I'm going to Cadillac, MI, and need to use the internet.

January 14, 2016 2:55 PM

I'm going to Cadillac, MI on a Friday through Monday "vacation" (that is, I'll need to work while I'm there). I'll probably need 16-24 hours of ~1.5 mbps or faster internet over the four day period, on my own laptop. I'm fairly sure that our Airbnb-type accommodations don't have an internet connection/WiFi. Tethered mobile data probably won't be an option. Where can I go to use the internet for several hours at a time? I don't mind paying for it or purchasing something so I can use it.
posted by pullayup to Computers & Internet (9 answers total)

Response by poster: Internet in Manistee or points roughly between there and Cadillac (yes, I realize that this is the Manistee National Forest) is also acceptable.
posted by pullayup at 3:01 PM on January 14, 2016

If you can ask your AirBnB hosts what cell carriers work well at their rental (or in Cadillac in general), you might want to look into getting a portable hotspot device. I don't know the speed offhand, but my little Verizon one could stream Netflix perfectly if I was the only one using it. You pay a monthly fee and it may be very handy if your work hs you needing wifi often in more quaint surroundings. Good luck!
posted by Drosera at 3:29 PM on January 14, 2016

Coffee shops with free wifi in Cadillac... keep ordering and they won't mind your time there.
posted by HuronBob at 3:29 PM on January 14, 2016

The public library is open 10-4 on Saturday and has a decent connection. This sports bar and bowling alley is open 12-11 on Sundays and has free wifi though no idea of the bandwidth.
posted by jessamyn at 3:30 PM on January 14, 2016

Best answer: I travel often to rural-ish areas and have to work while I'm there. McDonald's is always a reliable place for wifi, and I've never gotten fussed at for sitting there for hours at a time nursing a soda or a little snack.

Walmart and some groceries store chains also usually have wifi, though I usually sit in the parking lot for those.
posted by rhiannonstone at 6:25 PM on January 14, 2016 [2 favorites]

The Karma hotspot might be the right option. It's pay as you use, no contracts. I checked and they have coverage there.
posted by msbutah at 8:35 PM on January 14, 2016 [1 favorite]

Best answer: McDonalds. Free wifi and while the service at that particuar McD is possibly the worst Ive ever had their wifi works and is free.
posted by misanthropicsarah at 9:17 PM on January 14, 2016

Response by poster: McDonald's was the ticket. When I got tired of the ambiance I moved to the Culver's (on Boon Rd. at the north end of town) which also has free wifi.

The library is right by Lake Cadillac and much nicer than either but as far as I could tell only offers internet via public workstations, no wifi. I needed to use a vpn-ish thing so that didn't work for me.

Incidentally, there's a pretty good pasty place, Mr Foisies, right next to the McDonald's.
posted by pullayup at 7:42 PM on January 25, 2016

The website says the library has wifi. Did you ask someone there?
posted by jessamyn at 7:59 PM on January 25, 2016