Vacation in Milwaukee and Surrounding Counties

Recently I recommended Milwaukee as a vacation destination to a cash-flow challenged colleague who lives in Milwaukee. "Ha, ha, very funny...you're kidding, right?" was his skeptical response. His reaction prompted me to explain further. At first I found it difficult to pick one place to begin babbling my case for why he should stay in and around Milwaukee for his next cheaper and possibly funnest ever vacation.

After I had expounded for only a little while, barely scratching the surface, giving him just a general overview of Milwaukee's vacation potential and possibilites, he became enthused and told me I should write it up. The following favorites are not in order by preference, and probably I am leaving out as much as I include.

Milwaukee's Indoor and Outdoor Beautiful Sights

The world class Milwaukee Art Museum, silhouetted against Lake Michigan at the east end of Wisconsin Avenue, is worthy of a whole vacation day if not two or three. The diverse collections of artwork inside range from old masters to modern and outside are garden and lakefront walks. If your timing is just right, the newest addition by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava might be stretching wide it's gleaming white sunscreen wings as you approach, which is a thrilling enough sight to write home about. There are many more museums of note in Milwaukee, from the Milwaukee Public Museum downtown to America's Black Holocaust Museum on the near north side. Scattered between them throughout several scenic neighborhoods - such as the east side, Old World downtown, Bay View, and the Third Ward - are used bookstores, galleries, ethnic groceries, and specialty shops galore.

The Grand Avenue Mall and the other downtown stores do tend to close early in the evening but the nightclubs stay open until the wee hours. There are always concerts, plays, and many performances and presentations going on throughout Milwaukee, at the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts, the Riverside Theater, or one of the college or university campuses. A daytime or evening narrated boat tour of the Milwaukee River and harbor or dinner cruise that even sails a little ways out onto Lake Michigan might seem like a mini-vacation in itself.

Milwaukee hotel, motel or bed-and-breakfast rooms and suites to match any travel budget are available downtown and near the airport to be a home base and hub. Whenever it is time to dine, you will have to choose from a daunting abundance. It would be difficult to find a wider variety of gourmet and ethnic cuisines to choose from anywhere. As far as conventional food goes, you can fast-food-it , take-out, or order a delivery with ease throughout Milwaukee. Or you can grocery shop for pic-nic foods on the way to a beach or park, eat up all the food, and bring rocks, driftwood, and even fossils back in the bags as souvenirs.

If you are hoping to reconnect with nature you can stay inside the city of Milwaukee and drive a few miles in any direction and soon find yourself in a woodsy Milwaukee County or city park with trails winding among tall trees, creeks, and glacial bolders of granite and limestone. A network of bike trails is handy for touring the Milwaukee lakeshore neighborhoods. Some of Milwaukee's parks are almost big enough to get lost in and start you imagining that you have traveled a long ways away from same-old-same-old. If you only have one day to spend amidst natural wonders visit the Milwaukee Audubon Society on the north shore.

Northward Up Interstate 43

Drive north on Interstate HWY 43 and take the Cedarburg exit then drive a few miles west. The town of Cedarburg is another mini-vacation in itself if you love wines, antiques, art, crafts - and cedar trees, of course. As you enter Cedarburg signs will point the way to the historic Old Town along Washington Avenue. Rock hounds love The Gem Shop best.

Or, back on HWY 43 North, drive further toward Sheboygan and exit at HWY V/OK (Waldo) then drive east on HWY V a couple miles to Kohler-Andrae State Park. There you can spend hours stolling and wading along Great Lake Michigan's rolling seashore-like dunes or just kick back on the beach and let the breezes blow over you.

Westward On Interstate 94

Drive west on Interstate HWY 94 for about a half hour or just over 30 miles and discover Kettle Moraine State Forest - Southern Unit. There is more than one section to be explored so follow the brown and white signs along Interstate HWY 94 or download the pdf file from the official website for detailed directions. In Kettle Moraine territory you might pick up mysterious looking rounded chunks of limestone that are called glacial anomalies because they were dented and carved by the most recent glacier as it advanced then retreated,

For serendipity, just get off Interstate 94 anywhere beyond the Milwaukee suburb of Waukesha on impulse or whim and meander the county roads and two state highways that run parallel to Interstate HWY 94 - HWY 18 to the south or HWY 16 to the north - for a while. You can spend a day discovering little-known local favorite places to eat and shop and stopping as the mood hits at historic or scenic waysides for ad-hoc, quick pic-nicking.

Southward On Interstates 43 or 94

Drive south on Interstate 43 and exit on state HWY 12 and drive into Lake Geneva, southeastern Wisconsin's most famous resort town which offers a little bit of many things to do. You can plan and decide ahead or just drive around and see what you find that gives you cause to pause. Lake Geneva is great for a day trip or two and can be a stand alone vacation destination for boating, canoeing, horseback riding, hot-air ballooning, tours, entertainment, shopping, festivals, special events, and more.

For a scenic inland coastal drive, head south on Interstate HWY 94 towards Chicago but exit on HWY 50 and head east to Kenosha and state HWY 32. Then relax and take your time driving the scenic route northward on HWY 32 back to Milwaukee along the bluffs, woods, and shores of Lake Michigan. There are plenty of sights to see and things to do in Kenosha and Racine to slow you down on the way. When you reach Grant Park in South Milwaukee you will know you are almost back to your home base. Maybe you will get there early enough to stop and enjoy Grant Park's wild woods and windswept beaches, or the full golf course.

Back In Milwaukee - What I Left Out

I didn't mention the many festivals and fairs that happen in and around Milwaukee almost all year-round. Milwaukee's giant parties, at least one of which always seems to be happening on any given weekend, could be a whole new article topic. Some years, starting in June, Milwaukeeans thrill to world class fireworks displays almost every weekend. I also left out spectacular annual events such as the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) AirVenture Fly-In in Oshkosh, only an hour or so northwest of Milwaukee on state HWY 41.

If you are fortunate enough to reside in or close to Milwaukee, Wisconsin already, just get those days off and start enjoying the fun from day one. Otherwise getting to Milwaukee is easy and may even be inexpensive by land - by Amtrak train or bus - or by air, or even by inland sea!