Detroit gets a very small window to enjoy outside before it's time to dig out the Carhartt jackets and Timbaland boots. Safe to say, we make the most of the sunshine when we do have, but sometimes the high heat is just unbearable. Just because the temperature might be six degrees past hell doesn't mean that all of your fun has to be spent at home. There's art museums, water parks, beaches and even a nude resort if the idea of clothes in 90 degree weather is sickening to you.
Things to do in Detroit when it's hot AF outside
By Metro Times editorial staff on Fri, Jul 2, 2021 at 2:23 pm
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The Pose Experience
15618 W. 10 Mile Rd., Southfield; theposeexperience.comIsn’t your Instagram feed the way everyone knows you’re actually having a great summer? The Pose Experience is a selfie museum that gives everyone the opportunity to live out their best influencer dreams. The interactive selfie experience is open to everyone ages 12 and up. General admission is $28, or you can grab your friends and book a 1-hour private experience for $250. Masks are required, with the exception of taking photos, and tickets have to be purchased in advance online.
Photo courtesy of The Pose Experience
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The Reptarium
45559 Van Dyke, Utica; 586-884-6646; thereptarium.comThe Reptarium offers a hand on petting zoo experience sure to get your scales — uh skin — crawling. Lizards? Check. Snakes? Absolutely. It's available for birthday parties and private tours, too. The Reptarium is your place for all things reptile without having to venture outdoors.
Photo via The Reptarium/Facebook
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Sea Life Aquarium
4316 Baldwin Rd., Auburn Hills; 248-409-6001; visitsealife.comSebastian did his best to try to keep Ariel under the sea, and the SEA LIFE Aquarium offers you the chance to see what he was talking about. It’s Michigan’s largest aquarium, with 2,000 aquatic creatures including sharks, stingrays, and sea turtles.
Photo via SEA LIFE Aquarium/Facebook
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Northland Roller Rink
22311 W. Eight Mile Rd., Detroit; 313-535-1666; northlandrink.comSkating on street art outdoors at the newly opened Monroe Street Midway is still on our Detroit summer bucket list, but nothing beats gliding on a wooden rink — in the A/C. Grab your skates and lace up at the famous Northland Roller Rink.
Photo via Google Maps
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Glenlore Trails
3860 Newton Rd., Commerce Charter Twp.; glenloretrails.comLast year, Bluewater Technologies, a Southfield-based company that provides audiovisual technology for large-scale events like the North American International Auto Show, had to pivot due to the pandemic. That resulted in Glenlore Trails, an immersive, illuminated experience that saw a half-mile trail in Commerce Township outfitted in custom light and sound installations. The company updated it for Halloween and the winter holidays, and it's not stopping there. On July 1, the trail will double to more than a mile in length, with new installations that help flesh out the characters and storylines (we're told it's got something to do with cryptozoology). Sounds like a trip.
Photo courtesy of Glenlore Trails
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Turtle Lake Clothing Optional Resort
2101 Nine Mile Rd., Union City; 517-741-7004; turtle-lake.netOK — so this might be a two-hour drive from Detroit, but it offers a unique and stripped-down socially distanced experience that would likely get you arrested anywhere else. Turtle Lake Clothing Optional Resort in Union City is exactly what it sounds like. Michigan summer means it’s hot AF and what better time than to shed the shackles of conformity, societal judgment, and unpleasant chafing by getting nude with strangers? Opened in the 1980s as a traditional camp/resort experience, Turtle Lake ditched the clothing requirement sometime around 2003 when it transitioned into Michigan’s best clothing-optional getaways. They have pools, hot tubs, a tiki bar, a range of outdoor sporting activities, as well as a private beach where skinny dipping is encouraged.
