Mansion tours, carriage rides and holiday lights: 5 things to do in metro Detroit
‘Tis the time of year when metro Detroit comes alive with festive lights and holiday cheer. Explore historic mansions illuminated with holiday lights, wander through dazzling outdoor displays, experience animated light arrangements from the comfort of your vehicle or even hop on a horse-drawn carriage ride through the heart of downtown Detroit.
Here are five things to do for the weekend of Nov. 24 -26.
Home for the Holidays at Ford House
This holiday experience at the Ford House, presented by Landscape Services, Inc., will allow visitors to explore the historic home, grounds and gardens that will be illuminated by thousands of sparkling lights. Guests can also enjoy a self-guided tour of the estate’s first floor, where you'll hear stories about the estate’s rich history.
The event starts Friday and continues each Friday, Saturday and Sunday through Dec. 30 at the Ford House, 1100 Lake Shore Road in Grosse Pointe Shores. Tickets are $30 for adults and $15 for children. Tickets for Ford house members are $20 for adults and $10 for children. Each ticket will include a complimentary hot chocolate.
Holiday Carriage Rides in Downtown Detroit
Embrace the holiday cheer and experience the magic of downtown Detroit from inside a horse-drawn carriage.
Carriage rides will take passengers through downtown and around Campus Martius Park and Detroit’s 64-foot-tall Christmas Tree.
Related: Hundreds gather downtown for start of holiday season, annual tree lighting
6-11 p.m. every Friday and Saturday through Dec. 30 and 6-11 p.m. Dec. 31 at Woodward Esplanade at 600 Woodward in Detroit. Rides are $10 per person. Tickets can be purchased at the time of the ride on a first come first serve basis.
Light Up Beacon Park
Blocks away from Campus Martius Park, Beacon Park has been transformed into a winter wonderland and pop-up seasonal gathering space. The park will be lit up with 125,000 holiday lights.
Guests can experience “Northern Lights” with larger-than-life light features, including a 15-foot infinity snow globe, a gigantic walkthrough snowflake and skating and sledding polar bears.
New this year is an indoor heated space that will feature live entertainment, art installations, themed décor, visual displays, photo backdrops, along with a winter cocktail spritz bar by Lumen Detroit.
Open through Jan 16 at Beacon Park in downtown Detroit. Free.
Holiday Walk
This self-guided tour inside Meadow Brook Hall, a historic mansion and National Historic Landmark in Rochester on the campus of Oakland University, will transport visitors through the mansion decked in shimmering splendor.
There will be more than 50 trees, including a 10-foot tall Poinsettia tree created by 150 live plants, flickering fireplaces, and lights galore as you explore the 110-room estate from the Grand Ballroom to the sun porch and to visit Santa on selected Saturdays.
The tour will take approximately one-hour and will be available through Dec. 23. Tickets must be purchased online in advance and prices are $20.50 for ages 13 and older; $8 for 3-12 and free for children 2 and younger.
Wayne County Lightfest
Take in the lights and see nearly 50 animated, themed displays and more than 100,000 lights as you drive through a five-mile stretch of Hines Park in Wayne County.
The Lightfest will be open 6-10 p.m. Wednesdays-Sundays until Dec. 24. The entrance is at 7651 North Merriman Road in Westland. By tuning into AM 1640 within three to five miles of the Lightfest entrance, visitors can receive regular updates on wait times, traffic flow, special events and more. The price for tickets is $5 per car (cash only). Pre-paid tickets can be purchased in advance at the Nankin Mills Interpretive Center in Westland from 1-4 p.m. Monday-Friday.
Brendel Hightower is an assistant editor at the Detroit Free Press. Contact her at bhightower@freepress.com. Support local journalism: Subscribe to the Detroit Free Press.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Mansion tours, carriage rides and holiday lights: 5 things to do