Where to Rent Winter Gear in Grand Rapids

From the heart of downtown to the coast of Lake Michigan, the Grand Rapids area offers all sorts of opportunities for cold-weather play. Some of our favorite winter pastimes require specialized gear in addition to warm coats, hats and gloves. If you don’t own gear – or you don’t want to lug it with you on your getaway – you can rent what you need from a variety of local sites and providers.

In each of the winter sport categories below, destinations are listed in order of closest to farthest distance from downtown Grand Rapids.

Downhill Skiing

Three area ski resorts rent downhill gear for use on their slopes:

• Cannonsburg Ski Area, which features 21 runs and nine lifts just 15 minutes from downtown Grand Rapids, rents skis for $40.
• Bittersweet Ski Resort, about 40 minutes from downtown GR, offers 20 runs and a 350-ft. vertical drop. Their rental package includes skis, boots and poles for $42.
• Mulligan’s Hollow, a lakeshore resort 40 minutes from downtown, is home to six slopes and rents skis for $15 (weekdays) and $25 (weekends and holidays).

You can also rent a complete downhill ski set ($50/day, $100/3 days, $200/week) at Bill & Paul’s Sporthaus – and use the skis at whichever resort(s) you please. Prices are lower if you need rental skis only.

Cross-Country Skiing

Bill & Paul’s Sporthaus also rents a cross-country ski set ($25/day, $50/3 days or $100/week) you can take with you throughout the region. Alternatively, these sites offer rentals for use on their trails:

• Palmer Park offers three groomed cross-country trails of roughly two miles each. You can rent skis at the adjacent Kaufman Golf Course – $15 for adults and $10 for kids aged 17 and younger.
• Pigeon Creek Park features three miles of groomed trails for both classic and skate skiing. Ski rental is $10 for three hours.
• Muskegon Luge Adventure Sports Park is home to more than nine miles of trails catering to all levels of skiers. Daily ski rental is $10 and a daily trail pass is $10.

Snowboarding

Rent snowboards and helmets for use at Cannonsburg Ski Area ($40 + $15), Bittersweet Ski Resort ($42 + $20) and Mulligan’s Hollow ($15 + $15 weekends, $25 + $25 weekends and holidays).

Snowtubing

The tubing lanes at Cannonsburg Ski Area are serviced by a “magic carpet” that brings you back up the hill to ensure you get maximum laps. Tube rentals are included with admission, which is $20 on weekdays and $25 on weekdays and holidays. You must make online reservations here.

Snowshoes

• Blandford Nature Center rents snowshoes for use on their ungroomed trails through woods and meadows. Non-member fee is $6 for adults and $3 for children (they’re free for members).
• Indian Trails Golf Course transforms into a winter sports park in cold weather and offers $3 snowshoe rentals.
• Cannonsburg Ski Area, with its 11 miles of trails over a variety of terrain, rents snowshoes for $10 a day.
• The Wittenbach Wege Center in Lowell rents snowshoes for $5/pair to use on its five miles of trails through 140 acres of forests, wetlands and open fields.
• Pigeon Creek Park (six miles of trails) and Hemlock Crossing Nature Center (10+ miles) both rent snowshoes for $10 per three hours of use. Snowshoe rentals are free for children aged 6 and under with a paid adult rental.
• Muskegon Luge Adventure Sports Park rents snowshoes for $10/day, making it easy and affordable to explore four different loops with breathtaking views of Lake Michigan, Muskegon Lake and a white pine forest canopy.
• Bill & Paul’s Sporthaus rents adult snowshoes for used throughout Kent County: $25 for a day, $50 for 3 days and $100 for a week.

Ice Skating

If you enjoy skating outdoors, Rosa Parks Circle in downtown GR is the perfect spot. Skates are included in the $6 admission fee for adults and $3 for anyone 17 and under.

About 50 minutes northwest of Rosa Parks Circle, Muskegon Luge Adventure Sports Park  offers an outdoor ice rink big enough to accommodate both family skating and hockey playing, and a ¼-mile figure-eight skating loop traverses through a white pine forest. Both figure skates and hockey skates can be rented for $10/day. 

 Alternatively, you can rent skates and skate indoors at:

• Griff’s IceHouse  at Belknap Park in downtown GR is owned and operated by the Grand Rapids Griffins hockey team. Admission fee includes skate rental – it’s $10 for Open Skate.

• Cedar Rock Sports Plex  in Cedar Springs – $5 skate rental on top of admission.

• Kentwood Ice Arena offers Open Skate sessions on select days – skate rental is $2 on top of the $5 admission.

• Patterson Ice Center  off 28^th Street – $10 Open Skate admission fee includes skate rental.

• Southside Ice Arena  in Byron Center – skate rental is $2 (on top of admission) during Open Skate.

• Walker Ice & Fitness Center  – skate rental and admission is $10 during public Open Skate sessions.

Fat Tire Biking

• Indian Trails Golf Course offers a 3.7-mile groomed loop for fat tire bikers. During clubhouse hours, visitors can rent fat tire bikes for $20 per 1.5 hours.

In addition to rental fees, you may have to pay an admission fee to enjoy some (but not all) of the area’s best slopes, trails and ice rinks. Get out there and enjoy the snowy side of the Grand Outdoors – maybe even try a winter sport you haven’t yet!

Visit our Winter Sports page for more opportunities to play in the snow!