In 2018, we rented bicycles and rode the island’s paved, 8.2-mile perimeter before partaking of The Grand Hotel’s Grand Luncheon Buffett.  We explored the hotel, shopped in the downtown/Main Street area for souvenirs, and bought Mackinac Island’s famous fudge.

Because we loved it so much in 2018, we returned in 2025 and did some of the same things.  We again rented bicycles and rode the paved path around the island.  We also tried to eat lunch at the Pink Pony restaurant.  We shopped while we waited for our table, but we eventually decided to give up our spot on the waitlist and take the ferry back to St. Ignace instead (we were moving on to Frankenmuth that day).

In 2018, we spent $46 on ferry tickets and $150 on the Grand Luncheon Buffet.  I wasn't keeping copious notes at the time, so I don't know how much we paid to rent bicycles (2 "regular" bikes and one with a tagalong, for our daughter).  

In 2025, round-trip ferry tickets cost us $140.  Four 3-speed bicycle rentals cost $116.

Again, I didn't think to take many detailed notes in 2018 (the amount of notes I take now, just to keep everything straight in my head, is ridiculous), so I don't have an exact number.  However, I know we arrived at the ferry early, rode bikes around the island, and spent about three hours in the Grand Hotel alone before shopping and hopping on the ferry.  I'd guess we spent the better part of the day, approximately six or seven hours, on Mackinac Island.

In 2025, we spent just a little more than four-and-a-half hours on the island.  That includes a 10-minute walk from our hotel, the Best Western Harbour Pointe Lakefront, to Shepler’s Ferry, the brief wait at the ferry before our departure, the 30ish-minute ride to the island (some trips to the island include a little detour under the Mighty Mac, the Mackinac Bridge, which connects the Upper and Lower Peninsulas), a nearly two-hour bike ride, and the time we spent shopping before catching the 16-minute ferry ride back at St. Ignace.