Tourism in metropolitanDetroit,Michigan is a significant factor for the region'sculture and for itseconomy, comprising nine percent of the area's two million jobs.[1] About 19 million people visitMetro Detroit spending an estimated 6 billion in 2019.[2] In 2009, this number was about 15.9 million people, spending an estimated $4.8 billion.[3][4][5] Detroit is one of the largest American cities and metropolitan regions to offer casino resort hotels.[6] Leading multi-day events throughout Metro Detroit draw crowds of hundreds of thousands to over three million people.[7][8] More than fifteen million people cross the highly traveled nexus of theAmbassador Bridge and theDetroit-Windsor Tunnel annually.[9] Detroit is at the center of an emergingGreat Lakes Megalopolis. An estimated 46 million people live within a 300-mile (480 km) radius ofMetro Detroit.[10][11]
Detroit'sunique culture,distinctive architecture, andrevitalization and urban renewal efforts in the 21st century have given Detroit increased prominence as a tourist destination in recent years.The New York Times listed Detroit in its list of52 Places to Go in 2017,[12] while travel guide publisherLonely Planet named Detroit the second-best city in the world to visit in 2018.[13] In 2022, Detroit was featured inTime's The World's Greatest Places list.[14]
Visit Detroit is the region's officialdestination marketing organization, promoting the Detroit metro region (Oakland, Wayne, and Macomb counties) regionally, nationally and internationally as a convention, business meeting, and tourism destination.[15] The organization, originally called the Detroit Convention and Businessman's League and later changed to the Detroit Metro Convention and Visitors Bureau, was founded on February 19, 1896 by Milton J. Carmichael and is the world's firstconvention and visitors bureau.[16][17]
The metropolitan region's tourism industry depends on drawing large crowds with quality attractions and entertainment in order to positively impact the local economy.[18] As the world's traditional automotive center,[19][20] the city hosts the annualNorth American International Auto Show in January, a multi-day event. Other major multi-day events that reflect the region's culture such as the Motown Winter Blast and theWindsor–Detroit International Freedom Festival, typically held the last week of June, can draw super sized-crowds of hundreds of thousands to over three million people.[7][8] A 2007 poll, conducted by Selzer and Co., reported that about two-thirds of the millions of residents in the suburban area occasionally dine and attend cultural events or take in professional games in the city of Detroit.[7] In 2006, the four-day Motown Winter Blast drew a cold weather crowd of about 1.2 million people toCampus Martius Park area downtown.[8] Metro Detroit is one of thirteenU.S. cities with teams from four major sports.Besides its casino resort hotels, the region's leading attraction isThe Henry Ford, America's largest indoor-outdoor museum complex,[21][22] aNational Historic Landmark museum entertainment complex with anIMAX theater next to theAutomotive Hall of Fame inDearborn. TheDetroit Institute of Arts in the cultural center downtown is another leading attraction and national historic site.[23] The Detroit Festival of the Arts in Midtown draws about 350,000 people.[24] TheDetroit Zoo inRoyal Oak has an Arctic Ring of Wildlife exhibit with an underwater viewing tunnel that includes the largest polar bear exhibit in the U.S.[6] Together, The Henry Ford, the Detroit Institute of Arts, and the Zoo attract about 2,500,000 visitors annually.[25] Detroit is also home to theFord Piquette Avenue Plant. Built in 1904 and now running as a museum, it is the oldest car factory building in the world open to the public and was the birthplace of theFord Model T.
An estimated one million spectators attended the 2009Woodward Dream Cruise held annually in August.[26] Another automotive attraction cataloging the history of the industry is theChrysler Museum in Auburn Hills. The mansions of the auto barons that are open to the public for guided tours include theDodge-Wilson estateMeadow Brook Hall in Rochester Hills,Edsel and Eleanor Ford House inGrosse Pointe, Henry Ford'sFair Lane Estate in Dearborn, and the Lawrence Fisher Mansion in Detroit.Cranbrook House and Gardens inBloomfield Hills, the estate of publisherGeorge Gough Booth, is also open to the public for guided tours. The New York Times listedDetroit among its 53 world travel destinations for 2008[27] and again in 2017.
