The Very Best of the City and Suburbs!
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Things to See & Do
Sites to See |
SITES TO SEE BELLE ISLE The Motor City park of parks. On par or surpassing any other big city park, this Frederick Law Olmsted-designed urban oasis is nestled on the mouth of the Detroit River. Cross the beautiful MacArthur Bridge or boat over for plenty of fun. Attractions within this attraction have taken a big hit due to budget cuts—the zoo and aquarium are now resigned to memory but Belle Isle still has plenty to offer. It is the perfect city sanctuary for picnicking, biking, golfing, fishing, boating, swimming or just hanging out. The new Nature Zoo offers a variety of programs designed to connect families to their natural environment—you can even feed the famous island deer! The Dossin Great Lakes Museum focuses on Great Lakes shipping and maritime history and contains the largest collection of scale model Great Lakes ships. The Conservatory, designed by Albert Kahn in 1902 and patterned after Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello, houses hundreds of plants in environments from tropical rainforest to desert clime as well as a huge orchid display. Kids will love the giant playscape and water slide. And sightseers will get a kick just driving around the isle checking out all the interesting history—from the Scott fountain to the Peace Carillon Tower to the old Spanish-style Casino building. CAMPUS MARTIUS The orange cones are gone, and the new urban park across from Compuware Headquarters is open for pleasure. Detroit’s new meeting place has Vegas-style fountains with multi-colored light shows, sitting gardens, outdoor concerts, and it is completely wireless, Internet fans. But it may be even more fun in winter than summer, because few things in life are as romantic as skating in a city. It practically serves as a lawn for The Compuware Building, which is loaded with shops and restaurants, including the area’s only Hard Rock Café and Detroit’s only Border’s bookstore. And do step inside; the fountain is the centerpiece for the most spectacular modern lobby in Detroit. DETROIT
PUBLIC LIBRARY, MAIN BRANCH Get good and smart the analog way at Detroit’s premier library located in the heart of the Cultural Center. The price of admission, free, is worth more for their murals and renowned Burton Historical Collection, which boasts a huge automotive-related compilation. EASTERN MARKET Saturday is the day for Detroit’s longest running fresh air market. Expect the freshest and best selections of produce, proteins and whatever wonders area farmers and purveyors have brought to market. Most area stores are open to the public, and if you can’t find it here, it probably doesn’t exist. The deals are unbeatable, the main reason thousands of in-the-know folks and foodies flood the area from before sunrise until late afternoon (when the deals get so ridiculously good you might decide to learn how to start canning). There’s also a panoply of restaurants and stands serving the piping hot and tasty in the daytime, so stop for breakfast because you really shouldn’t shop when hungry. Live music clubs for the nighthawks, including the legendary jazz fixture, Bert’s Marketplace. Complain about the lack of decent grocery stores in the city all you want, Eastern Market offers more than any gourmet grocery in the state. ELMWOOD CEMETERY Who goes here? Well, besides the ghosts and goblins that make cemeteries great, there’s a virtual treasure trove of Detroit history always on view at the Elmwood, where the famous and infamous and the noble and ignoble of Detroit lore have found their resting place ’neath old oak trees. Use the guards to your advantage and quiz them on the whereabouts of the celebs or ask for free self-guided tour booklets. GREEKTOWN This compact city within a city has been for years one of the few Detroit offerings with enough pull to bring sleepy suburbanites out for a night on the town. Oodles of competition among restaurateurs keep the price of a good Greek meal down in the affordable range. Yes, the cheese is on fire—don’t panic. You can stop in for some baklava at the Acropolis Bakery or Astoria Pastry Shop, pick up a trinket at the Athens Gift Shop, find liquor and smokes at Athens Liquor, Gifts and Smoke Outlet or check out something a little more titillating at the Bouzouki Lounge (a gentlemen’s club). When the night is over, if you’ve had a little too much fun, check into the gorgeous Atheneum Suite Hotel and sleep it off. HART PLAZA During the summer the plaza is home to scads of ethnic festivals and the world-renowned Montreux Detroit Jazz, Movement: the Detroit Electronic and African World festivals. During the winter months, the sunken plaza turns into an ice skating rink and the very pricey Isamu Noguchi fountain acts as a community Maypole. Free showers for all in the summer! MEXICANTOWN INTERNATIONAL WELCOME CENTER
& MERCADO Welcome to Mexicantown. Detroit’s Mexican and Hispanic heritage is celebrated with the introduction of this beautiful 17 million dollar facility for economic and cultural development. The Welcome Center & Mercado (market) is expected to greet more than one million visitors a year. The Center offers an insider’s view of the Mexicantown area restaurants, shopping, nightlife, as well as cultural events and festivals, such as the annual Cinco De Mayo and Day of the Dead celebrations. Especially noteworthy is an acclaimed exhibit from the Smithsonian Institution open in September 2007, which showcases Latino achievements in the U.S. NEW CENTER This is home of the Fisher Building, a jaw-dropping beauty built in 1928 with the best architect (Albert Kahn), materials and craftsmen of the time. With the New Center complex completed in 1931, these two buildings serve as significant monuments to the city’s New Center area. They harbor some of the best examples of art deco styling in the world. OLD MARINER’S CHURCH Built when Detroit was a major maritime player, this tidy house of worship was dedicated to those who risked the perils of the sea. This is still a working church, which was immortalized in Gordon Lightfoot’s “Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.” They hold a memorial service every November for all brave seafarers. It also hosted the wedding of punk’s high couple of cool, Patti and the late Fred “Sonic” Smith. PEOPLE MOVER It's one of the best ways to get around and rediscover downtown Detroit. Originally designed as the central focus of a comprehensive southeast Michigan public transit system, the People Mover has run around its 2.9-mile loop on an elevated guideway system since 1987. It takes about 15 minutes, and it stops at 13 key stations in the Central Business District. It is a vital service to utilize now that parking wherever you pull over is no longer an option downtown. Within easy walking distance to any downtown sports or entertainment venue you need, it will save you time and shoe leather. The abundance of restaurants, bars, retailers and points of interest make every trip a new adventure. While you wait (even though there's a train about every three minutes) you can see some of the best public art in the city in the stations. Besides, who else will show you such a good time in downtown Detroit for just fifty cents? © 2008 Guide to Detroit, LLC |