Allendale, MI Road Trips

Grand Rapids tourist information website

1 Grand Rapids Public Museum, 272 Pearl Street NW, ☏ +1 616-929-1700. M–F 9AM–5PM, Sa Su 10AM–5PM. Offers the sights and sounds of centuries gone by, coming alive once again. Downtown on the west bank of the Grand. Adults $14, seniors (62+) $10, students and children $5, 2 & Under Free. (updated Jan 2026) 2 Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum, 303 Pearl Street NW (downtown on the west bank of the Grand River), ☏ +1 616-254-0400, [email protected]. Daily 9AM-5PM, closed Christmas Day, Thanksgiving Day and New Year's Day. Chronicles the United States' "accidental" presidency, the only Chief Executive never elected to serve, who restored a measure of trust to the office following its greatest crisis. Permanent and changing exhibits, highlights include Watergate break-in tools, State Gifts, Bicentennial materials, Oval Office, and interactives. Betty Ford Daylily on display, seasonally, in Betty Ford Garden. President and Mrs. Ford's final resting places are just north of the museum. Free parking is available. Adults $8; seniors and military service members $7; college students with ID $6; youths 6–18: $4; children under 5 free. 3 Grands Rapids Art Museum (GRAM), 101 Monroe Center, ☏ +1 616-831-1000, [email protected]. In addition to its permanent collection, features special exhibitions. Members free, adults $12, seniors (62+) and students with ID $10, youth (6-17) $6, children (5 and under) free. (updated Jan 2026) Public Art.

1 Grand Rapids Symphony, ☏ +1 616-454-9451. DeVos Performance Hall. 2 Grand Rapids Ballet, ☏ +1 616-454-4771. Michigan's only professional ballet company. 3 Opera Grand Rapids, 1320 East Fulton, ☏ +1 616-451-2741. One of two opera companies in the state (Michigan Opera Theater in Detroit being the other), Opera GR is Michigan's longest-running professional company. 4 Van Andel Arena, 130 West Fulton, ☏ +1 616-742 6600. 5 West Michigan Whitecaps, 4500 West River Drive. Comstock Park. Minor League Baseball. Single A affiliate of Detroit Tigers Grand Rapids Griffins. American Hockey League. Farm team for the Detroit Red Wings. 6 Grand Rapids Civic Theatre (GRCT), 30 N. Division, ☏ +1 616-222-6650. The GRCT is the largest community theatre in Grand Rapids and one of the largest in the entire United States. Each season: 110 performances of the six main stage productions; 20 performances of the two productions for children; and special events. GRCT is one of the oldest community theatres in Michigan and in the United States. GRCT has a history of continuity and is one of the more self-sufficient arts organizations. 7 Circle Theatre, 1703 Robinson Road SE, ☏ +1 616-456-6656. Circle Theatre continues to produce a season of main stage and Magic Circle productions during the summer months of May through September. The rest of the calendar year is focused on the academic theatre programs of Aquinas College and the Catholic high schools. 8 Actors' Theatre, 160 Fountain St NE, ☏ +1 616-234-3946.

1 Bistro Bella Vita, 44 Cesar E Chavez Ave SW (across from the Van Andel Arena between Grandville and Market - Weston is the cross street.), ☏ +1 616-222-4600. Fantastic Mediterranean country cuisine. One of the best values in all of West Michigan. This is more like a place you'd find in New York or Chicago. Great wine and beer list. Open for lunch and dinner. 2 San Chez Bistro, 38 West Fulton St (downtown), ☏ +1 616-774-8272. Upscale food, big city atmosphere, casual attire. Cuisine of Spain with a Latin and Cuban flair. Specializing in tapas, sangria, sherries, ports and a wonderful wine list. 3 Rose's, 550 Lakeside Drive SE (on Reeds Lake). One of the many Gilmore collection restaurants, this is one of the most popular. It has a great view and many delicious, yet tasty, foods. 4 Yesterdog, 1505 Wealthy St SE (in the wedge between Lake Drive and Wealthy Street), ☏ +1 616-336-0746. Genuine early-20th-century memorabilia, genuine all-beef hotdogs, seemingly chaotic order-taking/filling procedure (trust them: it works). A quirky local institution in the Eastown neighborhood. (If you want to pass for a regular, skip the "dog" when ordering: e.g. "two Yester[dog]s, one Cheddar[dog]". Buy a T-shirt!) The Pita House (Two locations). Made to order eastern-mediterranean food, a local-immigrant success story. 5 The Pita House - 3730 28th St SE, 3730 28th St SE, ☏ +1 616 940-3029. M-W 10:30AM-7PM, Th-F 10:30AM-8PM. (updated Apr 2026) 6 The Pita House - 1508 Wealthy St SE, 1508 Wealthy St SE, ☏ +1 616 454-1171. M-W 10:30AM-7PM, Th-F 10:30AM-8PM, Sa 10:30AM-3PM.

1 Mulligans, 1518 Wealthy St SE. A bar/pub for twenty- to thirty- somethings into counterculture and indie rock. Sunday "make- your- own bloody mary bar". Not for the faint of heart. Right across from Yesterdog at the corner of Wealthy and Lake, in the Eastown neighborhood, a few miles East of Downtown. Bus 6. 2 The B.O.B. ("the Big Old Building"), 20 Monroe Ave NW, ☏ +1 616-356-2000. At is a popular downtown nightspot featuring a diverse assortment of restaurants and bars under one roof, across the street from the Van Andel Arena, downtown. Buses 11,12 are closest, 1,3,4,6,9,13,14,15 all run nearby. 3 The Intersection, 133 Cesar E Chavez SW, ☏ +1 616-723-8571. A long-standing venue for live rock and other kinds of music, in a large space downtown. Short walk from Central Station where buses 1-16 and 18 terminate. 4 The Meanwhile, 1005 Wealthy St SE (just west of Eastown, near Diamond Avenue), ☏ +1 616-233-1679. Opened in 2007, this hipster bar specializes in cheap drinks (numerous specials throughout the week), unique concoctions (try the "Vern Ehlers", named after the city's representative in Congress), pinball, and a great jukebox. Outdoor patio in the back. Bus 5, or 4 and 6 get close. 5 Billy's Lounge, 1437 Wealthy St SE, ☏ +1 616-459-5757. In Eastown, features live music - especially blues - most nights. Bus 6. 6 Founders, 235 Cesar E Chavez Ave SW. A great microbrew and taproom. Count on a great variety of beer and occasional live music. Buses 1-16 and 18 all terminate at Central Station across the street.

