Explore the Best Attractions in Maryland

Top Historic Sites to Visit

Begin where the National Anthem was born: Fort McHenry in Baltimore pulled about 394,000 visitors in 2024, and rangers still fire the noon cannon on summer Saturdays. Two hours west, rolling cornfields hide the stone fences of Antietam National Battlefield, where 197,000 travelers traced troop lines last year. 

Swing down to Dorchester County and the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Visitor Center, which layers audio diaries over the tide-marsh landscape she once crossed—bring binoculars; bald eagles nest here each spring.

Outdoor Activities and Parks

For salt-spray therapy, locals drive to Assateague Island to scout the 79 wild horses confirmed in the 2025 spring count; sunrise hoofprints on the dunes feel straight out of a travel poster.

Swap sand for shale at Patapsco Valley State Park, Baltimore’s closest dose of mountain-bike single-track, or head to far-western Garrett County where Deep Creek Lake State Park rents paddleboards six feet from where black bears occasionally lumber past.

Unique Culinary Experiences in Maryland

Maryland menus live and die by blue crabs, yet 2025’s Chesapeake survey counted just 238 million crabs—one of the lowest totals on record, so order responsibly: pick locals over imports and savor every Old Bay-dusted bite.

Can’t stomach claw work? Grab a pit-beef sandwich at Baltimore’s Lexington Market, which re-opened in its sleek new shell and now runs Monday–Saturday, 6 a.m.–5 p.m..

Wash it down with a cream soda from Baltimore’s 1911-founded Waverly Brewing, or chase the state’s signature dessert—Smith Island layer cake—on Route 50 where church ladies still bake them nine layers high.

Ocean City: A Beach Lover’s Paradise

Must-See Ocean Attractions

Ocean City’s three-mile boardwalk—three if you’re counting, 4.5 if you jog the full out-and-back loop—anchors everything. Ride the 1960s wooden carousel at Trimper’s, then snap a selfie with the giant marlin at the inlet (“White Marlin Capital” isn’t just chamber-of-commerce fluff).

Peak weekends balloon the town’s headcount to 320K and help push annual visitation to roughly 8 million folks, meaning the crowds are real but so is the energy.

Beach Activities and Entertainment

Morning surf lessons break just south of the pier; by afternoon, parasail lines arch over the skyline while the OC Air Show’s F-35 demo team rattles hotel balconies in mid-June. Sunset belongs to the free movies on the beach—pack a hoodie; Atlantic breezes bite after dark—and to the Wednesday fireworks that thump over North Division Street. I

If you’re up late, classic arcades still swap your dollars for yellow tickets and saltwater-taffy-stuck fingers.

Dining and Seafood Spots

You can’t throw a boogie board without hitting a crab-house, but savvy diners detour bayside. Try Hooper’s for all-you-can-eat blue crabs when supply allows or notch a reservation at Liquid Assets where the bartender pours rye-forward old fashioneds heavier than the traffic on Route 90.

If the weather sours, the eight-tap craft-beer bar inside the new Cambria Hotel keeps Boardwalk views minus the sand in your fries.

Discover Baltimore’s Vibrant Scene

Art and Culture Experiences

Baltimore’s art scene splits neatly between high-brow and street-wise. On one end, the Baltimore Museum of Art—still free every day—drops a Henry Moore in the sculpture garden and lines the contemporary wing with ’90s sneaker culture.

On the other, graffiti-loud Station North is already sketching plans for Light City’s big comeback later this year: the festival will flip the Inner Harbor into a neon playground from August 9 through February 6 2026, layering glow-in-the-dark art walks, pop-up poetry, and DJs posted under I-83 until the lights click off at 10 p.m.

Shopping and Local Markets

Modern Lexington Market folds 50-plus vendors under a cathedral of skylights—Faidley’s crab cake remains the rock-star, but don’t skip Connie’s chicken gravy over fries.

Saturday mornings, head south to Federal Hill’s Cross Street Market for boutique oysters and a cold-brew flight, then walk five blocks to check Ravens Stadium mural updates.

Upcoming Events in 2025

From late-summer on, Baltimore’s social calendar cranks into high gear. The Baltimore Book Festival pops its author tents in Waverly September 13–14. Downtown, Charm City Live turns Market Place & Pratt into a free music-and-food block party on September 20. 

Autumn keeps rolling with the waterfront-wide Fell’s Point Fun Festival October 10–12, then laces up for the city-spanning Baltimore Running Festival on October 18.

