Planning a Harbor Springs ski trip? Stay close to the slopes at The Bird House, a family-friendly vacation rental that sleeps 11 guests and puts you near both Nub’s Nob and The Highlands. Skip the long morning drive and stay near the skiing, the snow, and the best parts of winter in Northern Michigan.
Ideal for ski families, winter weekends, holiday trips, and group stays near Harbor Springs.
Planning a Harbor Springs ski trip? Start here.
Most families overthink a Northern Michigan ski trip. They compare six resorts, build a three-activity day, and end up driving more than skiing. Here is the short version of what actually works.
Book in this order: the house first, then passes or tickets, then one dinner you care about. Lodging is the only piece with real scarcity — holiday weeks and February weekends go six to nine months out. Everything else you can decide from the couch.
| Nub’s Nob | 7 min |
| The Highlands | 8 min |
| Downtown Harbor Springs | 10 min |
| Petoskey State Park | 7 min |
| Downtown Petoskey | 15 min |
| Pond Hill Farm | 20 min |
Everything is inside 20 minutes. That is the whole argument for staying here: a kid who is done at 1pm does not cost you the afternoon. You drive back, everyone resets, the skiers go out again.
Nub’s Nob or The Highlands?
You are seven minutes from one and eight from the other, so you do not have to pick before you arrive. But they are different trips.
The local favorite
Independent, unfussy, and known for grooming. The base area is small enough that you can send a nine-year-old to the lodge alone without worrying. Sells its own season pass — no national pass network.
Most families with kids under 10 start here.
The full resort
Bigger footprint, more terrain variety, on-site dining and lodging, and it is on the Ikon Pass — which matters if someone in your group already skis out west.
Better for mixed groups with teens and stronger skiers.
What most groups actually do: two days at Nub’s, one at The Highlands. Split it and nobody argues.
What it costs, and when to book
The Bird House runs from $495/night in winter. At ten or eleven people that is roughly $45–$50 per person per night — less than two hotel rooms, and you get a kitchen, a laundry room and a hot tub instead of a hallway.
Nub’s Nob discounts its 26/27 season passes 15% through October 10, 2026 — after that, full rates. If your group is skiing more than about five days this season, passes beat day tickets, and the math changes on October 11.
Confirm current pricing at Nub’s Nob or The Highlands. Both hills typically open in December — check each for this season’s opening day.
Book the house by early October for a holiday week, and by Thanksgiving for a February weekend. Those are the two windows that close first, every single year.
What a ski day actually looks like from here
Seven minutes changes the shape of the day more than people expect.
- Morning. Breakfast at the house, boots on in the mudroom, first chair without a 40-minute drive.
- Lunch. Come back. Lodge food for six people costs more than groceries for the week, and the kids nap.
- Afternoon. Whoever still wants to ski goes back out. Whoever does not, does not. This is the part that only works when you are close.
- Evening. Hot tub, dinner in, everyone under one roof. Downtown Harbor Springs is ten minutes away for the night you want to go out.
The three-day version: Friday to Sunday
A single day is the unit most people picture. A weekend has its own shape, and the seven minutes changes each day differently. This is two families, eleven people, ages four to fourteen. Adjust the ages and it still holds.
Friday: arrive, unload once
- Late afternoon. Pull into the plowed drive. Parking for six to eight vehicles means both families’ cars plus the grandparents fit without a shuffle.
- Before dinner. Boots and bags into the mudroom, gear sorted by person tonight, so the morning is not a scavenger hunt.
- Evening. Dinner in on arrival night — nobody wants a restaurant after a four-hour drive. If the big kids still have it in them, Nub’s is seven minutes away; check the current night-skiing schedule before you count on it.
Saturday: the full day, split by ability
- Breakfast at the house. Eleven people through a lodge cafeteria at eight in the morning is a bad idea and everyone knows it.
- First thing. Nub’s Nob, about seven minutes. Beginners to the free beginner area with a parent, confident skiers up the hill. Same lodge, same meeting point, two speeds.
- Midday — go home for lunch. Seven minutes each way. Soup on the stove, the youngest naps, the teenagers eat everything in the kitchen. This is the single biggest advantage of staying this close, and the reason the afternoon session happens at all.
- Afternoon. Back out with whoever still wants it. The little ones are done for the day. That is expected, not a failure.
- Evening. The one night you go out. Downtown Harbor Springs is about ten minutes, Petoskey about fifteen. Our after-skiing dining guide covers who will seat eleven mid-winter.
Sunday: the second hill, then leave before the crash
- Slower start. Pack the cars before you ski, so the house is done and nobody is hunting for a glove at noon.
- Morning. The Highlands, about eight minutes. Make this the resort day — the teens get the terrain they were asking for and the grandparents get the lodge.
- Early afternoon. Lunch at the hill this time, then a last hour on skis.
- Mid-afternoon. Leave. Everyone is tired, nobody is fighting yet, and the drive south starts in daylight.
Go home for lunch. It sounds small. It is the whole weekend.
Book the house before you buy lift tickets. Tickets are available all season; a five-bedroom house that sleeps 11, seven minutes from the hill on a February Saturday, is not.
What’s at the house that matters in winter
- Plowed drive, parking for 6–8 vehicles (two in the garage). Three families arriving separately is not a problem.
- Hot tub on a private wooded lot.
- Full kitchen — real cookware, not the plastic starter set.
- Washer and dryer in the house. Wet gear does not have to stay wet.
- Blackout curtains in every bedroom, which matters more than it sounds when small kids go to bed before the adults.
- Five bedrooms, sleeps 11 — grandparents get a real bed, kids get the basement.
Winter dates from $495/night · 7 minutes to Nub’s Nob · sleeps 11
Check Winter Availability →What ski families actually say
Everything above is our claim. This is theirs — four winter stays, in their words, pulled from Vrbo reviews.
“Beautiful ski weekend”
Beautiful, comfortable house minutes from skiing at The Highlands. We were a party of 10 and this house had plenty of space. The kitchen had everything we needed and the beds were exceptionally comfortable. Watching the sunset from the hot tub was the perfect end to each day. I would absolutely stay here again.
“Spotless, modern, spacious”
We found The Bird House to be spotless, new, modern, spacious and well appointed with comfortable beds and furniture and nice decor. We stayed for a long ski weekend with our three young kids and had plenty of space for them to play… The house is also very close to Nubs Nob and some good local restaurants. We will definitely be back!
“An incredible family weekend”
Our family goes north one weekend per year and we were so pleased with the Bird House. It is beautiful and so well equipped. Everything was sparkling and clean. It truly was an incredible family weekend with comfort for all. This is an all 5’s property.
“Will use them exclusively”
The Bird House is a beautiful clean establishment. The rental team is responsive and kind. I will use them exclusively in my future rentals.
That last one is a repeat guest. Nancy T. first stayed in December 2024, then booked again the following December — two winters running from the same family. If you only read one review, read that one.
Ski weekends and holiday weeks book first, every season.
Check Winter Availability →More winter planning guides
Before you load the car, run the winter section of our printable Harbor Springs packing list. The one families forget most: two pairs of waterproof gloves per kid.
Use these guides to help plan the rest of your Harbor Springs winter trip:
Ready to book your winter dates?
Stay close to Nub’s Nob and The Highlands at The Bird House, a family-friendly Harbor Springs vacation rental built for real winter trips.
Check Availability for The Bird HouseYour Home Base in Harbor Springs
Stay at The Bird House
Private 5-bedroom home that sleeps 11 — hot tub, firepit, and parking for 8. 7 minutes from Nub’s Nob and a short drive from everything in Harbor Springs.
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