Visit Muskegon Lights
Public Tours
(Summer Only)
Welcome
The Muskegon South Breakwater Light is open for tours in the summer only. Please see our online schedule for more information and online ticketing, which is not required or needed to reserve a spot. Entrance to the lighthouse is on a first come, first serve basis whether you have an online ticket or pay on site. Other special tours will be announced as they become available. Our final event of the year is held on Halloween, when volunteers dress up in costume and Trick-or-Treating is offered at the lighthouse tower base. Kids in costume will climb for free on Halloween in the company of an adult-paid admission.
Lighthouse Tours
Open Memorial Day to Labor Day
Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday from 1-5 p.m.
Post-Labor Day Tours To Be Determined
Weather dependent check our FaceBook page for more information.
Join us for one of our Annual Special Events!
Check FaceBook for announcements
Story time with the Lighthouse Keeper
Typically every Monday at 3 p.m. during July and August
Special Openings: Check FaceBook
National Lighthouse Day, Special Opening on August 7th
Annual Trick or Treating event at the Tower, the Saturday before Halloween, see FaceBook for times and dates
Pricing
No reservations are necessary and everyone is served on a first come are first-served basis, whether you purchase a ticket on site or online before hand. The tour lasts about 15 minutes if there is no wait upon your arrival and the last tour is offered 15 minutes prior to closing. Climb a Michigan Lighthouse and help preserve our lighthouses!
Docent-led Tower Tours Admission:
- $5 — Adults & Children
Military with ID and veterans FREE!
Group, School, & Private Tours
It is possible to schedule a tour outside of the published schedule as long as we can obtain volunteers to offer educational and group tours with advance notice. Led by experienced docents, guided group tours provide visitors with an educational and interesting glimpse into life at the Light Station. Walk the grounds with one of our knowledgeable volunteers and discover what it was like to live and work at the Lighthouse. Visit our history section to learn more about the lighthouse.
School tours are offered to public, private, and homeschool student groups, as well as other chaperoned youth groups.
Special private group tours can be arranged by contacting the Michigan Lighthouse Conservancy.
Please Note:
Children must be at least 3 feet tall in order to climb. Sturdy shoes are recommended.
ADA Accessibility
We are sorry, but the lighthouse is not ADA accessible and because of its location and obstacles, it is best viewed on the web cams from the public shore paths or through our website photo galleries.
Service Animals
Certified service animals are welcome around the exterior of the lighthouses only when tours are available, but not inside the tower. Also please be mindful that you must take out what your pet leaves behind.
Experience History
Climb the 48-foot-tall Muskegon South Pierhead Light and experience the unique feeling of traveling back in time. Up two spiral staircases and a shipman's ladder, this ironclad tower built in 1903 boasts unparalleled views from the lantern room (from the 1870 lighthouse) at the tower top. Knowledgeable, passionate volunteer lighthouse keeper docents share the history of Muskegon's lighthouses and their maritime importance with you.
How to get there
Muskegon is a lakeshore community located on Michigan’s western shore just about directly across Lake Michigan from Milwaukee, WI, and about one-third of the way up Michigan’s lower left hand from the Indiana State line. The towering sand dunes along the eastern shores of Lake Michigan collectively represent the world’s largest accumulation of sand dunes bordering a body of fresh water.
South Breakwater Lighthouse
The South Breakwater Lighthouse is located at the end of the southern Army Corps of Engineers breakwater at the entrance to the channel leading to Lake Muskegon from Lake Michigan in the City of Muskegon, Michigan. Approximate Latitude / Longitude: +43° 13′ 26.83″, -86° 20′ 49.60″.
South Pierhead Lighthouse
The South Pierhead Lighthouse is located at the end of the Army Corps of Engineers south pier in the harbor of the City of Muskegon, Michigan. Approximate Latitude / Longitude: +43° 13′ 36.00″, -86° 20′ 29.50″.
The South Breakwater Lighthouse is accessible through the NOAA Lake Michigan Field Station or can be viewed by boat and has no official street address. The South Pierhead Lighthouse is accessible via beach access or can be viewed by boat. The nearest address is the NOAA Lake Michigan Field Station located at 1431 Beach St., Muskegon, MI 49441.
The Muskegon South Pierhead Light is located at the Muskegon Lake entrance channel at Lake Michigan, 500 feet from shore and the 1905 USLSS Station, currently owned by NOAA.
Reaching The Lighthouse
Come On Down
In order to reach the lighthouse, you must first enter through the Pere Marquette Park, locate a parking spot in either the Pere Marquette Park or in Margaret Drake Elliot Park (adjacent and to the east of the USCG Station). You must pay the City of Muskegon to park at the beach. By foot, walk along the designated sidewalk and footpath through the NOAA Lake Michigan Field Station to the South Pier. All of the sidewalks and footpaths are in good condition and sometimes blowing sand slightly covers them.
On the pier, there is a vertical rise of about one foot across the entire length of the pier that you must step up onto in order to access the rest of the pier to the lighthouse. The pier is level and in good physical condition based upon our own observations and is approximately 45 to 50 feet wide. Next to the boat basin the pier is entirely unprotected with railings as it is a work area so please be careful.
The sides of the pier after the NOAA Station out to the lighthouse are lined and protected on both sides with metal posts painted blue with a protective safety cable railing system to prevent people from getting to close to the perimeter of the pier and falling into the water.
Once up on the pier from the step, you walk the rest of the way down the pier to the lighthouse. Once at the base of the lighthouse, you notice the footing or foundation that the light tower sits in, which is an octagonal concrete footing that is approximately 15 foot in diameter and one foot tall. The light tower is secured to the octagonal base via numerous large bolts and nuts.
Lighthouse Passport Program & Club
The United States Lighthouse Society (USLHS) Passport Program is designed to generate donations for participating lighthouses, in addition to being a fun and educational way to learn about lighthouses and chronicle your lighthouse adventures. Collect unique stamps from over 600 locations throughout the country. In addition, if you join the USLHS free Passport Club you will receive a special gift and periodic updates on new stamp locations and stamp hunting tips. This is a great way to commemorate your lighthouse hunting experiences while also supporting America’s lighthouse preservation!
Help Save Lighthouses – Donate Now
Help support the Michigan Lighthouse Conservancy with your thoughtful donation