Detroit'sGreektown is a busy entertainment district. The city is a center for the major casino resort hotels -MGM Grand Detroit,MotorCity Casino,Hollywood Casino, andCaesars Windsor just across the river in Canada - which support an active nightlife. The metropolitan region's potential to attract super-sized crowds should not be underestimated. Just across the river,Caesars Windsor attracts about six million visitors annually.[28] Detroit is one of the largest American cities and metropolitan regions to offer casino resort hotels.[6] TheDetroit International Riverfront hosts an events including theWindsor-Detroit International Freedom Festival in late June with one of the nation's largest displays of fireworks and theElectronic Music Festival onMemorial Day weekend. More than fifteen million people cross theAmbassador Bridge and theDetroit-Windsor Tunnel annually.[9] Detroit is at the center of an emergingGreat Lakes Megalopolis. An estimated 46 million people live within a 300-mile (480 km) radius ofMetro Detroit.[10][11] High-speed rail proposals betweenChicago andDetroit and for theQuebec City – Windsor Corridor would further increase access to Metro Detroit. The U.S. Department of Transportation has awarded $244 M in grants forhigh-speed rail upgrades betweenChicago andDetroit.[29] The 710-mile (1,140 km)Quebec City – Windsor Corridor contains over 18 million people, with 51% of the Canadian population and three out of the fourlargest metropolitan areas in Canada, according to the2001 Census.Movie studios in the metro area help establish the state as a legitimate contender in the 12-month-a-year film business.[30]Motown Motion Picture Studios (2009) with 535,000 square feet (49,700 m2) will produce movies at the Pontiac Centerpoint Business Campus for a film industry expected to employ over 4,000 people in the metro area.[31]
The Passenger Terminal and Dock of Detroit onHart Plaza near theRenaissance Center receives cruise ships andtall ships. Cruise liners include vessels marketed by the Great Lakes Cruising Company: Yorktown, Grand Mariner, and Grand Caribe and has included Hapag-Lloyd'sMS Hamburg operated by Plantours (formerly MS Columbus).[32][33] The Great Lakes Cruising Coalition has attempted with limited success to support passenger ship cruises through a joint U.S-Canadian venture to Great Lakes ports and the St. Lawrence Seaway. Passenger cruise liners depart from and journey to ports throughout the Great Lakes including Chicago, Detroit,Mackinac Island, Toronto, and Montreal.[34]William G. Milliken State Park and Harbor in downtown Detroit offers public docks for boaters.
The city's hospitality industry, with thousands of hotel rooms, routinely hosts major conventions and sporting events.[18][35] The Marriott corporation and Starwood Hotels (Westin and Sheraton) have a significant presence in the region. In addition to its casino resort hotels, the area has many full-service hotels and resorts, including the historic flagshipWestin Book Cadillac Hotel in Detroit'sWashington Boulevard Historic District, restored in 2008, the historic Doubletree Guest SuitesFort Shelby Hotel downtown Detroit, restored in 2009, and the Detroit Marriott at theRenaissance Center on the waterfront which is one of the largest hotel conference facilities in the U.S. The centrally locatedWestin Southfield Detroit Hotel contains one of the region's major conference centers and Westin operates a hotel and conference center inside theDetroit Metropolitan Airport. Downtown Detroit has about 5,000 hotel rooms, with 4,000 in walking distance of the convention and exhibit facilityTCF Center.[35] The suburb ofNovi has about 5,300 hotels rooms within a 10-mile (16 km) radius and the suburb ofPontiac has about 5,800 within a 10-mile (16 km) radius.[35]
