Lunch: Stop into Downtown’s Amazing Deli and pick up a pre-made picnic of subs and more. Next, head to Dow Gardens and take in your pleasurable picnic amidst 110 acres of colorful flowers, rippling water features, and mature trees. Eat near the award-winning Children’s Garden, featuring plots planted and tended by local families, and let the kids point out their favorite flowers as you explore!

Heightened Adventure: Dow Gardens is also home to the longest treetop canopy walk in the nation! Fully accessible for all ages and abilities, the canopy walk offers three unique viewing platforms, including a glass floor overlooking an orchard 40 feet below! Kiddos will love the playground here, and adults will find absolutely everything about Dow Gardens exquisite.

Wind Down: Wind down with meats smoked low and slow at Molasses Smokehouse & Bar. Enjoy the St. Louis-style barbecue restaurant in Downtown Midland — and especially the Loaded BBQ Tots and Burnt Ends Mac & Cheese!

Breakfast: Begin your day with delicious sweet or savory crepes from Crêpes et Amis. (The kids will absolutely want the S'more crêpe, with marshmallow, graham cracker, and Nutella!)

Venture Out: Spend quality time exploring the 1,200-acre haven of woodlands and rivers (with 19 miles of trails) that is Chippewa Nature Center! Admission is free and will welcome your family into: hands-on exhibits in the Ecosystem Gallery, a two-story observation deck, the 1870s-style Homestead Farm, a working Sugarhouse, and even a wigwam!

Lunch: Back Downtown, enjoy Pizza Sam’s (and their soups, sandwiches, and gyros) or try Pizza Baker for wood-fired pies on sourdough crust.

Fam Fun: Whoop it up at Longview Spray Park or go to Gerstacker Spray Park, right Downtown and right by The Tridge, to splash together. If the weather’s not cooperating, The Playground is an indoor neighborhood fun zone that serves perfectly poured lattes for parents!

Dinner: Zoom into Whichcraft Taproom for “big kid” drinks, including more than 80 Michigan craft brews (40 on tap), and let the kids devour a Grilled Peanut Butter & Jelly or White Cheddar Grilled Cheese. Or, bring everyone to Brinstar, where classic arcade games, specialty burgers, and fresh-cut fries will make everyone's night!

Good Evening: Time it right, and you might be in town to catch a family-friendly performance at Midland Center for the Arts! Either way, end your evening with mini-golf inside Valley Lanes Family Entertainment Center, where you’ll also find bowling, an arcade, laser maze, bumper cars, and two escape rooms!

Brunch: Grab brunch at “not your Grandma’s tea house — but she’ll love it, too” Grove Tea Lounge. Order the Brunch Bagel or Breakfast Hash for yourselves, and for the kids? Try a scratch-made donut or cinnamon roll. Brighten their morning with a Unicorn Tea Latte, topped with colorful unicorn sprinkles!

Group Photo: Before you go, spend time together inside Midland Center for the Arts. Experience an interactive invention space for kids, Spark!Lab® Smithsonian, or discover unique, hands-on STEM exhibits!

On Your Way Out: Visit Space Studios, just on the outskirts of Midland. Inside, you’ll find The Glaze Bar and a wide selection of ready-to-be-painted pottery. Get creative together and make beautiful, artistic souvenirs from your family weekend in Midland!