Although the biggest attraction in Detroit in the winter is the North American International Auto Show, the city also puts on a big winter carnival known as the Motown Winter Blast (winterblast.com) in mid-February. Located in and around Campus Martius Park, the annual weekend-long event offers family-friendly fun and activities such as professional skating and ice sculpting demonstrations; a giant snow slide; snowshoeing; live music; and a Taste of Detroit event, which showcases Detroit restaurants. Another big event in winter is the annual Ferndale Blues Festival (ferndalebluesfestival.org), located just 11 miles from downtown in the Ferndale neighborhood. This festival brings together blues artists from around the country for a nine-day long series of concerts in area bars and restaurants. The festival, which raises money for local charities, offers free shuttles between venues on both Saturdays and Sundays during the event.
Country fans flock to downtown Detroit one weekend each May for the WYCD Downtown Hoedown (wycd.radio.com), a country music festival that brings the biggest names in country to Detroit. Seven performance stages are set up for the festival, which is completely free to the public. In addition to the big names, new and up-and-coming talent are also highlighted during the festival. Food and souvenir vendors are also available throughout the festival, located in Hart Plaza. For those who appreciate flowers, the annual Flower Day at Eastern Market (detroiteasternmarket.com), showcases 15 acres of flowers both local and exotic from all over the world. Most flowers are for sale and the event is family-friendly with activities available for children the whole day. Activities include train rides, face-painting, clowns, a wagon-decorating contest and a crafts fair.
In the summer Detroit is home to several outdoor events, including River Days (riverdays.com), a four-day event that promotes the Detroit Riverfront. Held each year at the end of June, the festival features carnival rides, live entertainment, river boat tours and a children's entertainment zone. Other events during River Days include a 5K run along the water; Pooch-a-Palooza, which celebrates pets; and the Detroit Parade of Lights on the water. There is a small fee for entry but discounts are widely available. Another event on the waterfront held in August annually is the African World Festival (chwmuseum.org). Showcasing African musicians, the festival is put on by the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History. In addition to music, the free festival also includes African and international foods, cooking demonstrations and a children's village for children's entertainment.
The Detroit Jazz Festival (detroitjazzfest.com) ushers in fall each year during Labor Day weekend. Both international and local jazz artists and jazz bands perform among five stages at this free event in downtown Detroit. Aside from live performances, the festival also offers a special Kid Bop tent for children's entertainment and storytelling; food vendors throughout the grounds; and poetry readings. In October, Detroit holds its annual Fall Beer Festival(michiganbrewerguilds.org) at the Eastern Market. This one day festival for adults offers tastings of almost 200 types of beers from 40 Michigan breweries. Local bands provide live entertainment and food is provided by local restaurant vendors. All those admitted to this ticketed event are given a specific amount of tokens for drinking, but you can purchased additional tokens.
