Featured in the 2002 movie blockbuster, “Road to Perdition”, picturesque Saugatuck is one of Lake Michigan’s top tourist destinations, and a recreational paradise. Nestled amidst towering sand dunes and overlooking pale stretches of clean sandy beach, Saugatuck graces Lake Michigan's eastern shore with its charming mix of historic nineteenth century buildings, unique shops, sophisticated restaurants, and modern amenities.
Saugatuck’s friendly year round population of about 1,000 triples in summer as holidaymakers flock to enjoy boating and swimming on the lake and hiking and horseback riding in the surrounding countryside, bringing a welcome income to the local hospitality industry and to local artists--there are so many in this scenic part of the Michigan, the Saugatuck/Douglas region has become known as the state’s “Art Coast”.
Location
Saugatuck is in southwest Michigan’s Allegan County, about 18 miles northeast of South Haven.
Geography/Terrain
Covering about 1.5 square miles, Saugatuck is on the Lake Kalamazoo, a dammed section of the Kalamazoo River found near its confluence at Lake Michigan. Nestled among the panoramic sand dunes that border the winding Kalamazoo, Saugatuck is surrounded by forest and wetlands and stands about 610 feet above sea level.
Distance to 3 closest major cities
Saugatuck is 34 miles southwest of Grand Rapids, Michigan, 38 miles southwest of Wyoming, Michigan, and 116 miles northeast of Chicago, Illinois.
Jobs
While tourism accounts for most of Saugatuck's local revenue, agriculture is also a major earner in this mostly rural part of Michigan. This said, there is a growing trend among Lake Michigan towns towards increasing industrialization, particularly in manufacturing and technology based sectors, and Saugatuck is no exception. With a low unemployment rate and median household income of around $45,000, locals find they get along just fine.
Housing
Saugatuck has a variety of housing options, ranging from charming nineteenth century cottages to modern single family homes and apartments. While most properties fall into the medium price range, there are some higher priced options here—elegant estates with private lake access, large designer homes on the golf course, or nature reserve, and so on. As is to be expected in this popular holiday destination, many homes in Saugatuck are rented or bought as vacation properties.
Parks/Sports/Recreation/Golf
One of Michigan’s top recreational and tourist destinations, pretty Saugatuck offers residents and holidaymakers alike much in the way of year round recreation.
There are several public beaches in Saugatuck, including beautiful Oval Beach, rated one of nation’s top 5 beaches by MTV and one of the world’s top 25 shorelines by the reputable Conde Naste Traveler Magazine. Perfect for boating, fishing, sailing, pleasure boating (the “Star of Saugatuck”, an old fashioned stern wheeler, tours the river and Lake Michigan shoreline), swimming, sunbathing, and dune bugging in summer, the Saugatuck coast and Kalamazoo River is ideal for ice fishing and ice skating in winter.
Saugatuck’s Marinas are first rate and the pretty boardwalk is a relaxing place to stroll lakeside, with cafes, galleries and shops to explore. Several public parks dot Saugatuck, many overlooking the harbor or riverside. Wicks Park is one of these, and its pretty Victorian gazebo and central location has made it a popular picnic spot.
Just outside of town are found the Saugatuck Dunes State Park and the Allegan State Game Area, two superb wilderness and recreation areas. Majestic Mt Baldhead is a great place for a challenging hike and home to the annual Mt Baldhead Challenge running race.
Golf enthusiasts can hit the links at one of the three 18-hole championship golf courses in Saugatuck, including Clearbrook, a semi-private club that has hosted the West Michigan PGA Championship. Known for its small fast greens and extremely narrow fairways, the course has challenging water hazards in play at 10 holes. Saugatuck also has an excellent golf school.
Special Attractions/Events
Saugatuck is a pretty town, full of historic buildings and surrounded by majestic dunes, pretty beaches, and stunning wilderness areas. Downtown has a charming lakeside boardwalk lined with unique cafes, restaurants, stores, and art galleries.
With the scenery for inspiration and the tourist market for viability, it’s no surprise that the arts are flourishing here. As well as the visual arts, Saugatuck has a thriving performing arts scene, much of it coordinated by the Saugatuck Center for the Arts, which hosts year round concerts, theater, and arts and crafts shows. The Center also offers a wide range of arts classes for locals of all ages (the Arts Institute of Chicago also runs an arts summer school in neighboring Oxbow).
The annual “BBQ, Beer, Honky Tonk” festival each September is a big draw to the community, as is the yearly Waterfront Film Festival in spring, and Chamber Music Festival in midsummer. Summer sees professional theater come to town, and in fall’s Gallery Stroll is enjoyed by locals and visitors alike; the annual Children’s Film Festival at the Saugatuck Center for the Arts is another popular event.
Saugatuck’s outdoor attractions are also memorable. The annual Mt Baldhead Challenge running race is a fun event for the whole family. Lake Kalamazoo and nearby Lake Michigan are ideal boating and fishing spots, and you can also rent a canoe, charter a sailboat, or ride the local Victorian hand-cranked ferry. An amphibious ‘duck’ from the Second World War shuttles between downtown Saugatuck and neighboring Douglas, another charming settlement and home to the SS Keewatin--a Titanic-era steamship which has been converted into an excellent museum. Downtown Douglas has one of the largest and best concentrations of antique and interior design stores in the Midwest.
Interesting Facts/Historic Buildings and Places
Derived from an Indian word for “River’s Mouth”, Saugatuck was first built by early settlers who came here to harvest lumber. The Kalamazoo River’s nearness to Lake Michigan made Saugatuck an ideal port to ship lumber to centers around the lake, including the rapidly developing city of Chicago.
By the late Nineteenth Century, this thriving little port town changed, becoming a popular destination for artists and holidaymakers. Many were in the Arts and Crafts Movement, and many homes from these days bear the architectural hallmarks of this period.
By the early twentieth century, tourism was really flourishing in Saugatuck, and the infamous Old Pavilion was built. This dance hall drew bands (and visitors) to Saugatuck from across the Midwest, gaining in repute until it burned down in the nineteen-thirties. Downtown’s corner drug store has a soda fountain from these days, and hand-creamed sodas and malted shakes have been a specialty for over eighty years. Many of the historic buildings that line the boardwalk were built in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
The 2002 movie “Road to Perdition” was filmed in Saugatuck.
- NUMBER1EXPERTS™ 
