Grand Hotel, Mackinac Island Review

The hospitality and friendliness by employees is phenomenal! You're treated like Kings and queens. My only issue is that if you happen to be there at the same time as one or more tour groups; they come first, in room choice, table seating, just about everything you can imagine. 2 years ago we were up here had the luck to get the Eisenhower room. The view is not good, but that didn't bother me. This time our room is facing the workers quarters and the ugly roof of the laundry. No problem, but we got here a little early and we're told by the manager (who does not know how to smile) that HE picks all the rooms for everyone and we need to come back in an hour while I watched him give 20+ people in a row their rooms. 2 hours later we got our room facing the laundry roofs and broken piles of wood. When going to our dinner which was included, we were told we couldn't have a window seat, they were reserved for VIPs and people with reservations. We couldn't make reservations. This trip was so different from 2 years ago. I guess I should sign up for a tour group to be first in line.

We stopped at the ice cream shop located in the hotel. The service was very good and friendly. Portions were large and good for the price!

Not sure what some of these raters are thinking. There are many lodging choices on the island; clearly the Grand stands out as beyond "upscale" ... anyone looking for an IHG/Wyndham/Marriott-type hotel shouldn't book here.

The main floor dress code is clearly stated on placards posted about the property; as is the gawker admission fee. If you're staying here, that admission fee cuts way down on freeloaders killing the atmosphere.

It's very good that this hotel is not on the water. The views from up high where it stands dwarf those from waterside. Also it would be unbearably busy down on the waters' edge. It's in a great location. The gardens and grounds are stellar.

This place is about stepping back in time and living as the wealthy did. It's about appearance, etiquette, and quality. The rooms are small and no two are alike; it didn't get much more 'vintage' than than this.

Good service, but food is nothing special and you have to ask them multiple times if you want something.

I didn't stay at the Grand Hotel in Mackinac. I was visiting the island. We we're not allowed on the 10 dollar tour since it was after 6 pm and we were not dressed in formal attire. It is a really nice historical place to visit.

Dress code restrictions are outdated, sexist and classist. If women can wear tank tops, so can men. If men can wear slacks after 6pm, so can woman. This patriarchy-driven has to stop.

We arrived on the island at 7 and did not receive our luggage until past 11. The breakfast included with the room was a perk

Staying at the Grand is always a great experience! The setting is superb, lots of activities, good food, friendly and welcoming staff.

Every year my daughter's choir travels to Mackinac island to perform the last concert of the year. Part of the trip includes visiting the Grand Hotel for the lunch buffet and every year I am amazed at the variety and quality of the buffet. If you ever get the chance to eat at the lunch buffet you simply can't go wrong. Additionally the service is beyond compare. You simply can't go wrong at the Grand Hotel.

Everyone was very nice and hotel was fine. Only reason for three stars is we don't care for the outdated and old look. Which is what it's supposed to be. Just not our style.

If you go to Mackinac Island, you'll find that things you want to do take a lot longer than you planned for. That being said, you definitely want to stay on the island at least one night if you're here for several days. The experience is fantastic and this hotel is one of the best. Great rooms and very high quality service.

What an awesome experience! This is now my favorite place to go. I had such a great time! The meals were incredible... especially breakfast..omg...I miss it already. The hotel and grounds are beautiful, if your a fan of the movie the shining, it actually kinda reminded me of that hotel, it is so amazing... all the rooms are different, it had a very vintage feel...I just loved it so much. And the pool... awesome pool...a bit crowded but it's huge with free floaties! We went over the week of July 4th and they had so many fun free activities and the firework show was amazing! Oh and did i mention all the flowers?! Omg this place is a flower lover's heaven! It smelled so good all the time! Will definitely be coming back here!!

Beautiful with great service. Everything is extravagant.

Excellent attraction. Great stop if your making a trip to Makinaw island.

Beautiful room, great food and courteous and efficient waite staff.

Very fancy hotel, including hair dresser, clothes store, afternoon tea while I was there including snacks and drinks and assorted candies. The hotel includes tennis courts a pool and many restaurants. Dress code after 6 p.m at the hotel and the shops close at 5 p.m. horse drawn carriages to take you to where you need to go.

This place is over the top opulent, and harkens back to an earlier time of old school glamour. We were waited on hand and foot - our luggage was delivered seamlessly, our rooms were spotless and inviting, and our dining experience was the stuff they write novels about.

There is plenty to do and see and eat. The grounds are immaculate and lovely to walk on, and we spent over an hour just looking at the interior of the building. A schedule is delivered to your room to outline all the events - coffee, breakfast, tea, dinner, after dinner coffee, and so on. All of the staff was knowledgeable, polite, and seemed happy to help us.

