Detroit's Hidden History Guided Walking Tour
Recommended by 98% of travelers
Detroit, USA
- 1 hour 30 minutes (approx.)
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
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Overview
Learn all about Detroit’s rich history—and steer clear of the usual tourist spots—on this walking tour through the city. With a knowledgeable guide leading the way, you’ll uncover stories behind landmarks including Michigan Theater Building, Grand Circus Park, and more. See beautiful architecture, listen to engaging commentary, and ask plenty of questions. Perfect for history buffs and first-time visitors, this tour is a brilliant introduction to the city.
- Combine sightseeing with history on this Detroit walking tour
- Hear facts you might miss if touring the city alone
- Option to extend the tour for an extra 30 minutes
- This shorter tour is great for travelers tight on time
What's Included
- Stories to fascinate and delight
- A knowledgeable local guide
- Well researched history
- Gratuity for the guide
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting point
- 1601 Woodward Ave, Detroit, MI 48226, USA
We meet at Grand Circus Park on Woodward Ave, right across from the People Mover Station. Your guide will be waiting at the stone pillar at the corner of Woodward and Park Ave.
End point
- The Spirit of Detroit2 Woodward Ave, Detroit, MI 48226, USA
The 90 minute tour ends with a final story in front of the Spirit of Detroit Monument overlooking the Detroit River, mere steps away from the Q-Line and People Mover stations. From there your guide can recommend several dinning options and well wishes for the remainder of your night.
Operating hours.6:00 pm
Itinerary
1
Grand Circus Park
10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
2
Michigan Theater Building
7 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
3
Capitol Park
7 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
4
Campus Martius Park
7 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
5
The Spirit of Detroit
7 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Stroller accessible
- Service animals allowed
- Near public transportation
- Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 40 travelers
Supplied by
Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Reviews
4.9
based on 56 reviews
Zil_M, May 2026
Great time with Mike, learning about the nitty gritties and very cool historic stories about Detroit!
Amy_T, May 2026
The tour was a great way to learn about Detroit. Our guide was extremely knowledgeable and entertaining. Would highly recommend.
Tammi_H, Apr 2026
The guide was very knowledgeable about the history of Detroit and showed the beautiful parts of the city.
Ruth_H, Apr 2026
Interesting tour with great storytelling and some quirky insights - it was great to hear from someone who was a real historian and also Detroit born and bred. Learnt a lot in just 90 mins and felt like our tour guide really engaged with us.
Dean_E, Apr 2026
Michael was the consummate tour guide and showed us all of the highlights of downtown Detroit. Very engaging. Highly recommended!
Marlene_G, Mar 2026
We loved this tour! It was really fun to walk around the city and check out all the beautiful architecture. We enjoyed learning the hidden history of Detroit. Our tour guide, Michael, was very knowledgeable and friendly.
Ashleigh_A, Dec 2025
We had a day of being tourists in our own town and Michael did an awesome job telling stories to bring Detroit to us in a new and exciting way!
Marisela_H, Oct 2025
Our guide Michael was very entertaining and knowledgeable of the Detroit history without being boring!! Very impressed with how this city has made such a positive comeback!
Response from Host, Nov 2025
Thanks Marisel! We are glad to know you enjoyed the experience!
Marian_G, Oct 2025
The guide is a history teacher. He's incredibly knowledgeable and personable. I learned so much, and the guide engaged us. The tour was a good pace between walking and stopping. It was waaay better than other more expensive tours. It's all about the guide!
Response from Host, Oct 2025
Yes Marian, you are very right, the Guide is so important, and we are glad that you are confirming we got a great one! Thanks for your comment, it is of great value to us.
Marta_A, Oct 2025
The guided tour is a must-do when visiting Detroit. Michael gets you to know the best bits of the city and his amazing history in a very entertaining way. He truly is able to share his love for the city and its history with everyone! He will give you very useful tips for during your visit. Highly recommended!
Response from Host, Oct 2025
Hi Marta, we are glad to know you enjoyed our Hidden History Tour. Your comment it is of great value for us.
Julia_H, Oct 2025
We learned history and stories about Detroit. The tour offers great highlights of the city and a different perspective from just driving through.