Historic Inns andboutique hotels represent a popular hospitality investment.[36][37] The city'sMidtown area includes restored Victorianbed and breakfasts such as the Inn on Ferry Street in theEast Ferry Avenue Historic District adjacent to thecultural center near theDetroit Institute of Arts and theInn at 97 Winder in Detroit'sBrush Park Historic District nearComerica Park andFord Field. Some notable historic Inns includeThe Dearborn Inn, a Marriott Hotel, nearThe Henry Ford, theInn at St. John's golf resort inPlymouth, andRoberts Riverwalk Hotel Detroit. TheRoyal Park Hotel inRochester, theTownsend Hotel inBirmingham, the Somerset Inn inTroy, the Athenium Suite Hotel inGreektown, and theHotel St. Regis in theNew Center are among the region's notableboutique hotels.[36][37]
In 2003, General Motors completed a $500 million redevelopment of the Renaissance Center as its world headquarters.[38][39] The east riverfront promenade development was planned at and additional $559 million, including $135 million from GM and $50 million from the Kresge Foundation.[40] The International Riverfront is linked by theRiver Walk, a promenade along connecting the cruise ship dock onHart Plaza to a series of parks, restaurants, retail shops, and other venues from the Marriott at theRenaissance Center to theRoberts Riverwalk Hotel on the historicStroh's riverplace site.Compuware CEOPeter Karmanos played a role in the financing to reconstruct the city's historic restoration ofCampus Martius Park which now hosts events such as the Motown Winter Blast in January attracting large crowds.[8]
A nearly $300 million renovation and expansion project ofCobo Center convention and exhibit facility began July 2011 and is expected to be ready for the 2014 North American International Auto Show in January, with the remainder of the project scheduled to be completed by December 2014. The project will add meeting and exhibit space and glass walls to the exterior in order to provide views of theInternational Riverfront.[41][42][43][44]
Several traditional street-sideshopping districts with clusters of restaurants may be found throughout the region in addition to those surrounding enclosedshopping malls and open-airlifestyle centers.Downtown Detroit containsGreektown, theLower Woodward Avenue Historic District (Merchant's Row), and the shops and restaurants at theRenaissance Center along theInternational Riverfront. TheEastern Market, a farmer's distribution center in the central east side neighborhood area of Detroit, is the largest open-air bedding flower market in the United States and has more than 150 foods and specialty businesses.[45] On Saturdays, about 45,000 people shop the city's historicEastern Market.[46] Other notable street-side shopping districts includeThe Village on Kercheval Avenue inGrosse Pointe and the downtown areas ofBirmingham,Royal Oak,Northville,Rochester, andPlymouth.
Metro Detroit has many major enclosedshopping malls and open-airlifestyle centers with many restaurants. The upscaleSomerset Collection mall inTroy is among the top privately held mall properties in the U.S. with 2004 annual sales of about $600 million and sales per square foot at $620 compared to the national average of $341.[47] TheMall at Partridge Creek is an upscale open-airlifestyle center located inClinton Township. Another upscale open-air lifestyle center isThe Village of Rochester Hills. Other notable enclosed shopping malls in Metro Detroit includeLakeside Mall inSterling Heights,Laurel Park Place inLivonia,Twelve Oaks Mall inNovi, which was expanded in 2007 to includeNordstrom, andGreat Lakes Crossing Outlets inAuburn Hills.Ann Arbor, a college town, contains traditional street-side shopping along with the enclosedBriarwood Mall.
TheFairlane Town Center mall inDearborn is about 15 minutes from downtown Detroit. A concept, thePavilions of Troy, is mixed-use development design with an open-air lifestyle center envisioned for the Detroit suburb ofTroy to complement theSomerset Collection mall.
