Detroit is Michigan's largest city in the Midwest. Near downtown, the Detroit Institute of Arts in neo-classical style was made famous by the murals depicting Detroit's intimate relationship with the automobile industry, painted by Diego Rivera, who dubbed it "Motor City". It was also in Detroit that the famous Motown Records label was born, whose success story is told in an exhibition at its original headquarters in Hitsville, USA. The city is surrounded by a real belt of factories, sometimes very large, around which satellite cities revolve, also highly industrialized. Yet, as a major exception in the Great Lakes region, the rise of Detroit owes little, directly, to this privileged "strait" situation. The city turned to industrial activities in the mid-19th century, by transforming the products of the nearby forest... with the construction of wooden vehicles. At the end of the 19th century, the dynamism of a few large captains of industry led to a spectacular expansion in automobile manufacturing. In 1901, the Detroit area had no fewer than 321 builders, most of them still in the craft industry. The activities of Olds in Lansing, then Henry Ford in Detroit, will rapidly reduce this number to a dozen, including the three "big three" world leaders in automobile manufacturing: General Motors, Ford and Chrysler, as well as a few French companies (Renault, P. S. A., Michelin).

By 2016, with its 680,000 inhabitants, Detroit was only the country's eighteenth largest city by population, with its metropolitan area (Metro Detroit, 4,467,592 inhabitants) being the eleventh largest in the country. In 2013, it was the first major U. S. city to file for bankruptcy, having accumulated for years a debt, which has become impayable, of about US$18.5 billion.

By 2017, Detroit is trying to avert this decline, showing signs of rebirth in a few neighbourhoods as business relations are gradually restored.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 mark the golden age of the art deco era. The advantage of visiting Detroit is that you discover a little-known city that could look like the great New York or San Francisco because of its architecture.

There is the dilemma inherent to the city: when you look at your height, you can see many dirty, black buildings that look dilapidated, while if you look up almost vertically at the upper floors of the skyscrapers, you can see the richness of the ornaments and decorations. Detroit, this city of a thousand contrasts that we love to hate, that we like to criticize and yet where we keep coming back, again and again, with the feeling of having missed something the previous time.To help you visit Detroit, we've listed the best things to do in Detroit!

Ford Museum

Henry Ford is an emblematic figure of American automotive culture, but above all in the city of Detroit. Its museum is worth visiting on more than 36.000 m²! In addition to the fantastic collections of old cars, you will be able to experience the adventure through a 3D cinema and enjoy delicious sandwiches in a typical drive-in.

The Fox Theatre

It is surely the most incredible building to visit in Detroit from an architectural point of view: designed in 1928 and entirely renovated at the end of the 1980s, this place is a huge cinema palace with almost 5,000 seats! The exterior awning as well as the interior of the hall and the extremely impressive enclosure must be admired with delight. For history's sake, this sublime building that brings the golden age of cinema to life was designed by Mr. Fox, the creator of 20th Century..

Architecture of the Roaring Twenties

Some buildings still breathe the soul of the 1920s and 1930s: this is the case of the Penobscot Building, which is a fantastic building dedicated to art deco with its 47 H-shaped floors.Near this wonderful building is the Guardian Building, nicknamed The Cathedral of Finance, recognizable by its mosaic marble and glazed tiles. Finally, another typical building of this era is the Fisher Building, which at its inauguration was considered the best designed office building in the world.

Take a deep breath in the Belle Isle Park

Of course, the city of Detroit is not a true sinecure for those who want to breathe very healthy air, but there are still some green spaces: Belle Isle Park (Belle Isle Park) was the creator of the no less famous Central Park in New York or Mount Royal Park in Montreal.. Piquet AvenueThis avenue seems to have been known since the founding of Detroit: it is associated with the factory that produced Ford's first models, the T-model. It is also on this avenue that Packard cars are produced and that there is also the railway station, which seems to be the largest abandoned building in the world..

Experience authenticity in Detroit's restaurants

It seems that Detroit has never attracted big chains of shops and restaurants, which is why bars, shops and restaurants are all authentic. Unlike other stores across the country, here in Detroit, the owner is always there and restaurants often offer homemade recipes with that inimitable taste out of town.Don't hesitate to talk to people, ask them about their daily lives, about life in Detroit, you will be surprised by this collective memory so vivid and by the warmth of its people. The authenticity of Detroit is the taste of an America that seems erased from time and yet remains very vivid..

Macomb district

For those who are new to Detroit for the first time, the Macomb district is a good gateway. Indeed, the area is home to many beaches offering numerous nautical activities on Lake St Clair.