In-Town Saugatuck “Magical Backyard” with Fire Pit Walk to Town

The Rivercroft Cottage is an elegant 5 BR home within a short walk to town, a brief drive to the Saugatuck Dunes State Park for hiking, a close drive to Douglas or Oval Beach and within minutes from top wineries and fun microbreweries nearby. Great restaurants in town. I'll send you my favorites. Come to Saugatuck for shopping, exploring food markets and art gallery tours.
Check out our 5 STAR Reviews!
"The Rivercroft is spacious, beautiful and located conveniently to all Saugatuck and Douglas have to offer. The house is extremely clean, well equipped for all your cooking needs and has plenty of spaces for hanging out, working/studying from home or finding a quiet corner for reading or napping. The fenced backyard and shady front porch are icing on the cake."

Walk to the lively town of Saugatuck along the Kalamazoo River from this historic home which has been recently renovated for vacation living. The Rivercroft Cottage has 5 bedrooms, 3 1/2 baths (2800+ Sq Feet), 2 living areas, a lovely fenced-in backyard and an up-to-date kitchen. The house is within walking distance to downtown Saugatuck, right across the street from the Kalamazoo River and within a short drive to Lake Michigan. The house offers plenty of room for your group to spread out: 2 living rooms with gas fireplaces, family room has tv with all streaming apps, a large dining room, front porch and an awesome back yard with dining table and gas firepit.

Lots to do: hiking, wine tasting tours, microbreweries are open! We love The Cottage Bar at Wicks Park for drinks and apps with a talented mixologist at the bar.

Have you tried Modales Winery? There's so much to do all year long including art and wine at J. Petter Gallery!

We book reservations for prime summer vacation weeks Sunday to Sunday. Plan now for Summer 2025. In the fall and winter we take long weekend bookings.

This super comfortable home sleeps 10 (King, 2 Queen, Full, 2 Twins) and has gorgeous entertaining spaces to enjoy time with your group including a spacious living room with a gas fireplace, large dining room with seats for 10, a comfortable family room with cable tv and brick patio in the private backyard. Amenities include central A/C throughout the house, cable tv, and wifi. Enjoy cool Michigan evenings grill your meal and dine outside and play lawn games.

Explore Lake Michigan nearby. Saugatuck Dunes State Park has an awesome beach for walking. You can bike straight there on the bike trail from the house. Oval Beach has plenty of beach and offers public facilities.

There are lots of family friendly activities in the area. Spend a day at Oval Beach, a very easily accessible public beach in Saugatuck, head to Wade’s Bayou to rent kayaks or stand-up paddle boards to explore the beauty of the Kalamazoo River, take the Chain Ferry across the Kalamazoo to climb up Mt. Baldhead and walk to Oval Beach. If you are a foodie, don’t miss the Root Beer Barrel, taste jams at American Spoon, sip local wines at Fenn Valley Vineyard, visit a U-pick farm or visit one of the many breweries like the Saugatuck Brewing Company or Virtue Cider in Fennville.

We love our guests and their lovely comments:

“Everything as advertised. In great location that allowed us to easily do everything we wanted in the Saugatuck area. Beautiful walk downtown, easy walk to The Southerner (our fave dining of the week), and it was great to have easy access to Blue Star Hwy. (Also highly recommend Pennyroyal for food/drink). The character of the house added to the enjoyment of our stay. We used almost everything available to us - grill, yard, fire pit, etc. Everything worked and was in great condition. The host, Melissa, was incredibly easy to work with. Tons of detailed and frequent communication. We didn't have to guess on a thing. Thank you, Melissa - we hope to stay at another one of your properties soon!!”

In Prime Season, June 15-Sept 7, 2025, we book Sunday to Sunday which can be perfect for wedding groups.

The house has been meticulously renovated with high-end fixtures and designer details throughout which add to the character of this lovely 5 bedroom, 3 1/2 bath home which sleeps 10.

We are taking cleaning seriously at the Rivercroft. We are cleaning all bedding with bleach and are disinfecting all surfaces before visits.

Upstairs offers 4 bedrooms. The Primary Bedroom suite with brand-new bathroom includes a large room with King bed and sitting area. The Twins bedroom (with door) is adjacent and shares the luxurious bathroom. Also upstairs there are 2 Queen Bedrooms and a hall bathroom with tub and shower. Downstairs you'll find one bedroom (Full) with a private full bath with large brand-new shower. House sleeps 10 comfortably.

