Detroit among 50 best places to travel in 2016

Elissa Robinson | Detroit Free Press

Detroit's comeback is getting noticed!

Travel + Leisure magazine just named the city one of the 50 "Best Places to Travel in 2016." It ranked 27th.

"In a few short years, Detroit has gone from being a cautionary tale to a success story," writes Travel & Leisure Digital Travel Editor Corinna Quinn. "Detroit might not be able to sell its comeback story for much longer - it's decidedly back."

The magazine touts Detroit's nearly 100 new restaurants, breweries and distilleries. It also mentions several exciting draws for potential tourists, including Michigan's first Aloft hotel in the historic David Whitney Building and the West Riverfront Park. Plans to revamp the old Detroit Fire Department headquarters near Cobo Center into a boutique hotel are also moving toward a January 2016 opening.

Visitors to the city will also notice a improved retail scene with new outposts from John Varvatos and Carhartt. In spring 2016, Nike will bring new energy to Woodward Avenue with a 22,000-square-foot store.

By making the list, Detroit is in sophisticated company. In addition to American cities like Detroit, Pittsburgh and Seattle on the list, the magazine's editors and writers chose up-and-coming places in the world like Borneo, Casablanca, Siberia, Havana and Bocas del Toro, Panama. To explore the full list of Best Places to Travel in 2016, follow this link.

Detroit Free Press Travel Writer Ellen Creager (ecreager@freepress.com) contributed to this report.