Activities in and around Detroit
Downtown Detroit is 20 minutes from a number of other great areas including Royal Oak, Berkeley and Ferndale with a variety of their own dining, night life, and community events to partake in. You are also only 45 minutes from downtown Ann Arbor home of the University of Michigan, and an hour from East Lansing home of the Michigan State Spartans.
Eat
Events
- Restaurant Week
- Dally in the Alley
- Electronic Music Festival
- Detroit Jazz Festival
- Arts Beats and Eats
- Pig and Whiskey
- North American International Auto Show
Sports
Daytime
- Detroit’s Eastern Market has been around for over 150 years as a selling point for seasonal produce, meat, plants and artwork. Recently it has become a hotbed for new restaurants and bars as well.
- The DIA has been a cultural center for Metro-Detroit since 1885 and its collection has been ranked as a top 6 in the US. Featuring major frescos by Diego Rivera, original works by Vincent van Gogh, and significant global diversity.
Campus Martius (winter and summer)
- This is a great small park in the heart of downtown Detroit with a variety of events offered throughout the year. Some highlights include the “downtown beach” in the summer as well as their summer concert and outdoor movie series. During the winter they convert a large portion of the park into an outdoor ice rink. This is also a hotspot for some of Detroit’s best bars and restaurants and offers secured garage parking. From here you can walk to many of the downtown districts with night life including the theater district, Tigers and Lions sporting events (soon the Red Wings too!) and Midtown.
- Midtown is the home of Wayne State University and the College of Creative Studies as well as the DIA and Science Center. This is where a lot of young professionals are moving back to and is an epicenter for craft-breweries, new restaurants and unique shopping. Some resident favorites include Third Man Records, HopCat, and MotorCity Brewing Works (great rooftop seating).
- Currently this is a 3.5 mile walking and biking pathway along the Detroit River which will expand to 5.5 miles in the near future. Along the walk you’ll find restaurants, parks and open green space.
- This is a unique recreational path that’s a mile and a half long for biking and waling/running that ultimately connects to the Riverwalk.
- A huge 985-acre park that’s home to the oldest aquarium in the United States, a zoo, conservatory and lots of green space for a variety of activities. It is also home to a number of running races, the Detroit Grand Prix, and Hydroplane boat races.