Things to Do in Maryland

Baseball fans shouldn’t miss a visit to the birthplace of George Herman “Babe” Ruth in Baltimore. The well-preserved, humble row house includes the upstairs bedroom where the baseball player was born, plus displays of family memorabilia, sports paraphernalia, and Ruthian records. The museum also highlights the history of the Baltimore Orioles, Ravens, and Colts, and other regional sports teams.

Offering sweeping views of the Inner Harbor, the Hard Rock Café Baltimore is one of the city’s most historic and popular places for dining on the water. Though the restaurant itself was only established in 1997, it’s located inside the Pratt Street Power Plant that was built in in 1900. With its Neoclassical, terra cotta construction, the building is a famous Inner Harbor landmark that in 1987 was added to the National Register of Historic Places.

Enjoy your meal on the outer deck with views looking out at the harbor, where Francis Scott Key, in 1814, was inspired to write America’s national anthem while imprisoned by British forces. The Americana lives on today through burgers and rock n’ roll, and memorabilia hangs on the walls from some of the country’s best artists. See one of Prince’s custom-tailored outfits or a flask belonging to Jimi Hendrix, as well as clothing from British rockers like Elton John and The Who. Pair the view and memorabilia with American food and live music, and the Hard Rock Café Baltimore becomes an experience and sight unto itself.

An historic Baltimore neighborhood situated on the Chesapeake Bay, Canton is an ideal stop for travelers that want a dose of outdoor recreation and easy access to the waterfront. The hub of the neighborhood is Canton Square, a patch of green surrounded by sophisticated restaurants, galleries, and shops.

Spanning 184 miles (297 kilometers from Washington DC through Virginia and Maryland, the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park was created in 1961 as a way to preserve the once bustling Chesapeake and Ohio Canal. Active from 1831 to 1924, the canal was a major industrial route used to transport coal and timber.

A visit to the Edgar Allan Poe House & Museum is a journey into the mind of the famous American writer. Built in Baltimore in 1930, the unassuming 5-room row house is a shrine to Poe, who lived here for two years. The museum showcases Poe’s daily life and writings he penned in the home, while his grave is at nearby Westminster Hall.

This scenic island off the coast of Maryland is home to fewer than 3,000 people and a popular destination for Baltimore and Washington, D.C. residents looking for a weekend escape. An expansive boardwalk, easy boat access and plenty of fresh seafood restaurants make this an idyllic Chesapeake Bay spot. An ancient lighthouse-turned museum provides a bit of historical context, and visitors can embark on harbor cruises or relax during one of the summer’s well-attended outdoor concerts. Art-loving tourists can check out the Annmarie Sculpture Garden and Arts Center, which is affiliated with the famed Smithsonian, then saddle up to the lively Tiki Bar, where tens of thousands of visitors gather each year to imbibe on delicious fruity cocktails with impressive water views.

In 1814, when the British Navy sailed up the Potomac to set Washington DC alight, they didn’t pass far from the site where the Calvert Marine Museum sits today. While that was one of the Chesapeake Bay’s more dramatic historical events, the entire maritime heritage of the region is on display at this family friendly museum. Here in the riverfront town of Solomons, visitors can learn the about coastal species such as skates, otters, and rays, or watch as coastal paleontologists help to clean and classify fossils. Take a walk through the “living classroom” at the museum’s coastal salt marsh, where children can learn about the marine ecosystem and everything that helps it to thrive. Crafters can stop in the wood carving shop to see exquisitely intricate boat models, or sailors can tour the Patuxent Small Craft Center with its collection of classic boats. The exhibits and fossils aside, however, the main draw of the Calvert Marine Museum is the historic Drum Point Lighthouse—a screwpile, cottage-type lighthouse that’s one of only three remaining in all the United States. Constructed in 1885 in a unique, hexagonal style, the lighthouse was moved in 1975 to the Calvert Marine Museum, and is now listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.

Baltimore is known for its offbeat attractions, and the American Visionary Art Museum is one of its most idiosyncratic. The museum specializes in showing the work of outsider artists, those who typically have had no formal art education and work outside the mainstream art world. The museum taps guest curators for all its shows.

Serfs, wenches, knights, horses, lances, swords, and falcons - they’re all a part of an action­ packed outing to Medieval Times Baltimore. Leave the modern city behind as you travel to the 11th century, enjoying the show as a guest of the King inside of his lavish castle. Prior to sitting down for the feast, wander the gruesome Torture Museum and learn about hunting with falcons, before settling in for a four course meal that you literally eat with your hands. When it’s time for the evening’s main show to begin, choose a knight you think will win the series of jousts and combat, where swordsmanship and horsemanship are impressively put on display. Join the crowd in raucously cheering - or booing - depending on the knight, and experience the thrill of a night on the town in the spirit of Medieval Spain.

The Smithsonian-affiliated Annmarie Sculpture Garden & Arts Center is the perfect meditative blend of natural forest, manicured landscape, and human-sculpted abstract art. Located in a leafy peninsular nook between the Patuxent River and the Chesapeake Bay, the 30-acre center contains dozens of permanent fixtures as well as installations on loan from the National Gallery of Art and the Smithsonian Intuition.

A quarter-mile elevated boardwalk meanders through the garden, where Stonehenge-like rock arrangements, gorgeous metal loops, contemplative human forms, and moss-encased natural sculptures sit spread among the leaf litter. Near the entrance, an indoor gallery and event space offers rotating exhibits.

Though open year-round, the best time to visit the garden is during spring and summer, when holiday-themed festivals and events bring the landscape to life. The gardens make a great day trip from Washington D.C. or downtown Baltimore, and can be visited on a relaxing tour of Solomons Island, with wine, lunch, and dinner included.