Known as the inn on two lakes, Canfield House Bed and Breakfast overlooks beautiful Portage Lake, which connects to Lake Michigan in Onekama, 45 miles southwest of Traverse City.
Built-in 1900 as the summer home of lumber baron Charles Canfield, Canfield House Bed and Breakfast's six guest rooms have been completely renovated while retaining the original charm.
Let Canfield House B&B be your home base for day trips to explore the surrounding areas. Onekama is a four-season getaway destination. With a short distance of the inn, guests will find downhill ski slopes and snowmobile trails, championship golf courses, wooded trails, beaches, and dunes.
Onekama is full of history as is the nearby town of Manistee with its historic riverwalk, shops, restaurants, and a turn-of-the-century theater. Little River Casino is seven miles from the Inn.
As you approach Canfield House Bed and Breakfast, you will sense the 2.5-acre peaceful atmosphere. Turn-of-the-century features of the house have been preserved, including the covered wrap-around porch, the Dutch doors of the dining room which open onto the porch, and the original leaded glass windows and magnificent stone fireplace in the large gathering room. Relax in front of the fireplace, warm up to a book from our eclectic collection, enjoy one of the many board games with other guests, or enjoy the comfort of your bedroom or a stroll along Lake Michigan. The inn is perfect for a small gathering or rehearsal dinner, wedding receptions, showers, or business meetings.
We vary the breakfasts at Canfield House. One day you might sit down to our sweet and savory Apple Raisin Ham Quiche. Another day, our decadent Cherry Strata. At Canfield House, if you’re eating sausage, it is locally made. Maple syrup? Locally produced. Charles Canfield’s family enjoyed the best breakfast ingredients available in their day. So will our guests.
Unique Experiences at Canfield House B&B
Weddings
Let our expansive lawn, our welcoming porch, and the view of Portage Lake provide the backdrop for your perfect wedding day or vow renewal.
Our wedding packages, offered from May through October, start under $3,000. We accommodate groups from 24 up to 100 people. Packages always include a minimum two- or three-night rental of our rooms, a full breakfast each morning, and use of the common areas, but may also include use of tents, deluxe portable bathrooms, and dance floors -- talk to the innkeeper about your needs.
Events
In addition to considering Canfield House B&B to hold a reunion or other event, watch our Facebook page for notice of special event weekends we enjoy planning, including murder mysteries, wine pairing dinners, and deluxe romantic getaways.
If you wish to fill the house with friends and family for a getaway of two or more nights, contact the innkeepers early for the best choice of available dates.
Lighthouses
With its open steel-frame structure, Portage Lake Pierhead Light, five minutes away from Canfield House, is not the classic style of beacon that beckons so many lighthouse aficionados to Michigan. However, for lighthouse collectors, it counts, and a stay at Canfield House also offers a perfect midpoint for exploring two of the most popular Lake Michigan lighthouses:
- Twenty minutes south of us in Manistee, walk out to the Manistee North Pierhead Light.
- Near Frankfort, 25 minutes north, Point Betsie Lighthouse and the attached red-roofed keeper's residence is one of the most-photographed Michigan lighthouses.
If you’re arriving in Onekama from the south, allow time for stops at Little Sable Point Lighthouse (one hour 20 minutes from us) and Big Sable Point Lighthouse (one hour south). Both are beautiful and full of history.
Waterways
Portage Lake channels into Lake Michigan, so Canfield House guests can enjoy two nearby lakes, plus popular Lake Michigan beaches and stunning sunsets.
Charter boat fishing on Portage Lake, Lake Michigan, and the Manistee River (about 14 miles south of us) offers anglers the opportunity to catch steelhead, chinook or coho salmon, or brown and lake trout, yellow perch, walleye, Northern pike, and more.
You can rent a pontoon boat on Portage Lake. Or use one of the kayaks or standup paddle boards available. Canoe and kayak rentals are also available nearby.
Wine Trail, Craft Beer, Hard Cider, and Spirits
During your stay at Canfield House B&B, you can make a day trip to explore some of Michigan’s top wineries along the Leelanau Peninsula Wine Trail, starting with Cherry Republic Winery in Glen Arbor, about an hour’s drive north of us.
