How to spend 24 hours in Detroit.

[BoeingBoy]

Hi, can anyone give me any aviation related idea's of how to spend 24 hours in Detroit.

I would be interested in knowing about any museums, or aviation related restaurants etc.

Thanks.

[rick1128]

There is an excellent museum at Willow Run Airport (Ypsilanti, MI). Called the 'Yankee Air Museum' it honors the B24 which was manufactured in large numbers at the airport. The factory which was originally operated by Ford, is now the GM Hydromatic plant. Have fun

[ironbutt57]

you can spend 23.5 hours of it trying to avoid getting mugged or worse, the metro airprt is in a less than friendly neighborhood..

[A and C]

I can also recomend the yankee air museum at willow run the B24 history is well worth the visit , but one photo sums up the USA,s major contribution to WW2 it shows the trafic jam on the I 94 as the ford workers turned up for work , at this time a european worker was lucky to own a push bike.
I think it was Winston Churchill who said of WW2 that the britsh provided the time the USSR provided the blood and the USA provided the cash,enyhow the museum gives a good insight of how the USA,s economic might was used in tht cause of freedom in WW2.
The best aircraft they have is the B17 that they have rebuilt from the ground up ,i was lucky enough to see its first flight after a 5 years of work .....just wonderfull.
For refreshment in the detroit metro area i can recomend the Wheat and rye bar its cheap and chearfull and dont order eny food in a large size or you will be eating all week !
the bar is located near all the major hotels at metro.

[BigJETS]

My grandpa's first employer was the Willow Run plant making B24s.
I would recommend driving on over to Windsor. Unfortunately, Detroit and Windsor are like night and day respectively...cleanliness, atmosphere. You have to drive far from Detroit to experience the real way of life in Michigan.

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[BoeingBoy]

Thanks guy's, I was going to book a room at the Doubletree hotel on Wick Rd, just north of the airport. Any recommendations? Y/N? Bad area?

I will try to get time to do the B24 museum. That's if the wife gets out of the Motown one in time!. How far is Willow Run from DTW. I will probably hire a car anyway, so travel is not a problem.

Thanks again.

"Mel Gibson is wrong, Some Brits are nice!!".

[BigJETS]

Willow Run is only 10 minutes West of DTW on I-94 Exit 190 (Belleville Rd, North to Ecorse Rd, Left) No problem.
I dont think youll have any problems with the hotel. Its fairly secure. Biggest problems come from the parking lot at night (auto break-in).
You might enjoy Greenfield Village in Dearborn. If you dont, your wife will.
I believe GF Village has the garage that Orville and Wilbur wright used to build their airplane.

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[This message has been edited by BigJETS (edited 24 July 2000).]

[This message has been edited by BigJETS (edited 26 July 2000).]

[DownIn3Green]

Cross the bridge or go through the tunnel to Canada. Painless and the folks are great. Lots of great places to eat/drink, and cheaper than in the USA.

Second the Willow Run tour.

[BoeingBoy]

Thanks Guys. I am actually heading for a weekend on Mackinac Island, and will be stopping in DTW both ways to/from the UK.

I am told by 'she who must be obeyed' that we have to do the Motown Museum, but we should be able to stop by Willow Run aswell.

Thanks again.

[Ignition Override]

This is probably too late, but I twice rented a ($25 or so) car at the Hol. Inn Crowne Plaza at "hotel row", and drove about 30 min, straight west on I-94 to Ann Arbor, home of the Univ of MI. Very easy to get to. It is a really nice clean little downtown with a number of good restaurants, all close together plus at least one microbrew pub. Just be careful to read the signs at parking lots-they tow cars quite often. I've often jogged from the hotels by the airport and never encountered any problems with people. It's not a bad area, at least near the main area of hotels.

[This message has been edited by Ignition Override (edited 29 July 2000).]

[con-pilot]

BoeingBoy:

I'm sure you will love Mackinac Lsland. There are only 5 (I think) vehicles on the island. Three fire trucks, one ambulance and the fuel truck at the airport. Other than that it's horses or bicycles.

My wife and I spent a weekend there by accident. Went there for just a day and had such a good time we came back the next day and stayed for the weekend. We stayed at a Bed & Breakfast place, with a bar of course.

Watch out for all the fudge shops.

[BigJETS]

I think Boeing boy is well on his way to Michigan. Im sure when he gets back He'll tell us some more about Mack Island such as no electricity. Unfortunately there was a total power outage at the island this past week due to some cable that runs the 4 odd miles across the Straits to the island, or did it come from St Ignace? In any case, I hope the trip wasnt a letdown. I think it was restored before the weekend? I bet the Island by candlelight is better anyhow.

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[BoeingBoy]

No, I'm still pushing my 757 around Europe in the middle of the night until the end of October. We stop enroute in DTW both ways to/from Pellston.

We are spending four days at the Grand Hotel on the island, they are having a theme weekend based on a film made there many years ago. (Somewhere in time). It's a favourite of our's so it's a once in a lifetime trip to see the hotel and the island.(Once in a lifetime for the pocket aswell!)

Thanks for all your replies. If anyone knows of anything to see or do around Pellston or the island connected to aviation I would love to know of it. I have an FAA CPL (Restricted), my wife won't fly light aviation anymore, but I still fly GA especially if it goes upside down!. Is there an FBO with anything to rent thats interesting?.