Girls Weekend In New Buffalo

Women by nature are always putting others before themselves- families, jobs, etc. Sometimes, though, we ladies need to take a break to pamper ourselves and spend a weekend relaxing with our girlfriends. A few years ago, a group of close friends formed a book club. We meet about every 6 weeks and take turns picking books for the group. It has been a great way to make sure that we get some girl time on the regular, as well as being enlightened by reading books we probably never would have chosen for ourselves. Well, our little book club decided to take it on the road to celebrate a couple of 40th birthdays that happened within our group. We decided to go to New Buffalo, MI for a girls weekend!

Where is New Buffalo?

New Buffalo is located in the Southwest corner of Michigan, on the shores of Lake Michigan. It is a quaint little beach town about an hour and ten minutes from my hometown of Goshen, IN. If you are coming from Chicago, it will take you about an hour and ten minutes to drive there as well.

Where to Stay in New Buffalo:

We chose to rent this house from VRBO. It was perfect for us because we wanted to hang out together in the afternoon before heading to dinner. Maybe have a glass of wine and some appetizers.

There was plenty of beds for our group of 8. The house stated it slept 11, and there was a convertible couch, chair, and trundle bed. However, I would say 8 was the perfect number for the house, 9 would have probably been fine, but any more would be pushing it. We were able to rent the house for only one night, which some of the hotels in the area required a two night stay on the weekend. Therefore, it was more economical for us to stay in the house. The house was in Michigan City, IN so it got a little bit confusing because it was located in the Central time zone, where as New Buffalo is in the Eastern time zone. The house itself was only about a 10 minute drive to the heart of New Buffalo.

Hotel options are The Harbor Grand Hotel (which is where the restaurant we had dinner is located), and the Marina Grand Resort. Both hotels looked really nice. As I mentioned above, they did both require a two night stay on the weekends. Either hotel would be a fabulous choice for a romantic weekend with your sweetheart as well!

Where to Eat in New Buffalo:

For dinner, I was looking for a classy place to celebrate my friends’ 40th birthdays. The Terrace Room, located in the Harbor Grand Resort, definitely made us feel pampered! Reservations are highly recommended. It seems as though the popular local restaurants fill up fast, especially if you have a larger group. The Terrace room boasts intimate fireside dining and a waterfront setting. It was a sylish, Italian restaurant, and exactly what I was looking for. The atmosphere was swanky, the cocktails were beautiful and delicious, and the food fantastic. I had the risotto and I would highly recommend it. Yum. The Terrace Room was perfect for our girls weekend.

If you are looking for something more casual, The Stray Dog Bar & Grill is a very popular restaurant in New Buffalo. A couple of us had lunch there when we got to New Buffalo. It was adorable with pictures of dogs decorating the interior. We had a table by a roaring fire which was perfect on a cold winter’s day. In the summertime, it boasts a roof top bar which I’m sure is a happening spot. I had shrimp tacos which were great.

Other popular restaurants in the area are Brewster’s Italian cafe, which also looked fabulous and smelled even better when we walked by. The Beer Church Brewing Company pours their own small batch brews and serves up wood-fired pizza Napoletana. We stopped by there for a beer. It was refreshing and a very cute and unique location. They have an awesome beer garden that would be so fun to hang out in if you are there in warmer weather. For winter, they offer indoor dining, or you can rent igloos!

What to Do in New Buffalo:

Shop in the quaint town of New Buffalo. There were just a handful of shops open when we were there in the winter time. There was a couple of boutiques and a shop with trinkets from far away places that smelled of patchouli. We did work up a thirst after shopping and stopped at the Beer Church Brewing Company for a beverage.

Visit the many wineries or breweries of Southwest Michigan. Nearby breweries are Greenbush Brewery, Ghost Isle Brewery, and Beer Church Brewing Company. Wineries include St. Julien tasting room in Union Pier, Dablon Vineyards Estate Winery and Tasting Room, and Tabor Hill, among others. There is also Journeyman Distillery. When the weather is warmer, I would highly recommend the Wine-O-Wagon. This tour from Fruitful Vines tour company is a great way to spend an afternoon with your girlfriends!

Visit a Spa. There are two spas in downtown New Buffalo, Evolve Spa and Revive Spa.

Attend a wine and canvas event at the New Buffalo Art Gallery. Check their website for dates and times. It looks like they typically hold these events on Wednesday and Friday evenings.

Visit the Four Winds Casino. This is what we decided to do after our delicious dinner. Four Winds Casino has it all- table games, slots, roulette. The Casino also has several restaurants and bars. There is an event center, the Silver Creek Event Center that has headliner entertainment.

We didn’t have any big winners, but we had fun. The highlight for me came later at the Kankakee Grill at the casino. They often have entertainment at the Kankakee grill, and this night they had the cover band Blammo. If you grew up in the 80’s and 90’s- you should check them out- you won’t be sorry! We ended up dancing the night away.

New Buffalo is a great little getaway- lots to do and so close to home. I would definitely recommend checking it out either with your girlfriends, a couples trip, or a romantic getaway with your significant other!

You Might also like:

Why You Should Eat in an Igloo

Unique Things to do in Key West

Three Romantic Days in Savannah

*Note: This post contains affiliate links. When you make a purchase using one of these affiliate links, we get paid a small commission at no extra cost to you.