Closer to Onekama, seek out top-shelf producers of favorite beverages:
- Northern Natural Cider House and Winery, twelve miles east of the inn, in the tiny town of Kaleva. Fresh apples, never apple concentrate, go into the flavorful hard ciders produced here. Favorite flavors include cinnamon, cherry chocolate, and blueberry waffles. Among their wines, all produced from Michigan-grown fruits, the Dry Riesling was the Gold Medal Winner at a Michigan Wine and Spirits Competition. Food trucks with innovative menus and occasional concerts make your visit even more memorable.
- For a farm-to-cocktail-glass experience, head to Iron Fish Distillery on a farm near the Betsie River 20 miles northeast of us. From a small start, bottles of the distillery’s gin, vodka, rum, and bourbon whiskey finished in maple syrup barrels now show up on grocery shelves and in better bars all over Michigan. Stay with us, and go to the source.
- For craft beer, guest favorites include Stormcloud Brewing Company or Five Shores Brewing, both thirty minutes north near Crystal Lake, or North Channel Brewing Company in Manistee. For a variety of Michigan pours in a friendly atmosphere, guests enjoy the Blue Slipper Tavern at the east end of Portage Lake in Onekama.
- For one-stop tasting, St. Ambrose Cellars in Beulah, a 30-minute drive, produces mead, wine, beer, and cider from locally sourced ingredients.
Foodie
For lunch or dinner, favorite dining spots within 20 minutes of Canfield House B&B include The Glenwood, The Blue Fish, The Mexican Roadhouse, Arcadia Bluffs, and Painted Lady Saloon.
Between April and the end of July, the evening sky in Western Michigan stays light until about 10 p.m., so guests sometimes book early reservations at fine dining restaurants in the Glen Arbor area or even Traverse City and enjoy wildlife spotting on the drive back to the inn.
Adventure
Bring bicycles! The Benzie Valley Trail, whose surface is asphalt and crushed stone, winds for 22 miles between Thompsonville on the east and Frankfort at the Lake Michigan end. Depending on the season, you can cross-country ski, walk, or inline skate on this popular rail trail.
Hike or bike on the Heritage Trail, which goes through Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore Park and continues east of Glen Arbor. Climb the dunes. Rent kayaks in Glen Arbor and explore the peaceful Crystal River.
Mountain biking, hiking, and birdwatching are among the options in the vast Manistee National Forest, a 25-minute drive from Canfield House.
Other great options for getting out in nature:
- Portage Point Woods Nature Conservancy, offers a 1.8-mile hiking trail with wonderful wooded views.
- Baldy Trails in Arcadia. Its 3.3-mile hiking loop gives you amazing views of Lake Michigan from an overlook.
- Dry Hills Trail, is a 10.7-mile loop for hiking and biking located in Arcadia, 15 minutes north of Onekama.
Winter
Crystal Mountain, 30 minutes northeast of Canfield House B&B, is the place for downhill skiing and snowboarding.
We welcome snowmobilers and have space to accommodate a couple of snowmobile trailers. You’ll find a choice of trails nearby.
Good spots for winter hiking and snowshoeing include Baldy Trails in Arcadia and Portage Point Woods Nature Conservancy, both described under “Adventure."
After a day outdoors in Michigan’s clean, bracing winter air, return to Canfield House B&B and a fire in the large hand-cut fieldstone fireplace in the main room. You’ll find plenty of cozy reading areas to enjoy long into the night.
You can reserve an igloo at St. Ambrose Cellars in Beulah while you enjoy your choice of beer, wine, mead, and hard cider plus great pizza.
Autumn
M-22 is often hailed as one of Michigan’s most scenic drives, and that’s true any time of year, especially during the fall color season. October is prime time, but leaves start changing in September and can continue into November. Canfield House B&B is only one-eighth mile west of M-22. Make a full day of two-lane driving in a loop around the Leelanau Peninsula and stopping in quaint towns and wineries along the way.
Watch for notice of our special fall color tour weekend(s), which include dinner and a pontoon boat tour of Portage Lake.
