Why MONEY Magazine chose Glen Arbor among its top 20 destinations
From staff reports
MONEY Magazine‘s best in travel guide recently named Glen Arbor among its best places to go in 2018.
MONEY writers Megan Leonhardt and Kerri Anne Renzulli write: “for the third year MONEY found destinations both in the U.S. and internationally that deliver the highest value for your dollar. Each spot is packed with must-do experiences and amenities but at a price that, relatively speaking, makes it a steal. To identify these 20 places we rely on the numbers: more than 32,000 data points in total from dozens of sources, covering cost, year-over-year trends, and customer satisfaction.”
Named number 4 among U.S. destinations, following Alexandria, Va., Harpers Ferry, WV, and Stateline, Nev., Leonhardt and Renzulli describe Glen Arbor as: “Perfectly positioned on a small strip of land running between Glen Lake and Sleeping Bear Bay, Glen Arbor offers visitors the best of Northern Michigan. Water laps at a shore of white sand, inviting quiet sunbathers, hikers and water-sport enthusiasts.”
We reached out to MONEY writer Leonhardt to learn why she selected Glen Arbor.
Glen Arbor Sun: How did you find Glen Arbor?
Megan Leonhardt: This year, we started with a list of about 1,000 places (both U.S. and international) that were among the most popular for hotel stays. From there, we asked travel experts and MONEY staffers to weigh in—giving us places they felt were excellent (and at times, underrated) travel destinations. Glen Arbor was a suggestion that actually came from a staffer who grew up in Michigan.
The list narrows as we go through the process of getting pricing information and data on each destination. Not all of the cities are a) true travel destinations or b) we are unable to get enough data to evaluate. This year, the end universe was about 750 destinations total.
Sun: Have either of you been here before? (what time of year, what was your experience and highlights?)
Leonhardt: I have not been to Glen Arbor, but actually my grandmother has been numerous times. She actually visited the Cherry Republic store and used to send me care packages of their amazing cookies when I was in college. I’m originally from Ohio, so it’s a nice road trip to travel to Glen Arbor.
Sun: We were curious to see Hipmunk’s report that hotel prices have dropped 21 percent. Any idea what prompted that?
Leonhardt: It was definitely one of the higher hotel price reductions we saw, but keep in mind it was only about a $40 drop on the average rate.
Overall, Glen Arbor scored high for us because it combined relatively inexpensive trip costs with a plethora of activities to do for a wide range of travelers, from families to retirees to solo adventurers. It really embodies MONEY’s ethos on value.
