MICHIGAN FAMILY TRAVEL
FLIGHT
FALL 2026 · INAUGURAL ISSUE
FROM THE EDITOR
Looking Up.
Michigan Family Travel Magazine is a patchwork of voices and perspectives, each offering a new way to see a place we think we already know.
For our first issue, Flight, I invited pilots, naturalists, adventurers, writers, parents and young travelers to look up. What came back was about far more than what moves through the sky.
Flight, it turns out, is about leaving and returning. Watching our children grow. Trying something that scares the heck out of us. Following migrations older than we are. Seeing a familiar shoreline from several thousand feet above and realizing how different the world can look when we shift our point of view.
Together, these stories reveal something about Michigan itself: a state shaped by water and weather, migration and movement, and by people who keep finding new ways to explore it.
Welcome to Flight.
Steffy McCourt
Editor, Michigan Family Travel
Featured
Take Flight
From kites and hot-air balloons to the birds overhead, discover a different side of Michigan together.
Adventure · Fall
Balloons Over Bay Harbor: What Families Should Know Before They Go
What does it take to get dozens of hot-air balloons into the sky over Little Traverse Bay? We talked with the team behind Balloons Over Bay Harbor about how pilots make launch decisions, what happens when the weather changes and what families should know before heading to one of Northern Michigan’s most colorful fall weekends.
Outdoor · Family
Just Add Wind: A Family’s Guide to Kite Flying
Travel Tips · Detroit
Flying Through Detroit Metro Airport With Kids: What Families Need to Know
Outdoor · Family
Five Birds Every Michigan Family Should Know (and Love!)
FAMILY FUN
Field Notes
Ideas, advice and inspiration for helping your family take flight.
TEEN TRAVELER
A Teen’s Take on the Pacific Northwest
From misty rainforests and rugged Pacific beaches to Seattle adventures, Ella Hanner shares the places, surprises and unforgettable moments that made her family’s two-week Pacific Northwest road trip worth every early-morning alarm.
OUTDOOR FUN
Fall Bird Migration in Michigan: A Family Birding Guide
From swirling raptors over the Great Lakes to tiny warblers stopping along the shoreline, fall migration gives Michigan families a front-row seat to one of nature’s most remarkable journeys.
ADVENTURE
A Family Guide to Wind Sports in Michigan
Go beyond swimming and boating with kiteboarding, wing foiling and eFoiling. Learn how these adventurous water sports work and what beginners should know before taking flight on Michigan’s lakes.
ADVENTURE
See Michigan’s Keweenaw Peninsula From Above
Lake Superior, rugged shoreline, endless forests and historic Copper Country look different from the sky. Families can experience one of Michigan’s wildest landscapes aboard a scenic flight.
WILDLIFE & NATURE
Following the Monarchs along Lake Michigan
Every fall, monarch butterflies travel through Michigan on an extraordinary journey south. Find out when to watch, where families have the best chance of seeing them and how you can help these tiny travelers along the way.
TRAVEL TIPS
What Every Kid Should Know Before Flying
What happens in the cockpit? Why does the airplane shake? And what are all those noises after takeoff? A young airline pilot answers kids’ biggest questions and explains what to expect when they take to the sky.
Meet our FOUNDING PARTNER
Bavarian Inn Lodge
Ready for one more fall adventure before the season flies by?
Don’t let the back-to-school blues keep your family from making more memories together! 🍂 Fall is the perfect time for a family getaway at Bavarian Inn Lodge. Cozy up, enjoy delicious family dining, explore all that Frankenmuth has to offer, and make a splash at Bavarian Blast Waterpark!
With thrilling waterslides, a wave pool, lazy river, and exciting Family Fun Center attractions, there’s something for every member of the family to enjoy. Trade homework and hectic schedules for family fun, laughter, and quality time together.
This fall, take a little detour from the everyday, spread your wings, and make memories that will last long after the leaves have fallen.
MORE TO EXPLORE
Along the Way
A few more stories worth discovering in this issue.
Books
Escape the Ordinary: Books That Take Flight
From a teenager flying around the world to wilderness survival, butterflies and the courage to say yes, these books explore what it means to take flight. (Wings are optional.)
health
Let Them Fly
Raising independent kids is not only about teaching them what to do. It is also about learning how to manage our own emotions while they try, struggle and grow into lives of their own.
FAMILY BIRDING
How to Start Birdwatching
You don’t need binoculars or birding experience to introduce kids to the birds flying through Michigan each fall. A feeder, a window and a little curiosity can turn migration season into a family adventure right at home.
Up North
Balloons Over Bay Harbor: A Family Weekend in Northern Michigan
Hot-air balloons are only part of the fun. Turn Balloons Over Bay Harbor into a Northern Michigan weekend with waterfront views, fall color, family-friendly stops.
PRESENTED BY Nocs Provisions
Advertising inquiries: writer@steffymccourt.com
You’ve reached the end of Flight.
But there’s always more Michigan to explore.
COMING THIS WINTER
WARMTH
Winter 2026
Have a Michigan Story to Share?
Know a place we should visit, a story we should tell, or a Michigan experience more families should know about? We’d love to hear from you. We also welcome ideas from writers, photographers, destinations and Michigan businesses interested in being part of a future issue.