Top Attractions for…
Beer Buffs
This one’s a no-brainer. Grand Rapids was recently crowned Best Beer City USA thanks to its abundance of brewpubs and craft breweries per capita. However, this city’s love affair with hops goes beyond a few sudsy suds. It’s more like a full-on beeraissance, with fantastic breweries, sprawling beer halls, and a boozed-up, celebratory atmosphere towards the noble art of beer-making. Even the art museums, concert halls, and baseball stadiums sport craft beer options. Every self-respecting beer aficionado needs to make a pilgrimage to this Midwestern beer mecca at least once. Trust me—after just one day here, you’ll convert to the church of Grand Rapids beer.
Art Lovers
Grand Rapids is home to one of the most under-the-radar art scenes in the country. The beating heart of the city’s cultural landscape is none other than Avenue for the Arts—a vibrant, walkable neighborhood crammed with galleries, art houses, theatres, studios, public murals, sculptures and artistic everything. The city has invested heavily to cultivate a thriving urban arts district complete with trendy breweries, cheerful cafes and romantic date spots. However, this is only the centerpiece of a larger network of art spaces spread throughout GR. Give yourself time to appreciate the Grand Rapids Art Museum, the Urban Institute for Contemporary Arts, art-adorned breweries, sculptures scattered across town, and an abundance of public installations. Whatever your jam—painting, pottery, sculpture, dance, music—Grand Rapids will introduce you to the next big thing.
Music Fans
Blues. Bluegrass. Rock. Folk. Jazz. Hip-hop. No matter your musical tastes, you’ll find the soundtrack you’re craving in Grand Rapids. From the low-key, under-the-radar charm of its laid-back music venues to hosting epic festivals like Festival of the Arts—this town’s got serious soul. The local music scene may be surprisingly vibrant for a city of its size, but that’s only the beginning. An eclectic roster of national headliners are constantly passing through on tour and bringing the roof down for eager crowds. Find the quintessential rock club for moshing, boozy bluegrass joints for stomping, and everything in between. Pro tip: coordinate your visit with the thick cluster of summertime music festivals for the ultimate tunes-and-tans combo platter.
Nature Nuts
Contrary to popular preconceptions, Grand Rapids isn’t exclusively an urban playground for beer-guzzling art snobs and hipsters. It sits in perfect harmony with the great outdoors thanks to its prime location along the Grand River. Hiking, biking, kayaking, fishing, and general communion with Mother Nature are all within your grasp. An afternoon’s relaxing stroll is always just a stone’s throw away in the numerous public parks, botanical gardens and beaches scattered throughout the area. For a true breath of fresh air, make the scenic trek out to Millennium Park for the day. Or point your compass northwest towards the ethereal Lake Michigan sand dunes and beachy paradises. There’s no shortage of adventures waiting to be had beyond the city limits.
Families
Grand Rapids can be plenty wild and rowdy for those seeking an adult getaway, but it’s also an exceptionally family-friendly option, too. The city’s main attractions are very much geared towards fun for all ages. You’ve got the John Ball Zoo, the Grand Rapids Public Museum (perfect for curious youngsters), and the Grand Rapids Children’s Museum. Aggressive giant germs, chromatography wands, fossils galore—there’s something to spark the imagination of every age group here. Save some energy to burn off at family-friendly parks, trails, and the Ah-Nab-Awen outdoor community space. When all else fails, there are always copious ice cream, coffee shops and parent-approved pit stops to recharge everyone’s batteries.
Foodies
Let’s be honest—Grand Rapids was essentially made for food tours. With a deep immigrant heritage and locavore leanings, the local culinary scene is a smorgasbord of global influences. You want boundary-pushing New American cuisine that rivals the coasts? Downtown and Cherry Hill have your fancy farm-to-table spots. Craving authentic ethnic flavors? Wealthy Street is absolutely bursting with worldly taquerias, bistros and mom-and-pop joints. Hankering for some hearty Midwest comfort classics? Get yourself a juicy slab of meatloaf at that homey neighborhood diner. In Grand Rapids, every taste is represented and every neighborhood is packed with culinary treasures. Beer and food pairings are also a major obsession here. Prepare to delight your senses.
How to Get Around Grand Rapids
As you’ve gathered by now, Grand Rapids is absolutely dynamic with a dizzying variety of attractions and activities. Carving out the perfect experience for your group can feel overwhelming. Where to even begin? What’s the secret to maximizing your fun without burning out halfway through? Well, it all starts with your method of transportation. The right ride can make or break a group tour.
Public Transportation
Grand Rapids offers a fairly typical public transit system for a city of its size. You’ll find buses and services offered by The Rapid throughout the metro area, with routes converging downtown at the Central Station transit hub. While certainly serviceable for individuals or couples, public transit can be cumbersome and logistically unwieldy for larger groups traveling together. Having everyone sticking together, staying on schedule, and lugging baggage and personal items can quickly turn hellish—especially if you’ve got little ones in tow. And when you factor the travel time between attractions miles apart, public transit can chew through big chunks of your day. There are better options made for group travel.
Rideshares & Taxis
An upgrade over public transit, rideshare apps and taxis are more private and customizable. You can summon your ride with a mere app tap, and services like UberXL can accommodate groups of up to six passengers. Handy for hopping between a few locations, especially with minimal baggage. However, for extensive multi-stop tours or extended travel, rideshares tend to incur constant surcharges. Rates rise and fall based on demand. Your group will be at the mercy of heavy traffic congestion, surge pricing, and ultimately splitting up into multiple vehicles at your own expense. Not ideal for optimizing your Grand Rapids experience.
Charter Buses
To fully embrace the Grand Rapids spirit of thinking big, doing it together and taking it all in, you need true professional group travel accommodations. A private charter bus is the premier option for larger group tours around Grand Rapids. With a charter bus from Party Bus Grand Rapids at the helm, your group travels as a single autonomous unit, rolling through Grand Rapids like royalty. No jumping between rideshares, gouged by fees, or waiting around hopelessly lost. Just sit back and enjoy the open road as our professional team handles all the logistics, traffic, and transit woes. Everyone’s needs are accounted for with premium amenities like plush reclining seating, climate control, TVs with DVDs, ample storage, WiFi and more. This is the only way to achieve peak Grand Rapids. Total comfort, complete freedom, reveling together in the spirit and culture of the Midwest’s coolest city. We’ll get you to all the hotspots seamlessly.
Ready to Get Started?
Seeing everything Grand Rapids has up its sleeve is certainly daunting, even for locals. But that shouldn’t stop you from pursuing the full Grand Rapids experience for your group tour. With the right planning, transportation services and inside expertise guiding you, this city is ripe for creating unforgettable memories together. Grab the gang, map out your dream Grand Rapids odyssey, and let Party Bus Grand Rapids be your faithful chariot carrying you between all the beer gardens, beaches, thumping music venues and funky pockets of art. We’ll sweat the logistical hassles while your group focuses solely on soaking up the vibrant culture, flavors and fun that makes Grand Rapids so gosh darn grand. Give us a call at 313-209-8435 and allow us to make your Grand Rapids fantasy an epic reality.