I’ll be honest, by December 2024, I was exhausted. Between work, life, my mental health, the everyday chatter about the world and politics, I needed a break. Luckily, my friends and I were on the same wavelength and next thing you know one Sunday afternoon the text comes in. “How do we all feel about having a girls getaway?” That’s all I really needed to hear but the suggestion was for a cabin or nice downtown location in Lake Geneva or Saugatuck. Everyone was up for it, it was just came down to planning the when are where.
We touched base again in January and settled on Valentine’s Day weekend. Two out of the five of us are in serious relationships and their partners are always super supportive of our girl group shenanigans.
One of our friends is really good and planning trips and came up with some options for Saugatuck. Some of the girls have been there before and highly recommended the location. While it is their off season and a lot of places were closed we thought with what is available we would still have a good time. From there it came down to the accommodations and it really came down to what would be most comfy and pass the vibe check. It was a cabin friends…
We went for the Luxury MI Cabin – Couples, families, friends-POOL! This cabin is located in Kingfisher Cove so it’s only a two-minute walk to Goshorn Lake. This cabin was super spacious even with five of us. It can host up to 8 people with 5 beds, 3 bedrooms and 2 baths. We also had a large kitchen where we could prep our morning coffees, hold all of our snacks (we had a lot), and create a massive charcuterie board experience on the long dining room table. We were close to a gas station, supermarket, less than 10 minutes away from the downtown area and about 15 minutes away from Holland if you wanted a larger downtown experience.
This cabin was perfect for the snowy days. We could watch the snow flurries while sipping our hot cocoa or pour over coffee next to a fireplace. We would spread out over the large couches wrapped in our oversized hoodies and binge watch TV, play games and have some very passionate exchanges over the Overcooked and Super Mario Party Jamboree gameplay. We would laugh, threaten each other (with video game consequences) and eat snacks all weekend lol.
Exploring Saugatuck and Surrounding Areas:
We were worried with the weather report, but luckily there was only one real snow day so we got to get out and explore. Our first stop was Modales Winery. The staff was fun and helpful and I we all enjoyed a lot of the wines that they offered. I even left with a few bottles to take home and we bough some charcuterie items for us to snack on later at the cabin. I gave this place 5 stars on Google!
Later that day, we had dinner at Salt of the Earth. I got the Ribeye (16 oz) that came with garlic and herb shrimp, mushrooms, and fries for $52 and the Lake Effect Sour. The Ribeye was cooked well, but I wasn’t as impressed with the meal as I was with the drink. I think that the mushrooms and shrimp didn’t add to the dish which made me wish there was just some really tasty sauce or gravy to go with it but it wasn’t bad. I would try a different dish there again or just go for cocktails. I gave it a 3 or 3.5 star rating on Google and hope to revisit it later.
The next day after trying our best to hydrate after a night of drinking in the cabin, we headed to Pennyroyal Cafe & Provisions. We started it off with Mimosas and the waiter was a vibe! He was so friendly and came with all the energy, he even coined our weekend “Valengal” which was a tongue twist mistake but we were feeling it so we called our weekend that for the rest of the trip lol. The mimosas were very good and I then ordered a frittata. We also ended our trip here and I got a latte with pancakes, eggs, and hashbrowns. I gave it a 4 star rating leaning into the vibes and the staff. I just wasn’t blown away by the food options I chose. I want to go again because my friends said that their sandwiches and tomato soup were really tasty.
Afterward, we went downtown and checked out the some local shops. The girls in this group love to read so we did some googling and came across The Book Nook of Saugatuck. We wanted to shop at used and/or Indie book stores and this place was perfect! When you get there you will see why. It is a really cute book store and the used books are in great condition. Not to mention they offer Blind Date with a Book and Book Nooks! They have a small book nook for kids to read in and it was so inviting that I almost climbed in. The owner was there during our visit and she was so nice and took the time to chat with us. I gave this place a 5 star review! I ended up buying The House of Eve by Sadeqa Johnson and the Shatter Me series by Tahereh Mafi while I was here.
We then did some exploring and found the Olive Mill. This place is an olive oil shop that also has imported foods like pasta, sauces, etc. We went straight for the skincare products and purchased a few items. From there, we found a really cute candle and oil lamp shop called Bright World Candle Co. with the cutest dog and owner duo. Then we happened upon Amazwi Contemporary Art that is a gallery that features African art such as paintings, sculptures, jewelry and much more. There were also a ton of shops that either opened later or were closed for the season.
We then headed to Holland, MI and stopped at an Indie book store called Reader’s World. It had a good selection of books, most of them being paperback. They had some graphic novels that were very tempting. I ended up picking up Lone Women A Novel by Victor Lavalle. I gave it a 5 star review because well Indie Bookstore, but it also had a great selection and the staff was very helpful.
We checked out a bunch of small shops along the strip and grabbed donuts from before heading out to Fenn Valley vineyard for another wine flight. I’ll be honest here, Modales was my favorite winery.
The Southerner: A Must-Visit
After all the shopping and the wine flight, we were ready to sit down to an actual meal and opted for dinner at The Southerner. This was by far my favorite restaurant of the entire trip. If you don’t read anything else just know I give it five stars!!! We ordered the Nana’s Fried Chicken Dinner. It comes with 12pc of chicken, 1 mac and cheese, 2 fried catfish filets with creole remoulade and 2 family sized sides. You also get 6 biscuits with honey butter. The chicken was so good! We got it Nashville Hot which is like the middle heat tier. It still found it hot but the heat had purpose. The sauce was flavorful so it didn’t feel like the heat was unnecessary. For our sides, we got Potato Gratin and Baked Beans. The potato gratin was my favorite side and let me tell you, the biscuits and that butter honey was so good that I ordered more biscuits so we could have them in the morning. If you can only go to one place, out of all of the places we went I would recommend you go here.
The Perfect Girl’s Trip, The Perfect Reset
On our last full day, we had a cozy snow day. In the morning we busted out the charcuterie breakfast. There were different types of crackers, chicken sausage and chorizo, salami, prosciutto, different kinds of cheese, tortillas and bagels, olive oil, truffle honey and fruit, candies and chocolates and mimosas. Some of us also opted for pour-over coffee. It gave mini Hogwarts breakfast.
Three out of fives of us spent some time planning a trip to Asia and then we started playing games and watching TV shows.
Later that day we enjoyed the leftovers from the Southerner and and snacked on our snack reserves.
I think what makes a good girls trip isn’t too difficult. All you need is comfy lodgings, good company, food and entertainment. Honestly all you need is the good company. It’s the vibes – the inside jokes, good energy, and the little moments that you create. If you are feeling the slightest bit burnt out find a good friend or take some time for yourself. It doesn’t have to be extravagant either. Sometimes you just have to get away from your normal routine and/or environment. I encourage you to plan a trip whether it be a staycation (at home or in your city), a short two 2 hour getaway, a weekend, weeklong vacation, or head out of town or even out of the country. Make it a routine to do it yearly, don’t wait until your completely out of gas to take a break.
You deserve all the good things.
Lolo Blogs 
Leave a comment