Response from Host, Oct 2025
Hi Julia, we are glad to know that you enjoyed our Tour. We appreciate your comment.
Waldenise_P, Oct 2025
The Guide was excellent! He extended the tour and gave us a Lot of information. A person Very interested in giving us ALL information
Response from Host, Oct 2025
Walden, Thanks for your comment. It is a pleasure for us to show Detroit's Hidden History.
Michelle_M, Sept 2025
Full disclosure: I signed up for this walking tour as something to do between arriving on a late afternoon flight and museum visits I'd booked for the next morning. Although I had planned to "coast" through the experience, absorbing bits here and there, I was pleasantly surprised to have this tour change my mind--it was not your typical recitation of dates and postcard landmarks where you stroll and nod along.
As a professional storyteller myself, I appreciated how Michael used storytelling to bring the city's history to life. His knowledge and passion for history were evident and infectious. As a bonus, his insight and experiences as a native Detroiter helped make the stories he told and the places he showed us that much more special.
I took the 2-hour extended tour, which I would recommend for anyone, but especially folks who like to learn about the unusual and "mystical" quirks of the city.
Great value, great use of time, great introduction to a fascinating city. Definitely recommend!
Response from Host, Oct 2025
Thanks Michelle for your lovely comment. We aim for a good experience and quality for our customers, so we are very glad to know that you were pleasantly surprised.
Aleisa_M, Sept 2025
Michael, the guide, is a history major who knows a lot about the origins & subsequent history of a city he knows & loves. There were 8 of us, the pace was good, and the information he shared, quite interesting! This tour begins in Grand Circus Pk & ends at the Spirit of St Louis, with most stops from the north to the middle of downtown Detroit. Combined with a foot tour I took earlier that concentrated mostly from the river to the middle of downtown, I believe I got a thorough intro to an unexpectedly wonderful city. Go Lions, and don't hesitate to explore Detroit on foot!
Response from Host, Oct 2025
Go Lions!!! Thank you, we value the opinion and experience of our customers. We would like to invite you to join our Hidden History Club for future events.
kevin_D, Sept 2025
Detroit has a lot to see in terms of fantastic architecture. This tour explains the origins of and the reasons behind the way the city is.
Response from Host, Sept 2025
We appreciate your comment and are very glad to share our passion for history with our customers.
Arun_V, Sept 2025
I really enjoyed this tour, Micheal has great knowledge about the city and as a local his lives experience of how the city has evolved is fascinating.
He handled our questions expertly and gave us a lot of tips for our continued time in Detroit, a great tour and I would recommend.
Response from Host, Oct 2025
What!!? We were almost certain we hired Matt as our Tour Guide!!! ;)
Thank you for your kind review, it was our pleasure to share our passion for history.
Olga_G, Sept 2025
Michael is absolutely wonderful--he is very knowledgeable and a good storyteller. He truly brought the history of Detroit alive for us. Highly recommended!!!
Response from Host, Oct 2025
That is a beautiful sentiment to share with us, we appreciate your kind comment. We would like to invite you to join our Hidden History Club on our website for future events we are working on.
Trudy_T, Sept 2025
Michael was very enthusiastic about sharing the history of his city. We learned a lot about visions, set backs, and triumphs of Detroit.
Response from Host, Sept 2025
Thanks for your kind review. It was a pleasure to show the rich history of the city!
Sherri_N, Sept 2025
Mike was very knowledgeable and added a little humor to the stories. We learned a lot that we never knew about Detroit.
Response from Host, Oct 2025
We are glad to know you guys enjoyed the tour. We are always looking for ways to also learn more about our beautiful history to keep on offering the best services. Thanks for your kind comment.
Jamie_N, Aug 2025
Great 90 minute tour. Our guide was very informative and also was able to give suggestions of other things to do while in Detroit.
Response from Host, Aug 2025
Thank you for your review, it was our pleasure!
Sam_R, Aug 2025
JUST what we were looking for... engaging storytelling that gave us an insiders scoop to what was, and thus what is. Really appreciated the ability to book the day prior (many operators required far in advance booking), and felt this activity was the perfect way to kick-off our stay in the city!!
