Of all the roadside attractions in Michigan, these are by far the weirdest

You’ll want to pull over and check out these delightful, wacky roadside attractions in Michigan—and as a bonus, many of them are free!

Michigan is an ideal state for road-tripping. Not only do we have all kinds of quaint small towns to visit from (lake) coast to coast, but we have abundant natural scenery, gently curving roads, and plenty of charm to enjoy along the way too. But along with great snacks, every road trip has to include some pit stops along the way, which is why we’ve rounded up some of the most delightfully weird roadside attractions that Michigan has to offer.

From cult sites turned amusement parks to a museum full of nun dolls to a forest filled with statues and a two-story outhouse, here are some of the weirdest roadside stops you can make in Michigan. 

1. Wacky Taxidermy and Miniatures Museum

270 S Huron Ave, Mackinaw City, MI 49701

Closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays 

(231) 203-4333

Cost: $5/person 

If you’re heading to Mackinaw Island, be sure to stop in at Mackinaw City and visit what might be the strangest museum in Michigan. Pure Michigan describes the miniatures museum as “hilarious, whimsical, peculiar and one of a kind,” and reviews on Google have earned the destination 4.9 stars. “Absolutely amazing place to visit! Fun for all ages! A very reasonable $5 per person will grant you sights beyond the imagination of some of the funniest and greatest taxidermy art ever. The patience and whimsy of the people who run this museum are excellent!” gushed one such review. “I strongly recommend anyone in the area to stop in and take a look. Bring a camera because your friends won’t believe when you try to explain the Beer or the classroom or the various card games or the dragon fight… The list definitely goes on.” Reviews also mention how delightful the owners are. 

2. Christmas, MI

N7761 Candy Cane Ln, Christmas, MI 49862

Free to visit 

Photo courtesy of Porterhse/CC BY-SA 3.0.

I admit that I have lived in Michigan my entire life and had no idea that there was a town called Christmas in our state. But apparently, there is an entire Christmas-themed area in the town, located between Munising and Au Train. The town has historical roots in Michigan’s iron smelting days and was established by a man who started a Christmas-themed product factory. While Google reviews say the town may be a bit more lackluster than the name implies, some of the biggest attractions are the giant roadside Santa that makes for a great photo op and if you’re willing to travel further into “town,” there’s a historic Lighthouse that visitors can climb to get a great view of the town. There’s also a casino if you’re up for a gamble!

3. Sunset Junque Shop

856 Blue Star Highway, South Haven, MI

Free to visit

Photo courtesy of Sunset Junque Shop via Facebook.

According to the Sunset shop itself, “If you’re looking for something different, come and look around our yard.” The antique shop carries just about anything and everything weird you could think of, from old statues to books to everything in between. Travelers say it’s also a great place to stop and snap some pictures on your trip. 

4. Marvin’s Marvelous Mechanical Museum

31005 Orchard Lake Rd, Farmington Hills, MI 48334

Free admission

Photo courtesy of Corey Seeman/CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.

If you’re on a budget, Marvin’s Marvelous Mechanical Museum is, well, a marvelous place to visit because it offers totally free admission. The museum was started in 1932 by Sam and Fanny Yagoda, first operating as a corner drug store and undergoing a few different business transitions before it became the museum and arcade attraction it is now. The museum now features 5,000 square feet of coin-operated animatronic dummies, mechanical games, and other oddities. There’s also a full cafe with free WiFi and if you’re traveling with kids, they can cash in their arcade tickets for prizes at the prize counter when the fun is done for the day. 

5. Eden Springs Park

789 M-139 Highway, Benton Harbor, MI

$3 per train ride

Photo courtesy of TrainiacFollow.

Pull off the road for a visit to the unassuming Eden Springs Park, where you can camp for the night, ride some amusement park rides, or hop on the country’s most famous miniature trains during the summer. But don’t be fooled by this park’s appearance—when you visit, you’ll actually be placing foot on the site of one of the most infamous cults in the world, The House of David. The cult has not survived more than past a few members, and the park is slowly regaining popularity and still features some of the attractions the original cult members used to earn money, like the trains and ice cream shop. 

6. Nun Doll Museum

7078 M-68

Indian River, Michigan 49749

Free admission

Anytime we travel up north to Mackinaw, our family stops at the Cross in the Woods. It’s a wonderful place to stop for a picnic lunch, walk in the woods, and pray or meditate if that’s your thing. Catholics will appreciate the walking Stations of the Cross you can follow through the woods, as well as many beautiful side chapels and of course, the giant Crucifix that’s the largest in the woods where outdoor Mass is often celebrated. But anyone can also pay a visit to the Doll Museum that’s located in the basement of the indoor church and facility—it’s free and having visited with my kids, I can confirm that it’s delightfully weird. Despite boasting 525 dolls from across the world—all religious-themed—the museum is somehow not creepy, but it is a stop you won’t soon forget.  

7. Fantasy Forest

922-970 W Michigan Ave, Battle Creek, MI 49037

Free admission

What happens when 100-year-old ash trees are unfortunately killed by Emerald Ash Borer bugs? Well, if you’re in Michigan, you apparently simply turn those beloved trees into fresh new works of art. Local artists sculpted 25 mythical creatures from the once-thriving trees, creating works of art like wizards, castles, and dragons. Anyone can visit the tree sculptures and admission is totally free. The park also has other fun attractions, like disc golf, an urban farm, a museum, and a kaleidoscope garden. 

8. Dinosaur Gardens

11160 U.S. 23 South, Ossineke, MI 49766

$10+

Walk a half-mile among the dinosaurs that founder and Great Depression businessman Paul Domke envisioned as roaming the earth back when he built the park in 1936. Domke was very interested in dinosaurs and poured research and funds into creating what he believed to be the most lifelike and accurate replicas of dinosaurs at the time. Today, Dinosaur Gardens also contains other animal replicas as well as a miniature golf course and an ice cream shop. One of the most famous oddities at the park is the three wise men and Jesus Christ himself—located, naturally, inside a brontosaurus. See if you can find them!

9. Two Story Outhouse

7620 N Academy Rd, Cedar Lake, MI 48812

Free

There’s not an official website for the infamous Two Story Outhouse in Michigan, but one alleged history behind it is it was built by general store owner William Nelson, who had seven daughters. The concerned father lived above his store and didn’t want his girls being forced to share an outhouse with the grown men who often frequented the store and stayed nearby as lumberjacks. As a solution, he connected the top of the outhouse to his house, allowing his daughters privacy on their own floor and the lumberjacks access to the bottom, which connected to the store. There are four seats on each floor and the structure you see today is updated from the original. Oh, and in case you’re wondering, apparently, the seats are separated from each other on the top and lower levels, and a splash guard piece of lumber was placed, just in case. 

10. Food Gatherers’ Giant Carrots

1 Carrot Way, Ann Arbor, MI 48105

Free

You may have to drive a bit off the freeway for this attraction, but if you’ve ever wished you could snap a photo of your family in a field of giant carrots, the drive will be worth it. Located in front of the Food Gatherers warehouse, a food pantry and food rescue organization, you will find 10-foot-tall carrots “growing” from the ground. It’s free to stop and visit and snap a photo, but the organization just asks that you don’t block the driveway where workers, volunteers, and patrons may be utilizing.

This article first appeared on Good Info News Wire and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.