A couple years ago, I hosted my friend Lily, from Kenya while she visited Michigan. Prior to her travels, I provided options to her of where we could travel for a 3 Day Winter Getaway. The options and basic descriptions I provided are below:
- Detroit: lots museums & history – Belle Isle, Motown Museum, Henry Ford Museum; big city; Heidelberg – urban art; Eastern Market; good for foodies
- Frankenmuth: Germanic small town, large Christmas store, cute little downtown shops, small town vibe, like you’re not in the US
- Traverse City: wineries and vineyards galore, lighthouses, beaches and scenic bluffs, close to a national park – Sleeping Bear Dunes, old state highway that winds along Lake Michigan – M22
She picked option #1!
~ Planning the 3 Day Winter Getaway to Detroit~
Planning the trip, I kept in mind that being outdoors in the cold for long may be overwhelming for Lily. Then, I researched a list of places to go based on my past travels to Detroit and bookmarks I saved. Finally, I gathered cost information and hours to plan the itinerary.
Next up, we decided on lodging. Both Google hotels and Airbnb are my favorite ways of searching for affordable options. Ultimately, we booked an Airbnb outside the city center within a 6 minute walk to Greektown for about $160 for 2 nights. Other features included it being nearby a grocery store AND free parking!
~ 3 Day Winter Getaway to Detroit Itinerary ~
Please note, the itinerary I developed wasn’t exactly what we ended up following. Check out the trip details below for more info!
Day 1 – Sunday
- Leave Grand Rapids by 9:00 AM
- Stop 1: Eastern Market’s Sunday Christmas Market – shopping, browsing
- Stop 2: Heidelberg – walk around/explore/take pictures
- Stop 3: Belle Isle – be there with enough time to see the aquarium, conservancy, Great Lakes museum before they close at 4:00 PM
- Stop 4: Bucharest Grille – dinner
- Stop 5: Airbnb to check in by 5:00 PM
- Evening – Open
Day 2 – Monday
- Stop 1: Henry Ford Museum for a couple hours to see some of it’s highlights – Rosa Parks Bus, Kennedy limo, Lincoln chair
- Stop 2: Two James Distillery – enjoy a drink
- Stop 3: Downtown Detroit – dinner and walk around to check out monuments & sculptures
Day 3 – Tuesday
- Stop 1: Detroit Institute of Arts
- Stop 2: Detroit Historical Museum
- Stop 3: Motown Museum
~ 3 Day Winter Getaway to Detroit Map ~
~ 3 Day Winter Getaway: Day 1 Details~
We left later than expected, around 9:45 AM. Once on the road, we drove to Eastern Market for its Sunday Christmas market. Surrounding the market there are several empty lots to park at.
Eastern Market
We intended to visit Eastern Market to walk around and get in the Christmas spirit. While inside, we saw cool, unique products for sale – everything from Detroit-centric memorabilia to eco friendly household products. I ended up purchasing all my friends Christmas gifts here!
Heidelberg Project
Our second stop was the Heidelberg Project. I initially explained it to Lily as public art from reclaimed urban objects – Lily loved it! We spent 30 minutes here stopping every few feet to look at something closer or take pictures.
Belle Isle
The final place we explored for the day was Belle Isle. We gave ourselves 2 hours to check out the sights.
While on the Isle, we stopped by the aquarium where we learned about its history as the oldest aquarium in North America. We also learned about previous ‘residents’ of the aquarium, such as a 6 foot eel that now resides at the John Ball Zoo in Grand Rapids. Its interior design history is pretty interesting – the green and aqua tiles throughout the interior used to go all the way to the floor to make visitors feel as if they were in water, but due to leaky tanks, the bottom tiles were replaced with newer black tiles. The docent pointed out 6 dark green tiles on the roof near the entrance that weren’t cleaned the last time they cleaned the tiles. They purposely don’t wash them in order to use them as a measure so they know when to clean the others again.
Unfortunately the conservancy was closed for upkeep so we rolled with the punches and continued on to the Great Lakes Museum. This Museum contains a number of interactive exhibits explaining the history and economic importance of the region in our country’s development. Finally, we learned from a docent about the infamous Edmund Fitzgerald shipwreck.
Please note: the aquarium and conservatory are currently closed to stop the spread of COVID.
~ 3 Day Winter Getaway: Day Two Details ~
The Henry Ford Museum
At noon, we arrived at the Henry Ford Museum and stayed for 5 hours until it closed. Much longer than we expected! I’m still in awe at how much there is to see. Each exhibit showcased plenty of quality content, and we learned a lot about modern U.S. history. Exhibits range from the tiny – collections of antique doll houses and small appliances to massive – electricity turbines and a model Dymaxion house.
There’s also a room for special exhibits. When we visited, the special exhibit contained the artwork of Norman Rockwell during and after Franklin Roosevelt’s presidency. Speaking of President Roosevelt – his presidential limo is displayed here along with the presidential limos of Reagan, Eisenhower, and the infamous JFK limo.