We had a 5 course dinner included in our package, and I don't know that I would pay $75 for the quality of the food (it was good, but not knock-your-socks-off amazing), but it was a really fun evening of dressing up and feeling as one might have while dining on the Titanic. Our waiters were on the ball, and I felt incredibly pampered!

Formal attire is required after 6 pm. We saw plenty of nice suits and knee-length dresses, although we went all out and wore our wedding finery, and did not look out of place.

All-in-all, this was a lovely experience that I would recommend at least once, but next time, I'll be staying somewhere a little more affordable.

Elegant, impressive. You can't help but feel very special within it's walls. A grand experience, for sure.

A very beautiful place. We were a little disappointed because coming over in the ferry that told us about visiting the hotel with a few and the buffet we could purchase but failed to tell us the time it ended and we missed out on that!!

Absolutely amazing service, top-notch food, and amazing atmosphere.

We enjoyed the Knights of Columbus convention and look forward to coming back each year!

Beautiful hotel with fabulous food, lovely location and delightful staff. We come every May. Love the Grand Hotel!

Must see. The bar up top has an amazing view of the lake.

Pleasant. Staff friendly & helpful. Beautiful landscape.

Just toured the grounds and the outside. Was suppose to take a tour of it but there was a wedding going on.It was beautiful from what I saw

Are you kidding me? It's the Grand!!!! Everything is 5 star, Grade A, outstanding. Not enough adjectives to describe this place. This is our 6th time here and gets better every time.

Beautiful resort, beautiful area, and the food was tremendous.

I stopped by to enjoy the grand buffet lunch. The food was delicious, and the atmosphere was beautiful. I can't wait to visit again. I feel like I barely scratched the surface of what there was to do there.

This is an absolutely beautiful, wonderfully cared for, storybook hotel. Walking in transports you back in time to the lives of the very wealthy and powerful in the early 1900's (but updated with modern conveniences).

Every space has carefully chosen, unique details that isn't seen anywhere else these days. It's the perfect setting after landing at the harbor and taking a horse drawn carriage to your home for the next while. The entire island is gorgeous, but the grounds of the Grand Hotel are immaculate and meticulously manicured. The service you will receive is what you would expect for this price level since one night is the cost of a mortgage payment for some people.

We will definitely return to Mackinac and The Grand Hotel. Such a beautifully preserved gem of a culture of manners, etiquette and refined behavior that isn't seen anymore.

Had a marvelous time. The Hotel is fabulous and the staff could not be nicer. One thing to know is that the hotel is over 100 years old. All the paint and frunishings have been redone, but if you want a modern place choose elsewhere. If you want a elegant place with great service, and beautiful, choose here

Stay was alright. Island was great but hotel was less than expected. Food wasn't great and we were without hot water for showers. It was early in the season and things were still opening up and getting ready

Had a marvelous time. The Hotel is fabulous and the staff could not be nicer. One thing to know is that the hotel is over 100 years old. All the paint and frunishings have been redone, but if you want a modern place choose elsewhere. If you want a elegant place with great service, and beautiful, choose here

I visited the Grand Hotel recently, and found out that women are allowed to wear tank tops inside the hotel, but men are not. This has nothing to do with the evening dress code, but is enforced no matter what time it is, and no matter how hot and humid it is, both outside and inside the hotel. I experienced this, and another reviewer recently posted a detailed review about her experience with this (they wouldn't let her father enter the hotel because he was wearing a tank top on a hot and humid day, but they were willing to let her and her mother inside even though the two of them were also wearing tank tops), and her review was removed. Apparently, the Grand Hotel does not want potential customers to get an accurate view of their services by having access to all reviews, both good and bad.

They tried to charge us $40 just to walk on the property. I mean, I get it... but $40 for a family of 4. With 2 kids. $40. Come on... stupid...

Great staff, beautiful environment. Will definitely be back

Didn't stay here. Had lunch and took tour of hotel. Food was amazing.

Love love love this place. We highly recommend coming here to everyone we know.

A place of fairytale, incredibly beautiful, a luxurious and historic hotel. The world's largest summer hotel.

Such a beautiful hotel and wonderful staff of workers!!

I was on a horse and carriage ride around the island and I passed by it

Went to afternoon tea we sat for almost 20 minutes before they came over to us. Then they never checked back how it was they were More interested in talking to each other than the patrons. It's not worth the price of $66. For high tea.

I never got to go inside, but the outside was beautiful.

Beautiful hotel, stunning view of the great lakes from the beautiful porch!

Have dreamed of visiting The Grand Hotel on Macinac Island, MI for 40 years. This island and its traditions are so exciting. The architecture of hotel, homes and businesses can't be beat

Very nice lobby. Stopped in for the gift shop. Everett's has really good food, and great ambiance.

