Detroit Architecture Walking Tour

Detroit built one of the great skylines of the 1920s with auto-age money, and much of it has been restored in the last decade. This walking tour, sold on Viator and rated 4.9 from more than 250 reviews, is the most efficient way to see it from the inside. It meets in the retail area of the Guardian Building at 500 Griswold Street, the 1929 tower nicknamed the Cathedral of Finance, whose banking hall glows with Pewabic and Rookwood tile, Aztec-inspired patterns and a vaulted ceiling in orange, gold and red; admission is included, and you spend about twenty minutes inside. From there the guide walks you through the Financial District and past Campus Martius Park, the city's central square, telling the story of the boom, the long decline and the comeback. The tour finishes at the Book Tower on Washington Boulevard, the ornate 1926 skyscraper reopened after a long restoration, with included entry to ROOST Detroit inside. It lasts about two and a half hours.

What you learn: good guides here combine architecture with the city's social history, from the French founding of the fort in 1701 to the fortunes made by the automakers, the bankers and the department stores, and the redevelopment that has filled once-empty towers with hotels, apartments and restaurants. Expect to hear about the architects behind the skyline, including Wirt Rowland of the Guardian Building and Louis Kamper of the Book Tower, and about the materials, tile, terra cotta and bronze, that make Detroit's Art Deco so rich.

Practical details: the group is capped at twenty travelers and the price is from a moderate per-person rate, with discounts for children. Free cancellation is available up to twenty-four hours before the start. The tour involves a fair amount of walking and standing, it is not wheelchair accessible and it is not recommended for travelers with back or serious heart problems. Travelers typically book a couple of weeks ahead, so reserve once your dates are fixed, and dress for the weather: in November it can be cold and windy between the towers.

Why book it rather than walk alone: you can step into the Guardian Building lobby on your own, but the included access, the route that links the best interiors and the stories behind them are what make the tour. Take it on your first morning and the rest of downtown makes sense; afterward, the People Mover, the RiverWalk and the food halls of downtown are all within a few minutes on foot.