Sights & Attractions in Detroit

Detroit Sights

Founded in the early 18th century, the Midwest's oldest city is a busy industrial center, producing roughly a quarter of the nation's autos, trucks, and tractors. The riverfront harbor is one of the Great Lakes' busiest ports. Downtown, a constant flow of traffic moves in and out of the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel and across the Ambassador Bridge, both of which connect Detroit with Windsor, Ontario, directly across the Detroit River.

Though Detroit nicknamed itself "Renaissance City" in the 1970s, it did little to deserve the title until the 1990s. A new mayor, new sports stadiums, and a host of new restaurants and nightclubs have helped to revitalize Downtown. Detroit's glitzy theater district is now second only to New York's Great White Way in number of seats.

Detroit is the Motor City, and everyone does drive. Many Downtown streets are one-way, and taxis are sparse; a detailed map is a necessity. The main streets into Downtown are Woodward Avenue (north-south) and Jefferson Avenue (east-west). Starting on foot from the riverside Renaissance Center, Downtown, you can move outward to east Detroit, with its burgeoning Rivertown neighborhood, and then on to the northwest side, the cultural heart of the city. Detroit's elevated monorail, the People Mover (www.thepeoplemover.com), traces a 3-mi circuit around the Downtown area; trains stop at 13 stations at approximately 3-minute intervals.

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