Quaint jump back in time. Very Expensive. Excellent food and service. (Except for $5 fee to be picked up at dock by horse and carriage...$1400 a night and then you charge $5?!)

I've been to Mackinac Island numerous times, first time taking in The Grand Hotel. A must see! Beyond gorgeous!!

Great place to go, if on your bucket list do it. Very pricey for what you get. You need to understand your staying for the name and the history. It's nothing fancy.

A place of excellent service and awsome surroundings!

So disappointed at this hotel. The service was super rude and condescending. They act like they can get away with being rude because they re such a name on the island, but I would never stay here again. If you like towels that feel like burlap, a pool filled with leaves and who knows what, along with subpar service, this is the place for you.

Terrible experience. Would not respond when asked if our room was near the elevator as requested. After 20 minutes of waiting, told no rooms near elevator, then yes we have a room...the Front Desk Manager came out and said sorry no room. When I asked why we were told to wait for a room that they DIDN'T have she said sorry very flatly stating it was just a request. I am an Area Director and oversee 4 hotels. I know what a request is, I also know sarcasm when I hear it. My father was humiliated having to stop several times to catch his breath (he is in his mid 80s and on oxygen). My mother was beyond heart broken. This was a dream trip for them and likely their last. What really astounded me was the unprofessional operations and utter lack of empathy. For a 5 star hotel, and paying $250+ per person per night I would have expected a much better arrival experience.

We just returned from a lovely stay at the Grand Hotel, and can't wait to go again.

I found it ironic that on our second day (breakfast) we were tabled next to two old hens that couldn't see or say anything good about the food or anything else. We stayed in the same building and ate in the same room and it's easy to say that I wouldn't trade my experience, or memory, at the Grand for anything.

Thanks

Our kids bought us a package here and it was delightful. The food was great. I enjoyed the golf course. We had a very nice room with a great view. What a fine institution. You can t see the entire hotel Ina few days let alone the whole island!

I am very confused by the thousands of 5 star reviews for the Grand. My husband and I are not picky vacationers, but even then staying here is not a five star experience.

What is fantastic: the food in the main dining room is absolutely wonderful, some of the best we have ever had. The view is also fantastic. The grounds/flowers are gorgeous and immaculately kept.

What is poor/bad: the rooms. I understand this is an old hotel and expected pretty much no sound reduction. I was not prepared to hear EVERYTHING from the rooms on either side of us and everything in the hallway. We were here in the fall when most of the other patrons were middle aged/seniors and there were very few children. Even then, everything was so loud when trying to sleep. Even when the people in the room next to us were having a normal conversation, I could hear every word they were saying. Their alarm woke us up at 6am every morning. We could hear people leaving early in the morning banging down the hallway with every step. If you are a light sleeper, this is NOT the hotel for you. There was also peeling paint in the bathroom, mildew in the corners of the shower, and no working battery in the makeup mirror.

None of these things are overly horrible, but when coupled with the extremely high price of staying here, it's not worth it.

Service: perhaps because there is no tipping, the service varies widely. Most employees were simply indifferent and did a good enough job. A couple were very nice and personable, and a couple were downright rude. We had a server once named Michael and not only was he rude the entire time, he actually rolled his eyes at my sister in law when she asked for hot chocolate. Not the service you expect when spending $75 a plate and $800 a night.

We had 2 evening porch receptions included in our stay. We were told upon asking that we were not allowed to go inside to sit down with our food and drinks, and that all the seating was on the porch. The problem was there was only enough seating for about 25% of the people. I was forced to stand in high heels in cold wind while trying to eat and drink. We didn't bother attending the 2nd reception.

They were very strict on their mask policy for Covid. This didn't bother us because we went in knowing what to expect, but some other guests were starting to get upset. If you don't want to wear a mask all the time, don't bother going until covid is over.

Overall, we would love to return to Mackinac Island but will not be paying the extremely high price for another rather mediocre stay at the Grand.

Let me start of with the fact or how Amazing the food is! Well it's a 5 course meal fresh food every day everything is cooked perfectly. Staff are friendly and professional. The hotel is close to down town and! If you're a bike rider there's a massive parking lot for you're bike I left my phone in my bike pouch all night never got stolen. Carriage rides, parades, fort, views, buffet, porch , staff and quality of hotel and room definitely make it a Grand experience for first timers. Thank you for this excellent experience :D we hope to visit again this season or next year. (I miss the horses )

To fancy and strict for me but very nice quality and views

It's always lovely to go to the Grand Hotel. The gardens were just beautiful.

Stunning classic hotel with incredible service and top notch amenities

Very nice as Always. First class hotel with special history.

Second time staying here and will definitely be back!

I visited because I love the movie Somewhere In Time. It was a dream come true to visit the hotel. It was only a day trip visit but I enjoyed it.