Ford hosting winter festival at Michigan Central Station during auto show

Ford is giving Detroiters and guests another chance to enjoy the historical Michigan Central Station. 

The company is hosting a new, 10-day winter festival at the station starting Friday, Jan. 18, 2019. It runs in conjunction with the auto show. 

The festival's activities are taking place in the evenings of Jan. 18 - Jan. 27, beginning at 5:30 each night. There will be music, food trucks, shopping and kids activities, along with a special 3D light show on the building that they promise will be "unforgettable." Admission is free. 

Ford says a first-of-its-kind exhibition of train station artifacts will also be on display. 

Ford opened the iconic station back on Halloween with a family friendly haunted house but, unlike that event, this event is free and open to the public so you don't need a ticket. (Don't get too excited, though. All the festivities are outside so this isn't a chance to get indoors and check out the building.)

The festival is happening after every public day of the auto show, which is about two miles away at Cobo Center. 

Ford says they're looking into offering a free shuttle that would run from Cobo Center to the train station, as well as to/from some Detroit neighborhoods. Those details will be announced soon. You can get more details online here

Meanwhile, if you head to the station for the event you may notice some changes. Construction for the renovation is underway, and began with winterizing the massive, 105-year-old building back in December.

Ford acquired the iconic train station in Corktown in June, and plans to transform it and surrounding properties into a 1.2-million-square-foot innovation campus where Ford and its partners will work on autonomous and electric vehicle businesses, and design urban mobility services and solutions. The project will bring approximately 2,500 Ford employees to Corktown, most from the company's mobility team, and an additional 2,500 jobs with Ford's partners and suppliers.