Start from 19 curated places around Sault Ste. Marie, MI, then choose the recommendations that fit your guests.
Restaurants & cafés
The Wicked Sister
The undisputed top-rated bar and grill in the Soo, a family-owned spot where the kitchen does things right: thick burgers, hot honey chicken sandwiches, and a black garlic steak that punches well above the price point. The vibe is friendly dive bar without the griminess.
Lockview Restaurant
Since 1945, this waterfront institution across from the Soo Locks has been serving the freshest whitefish and walleye in the Upper Peninsula. Locals say the fish you eat today slept last night in Whitefish Bay, and the eight preparation styles — from Cajun broiled to lemon-pepper — prove they take the fish seriously.
Trails & outdoors
Algonquin Pathway
A 9-mile network of interconnected loops through hardwood and conifer forest just 5 miles west of downtown, winding along small ridges above open bogs. The 2-mile inner loop is lighted at night during ski season, making it accessible after dark in winter, while summer hikers have the whole system nearly to themselves.
Ashmun Creek Nature Trail
A 2-mile in-town trail following Ashmun Creek through a surprisingly wild riparian corridor given how close it sits to downtown streets. The path is accessible year-round, welcoming hikers in summer and snowshoers in winter, and connects to the city's park network.
Things to do
Soo Brewing Company
The local taproom right on Portage Avenue a short walk from the Soo Locks, where the beer and wine are made in the Upper Peninsula and served on a deck overlooking the river when the weather cooperates. Maggie's Irish Red is the top-selling house pour and a reliable starting point.
Kewadin DreamMakers Theater
A 1,500-seat concert venue inside the Kewadin Casino complex that has hosted national touring acts spanning country, rock, and comedy. For a city of 14,000 people, the caliber of acts that pass through is genuinely surprising.
Landmarks & sights
Soo Locks
Watch thousand-foot freighters glide through a quarter-mile of engineering that connects Lake Superior to the lower Great Lakes — a 21-foot elevation difference handled in minutes. The free observation platform has raised bleacher seating and a visitor center where rangers announce incoming vessels over a loudspeaker.
Museum Ship Valley Camp
A 550-foot Great Lakes ore carrier turned walk-through museum, stuffed with over 100 exhibits on shipping and shipwrecks. The star of the collection is the two recovered lifeboats from the Edmund Fitzgerald, the ore freighter that sank in 1975 and inspired Gordon Lightfoot's famous song.