Door County is a peninsula rather than a town, so the first thing to work out is not what to do but where to base. It runs about seventy miles from Sturgeon Bay at the bottom to the ferry dock at the top, with the busy Green Bay side and the quiet Lake Michigan side separated by a few miles of orchard. The second thing to know is that it is fiercely seasonal: the lighthouses, the theaters and most of the markets close for the winter, while the three state parks stay open all year on one vehicle sticker.
The top 15, ranked
Ranked from official sources: the Wisconsin DNR, the Door County Maritime Museum, the Door County Historical Society and each operator's own rates page, with the published adult price beside every pick.
- Top pick
#1Best for first time visitors · #1 of 15Peninsula State Park
State ParkFish Creekopen daily year round from early morning to late evening, with the lighthouse inside it open seasonally only$10 to $25The biggest and busiest of the county's parks, with more than 460 campsites, an eighteen hole golf course, a sand beach, bike trails, an observation tower and a lighthouse all inside one boundary. It is open every day of the year, which very little else here is.
Local tipOne vehicle sticker covers this park, Newport and Whitefish Dunes, so buy it once and use it across the whole trip rather than paying three times.
- Top pick
2Best for photographers · #2 of 15
Cave Point County Park
County ParkJacksonporthours are not published by the operating agency, whose own site could not be readVariesLake Michigan has cut limestone sea caves into the bluffs here, and on a calm day the water over them goes an improbable turquoise. It is the single most photographed stretch of shoreline on the peninsula and it sits directly beside Whitefish Dunes.
Local tipIt is a county park rather than a state park, so the state vehicle sticker is a separate question here. Treat it and Whitefish Dunes next door as one stop.
- Top pick
3Best for lighthouse hunters · #3 of 15
Cana Island Lighthouse
LighthouseBaileys Harboropen daily from the start of May to the end of October, closed the rest of the year$10 to $25You reach the island on a hay wagon across the causeway, then climb an 89 foot tower for the view back down the shore. The keeper's house and oil house are open too, and the whole thing is run by the county maritime museum.
Local tipThe tower climb has a minimum age and height and the last climb is half an hour before closing, so this is a mid afternoon stop at the latest.
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4Best for a day out · #4 of 15
The Washington Island ferry
Ferry CrossingNorthport, Ellison Bayruns year round, far more frequently in summer than in winter, with winter crossings depending on ice$10 to $25The crossing runs through the Death's Door passage, which is where the county gets its name, and it runs all year rather than only in season. On the far side is a genuinely different island with its own farm museum, beaches and a second ferry beyond it.
Local tipPassenger and vehicle fares are charged separately, so taking a car roughly triples the cost for one person. Renting a bike on the island is often the better call.
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5Best for a rainy day · #5 of 15
Door County Maritime Museum
Maritime MuseumSturgeon Bayopen year round with shorter winter hours and closures on major holidays$10 to $25Sturgeon Bay is still a working shipbuilding town and this museum explains why, with the tug John Purves moored outside for guided tours. It is open all year, which puts it in a very small group here.
Local tipThe tug tour is a few dollars on top of admission and is the part worth paying for. This is also the best wet weather stop on the peninsula.
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6Best for stargazers · #6 of 15
Newport State Park
State ParkEllison Bayopen daily year round from early morning to late evening$10 to $25A designated Dark Sky Park at the top of the peninsula, with no drive up campground at all. Every overnight site is hike in, which is exactly why the place stays dark and quiet when the rest of the county is full.
Local tipBecause everything is walk in, it stays quiet even in August. Come on a new moon night if the stars are the reason you are here.
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7Best for families · #7 of 15
Whitefish Dunes State Park
State ParkJacksonportopen daily year round from early morning into the evening$10 to $25The largest sand dunes on the Wisconsin side of Lake Michigan, with a nature center that runs programs all year rather than only through the summer. It shares a corner of the quiet side with Cave Point.
Local tipThe nature center keeps running in winter, which makes this one of the few beach and dune stops still worth the drive out of season.
