Blue Lakes By the Bay Transportation
Blue Lakes By the Bay Transportation
Blue Lakes By the Bay Transportation
4.5
Taxis & ShuttlesBeer Tastings & ToursPrivate ToursWine Tours & Tastings
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Full view
About
At Blue Lakes By The Bay, we specialize in providing high-quality, reliable transportation services to visitors and locals alike. Whether you're planning a wedding, a wine tour, or a corporate event, our team is here to help you make the most of your time in the area. We offer various vehicles to meet your needs, including SUVs, 14-pax buses, 25-pax buses, 34-pax coaches, and 56-pax coaches. Our fleet is regularly maintained and serviced to ensure that you arrive at your destination safely and in style. Our drivers are experienced, friendly, and knowledgeable about the area, and they are always happy to share their insider tips and recommendations with you. Whether you're looking for the best local restaurants, the most scenic spots to take photos, or the most exciting activities to try, our team is here to help. So why wait? Book your next trip with Blue Lakes By The Bay today and experience the best Northern Michigan offers.
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Blue Lakes By the Bay Transportation
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
4.5
69 reviews
Excellent
59
Very good
5
Average
1
Poor
0
Terrible
4
Beckie A
1 contribution
May 2023
We hired a Blue Lake By the Bay 14 passenger van for a 5 hour tour of wineries along the Leelanau Peninsula. We had 8 moms on an annual getaway trip to Traverse City. Our driver David was excellent. He called two hours before our start time to confirm details. He was prompt, patient, and flexible throughout our excursion. Our van was clean and we had plenty of room. I would absolutely recommend this driving service and we've already discussed requesting David to be our driver for our trip again next year.
Written May 9, 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.
Julie M
Minneapolis, MN5 contributions
Sep 2021
We did a winery tour on 9/25 - Chuck was our driver - and had a blast! Chuck gave us the history of many of the wineries, and always checked us in at the places where we had reservations AND he got us into the places where we didn't have reservations! Chuck was the best - there was water in the car for each of us and the SUV was clean and spacious. If we ever come back to Traverse City we will definitely hire Blue Lakes By the Bay Transportation again. As long as it comes with Chuck!
Written September 28, 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.
Chris in Michigan
1 contribution
Apr 2022
Rode a packed bus four hours each way to a rally and Drew made sure we were all comfortable and hydrated. Super friendly, helped people get on and off, didn't hit any curbs or deer(!) and drove very courteously. It was a great experience!
Written April 4, 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.
mhanscom48
Somerville, MA4 contributions
Aug 2023 • Family
We used Blue Lakes by the Bay for transportation to and from our wedding in the Traverse City area - they were great! Nate was incredibly accommodating as we had to make multiple last minute changes to the schedule, and Sara + Jen were great with day of coordination and with driving everyone + checking in with us throughout our wedding day. Would highly recommend them as a bus service, especially with how difficult rideshare can be in Northern Michigan!
Written August 22, 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.
Cortney B
2 contributions
May 2023
We used Blue Lakes By the Bay to transport guests from our wedding venue to the hotel. We had an amazing experience! From asking questions about booking, working with office staff to reserve the bus, to our driver, everything went smooth. They ensured the driver had a correct timeline and location and there were no hiccups to our day. Our driver, Clark, was FANTASTIC! He was the hot topic of all of our guests the next day! He was accommodating, friendly, and professional and went out of his way multiple times to make sure guests had a good experience. I will continue to recommend anyone their service! Thank you Blue Lakes, for making this part of our wedding one less thing to stress about!
Written May 9, 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.
Jack S
1 contribution
Aug 2024 • Couples
Blue Lakes By the Bay is THE BEST. Visited upper Michigan in August and had the pleasure of riding with BLBTB for an evening event. Not only was their service excellent, but they also helped me find and locate a lost item. Truly a great company and one I'd call anytime. Couldn't recommend more.
Written August 26, 2024
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.
Greg J
Frankenmuth, MI4 contributions
Aug 2022
Blue Lakes provided a nice motorcoach and an awesome driver, Drew Donegan. Not only is he a skilled driver but also great with all the passengers in our group. Highly recommended if you are looking for great transportation.
