Name: Fat Thursday - An Annual Polish Holiday Tradition!
Start: 2026-02-12T00:00:00-05:00
End: 2026-02-12T23:59:00-05:00
Location: Fat Thursday - An Annual Polish Holiday Tradition!

Feb 12

Website

Overview

Fat Thursday = Permission to Indulge (Thanks, Poland!) Before Lent begins, Poland celebrates BIG — and by big, we mean mountains of paczki, sweet treats, and zero guilt. Fat Thursday (Tłusty Czwartek) dates back centuries, when Poles believed eating rich, sugary pastries would bring good luck and prosperity for the year ahead. Refusing one? Bad luck. Eating three? Excellent life choices. And here in Detroit, there’s one place that keeps this tradition deliciously alive… Hamtramck — Detroit’s Polish heart — where bakeries fire up before sunrise and paczki disappear faster than you can say “just one more.”

Distinctively Detroit Tours’ Fat Thursday Tour is your golden ticket to:

Authentic Polish history & traditions
Multiple Paczki (yes, plural)
Stories of Hamtramck’s Polish roots
An Authentic Polish Lunch with Polka Music and Polish Vodka
Guided Tour of the Hamtramck Museum
Visit the Polish Art Center
Guided Tour of St. Florian Catholic Church
A celebration that feels like stepping into Poland for the day

This isn’t just a food tour — it’s a cultural celebration, a sugar-fueled history lesson, and a once-a-year tradition you don’t want to miss. Come hungry. Leave happy. Possibly needing a nap. Fat Thursday only comes once a year — make it count.

Departs from New City Presbyterian Church, 2441 Pinecrest Dr, Ferndale, Michigan at 9:00am and is estimated to return at 5:00pm (please park in the back lot of the church close to the bright green dumpster)

Departs from MDOT Carpool Parking Lot Southfield, 26937 Lahser Rd, Southfield, MI 48033 at 9:45am and is estimated to return at 5:20pm