The city's mayor in the 1990s,Dennis Archer, also a formerMichigan Supreme Court Justice, supported a plan which resulted in new casino resort hotels as a catalyst for development. Initially, Archer's plan was for a casino cluster along the east riverfront.[48] In April 2005, after an eight-year legal battle over the bidding process, the courts cleared the way for the City of Detroit to permit its temporary casinos to build all new casino resort hotels, to open in late 2007.[49] The settlement was further complicated by MGM's acquisition ofMandalay Bay, then owner of the Motor City Casino. Upon acceptance of the settlement, Detroit entrepreneurMarion Ilitch exercised her option to purchaseMotor City Casino, outbidding other partners.[50] The plan for the casino resort locations changed as the city decided instead to have a promenade of parks along theInternational Riverfront to spur residential development, thus freeing the casino companies to build in other areas of downtown. Upon completion, Detroit became the largest American city and metropolitan region to offer casino resort hotels.[6] Since 2000, the city has seen a general trend of increased tax revenues from the three casinos; in 2009, casino resort hotels in Detroit employed 8,122 people, paid $452.8 M in wages (not including tips and benefits), and contributed $320 M in taxes to the city and state.[51][52]
In decade leading up to 2006, downtown Detroit gained more than $15 billion in new investment from private and public sectors.[53] In 2007, complementing the MGM Grand Detroit,DTE Energy announced a $50 million transformation of the area around its downtown headquarters into an urban oasis with parks, walkways, and a reflecting pool.[54] Completion of theMGM Grand Detroit resort hotel in 2007 has opened new prospects for future development downtown with the west riverfront area and the area fromMGM Grand Detroit to theMichigan Central Station. The question of how to finance a new convention facility to accommodate the expanding needs of theNorth American International Auto Show generated media attention and speculation withOakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson's proposal for a fourth casino resort hotel in Detroit to anchor the convention center following the example of the Las VegasSands Expo convention center which would need approval from a statewide referendum.[55] GovernorJennifer Granholm ultimately signed legislation on July 2, 2009 that created a five-member board, appointed by the governor, the City of Detroit, and Wayne, Oakland, and Macomb counties to oversee the operation of the Cobo Center with the city retaining ownership in order to facilitate a major renovation.[56] The nearly $300 million renovation ofCobo Center convention and exhibit facility includes the addition of glass walls to connect the complex with the waterfront.[57]
Detroit'sBelle Isle Park has "spectacular views" of the area.[58] Some tourists are attracted to nearbyWindsor, Ontario by Ontario's lower (19-and-older) drinking age.[59]
A strategy entitledPure Michigan resulted in the State's tourism website ranking as the busiest in the nation.[60] Metro Detroit urban destinations such asThe Henry Ford, theDetroit Institute of Arts, and theDetroit Zoo were also emphasized in the strategy.[61] This led to support for proposals for increased funding in 2008 for theTravel Michigan budget from Detroit area legislators.[62]
TheMidtown Detroit surroundsWayne State University, while the adjacentNew Center area contains the National Historic LandmarksCadillac Place and theFisher Building. Midtown attracts millions of visitors each year to its museums and cultural centers.[63] Other significant cultural centers include those inDearborn,Bloomfield Hills,Birmingham,Grosse Pointe,Rochester,Royal Oak, andAnn Arbor. The fortunes of region's auto barons and business leaders continue to facilitate philanthropy for museums and cultural centers.
TheCultural Center Historic District inMidtown Detroit contains theDetroit Institute of Arts, the Rackham Education Memorial Building, theDetroit Historical Museum, theDetroit Science Center, and theCharles H. Wright Museum of African American History. TheDetroit Public Library is part of theCultural Center Historic District listed in theNational Register of Historic Places adjacent toWayne State University campus and across the street from theDetroit Institute of Arts. Designed byCass Gilbert, the Detroit Public Library (1921) was constructed with Vermont marble and serpentine Italian marble trim in anItalian Renaissance style. His son, Cass Gilbert, Jr. was a partner with Francis J. Keally in the design of the library's additional wings added in 1963. Cass Gilbert also designed theUnited States Supreme Court building inWashington, D.C.
The Detroit Institute of Arts is among the largest art museums in the United States and contains over 100 galleries. The museum houses the 1150-seat Detroit Film Theatre, also used to showcase famous collections. Officials at the DIA have ranked the American paintings collection third among museums in the United States. Works by American artists began to be collected immediately following the museum's founding in 1883.