Written August 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.
awatson33
Tecumseh, MI5 contributions
Jun 2014 • Couples
Taking a shuttle is a great way to tour the Traverse City wineries responsibly and totally worth the money. The van from By the Bay was clean and they provided a little bag of snacks and water, which was nice. Our driver, Ethan, arrived about 10 minutes early, but at least he wasn't late. He was a very safe driver and a nice man. My only complaint is that he kept coming in the wineries to check on us, I think to hurry us along to the next place. However, we were the only people on the shuttle, so it was really up to us how long we wanted to stay, as long as we didn't push it past the tour end time. It you do the Leelanau tour, be sure to stop by the Willow Vineyard, which has the most breathtaking view of them all!
Written June 26, 2014
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.
Ashley48837
Traverse City, MI5 contributions
Jul 2014 • Couples
I can't even begin to say how AWFUL my experiences have been with this company. It started back in 2013.
My parents kindly reserved transportation through By the Bay for after my wedding. The request was for my husband and myself to be picked up at our wedding site in Northport and driven to Traverse City for our hotel stay. The driver was supposed to pick us up at about 10:30-11:00pm. The car/driver never showed. We called and called and no one at the company would answer. A guest from the wedding ended up driving us to our hotel at about midnight.
The next day (after calling multiple times to no answer/response) we finally got a hold of someone at the company. The gave us a bit of a run around (blaming the situation on us), but after some time speaking they refunded our payment and kindly gave us a gift certificate for a wine tour (Leelanau or Old Mission) for two because of our frustration.
The next summer, I had some friends come to visit and I decided to cash in the gift certificate. I was well aware that we had three people and I said I would happily pay for the additional guest (over the price of our gift certificate). At this point, the company said they raised their price for the transportation/wine tour for two, so I would have to pay additional. Unfortunately for the company, my gift certificate did not have a dollar amount on it, so after some fight (and rude comments from staff members and more than one phone call) they just charged me for one additional person.
When it came closer to the wine tour date, the company over charged my credit card. My husband and I had to call 5 times to get a reimbursement, each time speaking to rude staff members. When we received the reimbursement, they reimbursed me for $2 not the amount that they should have (which was $20). After another half a dozen calls (over about four days) and HORRIBLE customer service they finally reimbursed me for the over charging.
Day off the wine tour, the driver showed up and he was fantastic. My friends and I were so excited to go on our planned tour of OLD MISSION PENINSULA wineries. As we started our tour and turned on the first road, I could immediately tell that the driver was taking us to LEELANAU PENINSULA. Once again, another mistake by the company.
I can happily say that Michael our driver was great, and I would never say anything poor about him. The company however is awful and I would NEVER recommend it to anyone, especially if you actually want to be picked up on your wedding night.
My parents kindly reserved transportation through By the Bay for after my wedding. The request was for my husband and myself to be picked up at our wedding site in Northport and driven to Traverse City for our hotel stay. The driver was supposed to pick us up at about 10:30-11:00pm. The car/driver never showed. We called and called and no one at the company would answer. A guest from the wedding ended up driving us to our hotel at about midnight.
The next day (after calling multiple times to no answer/response) we finally got a hold of someone at the company. The gave us a bit of a run around (blaming the situation on us), but after some time speaking they refunded our payment and kindly gave us a gift certificate for a wine tour (Leelanau or Old Mission) for two because of our frustration.
The next summer, I had some friends come to visit and I decided to cash in the gift certificate. I was well aware that we had three people and I said I would happily pay for the additional guest (over the price of our gift certificate). At this point, the company said they raised their price for the transportation/wine tour for two, so I would have to pay additional. Unfortunately for the company, my gift certificate did not have a dollar amount on it, so after some fight (and rude comments from staff members and more than one phone call) they just charged me for one additional person.
When it came closer to the wine tour date, the company over charged my credit card. My husband and I had to call 5 times to get a reimbursement, each time speaking to rude staff members. When we received the reimbursement, they reimbursed me for $2 not the amount that they should have (which was $20). After another half a dozen calls (over about four days) and HORRIBLE customer service they finally reimbursed me for the over charging.
Day off the wine tour, the driver showed up and he was fantastic. My friends and I were so excited to go on our planned tour of OLD MISSION PENINSULA wineries. As we started our tour and turned on the first road, I could immediately tell that the driver was taking us to LEELANAU PENINSULA. Once again, another mistake by the company.
