. These are my favorites but there is much more to explore if you decide to break away from the beach for a bit. We chose Sandy Shoes for the beach and the Lake Michigan views and found just what we were looking for. We are hoping for a return visit.