Many wonder what the Grand Hotel sales team and other department managers do during the wintertime when the hotel is closed. One example is that each year, Grand Hotel participates in three golf shows in the state of Michigan. Representatives from the sales team along with golf professional, Jason Horricks, travel to the very popular and well attended shows in Grand Rapids, Lansing, and Novi. The West Michigan Golf Show this year is February 12-14 at DeVos Place in Grand Rapids. The Lansing Golf Show takes place at the Lansing Center February 26-28, and the Michigan Golf Show takes place at Rock Financial Showplace in Novi March 5-7, 2010.
Along with passing out our Grand Golf Packages brochures which highlight our Tea for Two Package, the two Michigan Golf Live Packages, and our Games & Gardens Week, we also sell rounds of golf for the 2010 season to be used anytime for $40.00 per round, a significant discount on our normal greens fees. Many guests who are planning to visit northern Michigan, Mackinac Island, or stay at Grand Hotel regularly purchase their rounds of golf at the shows. Some who visit our booth find the offer too good to be true and wonder if there is a catch. They think tee times will be limited or cart fees will be charged, neither of which is true. The $40.00 price does include 18 holes and cart as well as horse-drawn shuttle transportation between the Grand nine and Woods nine. Also, while tee times are subject to availability, any day of the week and any time of the day are open for certificate use as long as a tee time is available.
If you happen to be in Grand Rapids, Lansing, or Novi over the appropriate weekend, stop by the golf show as it is nice this time of year to think about outdoor recreation and warm sunshine on Mackinac Island.
Todays Guest Writer is Dr. Alex Graham. Grand Hotel’s Music Director.
As Grand Hotel’s Music Director, I am often asked, “where do you guys play in the winter?” Well, there are a lot of answers to this question.
Many of the musicians at the Grand spend their off-seasons living and performing in major cities like New York, Detroit or Chicago. Some of our musicians are college students that will return to schools like the Eastman School of Music, University of Michigan or Cincinnati Conservatory. And still, some of the musicians at the Grand take advantage of the off-season to do hardly any playing at all!
In my case, I keep busy with a wide variety of activities. This includes performing concerts with my groups at various clubs, theatres and jazz festivals, as well as playing with other musicians in the Detroit area. One of the highlights of this off-season was the chance to play with the Four Tops at the Motor City casino in Detroit!
Beyond my schedule as a performer, I also stay busy as an educator. This January, I started teaching at Eastern Michigan University as their Artist in Residence for the winter, 2010 semester. It’s a great program, and I’m thoroughly enjoying working with the students and faculty. Besides running workshops with their small jazz groups and big band, I’ll also be a featured performer at several concerts over the next couple of months. Our next one is, February 23rd at 8 PM in the Student Center Auditorium on EMU’s Ypsilanti campus. It will feature me with the EMU big band performing classic arrangements from the Count Basie/Duke Ellington songbook, so it should be a lot of fun!
Thanks for reading, and I’m looking forward to seeing everyone back at the Grand in May!
Alex Graham
We know you have all been waiting patiently for the airing of the Mackinac Island Dirty Jobs episodes. Well, mark your calendars for February 9th and 23rd when The Discovery Channel will be airing 2 island episodes. The February 9th episode ends with Mike chatting with 2 of his biggest fans, the Maedel twins, on the Grand Hotel lawn. And, February 23rd will feature the dirty jobs Mike performed at the hotel and at other locations on the island. We all had a great time while the guys were here and hope you enjoy watching these episodes just as much.
The Dirty Jobs crew also filmed an episode at the Soo Locks which will air on January 26th. Set your DVR and prepare for an hour of Pure Michigan Fun!
It is always a bittersweet time of the year when Grand Hotel closes for the season. Moving the rocking chairs in from the Front Porch to the Terrace Room for the winter, covering furniture, and draining the water from the pipes is a process we have perfected over time. Our first ever Close the Grand for the Season Package was very successful with over 450 people watching the hotel transition from being open to closing until May.
With the hotel closed, we have exciting news about new opportunities during our 2010 season. We began taking social reservations on Wednesday, November 4 and are excited to share new offers for 2010. For anyone booking our regular social rates, we will not only include a full breakfast and five-course dinner in the room rate, but also our Grand Luncheon Buffet daily. The buffet stretches over 100 feet long and offers both hot and cold foods and a dessert table not to be missed. We are pleased to add this value to our social rates for next season.
We have also added a Pure Michigan Package for 2010. Available on select dates, the package not only offers a special rate of $195.00 per person plus tax and baggage handling, but the added amenity of a ½-pound box of Grand Hotel fudge upon arrival and free golf greens fees on The Jewel. On select dates, the second night is half off and the third night is free.
We are also offering free golf greens fees on the Jewel, with a cart fee required, to many of our other packages throughout the year. They include Mother’s Day Weekend, AAA Memorial Day Weekend, Grand Hotel Lilac Festival Package, Games & Gardens Week, Carleton Varney’s Antique Show & Design Fall Festival, Girlfriends Getaway Weekend, Murder Mystery Weekend, Somewhere in Time Weekend, and Ballroom Dancing Weekend. The Jewel offers wonderful views of the Straits of Mackinac and the Mackinac Bridge and is enjoyable for golfers of all skill levels.
Be sure to check out all of the great packages we are offering for 2010 listed on the website under Special Packages. We look forward to a Grand 124th Season and hope to see all of you on Mackinac.
Dear Friends,
Grand Hotel was built during America’s gilded age for the very wealthy. This small segment of privileged society that wanted to get out of the crowded cities and enjoy their privileges. Today Grand Hotel serves all segments of society from the five star travelers to people like me who love old resort hotels and save up for the very special experience they offer. We value all of our guests but I do have to admit I have a soft spot for those who thought they would never be able to come here and for those who thought they would never return. No gathering of guests exemplifies this group of individuals better than Michigan Recreation and Park Association or MRPA. In the fall the hotel is able to offer the season’s most affordable rates. Close to 2000 people from senior and community centers come to the hotel from all over Michigan and a peppering of nearby states. Each Parks and Recreation department sends a representative with their group. A MRPA on sight coordinator also lives in the hotel and acts as host. They may be considered seniors but you would never know it by their activity level. Their days start with a sunrise yoga class after which a dozen activities are offered. Their choices include a Putting contest, Bead and Jewelry Making, Guided Walking Tours, Historical Lectures, Kitchen Tours, Garden Tours, Bingo, Line Dancing, Movies, Afternoon Tea, Scrapbooking, Biking, Writing contests, Personalized Carriage Tours, and an extravagant banquet on their last night in the hotel. I am exhausted just writing about these choices. One nice thing is that these options are available to all but individuals can do as much or as little as they like, there is something offered for every level of activity. Some simply enjoy finding a nice quite place to read a book.
I always enjoy the people that take the time to share their personal history at Grand Hotel. Some last visited the hotel 20, 30 or even 50 years ago. Their first hand eyewitness account of Grand Hotel surpasses any Historical Lecture I could present. Some memories are bittersweet recalling friends or a spouse no longer with us. But they are here now actively creating new memories and nothing will keep them young at heart like a new experience with new friends. There are also some people who thought they would never be able to stay at the hotel and how grateful they are to be here. These are the people that remind me why I am in the hotel business. This is the 42nd year MRPA has been coming to Grand Hotel and I hope they will never stop coming. As an employee there is no better way to wind down the summer season and close the house with a hotel full of guests that are so happy to be here.
Thanks MRPA!
Bob T.
