Saginaw Valley, Michigan
Frankenmuth
Michigan's 'Little Bavaria': German-style buildings, family-style chicken dinners, a covered bridge over the Cass River and Bronner's, a Christmas store the size of several football fields.
Photo: The Bavarian Inn Lodge, Frankenmuth, Crisco 1492, CC BY-SA 4.0
German Lutheran settlers founded Frankenmuth in 1845. Since the 1950s the town has leaned into its roots, with Bavarian-style buildings, festivals and two big chicken-dinner restaurants. Come hungry.
Bronner's CHRISTmas Wonderland, on the south edge of town, is open nearly every day of the year. The Holz-Brücke, a wooden covered bridge, crosses the Cass River.
Outdoors and nature
Trails, lookouts, waterfalls, beaches and time on the water come first.
Gugel Bridge
A historic iron truss bridge over the Cass River on Beyer Road, listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Sights and attractions
Museums, landmarks and the places people come here for.
Bronner's CHRISTmas Wonderland
A vast Christmas store, open almost all year, with a replica of the Silent Night chapel.
Glockenspiel tower
The Bavarian Inn's tower plays music and tells the Pied Piper story with figures.
Frankenmuth Historical Museum
The town's German settler history.
Markets, shops and festivals
Main streets, markets and the dates worth planning around.
Frankenmuth festivals
The Bavarian Festival in June and Oktoberfest in September, among others.
Bavarian Inn chicken dinner
Family-style chicken dinners in the Bavarian Inn Restaurant.
Book a tour or activity
Cruises, tours and experiences people book here. Each one goes to the operator's official page, and you can still add it to your trip.
Frankenmuth Brewery
Beer tastings and food at the riverside brewery.
Part of our Frankenmuth and Bay City guides.
Make it a weekend
Why stay the night
- Festivals fill summer and fall weekends.
- The Bavarian Inn's glockenspiel plays during the day.
- Bronner's lights are best after dark.
Nearby and worth the drive
A riverwalk and a coastal wetland state park on Saginaw Bay, about 35 minutes east.
Traverse Cityabout 3 h · Guide ↗Cherries and the bay.
Mackinac Islandabout 3 h 30 · Guide ↗No cars, lots of fudge.
Ready-made trips with Frankenmuth
3 days · Frankenmuth → Sleeping Bear Dunes (Glen Arbor and Empire) → Traverse City
Frankenmuth to Sleeping Bear
Chicken dinners and Christmas lights, then giant dunes over Lake Michigan.
2 days · Frankenmuth → Bay City
Frankenmuth and Bay City
A Bavarian-themed town inland, and, about 35 minutes north, a river city and a coastal wetland state park on Saginaw Bay.
Good to know
- Tourism: frankenmuth.org.
- We list only places we can check against an official source. Hours, seasons and prices change, so confirm before you go.
Photos on this page
Photo: The Bavarian Inn Lodge, Frankenmuth, Crisco 1492, CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo: The Gugel Bridge over the Cass River, Frankenmuth, Ian Poellet, CC BY-SA 3.0
Photo: Bronner's CHRISTmas Wonderland, AndrewHorne, CC BY-SA 3.0
Photo: A nativity display inside Bronner's, Peter K Burian, CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo: The Lager Mill on Main Street, Frankenmuth, Crisco 1492, CC BY-SA 4.0