Family Fun Found At The Tecumseh Annual Ice Sculpture Festival

*PLEASE NOTE: ALL PHOTOS IN THIS BLOG POST WERE TAKEN ON JANUARY 16, 2021

Winters in Michigan can be tough. You want to go outside and stretch your legs, get some fresh air and let the family burn off some energy. But, finding a way to do that without being out in the cold for too long can be the problem.

Well, I have a solution for you!

Tecumseh, MI

Tecumseh is a small town located in Lenawee County, which is in southeast Michigan. And I mean small town…according to the 2010 census it had a population of barely 8,500 residents.

But, that’s also one of the attributes that helped to place it on the CNNMoney’s 100 best small towns to live in for 2009. Sitting where M50 crosses the River Raisin, Tecumseh can be found just 40 miles north of Toledo and 25 miles south of Ann Arbor.

I should also mention that if the name sounds familiar, it should. The town was named after the Shawnee chief Tecumseh.

Where and When

This year the City of Tecumseh is presenting their 13th annual Ice Sculpture Festival!

There will be over 35 ice sculptures on display throughout the downtown area, a balloon artist, a scavenger hunt with local businesses and more. Lots of fun for the entire family!

The festival dates and times are:

Saturday, January 15, 2022 10am – 5pm
Sunday, January 16, 2022 12pm – 4pm

Don’t forget to watch some of the live carving demonstrations during the day! It’s pretty cool to watch and the kids should love it, too.

**Check here prior to going for the schedule and scavenger hunt clues!

Glacial Delights

You will have no trouble finding any of the ice sculptures that are on display in Tecumseh.

The majority of them will line Chicago Blvd and be located in front of the businesses that I assume commissioned the sculptures. There are a few more though along a couple of the side streets so make sure you meander a bit before leaving.

Weekend Events

To help you plan your visit, here is a list of the events:

Saturday Only (10-5):

Ice Sculpture Carving Demonstrations at the corner of Chicago Blvd & Evans St
Dueling Ice Sculpture Carving Demonstrations on the corner of Evans St (last year it was on the corner of Pearl St., if I remember correctly)

Sunday Only (12-4):

Eagle Encounter with Michigan Avian Experience

Available The Entire Event:

Michigan Balloon Artist
Specials and Discounts with select downtown businesses
Ice Scultpures on display around downtown
Scavenger Hunt with participating businesses
Shopping and supporting local businesses

Cost Of The Day

This is a free outdoor event and the only expense will be what you spend in local businesses or on food, etc.

Last year there were a couple of food trucks on hand but they were already out of food by 11:15am so I wouldn’t necessarily count on that as an option.

Yay or Nay?

I know I give a lot of Yays for these posts and that’s ok. It takes a lot for me to not want to support a venue, event or business. I have certain standards that I don’t feel are unreasonable or difficult.

First, I believe in friendly service. I’ll be honest, I don’t care if you’ve had the absolute worst person ahead of me, it wasn’t me. I am always friendly to people and I don’t expect to be treated badly for something I had nothing to do with. I realize that can be a lot to ask but I feel that’s part of customer service….and yes, I spent YEARS in retail and customer service.

Second, and probably most importantly, I want to feel my money was spent well. Just like you, we work hard for our money too and I am not the kind to spend it willy-nilly. Nowadays, I don’t think many are. That means I don’t want to overspend, feel ripped off and anything else that gives me a negative feeling when I leave. That is part of the reason I look for free venues. Michigan has so much to offer that doesn’t cost families a dime to enjoy other than the fuel to get there.

So, of course, I give the Tecumseh Ice Festival a Yay! It’s a FREE event AND it’s family friendly. Perfect! The only expenses you will have are what you choose to have. There are some restaurants in Tecumseh (I listed a few under “Nearby” below) or you can easily visit one of the towns close by for a meal. Last year we waited until we got to Brooklyn and then ate at JR’s Hometown (the one in Tecumseh was closed).

The biggest con I found visiting here was that the parking was a bit of a headache when I went last year. I have since discovered that there are city parking lots behind the two blocks of storefronts hosting the festival. Definitely more available than I thought.

HINT: Take a look at the map below to see where the parking lots are located to save yourself drive around time during the event.

Finally, a little heads up for people who do not like crowds…this can be a bit too close for comfort, especially in the stores. Please don’t let this discourage you from going into any of the businesses – there are some really great stores here – but remember to breathe and count to ten if you need to. When I was there everyone was experiencing the same thing and were very patient with one another.

As I said, I was there last year in order to be able to write this year in a timely manner but I will absolutely be going back. My entire family enjoyed it more than we expected to.

Besides, it winter in Michigan so let’s go have some fun!