The 10 things to do in Detroit

Visit Detroit: what are the best things to do and see in this city that is known as the Motor City?

When we talk about the city of Detroit in the United States, we think about cars immediately. And it is true that the city, known as the Motor City, has always lived thanks and for cars. Moreover, the car show that takes place every beginning of the year is the largest and surely the most influential in the world.

But can this city be summed up in the automotive world? Unlike what we hear, Detroit is not a dangerous city. It is certainly an unusual city, a very underestimated destination but which promises beautiful surprises both architecturally and culturally.

While the suburbs of Detroit are very chic, the very heart of the city easily rivals Chicago for example: it is enough to see the number of buildings that sign the golden age of the art deco era. The advantage of visit Detroit , it is that you discover an unknown city that could look like the great New York or San Francisco because of their architecture.

There is this city-specific dilemma: when you look at your height, you can see many dirty, black buildings, which seem to be decayed while if you rise your eyes, almost vertically, to the upper floors of skyscrapers, you can observe the richness of ornaments and decorations. Detroit, this city with a thousand contrasts that one loves to hate, that one loves to criticize and yet where one always comes back, again and again, with this feeling of having missed something the previous time.

To help you visit Detroit, we listed the best things to do in Detroit!

1. The Ford Museum

Henry Ford is an iconic figure in American automotive culture but especially in the city of Detroit. His museum is worth visiting on more than 36,000 m2! In addition to the fantastic collections of old cars, you will be able to live the adventure through a 3D cinema and enjoy delicious sandwiches in a typical drive-in of the time.

2. The Fox Theatre

It is probably the most incredible building to visit in Detroit on an architectural level: designed in 1928 and completely renovated in the late 1980s, this place is a huge cinema palace with nearly 5000 seats! We must observe with delight the outer marquise but also the interior of the hall and the enclosure which are extremely impressive. For the short story, this sublime building that brings the golden age of cinema to life was developed by Mr. Fox, the creator of the 20th Century.

3. The architecture of the mad years

Some buildings still breathe the soul of the 20s and 30s: this is the case in particular of the Penobscot Building which is a fantastic building dedicated to art deco with its 47 floors in the form of H.

Near this wonderful building is the Guardian Building, nicknamed The Cathedral of Finance , recognizable to its mosaic marble and its varnished tiles. Finally, another building typical of this time was the Fisher Building, which, at its inauguration, was considered the building with the best-designed offices in the world.

4. Breathe full lungs in the Belle Isle Park

Evidently, the city of Detroit is not a real sinecure for those who want to breathe a very healthy air, but there are still green spots: there are notably the park of Belle Isle (Belle Isle Park) which was the creator of the not less famous Central Park in New York or that of Mont-Royal in Montreal.

5. Piquette Avenue

This avenue seems to be known since the creation of Detroit: it is indeed associated with the factory that produced the first Ford models, namely the T model. It is also on this avenue that the Packard cars are produced and that the railway station also appears to be the largest abandoned building in the world.

5. Taste authenticity in Detroit restaurants

Detroit has never attracted, it seems, the great chains of shops or restaurants, which is why bars, shops, restaurants are all authentic. Unlike other shops in the country, here in Detroit, the owner is still on site and restaurants often offer home recipes with this inimitable taste outside the city.

Don’t hesitate, talk to people, ask them about their daily life, about life in Detroit, you will be surprised by this collective memory so perennial and by the warmth of its population. The authenticity of Detroit is this taste of an America that seems erased from time and yet remains very vivid.

6. The district of Macomb

For those who discover Detroit for the first time, the district of Macomb is a good entrance door. In fact, the area is home to numerous beaches offering numerous nautical activities on Lake St Clair.

7. Detroit Science Center

For stars lovers, for those who dream in front of a starry sky, for the intrepids who want to understand our universe, the Science Center de Detroit offers an exploration of our sky at any time of the day.

8. Discover modern art in Downtown

This is where the modern art of the city is concentrated with giant sculptures, especially on Hart Plaza. It is also in this place that the famous artistic events, popular and ethnic festivals such as the Ford Detroit International Jazz Festival , the world's largest jazz music festival entirely free.

9. Discover local gastronomy and elsewhere

Detroit, we saw it, likes traditional cuisine and homemade but it’s also a city that concentrates many cuisine from all over the world. So, whatever your budget, you will be able to taste delicious Italian and Mexican dishes: try the Moro’s Dining to eat Italian, Texas from Brazil (Brazilian restaurant) or the Union Woodshop to taste one of the best BBQ dishes in the whole region.

10. Other things to do in Detroit

• Visit the Detroit Institute of Arts: surely one of the largest museums in all the United States. You will be able to discover collections not only American but also European. Here you can admire the beautiful murals of the Mexican painter Diego Rivera.
• Visit the Motown Historical Museum: for the nostalgic of Jackson Five, Diana Ross, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, or Four Tops, this is the place to go. A visit is possible in the mythical Hitsville studios, a pilgrimage that takes you back in the 1960s.

How to get to Detroit?

The most convenient way to get to Detroit is by plane. The duration of the flight from Paris is approximately 10 hours. Companies like Air France offer direct flights from Paris CDG Airport. To find cheap flights to Detroit, you can search our partner's website Skyscanner .

Where to stay in Detroit?

Detroit is not an idyllic city where to travel but to discover the region of the lakes and if you make a road trip to the United States, you can quite stop there one day or two. In this case, try to stay central and stay in CBD. You can find a cheap hotel in Detroit by searching for this Compare hotels .

Main photo credit: Flickr – Kevin Chang