I can happily say that Michael our driver was great, and I would never say anything poor about him. The company however is awful and I would NEVER recommend it to anyone, especially if you actually want to be picked up on your wedding night.
Written March 5, 2015
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.
Dear customer, I was very surprised to see this review of our company and our performance. I am glad you enjoyed our tour and driver on your tour. It is true that in 2013 your parents hired our private car to come and pick up the bride and groom and take you to your hotel room. The fact that we were given the wrong location for your wedding meant that our driver waited for 2 hours at midnight and no one showed up, meanwhile you waited and we were at the address on the contract. As we explained to you and the contract showed, we were given the wrong address through no fault of our own. Unfortunately there was nothing we could do the night of the wedding as we went to where we were contracted to be. We did give you two free wine tours to show you that we were sorry we were given the wrong address and therefore failed to pick you up. Our gesture was one of kindness to make it up to you for not catching the error on the address as it was given to us. At no time was there a hesitation of returning your fee even though our driver was waiting at the site we were contracted for. Furthermore, we haven't raised our wine tour prices in 3 years, in fact they were lowered for the Leelanau wine tour by $10.00 and wouldn't have charged you any additional for the two of you. Of course we charged for your additional guest, but you were treated to a free wine tour at our expense and we were trying to let you enjoy yourself. You stated you enjoyed your tour and driver for that I am glad.I am disappointed that you were still so angry that you needed to vent on a review. I wish you had put the date so others would know it was was over two years ago,
Thankfully we have learned from our experience with you as well, specifically because of your service we double check with the Bride and all parties involved to make sure we are given the correct address before the service., even after the contracts are signed and we haven't had the same experience nor have we disappointed anyone else. We have still treated a few to wine tours but that has been as a thank you for their referrals of friends and family. Thank you for your time
Written March 9, 2015
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Duncan M
7 contributions
Sep 2014 • Couples
Very good driver- brought us to the best wineries. Excellent except I brought back too much wine. Leelauna peninsula was beautiful.
Written September 29, 2014
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.
what is the price for your wine tour? there are only 3 persons coming , we would like the tour oct. 10,2015 and do you pick up at the hotel ?do you have any hotels you would not come to/
Written September 17, 2015
BytheBay T
Traverse City, Michigan
Gwen,
We do have group tours you could join that would keep the cost down to $59.00 per person for a 4 hour tour. That is for a public tour. We also do private tours. The tasting fees are the paid by the guests who are doing the tasting. :)
Written September 21, 2015
how much is the wine tour and how many winerys do they go to and do the winerys charge to taste ther wines
Written September 17, 2015
BytheBay T
Traverse City, Michigan
Hey, We offer public and private wine tours and craft beer tours. The public tours run 7 days a week and we would pick you up from any of the local Traverse City hotels. During the tour you get to visit 4-5 different wineries, depending on the size of the group that day maybe even more. On the Old Mission Peninsula tour we also make a 15 minute stop at the Old Mission Lighthouse. This is a great spot to get out, walk around, take pictures and enjoy some beautiful scenery. Once the tour is done, the shuttle driver then drops you back off at your hotel. Pricing for that is $59 per person for the Old Mission tour or the Leelanau tour. Our public tours come with a little goodie bag, with crackers, cookies and a little candy as well as water to make the drive time a little nicer between the wineries. The tasting fees for the public tours are paid by the guests directly to the wineries.
In addition to our public wine tours, we also offer private wine tours. In this case we would pick you up from wherever you are staying at the time of your choice, keeping in mind most of the tasting rooms close between 5pm and 6:00Pm in the fall and winter season and 6-8:00PM in the Summer. You and your group would decide which Peninsula you would like to experience along with the wineries you visit. The tasting fees for the wineries are paid by the guests directly to the wineries.
Last but not least we also have the Stem to Stein Tour which goes to 3 Wineries and 2 craft breweries. It is a 5 hour tour for $89.00 and includes all the tasting fees including some appetizers at one of the wineries and one of the breweries.
Public Wine tours – (Fun to join)
Old Mission & Leelanau Peninsula Public Wine tours $59.00, plus driver gratuity
Written September 18, 2015
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