Detroit is the largest city in Michigan and the second-largest city in the Midwest, after Chicago. The city is well-known as the automotive capital of the world, hence the nickname "Motor City," as well as being the birthplace of Motown music.
If you need proof of Detroit's love of music, check out all the places to hear it in town. Major venues include the Fox Theatre, Music Hall Center for the Performing Arts, Gem Theatre, Masonic Temple Theatre, and the Detroit Opera House, among many others. Detroit is the cradle of American electro-techno music as well, and more than half of the world's top 20 electro-techno artists come from the region.
Detroit Economic Growth Corporation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to increasing the community's prosperity, focuses on the design and implementation of public-private partnerships that drive investment, create jobs, and advance Detroit's economy. Others include the Greening, which promotes urban forestry and tree planting, and the Detroit Community Foundation, the city's economic development arm.
General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler have headquarters in the Detroit area. Michigan ranks fourth among the 10 largest U.S. states in terms of high-tech jobs. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are 568,000 high-tech workers, including 70,000 from the automotive industry.
Detroit also has a unique concentration of museums and cultural centers, including the Detroit Institute of Arts, the Detroit Historical Museum, the Charles H. Wright Museum of African-American History, and the Detroit Science Center, to name a few.
Many historic landmarks are scattered through the city, including the abandoned Michigan Central Station. Detroit boasts the recently restored historic Westin Book Cadillac Hotel, as well as a number of other boutique hotels and restaurants.
While Detroit itself provides the majority of the region's attractions, there are also a number of things to see in other parts of Michigan, too. For example, tourists can also find other shopping opportunities in suburbs like Troy.
Downtown Detroit is home to the Renaissance Center, which includes Grand Circus Park, the Detroit Marriott, and a handful of restaurants and shops.
Detroit is an international destination for sporting events of all kinds, and guests enjoy going to watch the Detroit Lions at Ford Field or the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park.