Best Summer Camps In Michigan
It’s never too early to start looking for a summer camp. By enrolling your children into summer programs, you nurture their social skills, adopt healthy habits, and encourage personal growth. With beautiful outdoor landscapes and lakes like Lake Michigan, the state provides a great environment for kids to explore and learn about the outdoors. At camp, kids can participate in fun activities like mountain biking, kayaking, canoeing, archery and much more. Summer camps are the perfect entertainment and educational outlet for children once the school break arrives. We've included options Northern and Southern Michigan for your convenience in this guide.
Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp
Manistee National Forest, MI
If your child is a budding artist, musician, actor, painter or dancer, Blue Lake Fine Arts is one of the best performing arts camp in Michigan. It sits on nearly 1600 acres of the Manistee National Forest and part of Little Blue Lake.
The camp offers four summer sessions to at least 5400 kids, with each program lasting for about two weeks. Better yet, the center features international exchange programs where they send out 350 students on study tours to Europe.
You won't find a Michigan with a better arts and crafts program than Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp. Even then, they still have the traditional camp activities that every camper will enjoy. Campers that...
Camp Walden
Northern Michigan, MI
For the past six decades, Camp Walden has provided campers with a home away from home. Camp Walden is located in Northern Michigan on Long Lake and offers overnight camps for kids. Open to both boys and girls, the camp is suited for children ages 7 through 16.
It features fun camp activities such as water skiing, arts and crafts, sailing, horseback riding, dance, and paddle-boarding. They also routinely host fun events for campers like scavenger hunts, dodge ball tournaments, Color Clash, Capture The Camp and much more. The campgrounds also include a farm, horse-riding stables, tennis courts, and other athletic fields.
Camp Walden is one of the top options for overnight summer camps in...
YMCA Camp Copneconic
Fenton, MI
YMCA Camp Copneconic is one of the finest summer camps you can find in all of the Midwest. Found in Fenton, Michigan, this camp blends camping activities with outdoor adventures such as zip-lining, rock wall climbing, horseback riding, and more. It accepts students in 4th to 11th grade, with a Counselor In Training program for 12th graders. They also have a specialty camp focusing on horseback riding.
Parents have the freedom to choose between a day camp and overnight camp. The organization sets different camp themes for each week. Camp Move teaches kids the importance of physical fitness and a nutritious diet. Kids will have some of the most fun camping experiences at YMCA Camp...
Camp Carvela
Michigan
If you want your child to have a supportive and positive summer camp experience, Camp Carvela is an excellent overnight option. They offer a myriad of adventurous and camper-driven activities like scavenger hunts, sailing, paddle boarding, birdwatching, and bonfires.
No two days ever look the same at Camp Carvela, and campers have agency over their experience. Curtis McFall, the camp's owner, and director built the program using five key pillars: free-time, playfulness, non-competitive setting, unplugged environment, and collaborative programming. Camp Carvela is easily one of the top summer camps in Michigan.
Camp Carvela offers day camps and overnight camps for campers ages 7-17. There are weeklong and two week camp options, as well as teen...
Van Buren Youth Camp
Bloomingdale, MI
If you're looking for a summer program that will help your teen develop physically, mentally, and spiritually, Van Buren Youth Camp is your best bet. Situated in Bloomingdale, Michigan, it offers up to 12 camp sessions every summer. Your child can participate in 3 leadership-based or recreational programs.
The recreational activities include drama, dance, sports, nature, archery, canoeing, team building, just to mention a few. These are offered within a period of 3 to 6 days. Given their program's current structure, this camp is suited for boys and girls ages 6 to 17 years.
Van Buren Youth Camp is a traditional summer camp where kids will gain leadership skills while participating in typical summer camp...
Interlochen Arts Camp
Interlochen, MI
At Interlochen Arts Camp, students can do what they love best all day long — in the most beautiful place imaginable.
Located in Interlochen, Michigan, between two pristine lakes and forest pines, young artists spend their days practicing, performing, and creating art at this arts camp. They can choose to study creative writing, dance, film and new media, interdisciplinary arts, music, theatre, or visual arts. One, two, three, four, and six-week programs are offered for students in grades 3 to 12. Exceptional instructors become mentors and help young artists grow their talent while gaining inspiration from fellow young artists from around the world.
Though students spend several hours per day practicing their chosen art form,...
Camp Lookout
Frankfort, MI
Camp Lookout is a sleepaway summer camp for campers near Frankfort, MI. With lakeside facilities and extensive forest areas, it's a fantastic place for children to experience the outdoors. It offers a non-competitive environment where campers feel welcomed and supported.
They offer all kinds of camp activities, where campers' input is taken seriously into account. Unique events involve turning a lodge into a haunted house, Nemo scavenger hunts, music festivals, and much more. Apart from those events, campers can also participate in sailing, raft building, jewelry making, real-life quidditch, among many other things. With all the programming and activities, kids never get bored.
Camp Lookout strongly prioritizes things like creativity and the importance of community...
YMCA Camp Ohiyesa
Holly, MI
YMCA Camp Ohiyesa is located in Southeast Michigan in Holly and offers day camps and overnight camps. The camp helps youth challenge their abilities, gain independence, and meet new people. YMCA Camp Ohiyesa offers day camps designed for kids ages 4 to 16, overnight camp for ages 7 to 16.
There are plenty of fun camp activities like horseback riding, rock climbing, canoeing, zip lining and much more. There is a different camp theme each session, giving kids the opportunity to express their creativity.
One thing that makes this camp stand out is the fact that they embrace diversity. They hire staff from different parts of the world and welcome campers of diverse backgrounds. There...
Stony Creek Nature Center Day Camp
Southeast Michigan, MI
Reconstructed from scratch in 2009, Stony Creek is a contemporary establishment located in Southeast Michigan. Stony Creek Nature Center provides interactive day camps for children ages 7 to 12. In addition to the hands-on programs, this day camp also offers easy access to natural areas.
Common activities and water sports offered at Stony Creek are fishing, canoeing, water-slides, and wagon treks. If you're looking for an educational full day camp in the area, this should be your go-to choice.
If you want to experience Michigan during the winter, be sure to buy a hot tent with a stove jack for dealing with the cold temperature.