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8Best for history · #8 of 15
Eagle Bluff Lighthouse
LighthouseFish Creekopen daily from mid May to mid October, and closed on Independence DayUnder $10The county's second climbable lighthouse sits inside Peninsula State Park, restored as a keeper's home rather than only a tower. Self guided tours run seven days a week through the season.
Local tipTwo fees apply, the park vehicle sticker and the lighthouse ticket, so fold it into a Peninsula State Park day rather than driving out for it alone.
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9Best for walkers · #9 of 15
Rock Island State Park
State ParkWashington Islandthe park is open year round, but the passenger ferry that reaches it runs only from late spring into early fallFreeNo vehicles are permitted at all, which is why no state park sticker is needed either. The island holds the Pottawatomie Lighthouse and a set of stone buildings raised by an inventor across half a century, and getting there takes two separate ferries.
Local tipThe second ferry only runs from late May to the second Monday in October, so outside that window the island is effectively closed.
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10Best for walkers · #10 of 15
The Ridges Sanctuary
Nature PreserveBaileys Harbortrails open dawn to dusk, with the nature center keeping shorter hours at weekends than midweekTicketedMore than 1,700 acres of ridges and swales laid down by the retreating lake, crossed by 2,600 feet of boardwalk. It holds 29 native orchid species, which is the reason it was protected in the first place.
Local tipThe properties are split into named sections ranging from a flat family boardwalk to a dedicated geology hike, so choose the section before you arrive rather than at the gate.
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11Best for breakfast · #11 of 15
Al Johnson's Swedish Restaurant
RestaurantSister Baythe restaurant keeps limited daily hours focused on breakfast and lunch, while the roof goats are a seasonal featureVariesGoats graze on the sod roof, which is the most photographed thing on the peninsula and is exactly as odd in person as it sounds. Underneath it is a straightforward Swedish breakfast and lunch room that has been there for decades.
Local tipThe goats go up in late May and come down in mid October. A winter visit gets the restaurant without the thing it is famous for.
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12Best for dinner · #12 of 15
A White Gull Inn fish boil
Fish BoilFish Creekserved on four fixed evenings a week at three set seating times, with the inn itself open all yearTicketedThe fish boil is the county's own invention: whitefish and potatoes cooked over an open fire, finished with a kerosene boil over that throws a sheet of flame up over the kettle. This inn runs one on four evenings a week and, unusually, keeps doing it all year.
Local tipSeatings are at three fixed times on four fixed nights, and reservations are recommended. Most other boil operators close for the winter; this one does not.
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13Best for an evening out · #13 of 15
Northern Sky Theater
Outdoor TheaterFish Creekseasonal, with outdoor shows through the summer and indoor shows in the fall, closed through winter and springTicketedAn outdoor amphitheater in the woods inside Peninsula State Park through the summer, moving to an indoor house for the fall. Original musicals about the upper Midwest, performed under the trees after dark.
Local tipIt is genuinely in the woods and genuinely after dark, so bring layers no matter what the afternoon felt like. Premium seats include cushions.
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14Best for cherries · #14 of 15
Seaquist Orchards Farm Market
Farm MarketSister Baya seasonal market open from spring into late fall, closed on Sundays even in season and closed entirely through the winterVariesDoor County cherries are the thing the county sold before it sold scenery, and this market sits in the middle of the orchards two miles north of Sister Bay. There is a large playscape with a sandbox and a pedal car track for children while the adults buy pie.
Local tipIt closes on Sundays even at the height of the season, which catches out weekend visitors more than the winter closure does.
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15Best for art · #15 of 15
Miller Art Museum
Art MuseumSturgeon Baydescribed as year round, with specific weekly hours not published on the reachable pageTicketedA year round art museum in downtown Sturgeon Bay running rotating exhibitions rather than a fixed collection. In a county where most doors are shut from November, an indoor gallery that stays open matters more than its size suggests.
Local tipIt is one of very few peninsula attractions open through the winter, so it earns its place on a shoulder season or wet weather day.
Where things cluster
The peninsula runs about seventy miles from Sturgeon Bay to the ferry dock, with a busy Green Bay side, a quiet Lake Michigan side, and orchard country in between.
