Crystal Lake Alpacas
Crystal Lake Alpacas
4.5
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
About
Our family had always been fascinated by alpacas, but it wasn't until 2001 that we decided to bring six of them to our farm. We fell even more in love with these gentle, unique creatures. Not only are they the perfect farm animal, but alpacas also have the warmest, softest, most durable fiber known to man. Wanting to share this incredible fiber with others, The Crystal Lake Alpaca Boutique was officially established on the Nelson Family Farm in the Spring of 2012. The boutique lies within a refurbished barn, and features Northern Michigan rustic appeal using wood harvested from our property. Today, we have expanded the boutique to a second building on the farm and grown our herd to more than 50 alpacas. The boutique carries a variety of alpaca products including hats, mittens, scarves, neck warmers, the famous alpaca socks, sweaters, stuffed animals and much more! Closed holidays and Sundays.
Duration: 1-2 hours
Meets animal welfare guidelines
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Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information.
Popular mentions
4.5
30 reviews
Excellent
20
Very good
8
Average
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AllisonFromOhio
Westerville, OH39 contributions
Jul 2023 • Couples
Stopped by to purchase alpaca yarn! They tell you which alpaca the yarn came from. Fun! My husband waited in the car while I shopped.
Written July 11, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
ThomasTCat
St. Louis, MO772 contributions
Sep 2022
Our six year old granddaughter couldn't get enough of these adorable and soft alpacas. She loved feeding and petting them, and they loved getting all the attention. She spent a few hours there, and there was a big checkers board on the picnic table, so she had fun playing checkers with Opa while the alpacas watched her. Across the driveway is a Maternity Alpaca Section where you can view the babies and their mamas. So much to see in the gift shop, but most of the items are extremely expensive. We did find a cute white alpaca in the shop that wasn't made out of actual alpaca fur, so it was much more reasonable and she was thrilled with it. The cost to get in is minimal and a little container of food was only fifty cents, so she was able to feed them to her hearts content.
Written September 20, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Melissa R
Grand Rapids, MI306 contributions
Jul 2022 • Family
The farm is clean and well kept and the animals are loved. The alpacas are so cute and friendly! For a small fee, you can feed and pet them.
The boutique has beautiful pieces made from alpaca fur, plus lovely jewelery and gift items.
A great stop to stretch the legs and learn about these sweet friends.
The boutique has beautiful pieces made from alpaca fur, plus lovely jewelery and gift items.
A great stop to stretch the legs and learn about these sweet friends.
Written July 30, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
pasherry
United States1,025 contributions
Jun 2022 • Couples
Our daughter loves to knit so she was excited to see this alpaca farm. The boutique is nice with many handmade items. They sell yarn from the alpacas on the farm so we bought some. It can be expensive but they do have “discounted” yarn. We fed some of the alpacas; they were calm and cute. In the nursery area we saw alpacas with their newborns which was interesting. We enjoyed our visit.
Written June 14, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
travnutz
Plainfield, IL234 contributions
Oct 2021
What a fantastic experience! First off, we got there early during the week and it was so quiet there you could hear the leaves fall! This was good as they had a quiet sign by the barn as they had a lot of newborns in their nursery. SO cute! We did the petting and feeding experience and got really up close with the Alpacas and we had their undivided attention. The other animals nearby all came out of the barn when they heard us approach which was super cool. We got a few items at the gift shops and all in all had a lovely time. I would recommend going there and I will definitely go back when I am in the area again!
Written October 27, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
ZeelandScoutMom
Ottawa County, MI865 contributions
Sep 2020
We were able to visit during a sunny day. This Alpaca Farm is excellent! There is information about the alpacas and miniature donkeys and a dwarf goat. For $3.00 per person, one can go into an enclosed area to feed the adorable alpacas. We spent quite a while just watching the alpacas and interacting with them. The Alpaca Boutique (actually there are two) have beautiful items to look at and purchase. The owner was extremely knowledgeable about alpacas and their fur/hair. During this COVID time there were sanitizing stations available and also a limit to the amount of people inside the boutiques. We had an excellent experience and recommend a visit to this great place!
Written September 13, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Heather T
Lafayette, IN48 contributions
Jul 2020 • Family
This visit was even better than the last!! They’ve added a feature where for $3 pp you can go into a fenced, shady area and feed and pet a few alpacas!!! They are so gentle and sweet. Not to mention soft. When the weather is a little cooler, they have a mini donkey and goat to meet, too. A mask is required to enter both gift shops, and you do have to walk through one of the gift shops out to the alpaca feeding area, FYI. Must see if you like animals!!
Large selection of alpaca hair products.
Large selection of alpaca hair products.
Written July 11, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
JnKKMiller
Michigan12 contributions
Sep 2019 • Family
It was really cute to see the alpacas, especially the young ones, but you have to pay to go into a petting area that doesn't actually allow you in with the alpacas, so you are at the mercy of whether or not they've already eaten in order to have them come close enough to the fence to pet them. (They have a wide area they're penned in at, so were all resting at the back instead of near the visitor area). We went in the afternoon so never had any come close enough to pet as they probably had been fed all day by other visitors. Maybe more worthwhile in the morning?
The gift shop had some interesting things but they're of course very pricey. Still cute to see but don't go with the expectation of being able to pet them.
The gift shop had some interesting things but they're of course very pricey. Still cute to see but don't go with the expectation of being able to pet them.
Written September 3, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
simoneandtony
Howell, MI132 contributions
Jul 2019
I was in town for a law conference for my husband and while he was in sessions was looking for things to do.
Another wife of an attorney and her 11 year old son went there as well.
The store has lots to choose from. I got some incredibly fluffy mittens made of Alpaca. You can watch the babies cavort and play, you can feed the mules, goats and alpacas for $3. Nice stop. I'm glad I went.
Another wife of an attorney and her 11 year old son went there as well.
The store has lots to choose from. I got some incredibly fluffy mittens made of Alpaca. You can watch the babies cavort and play, you can feed the mules, goats and alpacas for $3. Nice stop. I'm glad I went.
Written August 7, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Carly G
Trinity, FL44 contributions
Jul 2019 • Family
It was quite hot but that didn’t stop us from having fun and feeding Alpaca. There are two charming gift stores with authentic Alpaca merchandise.
Written July 24, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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Claim your listingCrystal Lake Alpacas - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)
Frequently Asked Questions about Crystal Lake Alpacas
- Crystal Lake Alpacas is open:
- Mon - Sat 10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
- Hotels near Crystal Lake Alpacas:
- (5.05 mi) Harbor Lights Resort
- (1.08 mi) Modern, secluded house with Crystal Lake views on a forested ridge
- (3.99 mi) Wayfarer Lodgings
- (1.19 mi) Lakefront Home with High-Speed Internet, Lake Views, Central AC, & Private Beach
- (1.23 mi) Updated cottage w/ Crystal Lake access, quiet location
- Restaurants near Crystal Lake Alpacas:
- (2.95 mi) The Cherry Hut
- (2.17 mi) Roadhouse Mexican Bar & Grill
- (4.91 mi) Stormcloud Brewing Company
- (4.83 mi) Crescent Bakery
- (4.81 mi) Dinghy's Restaurant & Bar
Crystal Lake Alpacas Information
Excellent Reviews | 20 |
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Very Good Reviews | 8 |
Crystal Lake Alpacas Photos | 55 |