You’ll love the location as we are just steps away from the Marina and the famous Southerner Restaurant and within a short walk to downtown Saugatuck. Wind your way along the Kalamazoo River through the Saugatuck Historic District into downtown which offers a wide selection of boutiques, art galleries, coffee shops and excellent restaurants. Go to Ida Red’s for breakfast or, in the evenings, stroll into town for cocktails and dinner at one of the best spots in town. I’ll send you my list of favorite restaurants.

Guests love the layout of the Rivercroft Cottage as there many well-designed rooms for gathering as a group, including a large scale living room, a gracious dining room, a fully equipped kitchen, comfortable family room with soaring ceiling, gas fireplace and cable tv. You'll love the private backyard with game area and dining table and lounge seating. There are lots of places in the house to spread out for privacy, or gather together, including our classic front porch.

This house, known as the Bandle Farm, plays a unique role in Saugatuck's artist community heritage. In 1902 the artists from the Palette and Chisel Academy of Fine Arts in Chicago who eventually founded Ox Bow Summer School of Painting gathered in the house and painted during their summer break from Chicago.

Are you coming to enjoy the lakeshore in the spring or fall? We've built two gas fireplaces for inviting conversation in either living room.

Saugatuck/Douglas was just named one of the “20 Best Places to go in 2020,” by Condé Nast Traveler. And the Rivercroft is one of the premier homes in the area. Make it your vacation home!

Enjoy the classic front porch with coffee in the mornings, and spend your evenings gathered in the private, fenced in back yard with well-appointed lounge furniture, outdoor games area, gas firepit, dining table and gas grill. There are lots of extras at the house to make your vacation experience at the Rivercroft Cottage extremely comfortable; excellent mattresses, luxury linens, well equipped kitchen, central a/c, and a game closet filled with games for the whole family.

Saugatuck is “one of the world’s best beach towns” (US News & World Report) and was named “One of the top 25 Beaches in the World” by Conde Nast Traveler. The Rivercroft Cottage provides a central location to explore it all. We are right on the Blue Star Bike Trail which offers easy access to downtown Saugatuck and Douglas, Lake Michigan beaches and to the Saugatuck Dunes State Park for hiking trails which lead to a gorgeous beach along the shores of Lake Michigan. This bike trail is enjoyed by runners, bikers and strollers and connects 200 miles of bike trails between Holland and Van Buren State Park in South Haven.

Fully immerse yourself in the pleasures of “The Art Coast” during your vacation. The Saugatuck and Douglas communities offer tons of summer events including art festivals, music and dance performances at the Saugatuck Center for the Arts, art shows at Ox Bow, multiple openings at the art galleries in Douglas and Chamber Music concerts at the Saugatuck Women’s Club. There are many wine tasting and chef dinner events, as well as microbrew and music festivals, I’ll send a link to the multiple summer and fall activities.

If you want to explore a bit farther to Fennville, you can visit a U-pick farm or select fresh veggies from a farm stand, have pie and cider at Crane’s Orchard, peak at the Curious Children’s Museum and the Art Barn or take a private tour of the Peachbelt Art Studio. I am happy to send you suggested itineraries to explore off-the-beaten path.

If you'd like to visit a different part of Michigan and go wine tasting along the Leelanau Peninsula Wine Trail, boat on Lake Leelanau, see Fishtown in Leland, and visit Traverse City, Suttons Bay and Northport, then please check out my Leelanau County Vacation Rentals.

Vrbo #610555 The White Birch Cottage on Lake Leelanau is a 5 BR, 2 BA home on a beautifully landscaped property with a dock on Lake Leelanau. It's easy to rent a pontoon to enjoy the whole lake. You can walk to town to pubs, coffee shops and tasting rooms, or within a short scenic drive you can visit many wineries, hike Leelanau Conservancy trails, and walk our long Lake Michigan beaches. Includes canoe, kayak, fire pit, ping pong.

Vrbo # 456621 The Bluestone Cottage in Leland is a 5BR, 3BA home within walking distance to Lake Michigan and Historic Fishtown. This house has a lovely front porch and a back deck with a gas fire pit and charcoal grill. Guests love the comfortable beds, room to spread out, and ease of walking into town.

Vrbo #491672 The Schoolhouse Cottage in Suttons Bay, a 4 BR, 2 BA historic home just one block to town and only two blocks to the beach and Marina in Suttons Bay, features an open living and dining room, a well-equipped kitchen, and a side porch for enjoying Michigan evenings. Centrally located to visit our quaint towns, tour the wineries and cider houses, and enjoy our excellent farm-to-table cuisine.