After some time wandering, we realized within an hour the museum is closing, and we still hadn’t seen everything! We decided to focus on checking out the With Liberty and Justice for All exhibit to see the Rosa Parks bus and Lincoln chair.
Two James Distillery
When we left, our feet were tired. There was no way we could check out the public sculptures downtown. Instead, we decided to grab some cocktails from Two James Distillery! Adding to its awesomeness, there’s a parking lot behind the building. A wonderful convenience for sore legs. Another bonus: there’s a great view of Michigan Central Station from the parking lot.
Once indoors, we were welcomed by friendly bartenders, cordial patrons, and charming Christmas decorations. Bourbon barrels adorned with ribbons and bows, garland tastefully draped from the ceiling, and a miniature train chugged around a Christmas village above the distillery’s merchandise.
We each tried a couple different drinks, which tasted delicious. After taking our time to relax and enjoy, we headed back to the Airbnb to relax.
~ 3 Day Winter Getaway: Day Three Details ~
On the morning of day three, we discovered on that specific Tuesday, the Motown museum was closed for maintenance. With the additional time, we decided to go downtown since we didn’t have the stamina yesterday.
Detroit Institute of Arts
After checking out of the Airbnb, we parked the car at the Detroit Institute of Arts parking lot. It costs $7 per day to park there.
Once we entered the DIA from the John R Street entrance, we checked out the gallery map to set our priorities – and settled on exploring the African and Native American art.
After about an hour, we headed across the street to the Detroit Historical Museum. While cutting through the DIA to exit at the Woodward Avenue entrance, the front of the Museum stopped us in our tracks. It’s absolutely beautiful! We stayed longer and ogled over the large paintings and sculptures. I heard the DIA is huge and owned several notable pieces, but when entering from the John R Street entrance, the back exhibits are cut off from the front and the building’s design there is different as well. In total, we spent around 2-3 hours there but easily could have stayed longer.
Detroit Historical Museum
The Detroit Historical Museum is across the street from the DIA. This museum has exhibits throughout its 3 levels which include models of what Detroit was like winding along a street that stretches back to pre-European settlement times all the way to the turn of the 20th century. We were pleasantly surprised by the interactive 1967 exhibit. This museum didn’t have as many *wow* exhibits as the Henry Ford, but it was a great museum to learn about different time periods through Detroit’s long history.
Downtown Detroit
The next stop was downtown Detroit! To get there, we took the Qline from the Ferry Street stop to Campus Maritus Park. There are several options to purchase Qline tickets – with your phone, at the Qline stop, and on the Qline itself. Tickets are reasonably priced – $1.50 for a 3 hour pass, $3 for a day pass. There are also overhead heaters at each Qline stop.
Lafayette & American Coney Islands
So – there’s a rivalry between Lafayette and American Coney Island hot dogs. Once in the city, we visited both restaurants to judge for ourselves which experience and coney dog we preferred. I won’t name our preference here – you should visit both and decide for yourself!!
People Mover
Then, we purchased a ride on the People Mover for a quick, all encompassing tour of the city from above for only $.75 a ride!
Please note: Due to reduced ridership from COVID, the People Mover suspended service until further notice.
Campus Maritus
Our final stop before headed back uptown on the Qline was Campus Maritus to see the Christmas tree, people ice skating, and a cute outdoor Christmas market. Too bad it was only open Weds-Sunday, but that’s ok – it spared us from spending any more money! If you’re looking for something to do in Detroit to keep you in the Christmas spirit, I suggest visiting this cute market ASAP! There’s a tent beside the ice skating rink where you can enjoy a cup of hot chocolate and warm up.
~ 3 Day Getaway Budget ~
Total spent $200-$300 per person
- Lodging: less than $160 for 2 nights
- Eastern Market (shopping): depends
- Heidelberg: Free
- Belle Isle: Free (if paid for Michigan rec pass with tags)
- Bucharest Grille for dinner: $10-$15 per person
- Grocery Store for snacks/breakfast: depends
- Henry Ford: parking and admission – $23 admission, $6 parking
- Food at Hentry Ford: $16 per person
- Two James: $10 a drink
- DIA: $14 per person if not a resident of the nearby counties
- DHS: Free
- Qline: $3 per day or $1.50 for 3 hours
- People mover: $.75 per person
~~~
During our 3 day winter getaway to Detroit, we only scratched the surface of what you can do! But I wouldn’t change one thing about what we experienced. Next time I’m back in the city, I would love to take the tours of the Guardian and Fisher buildings provided by Pure Detroit and learn more about the architecture and buildings along Woodward Avenue.
Have you traveled to Detroit before? If so, what were your most memorable experiences? What other sites would you recommend visiting? I’d love to hear other suggestions!
from Michigan with Love,
Jackie
Kindly Note: This trip from 2018 was copied over from my first blog. The attractions we visited are updated for accuracy.
