My Roam'n Empire is a super cute single story home that is just 2 blocks from Empire's charming little downtown. Available year-round and very family-friendly! Includes high-speed Wi-Fi, two live streaming televisions, a washer and dryer, and light, beachy styling throughout the home. Outside, it includes a backyard deck with a gas grill and outdoor furniture as well as a cute fire pit for making s'mores together! Also includes beach and water toys in the garage, including 2 paddleboards!
GUEST INTERACTION:
We have a local property manager that lives in the area and is available to address any guest issues, concerns, and/or questions.
NEIGHBORHOOD:
Empire is a truly charming little beach town on Lake Michigan! It is surrounded by sandy hills with beautiful hiking trails and views. There is also a cute little sandy lake (South Bar Lake) that is just north of town and next to Lake Michigan. It's quite shallow and great for kids. Empire also has a spectacular beach (Empire Beach) that is right on Lake Michigan. My Roam'n Empire is just 3 blocks from downtown Empire , which has a cute collection of shops and restaurants, including Tiffiany's Cafe, a charming and historic ice cream shop, which works great for evening walks for ice cream and to see gorgeous sunsets on Lake Michigan. The cottage is only one-half of a mile from Empire Beach on Lake Michigan! It's also just 1 block away from Grocer's Daughter Chocolates, which is becoming regionally famous and which we would personally highly recommend for wonderfully creative and delicious chocolate creations.
Empire is also located in the middle of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, which is a huge national lakeshore with a great variety of nature trails for hiking and bicycling. There are truly spectacular views of Lake Michigan from Sleeping Bear's dunes! Canoeing, kayaking, or tubing on the Platte River through the park and out to Lake Michigan is also a very popular activity. Part of the national lakeshore is south of Empire and part of it is north of Empire. The Philip A. Hart Visitor Center for Sleeping Bear Dunes is also located right in Empire just one-third of a mile from the property! Thus, My Roam'n Empire provides a truly exceptional central location for exploring Sleeping Bear Dunes!
Outside of Sleeping Bear Dunes, there are fun beach towns both north and south of Empire that are a little larger than Empire. To the south, Frankfort has a growing collection of family-friendly shops, restaurants, and cafes in addition to a very popular local microbrewery (Stormcloud) and a vintage movie theater (The Garden Theater) that plays both new and old movies year-round. It also has a large beach that is family-friendly and dog-friendly (at the north end) and is located next to a fun pier and Frankfort's famous lighthouse. To the north of Empire, Glen Arbor is a bit more upscale and luxurious with its own collection of specialty shops, restaurants, and cafes.
If a little more entertainment, nightlife, and/or variety is desired, downtown Traverse City is only about a 30-minute drive east from the property along M-72. Traverse City is the gemstone of northern Michigan tourism and has a vast collection of restaurants, shops, bars, breweries, cafes, and attractions.
GUEST ACCESS:
Guests have access to the entire property, except for the basement, which is locked off for owner storage. Please also note that although guests have access to the 1-car garage, it is used for storage and cars cannot be parked in the garage.
THE SPACE:
The home has 3 bedrooms and 1.5 bathrooms. It has been recently renovated by the new owners and it is decorated with light, beachy tones throughout the home. It is gorgeous and truly fits in with the small, family-friendly beach town environment of Empire.
For heating, the home has a forced-air gas furnace. It does not have air conditioning, but, given the latitude and the proximity to the cool waters of Lake Michigan, air conditioning is rarely needed in the area.
The home has a modern kitchen with all appliances, including a dishwasher. There is also a very convenient stacked washer and dryer in a closet next to the kitchen. The home has high-speed Wi-Fi and two live streaming televisions, both of which utilize Roku.
TRANSIT:
It is highly recommended that guests have their own means of transportation. There is no Uber service in the area and public bus service is limited.
PLEASE NOTE THE FOLLOWING:
1) AIR CONDITONING: The home does NOT have air conditioning. (Given the latitude and the proximity to the cool waters of Lake Michigan, air conditioning is rarely needed in the area though.)
2) PET POLICY: Up to 2 dogs are permitted. All dogs must be house trained. Pets other than dogs are not permitted and more than 2 dogs are also not permitted. If bringing 1 or 2 dogs, please make certain that the dogs are included on the reservation so that the pet fee is properly applied.
3) GARAGE: The 1-car garage is used for storage and is not available for guests to park their vehicle. Guests are welcome to use any of the beach and water toys that are in the garage though. We just ask that guests make certain to return all items back to the garage.
4) GARAGE ENTRANCE: The entrance to the garage from the house is through a door in the primary bedroom, which could be a bit awkward to use. (The door to the garage does have a lock on it though.) it is probably easiest just to access the garage by opening the garage door.
5) INDOOR FIREPLACE: Please note that the indoor fireplace is EXTREMELY DANGEROUS TO USE and is absolutely not to be used by guests under any circumstances.
