Cincinnati to Detroit drive: Distance, time & best stops
The best road trip stops on a Cincinnati to Detroit road trip are Dayton OH, Wapakoneta OH and Toledo OH. The distance from Cincinnati to Detroit by car is 263 miles, with a 4h14m driving time.
A Cincinnati to Detroit road trip takes you from southern Ohio to the biggest city in Michigan.
Top Cincinnati activities include underground tours – some with beer tasting – and food tours by streetcar. You can also try baseball history tours, indoor skydiving and guided ghost walks.
Top things to do in Detroit include the excellent architecture walking tours, the Sealife Michigan Aquarium and the Legoland Discovery Centre. The Motown Museum and Ford Piquette Avenue Plant are great, too.
Cincinnati to Detroit distance and driving time
By car, the distance from Cincinnati to Detroit is 263 miles. That makes for a driving time of around four hours and 14 minutes. The quickest route is up the I-75.
The best stops to add to a Cincinnati to Detroit road trip itinerary are Dayton OH, Wapakoneta OH and Toledo OH.
Cincinnati to Detroit road trip attractions: Dayton OH
Dayton, Ohio, isn’t a massive city, but it has more than played its part in history. It was here that Orville and Wilbur Wright created the first plane capable of manned, sustained flight. The original Wright Cycle Company Shop that still stands is not where the Wright Flyer was made – that was a future incarnation of the company HQ – but it was home to their bicycle business.
In Dayton, you can also visit the SunWatch Indian Village, a recreated Native American village, and the National Museum of the US Air Force.
Best stops between Cincinnati and Detroit: Wapakoneta OH
Wapakoneta, Ohio, is home to the delightfully odd Temple of Tolerance. Created by artist Jim Bowsher, this place of refuge has been created over two decades through a process of finding big rocks and moving them into position.
But Wapakoneta is best known as the birthplace of Neil Armstrong, the first man on the moon. The Armstrong Air and Space Museum pays tribute to the pioneer astronaut while also looking at Ohio’s contribution to space exploration.
Cincinnati to Detroit drive: Toledo OH
The National Museum of the Great Lakes in Toledo, Ohio, really embraces the scale and scope of its subject. The aim is to show how the Great Lakes have shaped America’s cultural, economic and political history, covering everything from the Underground Railroad to Prohibition-era rum-runners.
The highlight of the visit is the Col. James M. Schoonmaker, once an iron ore freighter plying its trade on the lakes, now a museum ship.
Other Toledo experiences include Toledo Zoo.
More Cincinnati road trips
Akron to Cincinnati | Cincinnati to Atlanta | Cincinnati to Boston | Cincinnati to Buffalo | Cincinnati to Chicago | Cincinnati to Cleveland | Columbus to Cincinnati | Cincinnati to Dallas | Cincinnati to Denver | Cincinnati to Houston | Cincinnati to Kansas City | Cincinnati to Knoxville | Cincinnati to Indianapolis | Louisville to Cincinnati | Cincinnati to Memphis | Nashville to Cincinnati | Cincinnati to New Orleans | Cincinnati to New York City | Cincinnati to Niagara Falls | Philadelphia to Cincinnati | Pittsburgh to Cincinnati.
More Detroit road trips
Detroit to Atlanta | Detroit to Baltimore | Detroit to Buffalo | Detroit to Chicago | Cleveland to Detroit | Columbus to Detroit | Dallas to Detroit | Dayton to Detroit | Fort Wayne to Detroit | Grand Rapids to Detroit | Houston to Detroit | Detroit to Indianapolis | Kalamazoo to Detroit | Detroit to Knoxville | Lansing to Detroit | Louisville to Detroit | Memphis to Detroit | Detroit to Milwaukee | Detroit to Nashville | Detroit to Niagara Falls | Philadelphia to Detroit | Pittsburgh to Detroit | Detroit to St Louis | Toledo to Detroit.