Are you stuck in your house or cottage on a rainy-day watching TV and want to find something more exiting to do? Well downtown Alpena has plenty of activities to offer on those boring gloomy days!

1. Sanctuary Cinema – The Sanctuary Cinema opened its doors in 2023 and offers three screens that play the newly released movies. Every screening room has luxury reclining and heated seats with your own movable tray. What makes the theater really unique is they recently acquired their liquor license and offer beer and wine selections! Check out what movies are playing and purchase your tickets here!

2. Rusty Petunia’s Golf Simulator – Just because it’s raining outside doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy a round of golf! Grab your clubs and a few of your closest friends and go play 9 holes at Rusty Petunia’s. When your done you can even enjoy a craft cocktail or a glass of wine and shop around the store and purchase some wonderful home decor. Book your tee time here!

3. Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Center – If it’s raining too much to enjoy the glass bottom boat tours, you can always stay dry by checking out the Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Center! Enjoy learning about the rich history of the Great Lakes and the many shipwrecks that have happened throughout history. The visitor center is a wonderful place to check out with your family, friends or students! Find more information here!

4. Pool and or Darts – When your friends call you and ask what there is to do on this boring rainy day; tell them to meet you downtown to shoot some pool or play darts! There’s a handful of bars and restaurants that offer pool tables and dart boards. While your there you can enjoy a drink or have some dinner. Player’s Pub & Grub, Latitudes Tavern, and Sports Page Lounge all offer pool and or darts!

5. Coffee and Books – One good thing about rainy days is they usually give you the urge to relax and read a good book. You can visit Cabin Creek or Biggby Coffee and get a nice cup of joe and read while you enjoy the aroma of coffee beans and listen to the rain outside.

6. Arcade – When my parents were kids one of their favorite things to do on a rainy day was to head down to the arcade and play arcade games until the rain stopped. Now, you can do that again at Bob’s Bullpen where they offer brand new replica machines that have over 26,000 games collectively! They also offer a variety of delicious hot dog creations and much more!

7. Laser Tag – If the kids keep bugging you because they want to go outside but can’t because of the rain; take them to play Laser Tag downtown! Laser Team Challenge offers a huge indoor venue where you can play for three to six hours and burn off all that energy!

8. Picnic – You might think you can’t have a nice picnic when the weather is dark and rainy, but you can park downtown and order some food to go and have a picnic in your car! There are a lot of different places you can order food from downtown, and you can find them here. Park near the lake and watch the waves roll while you enjoy your food and stay dry!