Keep tabs on Light City’s nightly BGE Light Art Walk schedule—the glowing jellyfish-and-LED installations under the skyline beat any bar tab.

Washington Events and Activities

Summer Events to Experience

Marylanders claim National Harbor the way New Jersey grabs the Shore. The waterfront launches the free Salute the Sunset military-band concerts every Saturday at 7 p.m., May through September 2025. Upstream, the Smithsonian Folklife Festival blooms on the National Mall July 2–7 with this year’s theme “Youth and the Future of Culture,” and yes, admission is still zero dollars.

Outdoor Festivals and Gatherings

National Harbor’s free Movies on the Potomac series keeps rolling Thursday and Sunday nights through September 28, so you can plop a chair on the plaza and catch everything from Snow White to The War of the Rohirrim with the moon glinting off the river.

Toward month’s end the music crowd takes over the city: the DC Jazz Fest floods Wharf piers and The Anthem with five days of Grammy-level sets August 27–31—think riverside horns, midnight jam sessions, and the DCJazzPrix finals for bragging-rights new bands.

Just up I-95, Timonium’s midway lights flip on for the Maryland State Fair, spread across three long weekends—August 21–24, August 28–September 1, and September 4–7—with thoroughbred racing at lunch and fried-oreos after dark. 

If turkey legs and lute music are more your vibe, the woods outside Annapolis reopen as Revel Grove: the Maryland Renaissance Festival kicks off August 23 and runs every weekend through October 19, complete with jousts, harp solos, and mead slushies.

Book lovers get their turn a week later when the National Book Festival marks its 25th anniversary at the Convention Center on September 6, packing author talks, signings, and an all-day podcast studio under one roof.

Historic Tours and Attractions Nearby

If you’re already south of D.C., carve out half a day for Mount Vernon—okay, technically Virginia, but the Potomac doesn’t care about state lines—and another for Piscataway Park across the river where costumed rangers demo 18th-century farming.

On the Maryland side, keep an eye out for the ghost-story-heavy walking tours in historic Alexandria (also crossing the river lines) and the War of 1812 sites clustered around Bladensburg’s waterfront.

Bucket List Activities in Maryland

Unique Experiences to Try

• Tackle the Great Allegheny Passage for a 150-mile rail-trail ride from Cumberland to Pittsburgh; pedal past canal lock ruins, then recover with a Cumberland steamed burger at the Queen City Creamery.
• Book a sunrise paddle with Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge guides—watch tidal marsh fog burn off while ospreys dive for breakfast, a moment that sells more kayaks than any sporting-goods aisle.
• Every late July, dare the gravity-defying Patapsco Tubing Run: launch at the Daniels area and bounce five easy river miles to the pick-up lot, punctuating float time with a rope-swing splash.

Must-Visit Spots for Tourists

First-timers should still lace up for a climb up Sugarloaf Mountain (easy thousand-foot summit, winery at the base), tour the Naval Academy’s crypt-cool chapel in Annapolis, and cap the night with a crab feast at Cantler’s where picnic tables stain with Old Bay faster than sunset. In autumn, Deep Creek’s oak ridges glow like a painter’s palette; by winter, Wisp Resort lets you ski within sight of the lake you wake-boarded two months earlier.

Planning Your Maryland Adventure

Maryland packs an astonishing spread—battlefield musket smoke, neon Ferris wheels, jazz riffs on city stoops, and wild ponies munching beach grass—all within a morning’s drive. Plan smart, keep an eye on those ever-changing crab counts, and you’ll leave the Old Line State with Old Bay under your nails, a few megabytes of sunrise photos, and a vow to come back before the season turns again.

Things to Do in Maryland FAQs

When’s the best time to hit Ocean City without shoulder-to-shoulder crowds?

Mid-May and late September flank the high season; water’s warm enough, hotels drop rates, and you still catch festivals like Springfest or Sunfest without the eight-million-visitor summer swarm.

Is Artscape really free?

Yep—Baltimore’s signature arts blowout costs zero dollars to enter, even after its 2025 shift to Memorial Day weekend (May 24–25) and slick two-day format.

How big is Assateague’s wild horse herd now?

Park biologists counted 79 horses in March 2025—up a hair from recent years but still carefully managed to protect the fragile dunes (facebook.com).

Any can’t-miss summer events near Washington D.C.?

The Salute the Sunset concerts at National Harbor run every Saturday evening May–September, and the Smithsonian Folklife Festival takes over the Mall July 2–7 with hands-on crafts and global street food.