- Sturgeon BayThe county seat at the base of the peninsula, a working shipbuilding town with the maritime museum, the art museum and the steel bridge.
- Fish Creek and Egg HarborThe busy middle of the Green Bay side, with the restaurants and shops, Peninsula State Park and both of the county's theaters.
- Sister Bay and Ellison BayThe food and drink end of the county running up to the ferry dock, with the orchards, the cidery and the goats on the roof.
- Baileys Harbor and JacksonportThe Lake Michigan shore, quieter and wilder, with the sea caves at Cave Point, the dunes next door and thousands of protected acres.
- Washington Island and Rock IslandAcross the Death's Door passage by ferry, with a farm museum, beaches and a second ferry out to a car free island beyond.
Make it a day
One side of the peninsula, not both
A day is enough for one side, not the whole county. Take the quiet side: Cave Point in the morning while the light is still coming off the lake, Whitefish Dunes next door on the same stop, then north to Cana Island for the tower climb before the last wagon. Come back across to Fish Creek for a fish boil in the evening. Buy the state park vehicle sticker at the first park and it covers the rest.
The mainland, then the island
Give the first day to the Green Bay side: Peninsula State Park with Eagle Bluff Lighthouse inside it, lunch in Fish Creek, the orchards at Sister Bay, and a show at Northern Sky in the evening. On the second day drive to Northport and take the ferry across to Washington Island, leaving the car on the mainland and renting a bike instead. If it is between late May and early October, take the second ferry out to Rock Island as well.
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Best time to visit
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This is a hard seasonal destination. Cana Island runs May to October, Eagle Bluff mid May to mid October, the Rock Island ferry from late May to the second Monday in October, and the orchard market closes at the end of October. Both theaters run summer into fall. Outside that window the county gets very quiet indeed, and what remains open is the three state parks, the maritime museum in Sturgeon Bay, the Miller Art Museum and the White Gull Inn fish boil.
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Door County things to do FAQ
The park sticker, the ferry, the season and where to base, answered before you book.
How many days do you need in Door County?
Two at a minimum and three comfortably. The peninsula runs about seventy miles end to end with a busy Green Bay side and a quiet Lake Michigan side, and Washington Island is a separate day again because of the ferry. One day only really covers one side.
Do you need a state park sticker for Door County?
For three of the parks, yes. Peninsula, Newport and Whitefish Dunes all require a Wisconsin state park vehicle admission sticker, which is $13 a day for Wisconsin plates and $16 for out of state plates. One sticker covers all of them. Rock Island is the exception: no vehicles are permitted there so no sticker is required.
What is Door County known for?
Cherry orchards, lighthouses and fish boils, on a peninsula between Green Bay and Lake Michigan. It has eleven historic lighthouses, five state parks, and a fish boil tradition where whitefish and potatoes are cooked over an open fire and finished with a dramatic boil over. Goats on the roof of a Sister Bay restaurant are, improbably, also on the list.
How do you get to Washington Island?
By ferry from Northport at the top of the peninsula, across the Death's Door passage. The crossing takes about thirty minutes and runs all year, though far more often in summer and subject to ice in winter. Passenger and vehicle fares are separate, so a foot passenger pays $16 round trip while a car costs $30 on top of that.
Is Door County worth visiting in winter?
It is quiet rather than closed. The three state parks stay open year round on the same vehicle sticker, the maritime museum in Sturgeon Bay and the Miller Art Museum both stay open, and the White Gull Inn keeps running its fish boil. What closes is most of it: both lighthouses, the Rock Island ferry, the theaters, the orchard market and the rooftop goats.
Where should you stay in Door County?
It depends which side you want. Fish Creek and Egg Harbor put you in the middle of the Green Bay side near the restaurants, the shops and Peninsula State Park. Baileys Harbor and Jacksonport are quieter and closer to Cave Point and the dunes. Sturgeon Bay is the one town that works year round. Sister Bay and Ellison Bay are the shortest drive to the ferry.
Keep planning
Use these nearby guides to build the rest of a Great Lakes trip around Door County.
Image credits. Hero: Carl Wycoff / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0. 1 Peninsula State Park: Yinan Chen / Wikimedia Commons, public domain.