Michigan bets on scent branding to lure visitors to its beaches
When a scent can pull a traveler as surely as a sunset over Lake Michigan, tourism officials take notice. That is the idea behind a growing line of research and pilot programs testing whether the fragrance of pine forests, lake air, sunscreen, or shoreline flora can nudge visitors to spend more time, explore more sites, and choose Michigan as a vacation destination. With summers drawing crowds to its Great Lakes beaches and dune landscapes, Michigan is quietly betting that smells—carefully curated and responsibly deployed—could become a practical, measurable lever for regional economic activity. For ordinary families in Michigan and beyond, the prospect raises curious questions about how our senses shape travel choices, and whether scent could become a tangible tool in public hospitality, not just a marketing gimmick.