The Village at Grand Traverse Commons
Grand Traverse Commons
A complex of Italianate buildings converted from a 19th-century northern Michigan asylum, now a combined district of shops, restaurants and winery cellars.
These buildings originally formed the Northern Michigan Asylum, which opened in 1885 under a philosophy that architecture itself is therapy. Its yellow brick buildings and soaring spires are grand. After it closed in 1989, it was restored as the Grand Traverse Commons. On the lower level, the Mercato shopping arcade has a bakery, winery tasting rooms and a café. In summer, you can join a historical tour that enters the underground tunnels, and the surrounding forest trails and large trees are also worth walking. It is about 2 km from downtown.
Opening hours
Shops approx. 10:00–18:00
Nearby sights
- National Cherry Festival
- Downtown Traverse City (Front Street)
- Clinch Park
- Old Mission Peninsula
- Interlochen Center for the Arts
- Mission Point Lighthouse
- Fishtown (Leland)
- Leelanau Peninsula Wine Trail