Response from Host, Aug 2025
Such a kind review, thank you so much! It was our pleasure!
Monica_W, Aug 2025
He was very knowledgeable and we had a great time. I would recommend this to local Detroit residents and to our out of town guests.
Response from Host, Aug 2025
Thank you so much for your kind review. It was a pleasure to show you around our wonderful city.
Sharon_W, Jul 2025
Our tour guide, Michael, knew a lot about Detroit and it's history. He's great at telling very interesting stories about Detroit's past and the important people that influenced Detroit through the years. He answered all my questions and definitely helped me better understand what has shaped Detroit over the past 300 years. His tour was exactly what I was looking for to help me better understand buildings like The Guardian and Fisher Building. The extra 30 minutes we spent at Hart Plaza was also interesting. Michael's interpretation of the monuments was great, plus we got to see the lights come on on the fountain that's there.
Response from Host, Aug 2025
It was a pleasure to show you around our wonderful city. I'm glad you enjoyed our extended tour, it's one of my favorite parts to talk about!
Jocelyn_M, Jul 2025
Michael was a very nice young man, but I would have much rather heard the rich history of the buildings and artifacts that we were seeing. He would break off into stories and lose everybody in our group. When he actually talked about buildings it was interesting and it would've been nice if he could actually take us in somewhere rather than just walking on the streets. he kept telling us we should visit certain buildings, but yet we didn't have time for that and it would've been nice to actually visit them on a tour. it was very painful at the end when we had to continue to hear stories about things that happened with people in Detroit in the past. I was mentally done after 40 minutes. We are a rough crowd though because three of us are educators, and we have to capture people's attention every single day. He needs to talk less!
Response from Host, Jul 2025
Thank you for your review, tough though it was. 90 minutes of walking can be difficult and I tend to walk fast, but I did look for opportunities to give the group time to sit when possible. As for too many stories, this is a tough one. We have a lot of history to talk about, including buildings which I talked about as well. I do my best to find stories about interesting people so I am sorry this was not to your liking. If you're ever in town again let me know and I will design a special architecture tour just for you!
Jill_W, Jun 2025
The tour walked through downtown and we learned the history of Detroit along with several fun facts that we had never heard. Our group was small and we were able to bring our dog along for the walk. We would highly recommend this tour for anyone who wants to spend some time exploring the city and learning about its history.
Response from Host, Jul 2025
Your dog was a sweetie and added a lot of flavor to our tour. Thank you for joining us!
Linda_B, Jun 2025
This tour was quite enjoyable. Our tour guide, Michael, was knowledgeable and engaging. He is truly passionate about the city
of Detroit.
Response from Host, Jun 2025
I had a great time with your group! It was my pleasure to show you around!
John_B, Jun 2025
We had a great time with a wonderful guide. Micheal taught us things about the city that we would have never known or discovered on our own. Knowing more about the history of Detroit makes want to visit the city again.
Response from Host, Jun 2025
It was my pleasure! Please remember us the next time your in town, we hope to have many new tour adventures to share!
Gautam_M, Jun 2025
Very informative, and the guide was very friendly.
Hello didn't look at the time, and was very enthusiastic to show around
Response from Host, Jun 2025
It was a pleasure to introduce your group to Detroit! I appreciate your kindness and the many interesting questions you asked! Thank you so much for joining us!
Krysten_J, May 2025
Informative without being boring and the guide was very knowledgeable. It talked about the buildings and people that had an impact on the city making it what it is today.
It was definitely worth the money. Would do another tour with the same company on a different section of the city. Had a lovely dinner at one of the many restaurants nearby for a great visit with a friend.
Response from Host, May 2025
Thank you so much for the wonderful review. Please keep us in mind for your next trip, we will be adding more tour options soon!
Jeanette_G, May 2025
This hidden history tour was unlike any other I have taken in Detroit. It was rich with stories that most tours completely overlook. Our guide brought forgotten landmarks and untold narratives to life with passion and insight.
Response from Host, May 2025
Thank you so much for the kind review! It was my pleasure to share some of my favorite Detroit stories with you!
From $35.00
per personup to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)
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