Welcome to Midtown Detroit

Midtown is Detroit’s cultural hub—with some of the best galleries and museums, including the world-class Detroit Institute of Arts, the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit (MOCAD), the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, the Detroit Historical Museum and the Michigan Science Center. The Detroit Symphony Orchestra is also located here.

It also boasts a vibrant blend of housing—historical and new construction, affordable and luxurious, townhouses and lofts.

The neighborhood has great restaurants, bars, cafes, shops, nightlife, plus the city’s educational institutions including the College for Creative Studies, Wayne State University, as well as the presence of Michigan State University and the University of Michigan. The city’s medical institutions are also located here: the Henry Ford Health System, Karmanos Cancer Institute and the Detroit Medical Center.

Each year, Midtown Detroit offers an increasingly diverse mix of arts and cultural events, expanding green spaces and alleys, and nonprofit organizations—all contributing to the establishment of Midtown Detroit as a destination spot.

Noel Night Map

Noel Night activities take place in Midtown Detroit, from Ferry Street to the north, Charlotte to the south, St. Antoine to the east and Third Avenue to the west.

Woodward Avenue is open this year–it will not be closed down, and the QLINE will be operational.

After 8:00 pm, minors under the age of 18 should be accompanied by and adult.

Directions to Midtown from the Major Freeways

For those visitors coming from the north and south driving on I-75, we encourage you to use an alternative exit rather than the Warren Avenue exit to avoid the high volume of traffic on Noel Night. In addition, we encourage people to avoid driving into Midtown on John R as it gets backed up every year due to traffic.

Please see the directions below for suggested driving routes.

Driving Southbound/Northbound I-75 (Chrysler Freeway)
1 Take the Mack Avenue Exit 52.
2 Turn left onto Mack Avenue and drive west five blocks to Woodward Avenue.

Driving Southbound/Northbound M-10 (The Lodge)
1 Take the Forest/Warren Avenue Exit 3.
2 Turn left on Forest (which is one-way heading east).
3 Drive east four blocks to Woodward Avenue.

Best Bets for Parking at Noel Night

Each year at Noel Night, we experience traffic gridlock in the Midtown district resulting in 1+ hour delays for visitors in their pursuit to find parking. This year will be no different. Wayne State University Police will be out assisting with traffic control this year; however, we want to ensure that each visitor has the best experience possible during the short five hours of this amazing event. Please take the following recommendations into consideration:

1. ARRIVE EARLY
This includes for parking and the performance that you want to see. In some instances, this may mean 2 hours early.

2. ENTER MIDTOWN FROM THE I-75 MACK AVENUE EXIT or the M-10 FOREST EXIT
We encourage people to avoid driving into Midtown on John R. Every year it gets backed up due to the high volume of traffic.

3. PREPARE TO WALK
It is better to park in one of the structures on the outskirts of the event footprint and walk towards Woodward Avenue—a 10-15 minute walk is better than being stuck in traffic for 1 hour or more. Not only will you get a good workout, but you will also be able to access the highways quicker on departure, rather than if you parked in the heart of the district. Make sure to also dress warm and in layers.

4. PARKING COSTS $
Unless you’re one of the lucky ones and have a complimentary parking pass or find free parking on the streets (a rarity!), please be prepared to pay anywhere between $7-12 for parking in the structures. Those parking structures closest to the Detroit Institute of Arts generally charge $10. Please see our recommendations below for best places to park.

5. PARKING TICKETS ARE NOW $45
It’s best to just avoid this situation. Park only in parking structures or lots that are well marked and secured, or on streets that have signage that clearly indicate the rules for parking there.

Recommended Parking Structures & Lots

Expect to pay anywhere between $7-12 for parking in Midtown Detroit. There is metered parking on the street, but it will be difficult to come by during Noel Night.

• Detroit Institute of Arts Parking Lot | Cash + Credit Card
  Located on John R. St. across from the DIA, south of Kirby St. and north of Warren Ave. More info here.
• Detroit Historical Museum Parking Lot | Credit Card Only
  Located on Kirby St. between Woodward and Cass Ave. More info here.
• John R and Garfield Parking Structure | Special Rates for Noel Night
  Located on the southwest corner of John R and Garfield St
• Woodward Gardens Parking Structure | Cash + Credit Card
  25 W. Alexandrine
• Wayne State University Parking Structure 1 | Credit Card Only
  450 W. Palmer
• Wayne State University Parking Structure 3 | Credit Card Only
  45 E. Warren
• Wayne State University Parking Structure 6 | Credit Card
  61 Putnam
• Wayne State University Parking Structure 7 | Credit Card Only
  Mack/John R
• Wayne State University Parking Structure 8 | Credit Card
  91 W. Forest
• Wayne State University Parking Lot 23 | Credit Card Only
  38 W. Palmer
• Wayne State University Parking Lot 32 | Credit Card Only
  475 W. Palmer
• Wayne State University Parking Lot 33 | No credit card device (Available for Pre-sold passes only)
  5521 Woodward
• Wayne State University Parking Lot 35 | Credit Card Only
  5555 John R
• Wayne State University Parking Lot 72 | Credit Card Only
  4510 Cass
  Wayne State University Parking Lot 75 | Credit Card Only
  545 E. Canfield

DDOT & SMART

DDOT Line 4 (Woodward) runs Saturdays, 24-hrs with stops every 10 minutes during the day at every 30 minutes in the evening. For more information on DDOT’s route 4, visit here.

The SMART FAST route for Woodward offers limited stops and connects the suburbs to downtown quickly and easily. The new high-frequency service travels along Woodward and only stops at designated FAST stops. Stops are about every mile and buses come every 15 minutes. The route operates 7 days a week, even late-nights and weekends.

Also visit the Transit Guide: Detroit for additional information on transit options in Detroit.

Take the QLINE

Woodward will be completely open to traffic on Noel Night and the QLINE will be running. The QLINE is a 6.6-mile circulating streetcar loop serving 12 locations on Woodward Ave. from Downtown Detroit through Midtown, New Center and the North End. The QLINE is available to ride at no cost! For more information, visit qlinedetroit.com. The QLINE stops located within the Noel Night footprint are: Ferry St., Warren Ave., Canfield St and Martin Luther King Blvd./Mack Ave.