Entering theDetroit Institute of Arts' hallway, visitors pass the armor collection ofWilliam Randolph Hearst. Through the entry way is a grand marble court lined along the upper and lower levels withDiego Rivera'sDetroit Industry Murals, commissioned byEdsel Ford. The French-American architectPaul Philippe Cret designed theBeaux Arts,Italian Renaissance building which opened in 1927.Michael Graves served as the architect for a major renovation and expansion in 2007. The original building is flanked by north and south wings with the white marble as the main exterior material for the entire structure. The museum is part of the city'sCultural Center Historic District listed in theNational Register of Historic Places.
The collections of the Detroit Institute of Arts include ancient Greek, Roman, Etruscan, Mesopotamian, and Egyptian material, as well as a wide range of Islamic, African and Asian art of all media. Other notable art museums in the metropolitan area includeUniversity of Michigan Museum of Art in Ann Arbor and theCranbrook Art Museum in Bloomfield Hills.
Theatre in Detroit is part of theBroadway theatre circuit. TheWindsor-Detroit casino resorts have nightclubs, restaurants, and large performance centers for shows. Star performances in the city's theatre venue circuit complement major events such asNorth American International Auto Show. There are a number of popular nightclubs including the Necto in Ann Arbor, the three-level St. Andrews Hall in Detroit, and the nightclubs at the city's casino resort hotels.
Live music has been the prominent feature of Detroit's nightlife since the late 1940s bringing the city worldwide attention. The metropolitan area has two of the top live music venues in the United States:DTE Energy Music Theatre andThe Palace of Auburn Hills[64]Theatre in Detroit is the U.S.A.'s second largest venue circuit afterManhattan'sBroadway.[65][66] Major performance centers include theFox Theatre,[67]Masonic Temple Theatre, theDetroit Opera House, and theFisher Theatre. Detroit'sOrchestra Hall at theMax M. Fisher Music Center is the home of theDetroit Symphony Orchestra. The city hosts several annual music events, including theDetroit International Jazz Festival, the Electronic Music Festival, the Motor City Music Conference (MC2), the Urban Organic Music Conference, theConcert of Colors, and the hip-hop Summer Jamz music festival.
| Major festivals and events | Timeline |
|---|---|
| North American International Auto Show | Huntington Place - January |
| Plymouth Ice Festival | Ice sculpture spectacular in January. |
| Motown Winter Blast | Campus Martius Park - January or February. |
| Detroit Music Awards | Held atThe Fillmore Detroit Theatre in April. |
| Detroit Electronic Music Festival/Movement/Fuse-In | Memorial Day weekend. |
| Civil War Remembrance | Held atThe Henry Ford on Memorial Day. |
| Detroit Indy Grand Prix | Downtown Detroit - June |
| Detroit Festival of the Arts | Midtown - early June |
| New Center Park summer events. | New Center summer-long series of events and out-door concerts held in coordinated by the New Center Council. |
| Motor Muster | Held atThe Henry Ford onFather's Day weekend in June. |
| Detroit River Days | Detroit Riverfront- late June. |
| Windsor–Detroit International Freedom Festival | Last week of June. |
| Downtown Detroit Days and CityLoft shopping | Lower Woodward, last Thursday to Saturday of the month from June through August[68] |
| Salute to America | Detroit Symphony Orchestra performs atThe Henry Ford leading up to theFourth of July. |
| Cruisin' Downriver | Held on the last Saturday of June inSouthgate,Lincoln Park,Riverview, andWyandotte. |
| Stars & Stripes Festival | Held inMount Clemens leading up to theFourth of July. |
| Wyandotte Street Art Fair | Mid-July. |
| Tall ships at the Dock of Detroit | Hart Plaza - summer. |
| Concert of Colors | Max M. Fisher Music Center - mid-July. |
| APBA Gold Cup | Detroit Thunderfest hydroplane races - August |
| Meadowbrook Concours d'Elegance | Formal event and classic car show atMeadowbrook Hall in early August. |
| Fash Bash - a leading fashion show and modeling event[67] complementingDetroit Fashion Week | Coordinated by theDetroit Institute of Arts and held in the fall; venues have included theRenaissance Center, theFox Theatre, andDIA Theatre. |