Photo via Turtle Lake Clothing Optional Resort/Facebook
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Aloha Tiki Tours
Available out of Sindbad's Restaurant & Marina, 100 Saint Clair St., Detroit; Blossom Heath Park and Pier, 24800 Jefferson Ave., St. Clair Shores; 507 Biddle Ave., Wyandotte; alohatikitours.comSince 2019, Aloha Tiki Tours has offered two-hour tours of the Detroit River via a fleet of Bluetooth speaker-equipped octagonal floating tiki boats where up to six guests are invited to BYOB — with a captain, of course. (God, can you imagine a world where tiki boats were captainless? Mayhem, we say. Mayhem!) The tours cost $275-$300 Monday-Thursday and $300-$325 Friday-Sunday. New this year, the company debuted a tiki-themed pedal pub, which the owners claim is the world's first. The thatch roof and bamboo-accented Tiki Bar Bike leaves from Bookies Bar and Grill (2208 Cass Ave., Detroit; 313-962-0319; detroitrollingpub.com) and can seat 16. Like the Aloha Tiki Tour boats, drinks are BYOB, and tours are two hours. According to a Facebook post, all customers will get a $20 gift card to use at Bookies after the tour. Tours are $295 Monday-Thursday, $375 on Fridays, $400 on Saturdays, and $345 on Sundays.
Photo by Noah Elliott Morrison
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Grab some ice cream
We’re not sure why it is, but metro Detroit really likes ice cream. So much so that we’ve even made a round-up of all the area’s best custards, creams, and non-dairy treats, many of which are walk-up stands, which means socially distancing has never been more delicious. Do one better and treat yourself to your own ice cream tour — just remember to pack some Lactaid.Photo via Cold Truth/ Facebook
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Great Lakes Surf Shop
23517 Nine Mack Dr., St. Clair Shores; 586-359-6951; greatlakessurf.com/kiteGo fly a kite! Better yet, go kitesurfing, which sounds both made up and super dangerous. But Great Lakes Surf Shop specializes in making sure your water sports potential is fulfilled. OK — so you’re not gonna learn how to kiteboard at their St. Clair Shores retail location, but at the shop’s affiliated Great Lakes Kiteboarding school, which started in 2002. They offer camps and private lessons on Lake St. Clair. Not feeling ready to hit the high seas? They’ve got paddle-boarding lessons, too.
Photo via Shutterstock.com
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Ford-Wyoming Drive-in
10400 Ford Rd., Dearborn; 313-846-6910; forddrivein.comWe can't wait to watch Zola, quite possibly the most important movie of the summer, the way god herself intended: high AF at the Ford-Wyoming Drive-In.
Photo by Austin Evans Eighmey
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Ride the Dequindre Cut
1776 Woodbridge St., Detroit; detroitriverfront.org/riverfront/dequindre-cutCut it out, would ya? We’re trying to get our breeze on. The Dequindre Cut Greenway is a dope two-mile greenway connecting the East Detroit Riverfront, Eastern Market, and some residential areas. The below-street level pedestrian greenway is prime for biking and has bike lanes, as well as street art, murals, and provides a moment of zen in the hustle-bustle of the city. You can also rent a bike via Detroit Wheelhouse, but appointments are required.
Photo via Hannah Ervin/Detroit Stock City
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Visit the DIA
5200 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313-833-7900; dia.orgIce cold A/C? Check. A world-class art collection that would make Edvard Munch’s “The Scream,” well, scream? Ahhhhh, yes. The Detroit Institute of Arts has reduced its hours, with timed tickets have to be reserved online. The Kresge court and other dining options are currently closed. But who's to say you can’t pack a picnic and camp out in the sculpture garden after you soak in the art — and air conditioning — indoors?
Photo via Darren Hood/Detroit Stock City
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Sail away
313-574-5684; detroitsails.comSomeone once said that owning a boat is basically owning a hole in the water that you throw money into, and for that reason we will likely never be boatowners because in order to throw money into a hole, you have to have money to throw which, well, you get the idea. But to get a taste of how the other half lives, there’s Detroit Sails, which conducts two-hour sails on the Detroit River for up to four guests. They offer day sails and sunset sails. Oh, and it’s BYOB, so you can celebrate never having to deal with owning a boat. Huzzah!
Photo via Detroit Sails/Facebook
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Hit Belle Isle Beach
99 Pleasure Dr., Detroit; 313-821-9844; belleisleconservancy.orgDespite the rocky shores and copious amounts of goose shit, Detroit's Belle Isle is the perfect place to tan on a sunny day with priceless views of the Detroit skyline. Unfortunately the Belle Isle Aquarium is not expected to open until July 16, but the Nature Center (176 Lakeside Dr., Detroit; 313-852-4056; belleislenaturecenter.detroitzoo.org) is open for pre-registered outdoor events like nature hikes.
Photo via Darren Hood/ Detroit Stock City
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