Landing at Alpena County Regional Airport in Alpena puts you right in the middle of things, with places like Rogers City, Oscoda, and Gaylord all close by. Alpena is a quiet harbor town on Lake Huron's Sunrise Side, where the Thunder Bay River meets the lake and a national marine sanctuary protects dozens of shipwrecks just offshore. The feel is unhurried and outdoorsy, with a brick downtown, a working marina, and sinkholes, lighthouses, and forest trails within minutes.

Standout experiences around Alpena: - Explore the Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Center, the free visitor hub for Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary - Take a glass-bottom boat tour over shipwrecks in the clear shallows of Thunder Bay - Kayak or paddleboard the Thunder Bay River through downtown - Hunt for fossils and peer into sinkholes at Rockport State Recreation Area - Visit the Besser Museum for Northeast Michigan for history, art, and a planetarium - Walk the boardwalk at the Alpena Wildlife Sanctuary to spot herons and swans - Climb the Presque Isle lighthouses north of town - Hike the remote beach at Negwegon State Park

Alpena is the biggest town on a long, uncrowded shoreline. Rogers City and its limestone quarry overlook are about 40 minutes north, Oscoda and the Au Sable River are about an hour south, and Gaylord is roughly 90 minutes west. Ocqueoc Falls, the largest waterfall in the Lower Peninsula, is about an hour away. Fresh whitefish is the dish to order, and the Brown Trout Festival each July fills the marina. Come in summer for lake days or in fall for color along the Huron shore.