1 America's Best Inn, 35 28th Street SW, ☏ +1 616-452-5141, fax: +1 616-452-0046. 2 Amway Grand Plaza Hotel, 187 Monroe Ave NW, ☏ +1 616-774-2000, [email protected]. Check-in: 4PM, check-out: 11AM. (updated Feb 2026) 3 Clarion Inn & Suites Airport, 4981 28th Street SE, ☏ +1 616-956-9304, fax: +1 616-956-6617. Less than two miles from the Gerald Ford Airport. Business center with high speed internet available. Free airport and surrounding area transportation shuttle. Smoke-free, pet-friendly. 4 Comfort Inn Airport, 4155 28th St SE, ☏ +1 616-957-2080, fax: +1 616-957-9712. Less than fifteen minutes from downtown Grand Rapids and three minutes from the Gerald Ford Airport. Business center with high speed internet available. 5 Comfort Suites, 7644 Caterpillar Court, ☏ +1 616-301-2255, fax: +1 616-301-2256. 6 Courtyard Grand Rapids Downtown, 11 Monroe Avenue NW, ☏ +1 616-242-6000, fax: +1 616-242-6605. 7 Econo Lodge & Suites, 2985 Kraft Avenue, ☏ +1 616-940-1777, fax: +1 616-940-9809. Southeast. 8 Fairfield Inn Grand Rapids, 3930 Stahl Drive SE, ☏ +1 616-940-2700, fax: +1 616-940-2700. Just minutes from the Gerald R. Ford International Airport and the DeVos Convention Center. 9 DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Grand Rapids Airport, 4747 28th St. SE, ☏ +1 616-957-0100, [email protected]. Check-in: 4PM, check-out: noon. (updated Feb 2026) 10 Holiday Inn Express & Suites Grand Rapids - Airport North, 5405 28th St Court SE, ☏ +1 616-265-3333. A few miles from Gerald R.

1 Gerald R. Ford International Airport (GRR IATA). The airport for Grand Rapids and Kent County with daily flights (sometimes several) from most of the country's major hubs. Although it has customs facilities for direct international flights, in practice it has very few. Most flights are on Delta Air Lines, connecting through the Delta hub in nearby Detroit. There are non-stop flights to Grand Rapids Gerald R. Ford International Airport from the following cities (some cities may be seasonal or only offer service certain days of the week): Atlanta, Las Vegas, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Dallas Fort Worth, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Memphis, Milwaukee, Minneapolis-St. Paul, New York, Orlando, Toronto, Phoenix, Tampa Bay, Newark, Fort Lauderdale and Washington. Major highways to Grand Rapids include I-196 (from the Chicago area), I-96 (from Muskegon, or from Lansing/Detroit), and US-131 (from Kalamazoo, or from northern Michigan). 2 Grand Rapids station (Vernon J. Ehlers Station), 440 Century Ave. (updated Apr 2021) Amtrak, ☏ +1 215-856-7924, toll-free: +1-800-872-7245. Operates train service around the United States of America. (updated Mar 2022) Route stopping in Grand Rapids: Pere Marquette operates daily between Grand Rapids and Chicago with stops in Holland, Bangor, and Saint Joseph. Travel time to Grand Rapids from Holland is 1 hour, from Benton Harbour is 2.25 hours, and from Chicago is 4 hours. Greyhound and Indian Trails offer bus service to Grand Rapids from various Michigan cities.

Like most mid-sized U.S. cities, an automobile is the most convenient means of getting around, with convenient free parking available most places outside of downtown. Parking downtown can be inconvenient and somewhat costly on weekdays and during major events (e.g. arena concerts). Parking is not enforced after 6PM on weekdays and on the weekends (besides Monroe Center NW on Saturday). Walking within the immediate downtown area is pleasant enough in good weather, and generally safe. Several taxi companies operate in the city, and cabs can be picked up at designated locations such as the airport, or by calling their dispatcher; cabs are usually not hailed on the street, except around the time bars close on weekends. Pedicabs are also becoming popular within the downtown area, and operate during special events and weekend evenings. "The Rapid" bus service has a terminal downtown, and routes throughout the city and its suburbs, running early mornings through late evenings on weekdays. Several routes run with less frequent service on Saturdays and Sundays. The buses are clean, safe, and generally on-time. Street addresses identify the quadrant of the city by adding NW, NE, SW, or SE after the full street name. There are a few numbered streets just northwest of downtown, but most of the numbered streets are from 28th Street and out on the south side; the far north side instead has Three Mile Road, Four Mile Road, etc.

Grand Rapids' crime rate is one of the most uneven in the USA. On the one hand, the city has dealt with rampant property crimes and pick-pocketing in the past. On the other hand, its murder rate is nowhere nearly as bad as Detroit and other Midwestern cities, being usually slightly above the national average. The downtown area is safe if you use basic precautions. Several areas across the river and to the southwest of downtown are best to be avoided. The rest of the city is safe.