As mentioned in the post about Chicago, this was a trip to visit my daughter’s family members we had not met before. So, this trip was a little different than our norm because we had other people to factor in and that shook things up a little.
Also, with this trip being after the rest of America has returned to travel, some prices for things had increased. I normally rent a car at the airport for simplicity, however, with this trip I rented through Turo. I’ll share my take on that later.
We flew via Delta this time and that was an added bonus because we were afforded a carry on bag, snacks and had in-flight entertainment. It has been at least a year since I had flown them (or anyone outside Frontier, for that matter) and it was nice.
I favor La Quinta because they USUALLY have nice accommodations whenever we’ve stayed at them. This location, unfortunately, was an exception. It wasn’t awful, but I wouldn’t stay there again.
I had a list of places I wanted to dine at, but due to a few factors I wasn’t able to fit them into the equation.
Transportation– Delta $137 RT (non-stop) and a rental car
Accommodations– La Quinta Detroit Canton
We Ate at:
- the Clique Diner
- Hopcat–
- We had their Cosmik fries, Pretzel Nuggz, and Killer Mac ‘n Cheese. Very good food.
- Aruba Freeze– a food truck close to Campus Martius that has amazing ice cream. We had their piña colada flavor.
- Mezza Mediterranean Grille (Detroit airport)- we had the Beyond Burger with a side of their wonderful crispy fries.
We Visited (those listed in italics were at no charge):
- The Henry Ford Museum- this museum is a must see for everyone, in my opinion. The place is sooooo huge that we were there for hours and STILL didn’t get to see it all. There is so much rich history and fascinating things to see and explore.
- The one thing that I HAD to see was the ACTUAL bus that Rosa Parks sat on. This museum has it, where other museums have replicas. We were able to sit on the seat where she actually sat. That was something I will forever cherish and explain to the Little Girl as she gets older.
- There are also seasonal/temporary exhibits and the one that was featured during our trip was Jim Henson’s.
- Side note- there are many machines located throughout exhibits where you can make a 3D replica of cars and people. When we went they were $3 each. My daughter has the replica of JFK’s Presidential car.
- Ford Rouge Factory Tour- this tour was hands down amazing! There are two movies that you watch before seeing the rest of the tour. The first one was nice, informative and straightforward. The second one was a ROCKSTAR!!! There were lights and other surprises that made this a treat. After the movies, we went to the observation level and the guide told us about the plant. After that, we went to see the production, which was sooo awesome. This plant makes the Ford F-150 so although you see it from finished to beginning, it’s a cool experience. The tour ends in the gallery where you see various cars in their shining glory. (Tip 1: check their production calendar to make sure that the production part is open during your visit. Tip 2: If you’re going to visit the museum and do the factory tour, to save the most money, put the museum tix in your cart and select the plant tour add-on. The tour tix will be half off this way.)
- Belle Isle- a beautiful place that has lots of greenspace for the kiddos to run around. You can see Canada from here, since it’s very close to the Riverfront. There is a botanical garden/observatory there, along with an aquarium. Both were closed during our visit. There are areas where people were having a picnic. Others were complete with a tent, chairs and coolers and such.
- Walled Lake (this is in Novi)- since the Little Girl’s grandfather live in Novi, he showed us this neighborhood gem. It’s a small beach on the lake and there is a restaurant onsite. I didn’t see any bathrooms but there is a spigot for people to rinse the sand off their feet. There are also tables with benches.