My first travel advice thread. How exciting.

Anyway, I've been a little obsessed with Detroit and its post-apocalypse vibes ever since seeing these images a while back:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/gallery/2011/jan/02/photography-detroit?mobile-redirect=false

There's obviously a lot more to the place, including a fantastic musical heritage, but the abandoned buildings and the story of a society decimated by the collapse of its industrial roots fascinate me.

I've wanted to visit since seeing those images, but now I have the chance a lot of practical issues have been nagging at me and its kind of difficult to find advice online (which is probably not a great sign). So, does anyone know:

- how accessible these locations might be?
- how easy they might be to visit without a car?
- crucially, how safe they would be?

Any other tips much appreciated. Detroit is potentially one stop in the middle of a Seattle-NYC rail trip, so we could spend 1, 2, 3 (or 0) days there.