My wife and I are traveling to the US around Christmas, first staying a couple of nights at Sonder Gabriel Richard in Downtown Detroit before heading on to NYC. We were initially unbothered by what we considered overblown and outdated stereotypes about the area.
Now my wife is hearing from coworkers and family, including family who live in Detroit, about the grave danger she’s in if she stays in downtown.I’m irritated by the anxiety these people have spawned out of nothing. Maybe I’m naive but my gut still says that they’re blowing things out of proportion, and at worst it’s a little seedy around there.
Would any locals like to comment on how poor a choice we made staying in downtown Detroit as first time travellers to the US? We’re Australian if that matters somehow.
Canton is a distant suburb cursed with no shortage of terrified whiners who would sooner call the police on a frostbitten vagrant than bring them a blanket. Detroiters, on the other hand, despite the rampant inequality and not infrequent crime, tend to look out for eachother and are often quite friendly to strangers.
(incidentally though, Canton has some pretty good indian and korean food, which you might try if forced to call on your wife’s family.)
Downtown Detroit is perfectly safe and filled with lots of fun things to do both during the day and at night. The worst that will likely happen is that a homeless person will ask you for money while sitting harmlessly on the street. This can happen in any major city, tho. Stick to downtown and stay out of the Detroit neighborhoods and you’ll be fine. There is nothing touristy to do in the neighborhoods so you’ll have no reason to go into them.
Pretty much everything negative people say about Detroit is the typical overblown pearl clutching. As for your family that lives in Detroit… Do they actually live in Detroit or one of the suburbs? Because that will be most telling. Most people that live in the metro Detroit area will say they’re from Detroit because it’s easier to explain than being from Clinton Township or Troy… And suburbanites can be snobby about Detroit in general. I fully agree with your gut feelings and they are spot on.
As for a comment for your first time traveling to the US… I’m delighted you chose Detroit and I’m hopeful you will have a blast while here! Detroit has awesome culinary, music, and art scenes and there is something here for everyone!
Thank you! I mean, there are “dangerous areas” where I live too, where the reality is you have maybe a one in a million chance of something awful happening, as opposed to the one in two million you’re used to. When I became an independent teen and actually spent time in all these areas my parents had described so derisively, it all just boiled down to lower median income, higher proportion of disadvantaged people drawn to cheaper housing, and a greater chance that someone’s going to ask you for spare change.
My wife’s extended family lives in Canton, so I think it’s fair to say they do live in Detroit, but also that their opinions of downtown are informed by something they heard. Maybe “that one thing” they heard happened years ago. Who knows.
I’m actually really glad we’re working Detroit into this trip too, and it’s partly because I want to see first hand how distorted everyone’s perception here is. Everyone here seems to have an opinion on this trip, and they all make that 😬 face about Detroit. Definitely keen to hit up the museums, art institute, and whatever else we can before jetting out.
Alright, so I love your attitude and your going to fit in just fine in the D. As for your wife’s family, Canton is closer to Ann Arbor than it is Detroit so I chuckled a bit when you named their city. Have a great time and let us know how you end up spending your time in our fair city!
