Forget Fiji – Michigan Has Plenty Of Islands To Visit

When people think of vacation, the typical image in their minds is relaxing on a tropical beach, holding a coconut, and enjoying the most beautiful weather imaginable. Whether you're headed to Hawaii, Fiji, or wherever The White Lotus is based this season, the number of island vacations is numerous...and expensive.

While the resort life can be tempting, there are islands much closer to home than many realize. Michigan actually has a lot of islands, and while there's one that is very well known, there are a couple you can explore without worrying about sharks.

Michigan Has 420 Named Islands

As it turns out, the Great Lakes are home to over 420 named islands and an estimated 35,000 islands spread around the lakes. These islands vary in size and accessibility (which we'll explore in more detail later), but all of them offer beautiful views and diverse wildlife. Prismire Island is the smallest named island in the Great Lakes, while Michigan's largest island, Isle Royale, is also its most remote.

READ MORE: Famously Car-less Mackinac Island Has One Recorded Car Accident

If you're looking to visit some of Michigan's islands, these are the best ones.

Mackinac Island

Let's get Michigan's most well-known island out of the way before we get into the lesser-known ones. USA Today's Best Summer Travel Destination two years in a row, Mackinac Island is known for its charm (a short plane ride or a ferry trip is the only way you're getting to this island), fudge, and stunning natural beauty. If you're looking for the closest thing to an "island paradise", try staying in the Grand Hotel.

Bois Blanc Island

If you're visiting Mackinac Island, it only makes sense to pay a visit to Bois Blanc Island, just a few miles offshore from Mackinac Island. This island can be reached via ferry. Only about 50 people live on the island full-time. Unlike Mackinac Island, people rely on motorized vehicles to get around the island as none of it is paved. There isn't much to do on this island beyond nature activities and relaxation.

Drummond Island

From mines to lighthouses, to fossilized coral beds and shipwrecks, the Great Lakes' third-largest island is full of things to do. With just under a thousand full-time residents, Drummond Island can be reached by a short ferry ride across the St. Mary's River. There are plenty of places to stay on the island, and roads make this a more traversable island than some others on this list.

Beaver Island

Lake Michigan's largest island and the third largest in Michigan, Beaver Island, is part of a cluster of islands 20 miles west of Michigan's northern tip. Six hundred people live on the island full-time, with a significant portion of the population coming from Ireland. This is a nature-lover's dream, known for having no light pollution and plenty of woodland areas to explore.

Neebish Island

Located on the most easternmost point of the Upper Peninsula, on the border of Canada in the St. Mary's River, Neebish Island is home to 63 full-time residents. It is largely underdeveloped, making it a wonderful place for those interested in seeing wildlife. Currently, the island is embroiled in a ferry dispute, which isn't great considering that's the main way to visit this remote island.

For those looking to stay on the island, check out the Neebish Island Resort.

Isle Royale

Last but not least, the Great Lakes' largest island is also its most unique. Deemed the least visited National Park of the continental 48 states, this wilderness park is 50 miles off the shoreline from Copper Harbor, the Upper Peninsula's northernmost city. This island can only be reached by boat or seaplane, has few actual buildings, and no cell service.

This is one of the few places in the world largely untouched by human life, but this also makes it one of the more treacherous islands to visit in the Great Lakes.