Detroit, Motor City, is alive and well, at least when it comes to tourism. Downtown is hopping on the weekend. It has some great hotels, excellent restaurants, and the people are super friendly. We both loved the vibe and hope to visit again.

The city currently has a population just under 700,000 and over four million in the greater metro area. In its heyday, it was the fourth largest city in the US, however due to industrial decline and loss of jobs in the auto industry, Detroit’s population has declined by more than 60 per cent in the late 20th century. I’m sure you have seen photos of the abandoned homes and neighbourhoods in decay, however, the city is rebuilding itself and, if anything, it is now a land of opportunity. National Geographic has good article on Detroit. Indeed, it is a cool city.

Detroit’s diverse culture has had both local and international influence, particularly in music, with the city giving rise to the genres of Motown and Techno, and playing an important role in the development of Jazz, Hip-hop, Rock, and Punk music (MC5 and Iggy Pop). Alice Cooper and Kid Rock are also from Detroit.

Greektown

Downtown is bustling with great restaurants, casinos and bars.

Renaissance Center

We walked around the Greektown area, then went to the riverfront to get a closer view of the Renaissance Center. From there, we had a clear view of Windsor Canada on the other side of the river.

Hamtramck, an old Polish area, still has a few remnants of the good old neighbourhood. Polish sausage, pierogis, bigos, paczki and borsch can be found at Srodek’s.

We also went to The Painted Lady, a local bar in the same neighbourhood. This was recommended by a friend in Toronto who used to live in Detroit. It is a fun bar with inexpensive drinks and a lively crowd.

Attractions

  • Detroit Institute of Arts – The DIA, is among the top 10 museums in the country
  • Museum of Contemporary Art
  • Fox Theatre
  • Comerica Stadium – home of Detroit Tigers, the tiger sculptures on the stadium are worth seeing
  • Ford Piquette Avenue Plant / Model T Automotive Heritage Complex
  • Motown Museum 
  • Diamond Jack’s Riverboat Tours
  • Eastern Market – one of the country’s oldest farmer’s markets
  • Greektown – busy downtown hub with restaurants and pubs, and three casinos
  • Corktown – Detroit’s oldest neighborhood is an Irish-turned-hipster haven with lots of friendly pubs and dive bar hangouts.
  • Rivertown – The Detroit International RiverWalk connects bars, restaurants, an amphitheater and other public amenities.
  • Polish Art Center in Hamtramck
  • Belle Isle Park – zoological gardens and nature center
  • Campus Martius Park – Located in the heart of downtown, Campus Martius Park is Detroit’s official gathering place and award-winning signature public space.
Campus Martius Park
Comerica Park

Where to Stay?

We stayed at the Greektown Casino Hotel. I loved this hotel. Very pleasant staff. In fact, probably the nicest I’ve encountered and I’ve stayed at a lot of hotels. The city view of the hotel was amazing, large screen tv, the room nicely designed and very comfortable. The shower had really good water pressure. Room service was fast, the food was good, and they didn’t charge extra delivery fees. They add on an 18% service fee which is fair, but some hotels add the service fee plus a delivery fee making it too expensive to order in.

And the best part is that parking is free. Both valet and self park. Now that is a bonus! Hotels charge ridiculous fees for parking so it is rare to find a good place in a city that doesn’t charge.

Valet parking check out on a Sunday can take over half an hour because there are a lot of people checking out. Self parking is better. We highly recommend this hotel.

Other good hotels:

Where to Eat?

 

For more photos please go to Wonderland Photography.

Enjoy your trip to Detroit! It’s a very cool city.