• Detroit was ranked among ‘must-see destinations’ by a trendy travel magazine
• Highlights include striking landmarks and a flourishing music scene 
• The Visit Detroit campaign hopes to draw more visitors in over the next year 

A city in the Midwest has risen from a very troubled recent past to enjoy a huge resurgence and is now being hailed as one of the world’s most exciting destinations. 

When travel magazine Afar ranked its top must-see destinations this year, the list featured options like Paris, Rome and Fiji, plus a surprise contender: Detroit.

That may shock some, given the Michigan city’s reputation for violent crime and urban decay – with Detroit among the worst cities hit by the credit crunch just 17 years ago.

But Detroit has since managed to escape the so-called ‘doom loop’ currently plaguing other cities like Portland and San Francisco – and has become a hot new city for young people and families priced out of other area.

The average house price in Detroit is just $90,000 – an impressive 20 percent rise in a year. Many properties for sale are in more deprived areas that are often dangerous and yet to gentrify, but there are still many bargains to be had.

And analysts say that Detroit has such huge potential that it could soon see the glittering reputation earned during the glory days of Motown records and its once-booming auto industry restored. 

Speaking to the Wall Street Journal, Claude Molinari, CEO of the nonprofit Visit Detroit, said he believes the city has a lot to offer.

‘Come here, stay in our hotels, eat in our restaurants, visit our attractions and find everything there is to do and see in Detroit,’ Molinari said.

Despite its reputation as one of the most violent cities in America, crime rates have been trending downward. Detroit finished 2023 with 252 homicides, the fewest recorded since 1966.

The city also saw a 16 percent drop in nonfatal shootings and a 34 percent decrease in car jackings, according to Detroit Police Department data.

This came after a 2022 Detroit Police contract gave officers a $10,000 raise, allowing for the placement of 200 additional officers on the street to crack down on violence and mischief.

Molinari encourages people to look beyond the city’s ruined character. Rather, he says, consider the museums, striking architecture, casinos, parks and aquamarine waters of the Detroit River.

‘People come here and think it’s the Caribbean,’ Molinari quipped.

Detroit welcomed 17 million visitors last year, more than any year since the pandemic. But even that wasn’t enough to satisfy Molinari, who has set a goal of 25 million visitors by 2030.

This lofty aspiration has seen promotional posters springing up in larger cities in a bid to attract people to Motown.

The campaign is strategically targeting markets in the East Coast and Midwest, Texas during warmer months, and European countries with nonstop service to the city’s Delta Air Lines hub.

Molinari says he hopes many of the city’s visitors will consider staying and help further boost its transformation, with plentiful housing available.  

Of course, the city still has to overcome its reputation. In a 2023 Gallup poll ranking the perception of safety in major cities, Detroit finished dead last.

Just over a decade ago, the city filed for federal bankruptcy protection after a years-long financial crisis.

With debts topping $18 billion, the city could no longer pay its bills and was unable to provide basic services to its residents.

This sent millions of former residents flocking elsewhere, and the city suffered an unprecedented population decline. Numbers fell from a peak of 1.85 million people to roughly 685,000 by the end of 2012.

These factors plunged the city in a doom loop, a cycle where tax revenue drops, services suffer, businesses close, and people are driven away. Local leaders in California say similar conditions are plaguing San Francisco.

However, Detroit is starting to make a comeback.

The city has a wealth of beautiful old buildings, a reminder of its once-successful past, which are being refurbished.And while the housing market has seen a surge in pricing since the pandemic, Detroit’s cost of living remains below the national average.

According to the Council for Community and Economic Research, the metro region outranked Boston, Chicago and Portland last year in terms of affordability.

The city has also been investing in infrastructure and attractions. 

The famous Michigan Central Station will reopen to the public this summer after more than 30 years of vacancy.

An announcement was made in February in the form of the date ‘06-06-2024’ being projected across the face of the building.

The station itself is rich with history. A carriage house behind the train station will house the station clock, which was stolen and returned anonymously in 2018. Furthermore, the tracks have been preserved in case the passenger rail makes a return.

Last year, the iconic Book Tower opened its doors following a $300 million-plus renovation project. Highlights included a previously hidden glass dome skylight and restored, hand-painted ceilings.

Another must-see is the Fisher Building, a gorgeous Art Deco-style skyscraper with an interior faced with limestone, granite and several types of marble. 

Beyond its landmarks, the city has even more to offer in terms of music and culture.

The Motor City is also commonly known as Motown, named after the famous music genre it originated. Detroit is also the lesser-known birthplace of techno and hosts an annual techno festival called Movement that is hailed as being among the best in the world. 

This creative spirit lives on today, and major headliners like Taylor Swift have been sure to include the city on their list of tour stops.

Not to mention a slew of museums, tailored to interests ranging from art to history to topics as specific as cars in the form of the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation.

Detroit has also earned its standing as one of the country’s most passionate sports cities.

It boasts four professional sports teams – the Detroit Pistons for basketball, the Detroit Tigers for baseball, the Detroit Red Wings for hockey and the Detroit Lions for football.

Speaking of football, last week’s NFL draft sent hundreds of thousands of visitors flocking to the city, only further serving to reignite public interest.

Molinari believes big events like these, coupled with Visit Detroit’s aggressive marketing, will help Detroit experience even more of a boom.

His connection to the city is personal. A native New Yorker, he moved from Pittsburgh to Detroit for work in 2011.

Molinari didn’t expect to stick around for more than a few years, but he ‘fell in love with the city’ – and believes others will, too. 

‘I can’t tell you how often people will come here and be like, “I’m shocked!”‘ he said. ‘What did you expect? Did you think you would be dodging bullets or something?’