Things to Do in Dearborn Heights

Part dance party, part costume bash, and all spectacle, The Haunted Kingdom sprawls across 65,000 square feet. DJs, fortunetellers, and local celebrities shamble about an eye-defying dance floor flush with thousands of revelers dressed in their best getups. Lights pulse to body-shaking bass as silk dancers twist like spiders from the ceiling above dramatically lit skeletons. For this year’s spectacular, the organizers aim hard to break the Guinness world record for largest Halloween event.

Since the 1950s, the Ford Drive In has invited audiences to enjoy double features from the comfort of their own automobiles. The alfresco theater’s five screens show back-to-back screenings of first-run movies throughout the whole year, with films paired based on their rating and genre. Viewers can stay warm with the heat flowing from the outdoor car heaters, which keep them comfortable during the winter and prevent popcorn kernels from freezing to their tongues.

Phoenix Theatres transports its audiences to exotic lands, forbidden romances, and CGI-animal kingdoms of the 100% digital silver screen. With some films shown in Dolby Digital 3-D, crowds can immerse themselves even further into the suspended belief of film. Phoenix Theatres' Ensemble offers a rotating selection specialty programs such as plays, operas, and ballets. Concessions provide free refills on sodas and large popcorns, fueling imaginations for sprints toward stories' thrilling or heartwarming resolutions.

A lap around Skateland West’s sea-foam-green floor transports inline skaters back in time with psychedelic rainbow lights, arcade games, and music. Despite the retro-chic atmosphere, Skateland West keeps things modern with activities such as freestyle-skating sessions and inline-skating lessons. The center also has a staff of fitness instructors who run patrons through fun and challenging Zumba, kickboxing, kids’ dance classes, and yoga workouts to help patrons stay in better shape than a buff geometry teacher. The skating rink also hosts kids’ birthday parties and has a snack bar where skaters can refuel with sodas and pizza.

Vibrant colors coat walls surrounding the glossy rinks at ERDU Skate-A-Rama , where experienced staff members monitor skaters of all ages in a family-friendly environment. Equipped with rented wheels, skaters glide along smooth surfaces under colorful lights to the beat of lively music. Their family members, perched along the rink's perimeter, watch or take bets on who can do a figure eight the fastest.

Skaters can take a break from four-wheeled footwear to play arcade games at some locations or silence rumbling stomachs with bites of pizza or other snacks, such as cones from the ice-cream shop, at ERDU Skate-a-Rama, which serves up swirls of soft serve doused with fudge.