| People's Art Festivallink | August |
| Woodward Dream Cruise | Third Saturday in August. |
| Meadow Brook Music Festival | Rochester Hills, July–September. |
| Arts, Beats and Eats | Royal Oak - Labor Day weekend. |
| Dally in the Alley | Labor Day weekend. |
| Detroit International Jazz Festival | International Riverfront - Labor Day weekend. |
| Rochester Art & Apples Festival presented by Paint Creek Center for the Arts[2] | Weekend after Labor Day. |
| Old Car Festival Selfridge Air Museum | Greenfield Village atThe Henry Ford typically the weekend after Labor Day. |
| Urban Organic Festivallink | Every fall. |
| America's Thanksgiving Parade | November. |
| Noel Nightlink | December. |
| Motor City Comedy Festival | September |
| Wayne County Lightfest[69] | December. |
| Theatre in Detroit | Spring, fall, and winter. |
| Youmacon[70] | Anime convention held atTCF Center and theRenaissance Center in October or November, usually around Halloween. |
The area has hosted several major sporting events in order to attract large crowds such asSuper Bowl XL; in fact, Detroit is the only northern city to have hosted two Super Bowls.Ford Field hosted the 2009NCAA Final Four, where North Carolina defeated Michigan State; in April 2007 it hostedWrestleMania 23.Major League Baseball's 2005All-Star Game was held atComerica Park, as wereWorld Series games in 2006 and 2012 due to theDetroit Tigers's run of success in the late 2000s (decade) through the early 2010s. The 2005 All Star Game injected $52 million into the area economy, whileSuper Bowl XL injected $270 million.[71] In 2008, the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park reported 3.2 million visitors with a 98.6 percent attendance rate.[72] Comerica Park and Ford Field stadiums are located near theGrand Circus Park Historic District.
The area has a 24,000-acre (97 km2) network of "metroparks" which receives about 9 million visitors annually[73] Outdoor activities in the metro region include downhill and cross-county skiing at Alpine Valley Ski Resort, Mt. Brighton, Mt Holly, and Pine Knob Ski Resort, Huron River kayaking and canoeing available through theHuron-Clinton Metroparks, and fresh water beaches such asMetro Beach, Kensington Beach, andStony Creek Beach. Golf is an important sporting activity in the metropolitan area with a variety of courses, country clubs, and resorts. TheDetroit River International Wildlife Refuge is the only internationalwildlife preserve inNorth America, uniquely located in the heart of a major metropolitan area. The refuge includes islands, coastal wetlands, marshes, shoals, and waterfront lands along 48 miles (77 km) of theDetroit River andWestern Lake Erie shoreline.
[Detroit] is the automobile capital of the world
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Detroit travel guide from WikivoyagePlaces adjacent to Tourism in metropolitan Detroit | |
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| Topics | .jpg) | |
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| Detroit | ||
| Municipalities over 80,000 | ||
| Municipalities 40,000 to 80,000 | ||
| Cultural enclaves | ||
| Satellite cities | ||
| Counties in MSA | ||
| Counties in CSA | ||
| Enclosed shopping malls | | |
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| Open-air centers | ||
| Street-side shopping districts |
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| Strip and power centers | ||
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| Cancelled | ||
See also:Tourism in metropolitan Detroit | ||
Hotels in metropolitan Detroit | ||
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| Conference and resort hotels |  | |
| Historic Inns and boutique hotels | ||
| Beyond the metro region |
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See also:Tourism in metropolitan Detroit | ||
Parks inmetropolitan Detroit | ||
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| Detroit city |
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| Metro 600 to 1,500 acres (243 to 607 ha) | ||
| 1,500 to 5,000 acres (607 to 2,023 ha) | ||
| over 5,000 acres (2,023 ha) | ||
| Waterways | ||
| Major beaches | ||
| Trails 5 to 36 miles (8 to 58 km) | ||
| Zoological and botanical | ||
